


Legend of the Heavenly Dragons - Original: Un-Revised

by Tohka_Yatogami



Category: Highschool DxD (Anime)
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-03
Updated: 2018-06-29
Packaged: 2020-08-20 23:15:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 90
Words: 649,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20235982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tohka_Yatogami/pseuds/Tohka_Yatogami
Summary: (Imported work from fanfiction.net)Life isn't a straight path, and we never get to choose how ours begins, but we have the choice of where it goes. However, sometimes it takes a light to guide us through the darkness. This is the story of how one girl finds her light, and even love, through a fateful meeting.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is part of my unfinished works, being the first of two reboots, which you can find on FFN as "Legend of the Heavenly Dragons"
> 
> In this particular case, it's the "un-revised" version of it, which contains so many crossover characters to fill peerages that I can't count all of them. I don't consider this a crossover though because they just fill space more than anything.
> 
> Also, this story was originally named "A Dragon's Heavenly Bonds" before it became LOHD, so you'll see that until the Chapters reach the 30s.

**Alright everyone, first non-DAL story (and hopefully not the only one) here on FFN, before I begin though there's something I promised to do. You see, this story idea was only possible because of the idea from another story I've read since it began on here last year, and before I even considered it I wanted to make sure the author was OK with me using how he represented a character in his story and certain ideas linked to said representation in a similar way.**

**So, I want to recommend a fellow author and one of the few who helped me get back into the writing game through the sheer amazement of the stories he created, AzureStoryTeller! He has only 6 stories, but all of them are amazing, my favorite being the very story that inspired this fanfic and the one I asked if he was alright with me using a similar idea to: The Will to Endure and Protect_,_ I recommend all of his stories, especially to any DxD fans who also like Fire Emblem or Final Fantasy.**

**To anyone who's read "The Will to Endure and Protect", this first chapter might seem similar to certain parts of his story, but that's only because he said he didn't mind if I used any of his ideas related to how he depicted his version of female Vali in his story, so I have his approval. I promise that by Chapter 2, this story will take its own direction as I have no intention of making this story a carbon copy of his own, with one example being unlike his story, the Issei and Vali (with her full name being Valina) of this fanfic don't have a history with Akeno prior to Volume 1's events.**

**I will admit this now, as this is the first time I'm not doing a one-shot or a short story... I'm a bit nervous and worried about how I might do. Only my first story has been completely original, but as it was a one-shot, I don't feel it prepared me as much. So, at first, things may be a bit slow, but only because I worry how I'm gonna do. Either way, I'm gonna do my best with this story, so it's time to begin it.**

* * *

Long ago, so long that it was said to have happened an eternity ago, there was a great battle that enveloped the world with Humanity oblivious to the entire event.

This was a war between beings of the supernatural realm that spanned the world, dependent on Humanity itself, especially those of Christianity. Four factions of species fought one another, the Angels who fought under god, the Fallen Angels who had been banished from Heaven into the Underworld, the Demons of the Shadow Realm and the Devils of Hell.

Each side fought one another alongside the species that had chosen to ally with them for the sake of their survival. No one today truly remembers what caused the war to begin, although the most accepted theory was it was to prove their superiority due to originally all four being Angels under God, a division that began when the Angel known as Lucifer did not agree with the will of God.

After his voice did not sway god, he spited the gift of the holy light he was given and ripped it from his being, eventually he would by chance come across the prison of the true first human woman: Lilith, who Lucifer learned would not let Adam have his way with her. Their shared anger soon gave birth to a dark demonic power that flooded Lucifer's body, born of their pride and anger, transforming Lucifer into the first Devil. Taking the name of Satan and Lilith as his Queen, he took this energy and created the Devil race, soon becoming not a mere being under God, but the shadow that equaled him.

The Demons would come next, after seeing the result of what Lucifer had accomplished, a large group of Angels began to question God themselves but split into two factions on how they did. The first faction believed they could create their own path, and tried to replicate what Lucifer did by rejecting their holy energy and replacing it with the power of shadows which were cast by the holy light of Heaven. They were unable to fully deny their holy power, as Lucifer only succeeded due to gaining extreme hate for God, causing them to be similar yet different creatures, becoming the first Demons.

The second faction that began to question God however would not deny their Holy energy, so one of the Angels believed they should simply show God that his ways should change in a direct manner, and in the guise of Humans defied many of Gods rules. Once they returned to Heaven, they believed God would see their proof as a means to change, but he refused and instead used it to punish them and instead cast them out of Heaven, despite the taint from falling out of Heaven, their refusal to deny their Holy energy simply caused the dark influence of their sins to make their wings black and darken their holy power, making it impossible for God to reclaim it.

From there, the decision to start the Great War finally happened, whoever struck first remains a mystery, but soon Heaven, Hell, the Underworld and the Shadow Realm all brought the fight onto Earth. The various species not tied to other pantheons had no choice but to pick a side to ensure their survival.

However, there was one race that refused to get involved with any of them and stayed neutral through the entire conflict. They were the Dragons, powerful beings born of pure energy, and even noted for having one of their kind exist before God. Various reasons existed for why they refused to fight for anyone, the freedom to live how they pleased, the ability for their souls to revive even if killed, among many more.

Despite Dragons in general not fighting, this would not stay the same. During late into the war, two Dragons who had been born early into the war met one another, and made a discovery about one another.

The First Dragon was a red dragon known as the Welsh Dragon, or the Red Dragon of Domination, Ddraig. He was a fire drake born in Wales that had become known for having a powerful fire.

The Second Dragon was a white dragon known as the Vanishing Dragon, or the White Dragon of Supremacy, Albion. He was a hybrid of a frost drake and a poison drake that eventually became known for possessing an extremely venomous white mist.

However, their respective elements were too powerful, and this led to both having no reason to live, yet no way to end their lives due to the biology of Dragons... however, that all changed once they met. To each of their surprise, their respective power did nothing to the other, the two finally felt alive for the first time as they met a rival that could challenge them. They each sealed their elements away and began to duel each other constantly.

Ddraig would soon develop abilities that relied on his pure overwhelming force to crush enemies, while Albion created more strategic and tactical abilities to counter Ddraig's own, both adapting and creating new powers in response to the other's.

Their constant duels would soon unknowingly bring the two of them into the Great War's crossfire, and by then their power had grown to the point that it could make both God and Satan envious. Their most recent fight was threatening the war, so all four factions agreed on a truce to try and stop the Dragons... needless to say, Ddraig and Albion were not happy with their attempts to stop their battle and retaliate together.

It was soon clear that they could not win against the Dragons' might, so God, who had created a system of legendary items called the Sacred Gears to have Humanity defend themselves from the war used his power to trap their souls inside two such items. The damage from trying to stop them made the Great War's remaining time short, and soon... the war ended with no winner, and nothing gained but the threat of pushing all four factions close to the brink of extinction.

The two Dragons' battles did not stop however, the sacred gears would find hosts that would act as the Dragons intermediaries that could fight for them. As the four factions slowly began creating methods to help recover, these battles continued, one side winning and occasions where the hosts wouldn't meet due to the death of either one of them, all because they are fated to fight...

...but what if somehow, this cycle could finally break? What if the Red and White Dragons could finally write their own destinies?

* * *

Out in a park area, a small brown haired boy with spiky hair was playing catch alongside an orange haired boy with a small ponytail, they were spending their last day together before the orange haired boy had to move away due to his father's job having to make them move to England for reasons he didn't know.

"Come on Issei, again!" The orange hair boy called out.

"OK!" Issei replied, preparing to toss it again, however he stopped midway as a car horn was heard. The orange hair boy frowned knowing that it was finally time for his family to start driving to the airport.

"You have to go now, don't you?" Issei asked sadly, while he may have still been young, he was old enough to understand that his friend was going away and wouldn't be back for a long time if ever.

"Yeah, I'm sorry Issei." The orange haired boy said. He quickly ran over to Issei, and the two friends exchanged one last hug together before Issei watched him head towards the car and get inside, he stood watching as the car drove away, taking away his only friend somewhere that he couldn't follow. He picked up his ball and slowly trudged to a nearby bench where his parents were waiting.

Why was it Issei didn't have any other friends? Well, while he was already showing signs of one day becoming a pervert, at his age most kids didn't get that, so it wasn't a problem... at least not yet. No, there was another reason Issei couldn't make friends aside from his friend currently moving to England.

Issei had a sacred gear, but it wasn't a normal one, it was a Dragon type sacred gear... specifically, the Boosted Gear. The Boosted Gear was one of 13 powerful sacred gears called the Longinus, specifically it was considered a mid-class Longinus, which were known to have the potential to kill gods. The beast inside this sacred gear? The Red Dragon Emperor, Ddraig, one of the two dragons whose actions led to the Great War's end.

Dragons gave off powerful auras, and as a mere 6-year old child, Issei's body leaked it off subconsciously which made many children feel intimidated by his presence. The only exceptions would be those who had some familiarity with the supernatural and could tell there was a Dragon inside him. Issei had been aware his friend's family were Christian, but not that his father actually did work for real Angels.

No one else like that was currently present in Kuoh, or at least that Issei and his parents had ever made contact with, so he was unfortunately once again without a friend to play with. As Issei's parents saw him sit by the sandbox, they both felt worry.

"Dear, do you think Issei will be able to find another friend? Irina was all he had." Mrs. Hyoudou wondered, she had been worried since the news of Irina's parents moving how Issei would feel after and the signs were already showing now.

That's right, Irina was the boy's name, or rather that's just what Issei thought. Irina acted a lot like a boy and even made herself look like one, not to mention she kept telling Issei she could call him "Rin", which was unfortunately not a gender specific name. Issei's parents never told him because they didn't realize he didn't know this.

"Hmm..." Mr. Hyoudou thought hard on this, he didn't want to lie but at the same time felt afraid of giving an honest answer to that question. He didn't want his son to grow up alone, and honestly wished he knew why everyone avoided him, he just wished he had some sort of sign that things would change.

* * *

A week after Irina and her family had left, the sound of a truck had entered the ears of the Hyoudou family, they looked out to see a moving truck as a man with black and blonde hair with a short beard on just his chin wearing a business suit was seen standing at the house. He was the man that had decided to buy the house Irina's family had used to live in. He turned as he noticed Issei and his parents come outside.

"Ah, you must be my new neighbors. I'm Austin Azel." The man said offering his hand for a handshake.

Despite the name he introduced, his real name was actually Azazel. The Governor General of the Fallen Angels, and the original Fallen, being the one who had convinced the faction of Angels to defy god. In his case the reason he had fallen was by sleeping with a human woman, which to this day he still considers was totally worth it.

However, his real name was one of the few supernatural names that anyone would recognize unlike a Devil family name such as Gremory which to someone unfamiliar with Devil terminology or the Ars Goetia wouldn't instantly recognize as connected to Devils. Admittedly "Austin Z. Azel" was still kinda obvious, but it at least blended with human culture and he was powerful enough to back up his threats.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Seiji Hyoudou." Issei's father said, introducing himself as he accepted the handshake. "This is my wife, Hana Hyoudou, and my son Issei Hyoudou."

Hana smiled while Issei slowly waved at him, still feeling somber from Irina's recent departure. Azazel looked surprised when he noticed Issei, there were two reasons actually as he could tell Issei had a sacred gear, but it was the second reason that he was paying more attention to.

"Oh, so you have a son? I wish I had known that before I came here, or I could have been prepared." Azazel sighed, rubbing his head.

"Is... that a problem?" Hana asked, raising her eyebrow slightly.

"Oh no, not at all. I just feel embarrassed because I have a daughter. Had I known my neighbors had a kid, I could have told her she might be making a friend. Come here sweetie, say hi to our new neighbors." Azazel said, looking at one of the boxes.

While at first nothing happened, eventually the sight of a girl's hand came into view, after a bit she fully came out revealing a young girl the same age as Issei with silver hair and blue eyes. She tried not to get close or fully look at them, almost as if she felt vulnerable or afraid to be in direct eye contact or even nearby.

"I-it's nice to meet you, my name is Valina, b-but you can... call me Vali." Vali introduced herself, speaking in a quiet yet somewhat shaken tone that felt off considering her father seemed quite loving.

That was the thing though... Vali wasn't actually related to Azazel as she wasn't even a Fallen Angel. Vali was originally born to another family, however due to various circumstances, she eventually ran away and when Azazel found her it was clear to him she should never go back to where she had come from. Knowing the girl had strong mental scars and trauma, he decided to step up and adopt her as his daughter.

As for what Vali was? She was a half human, half devil. Specifically, her real name was Vali **Lucifer**, Azazel was still unaware that she was the great granddaughter of the Devil King himself, meaning unlike most Devils she had great potential within her. However, because she was also part human, she had been born with something else that made her not that different from Issei, her own sacred gear.

What was hers? In a shocking twist of fate, the Divine Dividing, the very sacred that opposed the Boosted Gear because it housed the White Dragon Emperor, Albion. Unlike Issei she had already learned of her Sacred Gear, but still hadn't used it yet despite her birth family's best efforts. By all means... despite neither knew it, the two would eventually become rivals fated to fight the other.

"Vali's a bit shy, so try not to crowd her too much." Azazel said, noticing the Hyoudou's wondering about her refusal to fully look at them and making up a convincing lie on the spot. Despite Issei having a sacred gear, he didn't want to involve the family in the supernatural.

Meanwhile, both Seiji and Hana mentally hoped to each other that Vali might be a good sign for them, or rather for Issei and her to become friends. There was some worry in the both of them that there was a chance she might not want to get near Issei either.

They did have another neighbor, but their child had been the first to show that Issei couldn't seem to make friends until Irina had come. Needless to say, Vali's appearance only brought a chance, but not a definite. Either way... they hoped to put their faith in what could be Issei's only chance of having a friend.

After a bit, Issei and Vali ended up getting a good look at each other.

"Hi there, my name's Issei." Issei said, introducing himself, but accidentally getting really close.

All three adults worried about this as the thought of Vali getting scared crossed their minds... however, quickly those worries were turned to dust. In fact, to Azazel's surprise, Vali actually got closer to Issei, something he hadn't ever seen her do before. He wondered if their sacred gears might be involved since as a Devil, most human children would be as easily terrified by the aura of her demonic energy.

"I...ssei." Vali softly said, slowly turning her head to look directly at him. After blinking a bit, she smiled lightly as for the strangest reason she didn't feel any discomfort bearing near this boy she had only just met.

"Do you wanna go play together?" Issei asked, hoping she'd say yes. He didn't know why but there was something... special about Vali that made him want to be close to her. Vali didn't speak, but lightly nodded her head. Soon Issei took her hand and lead her to his backyard, his parents looking relieved at the fact it seemed Azazel's daughter would become friends with Issei, while for Azazel he was simply glad Vali was finally opening up to someone besides him.

* * *

For the next few weeks, Azazel had been stressing his brain over what kind of Sacred Gear that Issei possessed within him. He was only six years old, and yet he gave off an aura that intimidated many near him, but that wasn't uncommon for most supernatural beings so that didn't tell him much. Not to mention that he wasn't been targeted by any supernatural beings that wanted his power of feared it enough to kill him.

Was it possible that his Sacred Gear was so dormant within him that it's full power simply wasn't leaking itself out, maybe Issei was simply not strong enough for whatever was inside him for him to receive any proper responses which lead to his aura only being slightly noticeable to beings like him. When he had asked Vali about it, she said she could only feel something familiar, so his best theory right now is his sacred gear might have a demonic attribute to it.

He hoped that his paranoia was unfounded, and that the sacred gear wasn't the danger he was worried it might be, unfortunately... reality chose to be cruel on one particular day.

"I'm gonna get you!" Issei giggled, chasing Vali as they played a game of tag in her backyard. Vali also laughed a bit as Issei tried to chase her, though not having much luck as Vali was slightly faster than him, making him need to rely on using the backyard's fence to have any chance. Right as Issei got close, Vali suddenly felt a sneeze coming on, and soon...

"Achoo!"

Vali sneezed lightly, but in the process two white mechanical wings glowing with blue energy popped out behind her back in a small flash, it was her sacred gear: Divine Dividing. Vali gasped in worry before she dispelled them and hoping Issei didn't see, good news is Issei had been so close to her that the flash temporarily blinded him, and he didn't notice them as he rubbed eyes. Vali was about to sigh relieved... until for a brief moment, she saw a green flash on the back of Issei's left palm.

'That glow, that's...' Vali thought, suddenly she felt herself filled with fear. She only knew one sacred gear that fit that condition and would react to her. The sacred gear inside of Issei was... the Boosted Gear, the one holding Albion's rival dragon. Issei Hyoudou, her only real friend since she began living in the human world, was... the enemy she would one day have to defeat.

"Watch where you sneeze Vali." Issei said, finally regaining his sight, but once he could see Vali, he noticed her suddenly scared as she looked at him. "Vali? You look scared, what's wrong?"

Issei tried to reach out to her, but soon she suddenly began crying and ran inside to his confusion, he knew she was shy, but he had never seen Vali react like this. Did he upset her, or did she think he had hurt him? He decided to wait and hope things were OK. Meanwhile inside, Azazel noticed Vali run in before she curled up into a corner.

"Vali?" Azazel called out, worried about his daughter's current state. Vali didn't register anything he said however as she curled up more, holding her hands over her head and ears as she closed her eyes. Fear overwhelming all her senses.

'No! I don't want this, make it stop! Please!' Vali thought, his expression beginning to twist into one of extreme fear as her breathing became unsteady. Azazel tried shaking her, hoping she'd respond, but no luck. "I don't wanna fight Issei, he's my friend!"

That reaction alone suddenly made Azazel freeze up, he knew the two had only been playing tag outside. There was no way they could have just gotten into a fight when he hadn't even heard either of them yelling at each other before hand. He was well aware of his daughter's sacred gear, the only thing that could make her say that was...

"Oh no..." Azazel paled, realizing Issei's what sacred gear finally was. He brushed that aside however as he embraced his daughter close. "Vali! Don't be afraid, daddy's here! It'll be OK!"

Vali gasped as Azazel's words finally reached her, and she began to calm down, her breathing slowed and returned to normal as the maelstrom of her mind finally ceased. She sniffled a bit before hugging Azazel and crying a bit, despite being calmed, more had overflowed her mind than just the thought of having to fight Issei.

"D-daddy!" Vali cried, clinging to Azazel like she never wanted to let go. Azazel had a good feeling that this wasn't about what she had just found out about Issei and felt this may be the only chance he might ever get for answers about what happened to her that led to him finding her on her own.

"Vali... tell me what's wrong, tell me why you're upset." Azazel asked.

"I... I've done horrible things daddy." Vali hiccupped, too afraid to hide anything anymore.

"Grandpa made me do it, he... he said I had to hurt or kill people who are my enemies. The Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou are enemies. G-Grandpa says... enemies can't be friends; they have to fight until one is dead. The one day I said no, he... he killed my mommy and daddy, and I ran away."

The Sekiryuutei and the Hakuryuukou, while Ddraig and Albion were the Red and White Dragon Emperors, their hosts were similar respectfully given these names to differentiate between the Dragons and the ones wielding their power.

The Sekiryuutei were most often known for being powerful fighters who fought and persevered on their own, reflecting the first of Ddraig's abilities born of fighting with Albion, [Boost], which doubled the user's power every ten seconds but could also give it to someone else. The Hakuryuukou were most commonly charismatic leaders who brought people together to become their power, reflecting the ability Albion made to oppose Ddraig's, [Divide], which halved the power of an opponent every ten seconds and then and sustained the user with that same power.

However, that was the last thing on Azazel's mind, what concerned him more than the fact who this Grandpa that told Vali would have to fight her enemies without any choice or say even was. Azazel had a good feeling that if he asked, he'd need to use every bit of willpower to not suddenly use one of his artificial gear still in development and murder the bastard.

"Vali... who was your grandpa? Why did he make you do such awful things?" Azazel sweated, wondering if Vali would even answer this question.

"G-grandpa's name is... R-Riz... Rizevim?" Vali answered softly.

At that moment, everything went so quiet to Azazel, he was sure if he had spread out his wings that he'd be able to hear one of his feather's dropped to the ground. The good news? There was no way he'd need willpower to keep himself from heading off to kill the bastard, but the bad news? He couldn't go kill him because Rizevim was the child of Satan and Lilith, the first descendant of the Lucifer line and one of the few legendary Super Devils.

Rizevim had always been known for being a sick bastard that took pleasure in doing cruel things just to ease his own boredom, his cruelty was so awful that even most Devils including his own parents believed him to be too extreme, it had been no surprise when his own father disowned him. Unfortunately, he was still alive, and as this showed, still causing trouble in his own ways... having used his own son and grandchild to please himself.

'Rizevim... that sick bastard!' Azazel thought, struggling to keep his anger from showing towards Vali.

Now it made sense to Azazel why Vali was so traumatized, Rizevim had been doing everything he could to turn his granddaughter into a weapon due to possessing the power of a Longinus. Vali had just been very lucky to have said the right thing to get away from him.

"Vali... you don't have to listen to what he told you. He has no say over you anymore. If you don't want to fight, then you don't have to, if you don't want to make enemies then make them your friends. You may be the Hakuryuukou, but you don't have to fight the Sekiryuutei if you truly don't want to." Azazel explained to his daughter, now knowing what he needed to do for her.

"You're not longer bound by his chains, the right to choose how you live belongs to you and only you."

Vali soon starts sniffling and crying again, hugging her adoptive father as she felt she could truly cry the way she wanted to after years of suffering and pain. He held onto her for a few more minutes until he heard her cries stop and noticed she had fallen asleep. Placing her on the couch, he walked outside where a patient Issei was waiting.

"Mr. Azel, is she OK?" Issei worriedly asked.

"She's fine now Issei, she just dealt with a bad memory... Issei, can you promise me that you'll never tell anyone about what I'm about to tell you? Not even your parents, I want them to know Vali as she is now." Azazel answered, while Issei wasn't sure what he was saying, he nodded wanting to be able to help Vali if he heard it.

"I promise."

Azazel smiles at that. "Alright. The truth is... Vali's not my daughter by blood, she's adopted. Her real family was terrible to her. The reason Vali's not comfortable around others isn't because she's shy... she's hurt, traumatized by what happened with her family. The reason she ran in here was probably because she gave herself a panic attack." Azazel explained.

Issei blinked in surprise to hearing that, Vali didn't show any physical scars anywhere on her body, so hearing that she had a horrible birth family... Issei wasn't sure what to think. That didn't mean he could somewhat understand how she might be feeling, except for her and Irina, everyone but his parents and certain adults shunned him and turned him away, he knew more than anyone... what it was like to feel alone and not wanted. That was the one thing he did (that he knew at least), have in common with Vali.

"Mr. Azel, I promise that I'll protect her!" Issei said, and Azazel smirked at his claim. It could be very possible that this generation would be one of change.

'I'm gonna put my bets on it, I've seen enough of wars already.' Azazel thought, wondering what the future would bring.

* * *

A few years passed until it had been 4 years since the day Issei and Vali met, and their friendship only grew stronger during this time. Issei had slowly began becoming more perverted to his parents' unfortunate dismay, while Vali's usual shy self slowly vanished to be replaced with a kind yet still someone quiet girl who only was bothered by her traumatic past under certain conditions or an occasional nightmare.

When Issei finally heard part of Vali's past from Azazel, he told Vali after she had woken up that he promised to protect her. That was the moment Vali knew that no matter what happened if Issei ever learned of his Sacred Gear, he would still be her friend and not her enemy. However as of the most recent month she wasn't herself and both she and Issei noticed this. Issei tried to learn what was wrong but she didn't tell him, truth was she had been trying to realize just what it was, and today she had finally realized it, and soon went to see her father while he was at work in the Grigori headquarters.

"Hmm? What's wrong Vali, is something the matter?" Azazel asked, briefly taking his eyes off his work to look at his daughter. He quickly noticed her eyes had a saddened look which told him this was something serious.

"Papa... I, want to leave for training." Vali said, and Azazel dropped what he was holding as the bombshell was deployed.

"...Is there any reason, I'm not saying I won't let you but-" Azazel trailed off, he honestly didn't know where this had been coming from. Unlike Issei he hadn't notice Vali's recent change due to his job as Governor General.

"Issei told me all those years ago that he'd protect me, but then recently I realized something. If he's out there protecting me... who's going to protect him?" Vali explained, that alone helped Azazel realize why Vali wanted to go training.

Unlike her, Issei was just a human despite possessing the sacred gear of a legendary dragon. In all honestly, Vali's heritage as a Devil of the Lucifer family, despite her nature as a hybrid, technically made her stronger than Issei was alongside the fact of the combat experience Rizevim had caused her to gain before she had run away from home.

There was only so much he could do if something inhuman tried to attack them, and Azazel knew Vali wouldn't want to have Issei give up being Human unless it was to save him from death or unless he somehow learned of the supernatural and agreed to it. Right now, neither was exactly an option because Issei was still young and Vali didn't have any Evil Pieces to revive him with.

"Hmm... alright then, I do have a few people who owe me some favors, so I'll have you go train with them. Though I want you to let Baraqiel and Penemue accompany you during your training journey. I'd rather you be with people you trust." Azazel nodded, granting his blessing to her wish.

Penemue was the only female among the Fallen Angels' current cadre and Azazel's Chief Secretary, while Baraqiel was another high ranked cadre among the Fallen... though he had recently lost his human wife to her clansmen who hunted her for falling in love with him, and his daughter had ran away blaming him for their mother's death because he had been called away on a job, only making it back in time to save his daughter's life, he needed something to help distract him and recover.

Along with his Vice Governor Shemhazai, they were both the most trusted Fallen Angels he knew of right now due to Kokabiel having a stick up his craw about the Great War having ended when he lived for the thrill of battle. If anyone could help keep Vali safe if any problems came up, he knew Baraqiel and Penemue would be here to keep her safe from harm.

"I understand papa, if you don't mind... I'd like to be the one who tells Issei that I'll be gone for a while." Vali said, happy that he said yes but now regretting what she'd have to do next, Azazel nods as even he believed she would need to tell Issei rather than himself. She was his best friend after all.

* * *

Issei was at home during some of his homework for school, groaning as all the thinking overheated his mind. He mentally wished for a distraction and quickly found it answered as a pebble hit his window. He opened it to see Vali looking at him. "Vali?"

"Hey Issei, can you come down for a moment? I... need to tell you something important." Vali quietly said, it barely took even a minute for Issei to close the window and come down, he had a good feeling that this was about what Vali wasn't telling him the last few days.

"I'm here, so what's wrong?" Issei asked, and Vali sighed deeply as she steeled herself to tell him.

"Issei... I'm going to be on a trip, probably for a few years. So... I'll be gone for a while" Vali said, making Issei's eyes widen. The situation felt really similar to him, he remembered Irina saying she'd be moving away and likely they may never see each other again. The only comfort he took this time was Vali was making sure to let him know she would definitely be back.

"What? You mean you're going away, why?" Issei asked, he had promised to protect her after all. How was he supposed to do that if she was too far away from him to do just that?

"Because... if you're protecting me, then who's gonna protect you? That's why I'm going. If you'll protect me, then I want to be able to do the same!" Vali answered.

Issei's eyes widened, and he felt something fly through his heart briefly at those words. He had never expected to hear that from Vali. She wanted to protect him as well... and she felt to do that, she had to leave, no... she felt she had to learn how to become stronger for him.

"...So, you're really sure about this? Well, if that's the case-" Vali suddenly felt Issei hug her, making her blush slightly. "Then I won't stop you, just promise you'll come back?

"Issei... I promise!" Vali soon cried, hugging back.

By the next day, Issei waited with Vali as Penemue and Baraqiel came, under the guise of Vali's aunt and uncle, to take her to the first location on her training journey. She and Issei gave another hug before she got in the car.

"Issei, promise you'll wait for me!" Vali called out through the window as the car drove off, Issei nodded as he drove back.

And with that, like after Irina moved, Issei was alone again... but this time he felt he couldn't just sulk. Vali intended to come back and after hearing her reasons, he felt he had to keep getting stronger for her. He walked into his house and to his parents.

"Mom, dad, I need to ask you something." Issei began, getting their attention. "I... I want to learn martial arts!"

* * *

Issei stood inside the walls of Kuoh Academy, a school that was originally all girls until a recent decision to become co-ed had allowed boys to begin attending the school as well. Right now the transition left the school with a large female ratio that dwarfed the male population, the smaller male population also being known within its walls to have most of them only be present for the sake of finding a girlfriend, especially since many of the female students were foreign exchange students.

It had been seven years since Vali had left, the two had kept in touch by letters and the occasional text or phone call, and while Issei did miss her he strove to use the wait for her return to grow stronger the same way Vali was by a human's standards.

Issei had taken a few self-defense classes such as martial arts, and had even practiced a bit of kendo, but not very much. Needless to say, the formerly young boy had become an internally perverted yet handsome young man standing at 5'10 to 5'11 in height with a muscular toned build, the kind of guy any girl would like as a boyfriend. Only reason he didn't have any girls gunning for him was because of a certain Prince of Kuoh took nearly every girl's attention from him.

While Issei was still unaware of what had been causing it, after he began training in martial arts what had driven people away from him slowly began to fade away and his loneliness from Vali's arrival was limited. Admittedly making friends was hard for him because he lacked experience, but at least people acknowledged him enough to not just walk away.

He had made two friends however who (unknown to him) were the first guy friends he had ever made, Motohama and Matsuda, fellow perverts who Issei often tried to keep in line because he felt pity over their loneliness due to their more open perversions. He often tried to help them tone it down, mainly as they both had their eyes on a specific pair of girls in the kendo club that he somewhat knew and wished them luck in meeting.

Today he was with them as they were nursing their heads after said Kendo club members had bashed them around for peeping on them. They had run away towards the Old School building and he had followed after the girls gave up their chase.

"Seriously you guys, did you really think they wouldn't hear you?" Issei sighed, most people would have given up on the two, but Issei didn't have the heart to do it. Only reason he wasn't considered a trio with them is because he didn't do the same things they did.

"Shut up, you honestly think we can change who we are in an instant? I'd like you to live our situation first!" The bald haired one, Matsuda cried out.

"We've lived in another world, to switch sides takes a journey and patience most don't instantly have!" The one with glasses, Motohama followed up.

Issei sighed, admittedly they had a good point as he recalled the time it took Vali to recover from her own past, his mind soon wandered as he suddenly caught the sight of something red in the opened window above him. He looked up to see a beautiful girl with crimson red hair and blue eyes looking out the window, he wasn't sure, but he swore she was looking at him or it at least looked like it.

"Whoa! Look at that honey, her sugar's got to be sweet!" Matsuda commented, seeing the beauty after noticing where Issei was looking.

"Bust 99, Waist 58, Hips 90." Motohama quietly stated, using his special ability to instantly see a girl's three sizes just by glancing at them. An ability known by many guys as the "Scouting Sight".

The girl before them was known as Rias Gremory, a third year student who was known as one of Kuoh's two Great Beauties and the head of the Occult Research Club, a club that was known for studying research related to the supernatural and often used in various occult groups as a hobby.

Rias soon turned and left the window view, sitting down on one of the club's couches as another beautiful woman with black hair in a ponytail held by a yellow ribbon was seen standing beside her, the second of Kuoh's two Great Beauties, Akeno Himejima and the ORC's Vice President as well as Rias' best friend since they had both been around 10 years old. A chess board was set at the table, with Rias currently thinking of which move to make next.

"Akeno, do you know who that boy was?" Rias said, still yet to make her move.

"Let's see... if I remember right, I believe he's in Class 2-B, and his name is Issei Hyoudou. Why? What makes you ask about him?" Akeno wondered, curious to her best friend's sudden interest. She only saw her like this on rare occasions, and wondered if this was one of said moments.

"I felt something strange from him, that's all. Ah, and checkmate." Rias said, moving her pawn into a spot that trapped Akeno's King in an inescapable position. She soon walked away before taking her clothes off and preparing to take a shower. As she went in and turned on the water, she wondered further about what she sensed from Issei.

'Such a strong dormant power, what kind of sacred gear does he possess? Though why... why did it feel like I sensed the trace of a Lucifer on him?' Rias wondered, knowing Issei clearly wasn't a Devil under her or Sona, and no other Devils she knew of were in Kuoh.

To most of Kuoh, it was believed Rias had come from Northern Europe, however if you were familiar enough with the Ars Goetia then you would realize Rias' name wasn't foreign in the slightest. She was in actuality the heir to the Gremory household of Devils of the 72 pillars, a high-ranking Devil family. The reason she was interested in Issei? Simple, she was considering having him join her peerage if he agreed to it, or if someone threatened to kill him for his power.

Needless to say, her thought would act as a premonition to things that were about to come, because very soon... Issei would no longer live as just a normal human.

* * *

The sun began to set as Issei began walking home across a bridge, Issei stopped for a moment as he yawned and looked at the sunset. He recalled the day when Vali had left, the sun had been setting at the time she and him had waved goodbye, making the sight of it a bittersweet memory, yet a symbol of her promise to return.

'I wonder if Vali's seeing the same sunset I am right now?' Issei thought, unaware of a guest who stopped by him.

"Excuse me, you're Issei Hyoudou from Kuoh Academy, right? Or am I wrong?"

Issei broke out of his thoughts to take a look at a girl with long black hair, purple eyes, and a soft almost shy and innocent looking expression on her face. She wore a red school uniform with a P emblem on the side that he wasn't familiar with, then again, he really only knew about his own school.

'Who is this, and what school is she from? Wherever she's from, she's smoking hot!' Issei thought, his perverted side flying out freely within his mind.

"H-Hi, I'm uh... my name is Yuuma, Yuuma Amano." Yuuma said as she introduced herself, so she actually was shy, or at least nervous from what Issei noticed.

"Is there something I can help you with?" Issei asked.

"S-sort of, I was just wondering... are you seeing anyone right now?" Yuuma asked, Issei blinked as he suddenly realized a certain flag, luckily not the red one (at least he hoped) suddenly get raised.

"Uh... no, I'm single right now." Issei answered honestly. Strangely despite his internal perversions, Issei hadn't really found himself interested in dating anyone for reasons he wasn't sure of just yet. He wanted to think maybe it was just he hadn't found the right girl yet.

"Oh, that's wonderful. Well... since you're single, do you... think you'd like to go out with me?" Yuuma asked shyly, blushing. Issei silently gasped as he had a good feeling where this might be going. "I've been watching you for a while, and you just seem so... gentle."

'Oh my god, is she gonna...' Issei thought as he expected two likely responses, both of which technically meant the same thing even if one was more direct than the other. Either she would 1., ask if he would be her boyfriend, or 1., request him for a date.

Essentially, he expected her to want to go out with him, although admittedly the second option might just be her way of asking out a boy because she's never been on a date.

"The thing is..." Yuuma started, her face going red as she mustered all her will to be able to even say it. "WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO GO ON A DATE WITH ME!?"

And result 2 it was. Issei stared for a moment, and soon his mental landscape showed his face going wide with shock, losing all his color and falling into a non-existent void.

'Holy shit! This isn't just some fantasy of mine, it's for real!" Issei thought.

* * *

Issei soon got close to his home, still in shock over what had just happened on the bridge. A girl had just asked him out on a date! He wasn't sure how serious she was, or if she actually wanted to be his girlfriend, mostly because he didn't know her well enough.

"I always expected to be the one who'd ask a girl on a date first, not the other way around." Issei said to himself, despite his surprise he agreed to go on the date with her. He felt he should at least be a gentleman, and maybe he might like it... plus he's never been on a date, so it was a good chance for him to learn. He soon walked to the door of his house, however before he could even open the door...

"Issei!"

The sound of that voice suddenly caused Issei to pause his hand before he grabbed the doorknob, gasping as he recognized it despite years of puberty having influenced it. He slowly turned around, only for a blur to suddenly tackle him onto the ground. Once they collided, Issei finally managed to get a good look at the blur that had slammed into him.

It was a girl the same age as he was that was close to his height, perhaps about an inch or two making her around 5'8 to 5'9 in height. She had long light-silver colored hair that shined noticeably in the moonlight of the night sky, as did her vivid blue eyes that radiate with a kind and soft nature. Despite Issei hadn't seen her yet, she had a figure that surpassed even that of Rias and Akeno's with her bust size even beat the latter's by a small but noticeable margin.

For her attire she was wearing a large loose black short sleeve T-shirt with a dragon design on the middle around her chest area, the sleeves being large and baggy so her arms could move around freely. A pair of grayed out tan khakis that barely went that far down her legs, a blue jacket wrapped around them and her shirt which due to the current season seemed like just a fashion choice than her really needing it, and short red socks alongside blue and white sneakers.

"It's been so long Issei, I can't believe it's really you."

Even though she had changed greatly since they had last met, changing from a cute young girl into a beautiful young lady that could win over the heart of any man, Issei instantly knew who this girl was... the girl he had been waiting to come back for the past 7 years to come back home.

"Vali..." Issei breathed. "It's really you."

"Yes, it's me." Vali said, her ears starting to fill with happy tears.

Issei got up and soon hugged her close, both letting tears of happiness leak out of their eyes as their long-awaited reunion finally came.

"Welcome home, Vali." Issei said happily.

* * *

**With that, the prologue's finally out of the way. I hope I got the right timing to end things by choosing to have Vali come back at the end of this chapter instead of waiting for her to reappear in the next one. It feels right to me, but I'm still unsure if I should have done something else... well I already went with it, so I guess I should trust my own judgment.**

**First thing I'll explain is in this story, Issei will end up as a Devil, but not under Rias, I have something else in mind to replace Issei in her peerage as she and Vali will be somewhat of friendly rivals. As of right now there's no definite answer on if I'll give Issei a harem or not just yet, if I do then I'll edit the summary and mention the current harem plan on the chapter that I make the decision on, so right now only Issei/Vali will be confirmed to happen.**

**For my choice of making Devils and Demons a separate species? Partially it comes from Testament of a New Sister Devil giving me ideas on how to make them different while also feeling that since Fallen Angels seem to be darker versions of Angels, I felt it would make sense to make Devil like beings who have some light to them, and I felt I could use Demons for that role.**

**I still have a lot to plan for when it comes to this story, so it may be a while before Chapter 2 is made, and the story will update like seasons in an anime so there will be a planned break after the Riser arc ends.**

**At the very least this chapter helps me form the basis to start this story, so I hope everyone enjoys it. I'll do my best to get things for this story fully set so I can get to work on Chapter 2.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Before I begin, I just wanna thank everyone for the amazing reception I got from the first chapter, especially AzureStoryTeller's review. His review helped quell all the doubts I had, and when I compared the faves and follows I got compared to other recently posted DxD stories... I was honestly shocked by how well this story did in comparison. Not to mention the views I got in just the first day? It nearly beat the record of my currently most viewed story.**

**I honestly made sure for this story's first chapter that I went full throttle and gave all of my effort to create, and I'm very happy with the result I got. I'm not afraid anymore to give it my all in my fanfics, I know I'll displease some people and I may make some mistakes, but in the end what I care about isn't how many views I get, how many faves or follows, or even the number reviews. The one thing I care about when I write a fanfic... is that the people that read it are enjoying what I've written, and that's what you all did, so thank you.**

**Most of all however, if I ever tell you guys that it might take me a long time get something ready for any of my stories... never take my claims about that seriously. I said it might be a few days before this chapter would be ready, and it only took me a single day to get the layout for Season 1 of this story and then make this chapter. Either Season 1 was just the easier part of the series to write for, or I just severely underestimate myself when it comes to my writing skills at this point ^^;**

**For the story itself as of this chapter, there are two important things I need to bring up. The first is Albion talk during this chapter, so here's how I'll differentiate Ddraig (once he shows) and Albion's speech from here on out in the story.**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'**

**Also, after some long consideration and some opinions from reviews and some PMs, I've made a decision in regards to the harem idea. The only pairing with Issei that's official will be him and Vali, so there's no harem aspect. Although once Irina appears in the story, she and Vali will be in slight conflict due to their shared status as childhood friends of Issei, but that's all I'll say until she actually appears.**

* * *

**Now before we start things off, as of this chapter I'm introducing a tradition that I'll be doing at the end of each chapter's starting notes. I'll share with you a concept or idea of mine that's been introduced in this story, but hasn't been touched upon, and go into detail about it. For the first chapter, I'm going to talk about something I'm sure some people in the Prologue were wondering about:**

** -Demons- **

**What was it that inspired my choice to create a fourth faction based on Demons? While I did mention that Testament of a New Sister Devil was the major factor in creating them, there's actually a bit more behind why I created the faction and added them in. When I first began viewing DxD, I loved the choice to have Devils in a plural sense for a species rather than just a position for the king of all Demons, in fact as a child I even thought that Devil referred to a species and Demons were just a form of Halloween monster.**

**Eventually around one point there was a certain fanfic I read, one I can't remember to share it other than it's not a DxD fanfic, mentioned a concept of four powers using "Light, Dawn, Twilight/Dusk, and Darkness". The Angels and Devils in DxD fit the Light and Darkness theme well, and I considered the Fallen Angels fit the Dawn theme best, but DxD had no species in the Christian Faction that fit that Twilight/Dusk theme in those powers unfortunately, yet after a few re-watches I noticed that sometimes the Devils would still be called Demons interchangeably.**

**That's when as I was thinking about this fanfic, I figured since I wanted to twist things from canon a few big ways already, why not do it by turning the Three Factions into the Four Factions, and I made my decision to create the Demon Faction. The choice behind me making them beings of darkness who failed to fully purge their holy energy when they were Angels was the result of me thinking of the Fallen's situation backwards, and also because of how Demons were said to be born in some versions of the Bible, yet DxD having never really explained their versions of the original Satans coming into being.**

**Right now though, the Demons only have their concept, powers and their origins created. They won't be appearing outside of mentions until the story adapts Volumes 3-4/Season 2 like the Angels which I won't begin planning until after I finish the adaption of Volume 1-3/Season 1, so if anyone's interested, feel free to share your ideas and help me finalize all the details for the Demon race, I can't promise to use them all and respond to all your ideas, but I will consider them all carefully at the very least.**

* * *

If you had asked Issei how his day had been, this is how he would define it. He woke up to the alarm on his cell phone, got dressed and had breakfast, then went through his usual routine at school where he went to the first half of his classes, bought lunch from the cafeteria, then finished the second half of his classes for the day. After that, he'd spend some time with Motohama and Matsuda, trying to help curb their perverted tendencies down to a more internal level in a long and gradual process which was... well he was sure that he had been making atleast some progress.

During that time period however the two had gone to peep on the Kendo club partially due to the two girls they were interested in most, and just to see the girls naked while they were changing their outfits, but they had been too loud and the girls caught them before smacking them around with their kendo swords and forcing them to retreat near the old school building where he caught a glimpse of one of Kuoh's two Great Beauties, Rias Gremory.

Then on the way home, he stared at the sunset longingly wondering when his best friend would be returning, only for a girl he didn't recognize from a school he hadn't been familiar with ask if he was indeed Issei Hyoudou, and it lead to her asking him on a date. He accepted to be nice, and was still unsure if she wanted to be his girlfriend or if it was just her way of becoming familiar with a date due to being shy. However, it was the last thing that happened that day that made him agree he had the best day ever, and that very thing was...

Vali, his best friend, had finally come back home! He was still hugging her hoping to never let go, but he knew he would need to. He just needed a way to not be rude about it.

"Issei, what are you doing out-" Issei's mother, Hana, had began before suddenly seeing the sight before her. She gasped at the sight of the young woman before her, instantly realizing exactly why she had heard the noise she had.

"Vali, is that really you!?"

"Ms. Hyoudou, it's been so long! By the way, you look as young and lovely as ever." Vali smiled, making Hana blush at the comment to the point she didn't care if it was just to be nice or Vali actually thought she still looked young. Noticing the commotion at the door, Issei's father Seiji soon walked our, and soon gasped as he was met with the same surprise as everyone else.

"Vali, you're back! When did you arrive? I'm so sorry we didn't have a way to prepare a welcome home for you!" Seiji said, unable to calm himself form the excitement which caused Vali to giggle a bit. Issei's parents were as lively and fun as she remembered the two.

"I actually just got back right as Issei was about to go inside, do you mind if I come in? My aunt and uncle already told my dad I'm back so he'll understand." Vali asked, she just really wanted to talk with Issei as long as she could. It was Saturday, so she wouldn't be able to spend every day in school with him until the day after Issei's date with Yuuma.

"Oh of course dear, you're always welcome in our home." Hana said, both her and Seiji moving out of the way to let her in as Vali and Issei came inside.

Soon the two best friends went into Issei's room, and Vali noticed quite a difference in Issei's room compared to back when she had left her training journey when the two had been only 10 years old. There was a gold trophy for a martial arts tournament along with two silver ones and 5 bronze trophies as well as some recognition plaques, not to mention a small kendo sword in the corner.

"Wow! I didn't realize you learned martial arts, and you even got first place in a tournament." She did notice Issei was quite muscular from her little tackle hug, but she didn't expect this was the reason behind it. Admittedly she was stumped about the kendo sword, but figured it might just be a small hobby.

"Well, I figured since you had been going out to train, I shouldn't just slack off. I wanted to make sure when you came back I would still keep our promise." Issei smiled, Vali smiled back as she remembered that day. Her promise to protect him like he had to her 11 years ago. Once Issei saw that smile, he suddenly realized what he should tell her.

"Oh... and here's a bit of a surprise, but I'm going on a date tomorrow." Issei said, feeling a bit awkward about it.

Suddenly he heard some heavy breathing, and noticed Vali looking at him, her nostrils being the source of said breathing noises. Ever since Issei could remember, when Vali got a bit upset or irritated over something, she'd end up loudly huff and puff through her nose. It seems seven years didn't do anything to this habit in the slightest, and Issei wasn't dumb, so he knew that his most recent response had to be the catalyst, he just didn't the specifics that made it begin.

"Oh really, that's... great Issei. I'm SO full of joy that you brought that up right as I finally came home." Vali gave a smile that gave Issei a strong chill, making him gulp a bit as he remembered how she was very good at being calm while angry yet clearly having her aura notice that she was indeed angry. However after a moment, the two both got themselves back to previous states.

'Strange, why do I feel so guilty now?' Issei thought, confused on why he felt that way.  
'Weird, why did hearing that make me all jealous?' Vali wondered, unsure where that feeling even came from.

"So what was your trip like? You told me that it was a secret until you finally came back." Issei asked, excited to hear about it.

Suddenly Vali internally flinched, her mental self suddenly thinking glass shattered around her three times in a row. She couldn't believe it, but she had been so excited to see Issei she forgot to convert her story into form that was meant for humans. She had made sure her father kept in touch in case Issei had ever gotten aware of the supernatural, and to this day, neither the Boosted Gear manifested, nor did Ddraig try speaking to him.

"Oh right, well... I began at Europe where I went to Greece and Rome where I learned some archery. Then I visited China and dabbled a bit in Crane style Kung Fu, and then did some parkour training in America before heading to Kyoto and dabbling in some Jujitsu and some chi meditation techniques." Vali explained on the fly, luckily managing to make a convincing story despite her initial goof.

A translation of what she really did however was she practiced some magic with the Valkyries of Asgard, specifically one named Gondul who had been her favorite teacher. Then met with Artemis who taught her how to focus on long distance techniques as Vali had a wizard type battle style, as well as some survival skills... by leaving her in a forest alone occasionally.

She then had Penemue and Baraqiel train her through some areas of America where they had some retired veteran Fallen Angels help her learn how to use her sacred gear better. However she had yet to unlock her balance breaker, something her father was stumped on.

Her second to last stop had her visiting the Yokai realm, where she met and trained under Yasaka, and met her daughter Kunou who became a good friend of hers and had become like the sister she never had. Finally she went to Hell, as she was a Devil she felt she needed to learn how to use her darkness powers to their fullest, though it was also the part of her training journey she hated the most, the current heir to the Bael family had been asked to train her, and he was a monster.

"Anyways... what's this girl like, she someone you've been friends with for a while? I recall you telling me you made friends with some guys so I assume you've made a few more since then."

"Oh, right. Well truth is I just met her today and only agreed cause I thought it'd be rude. Her name's Yuuma Amano." Isse answered, making Vali stiffen for a brief moment at the name, and Issei blinked.

"You OK Vali?"

"Huh? Oh, sorry, I think I trained so much I'm still having trouble trying to sit still right now." Vali lied, Issei believing it completely. She didn't recall where, but Vali was almost certain that she had heard that name before... Yuuma Amano. She hoped she realized this soon, because she was starting to get a bad feeling all of a sudden.

* * *

A certain small white haired Devil's mind looked over what she had just seen earlier and what she had spotted when Issei had returned to his home. At first, things had seemed to be going the way Rias had called it... until that one moment. It had been simple, just spy on Issei after he left and stop when he made it back home. It had started when the Fallen Angel calling herself Yuuma had asked Issei to go on a date and from there...

"Uh... Issei?" Yuuma asked, suddenly noticing his face had gone blank. She waved her hand a bit and that made him snap his attention back into reality.

"What? oh, go on a date? Uh... sure, we can do that." Issei replied, he didn't really have a reason to say no. Plus if he ever did get a girlfriend he didn't want to go on a date blind on what to do, and luckily Yuuma seemed nervous enough she was likely facing the same problem.

"R-really? Then is... is Sunday afternoon OK?" Yuuma asked, Issei nodded and she smiled a bit.

"OK, then it's a date... thank you for accepting!"

Yuuma soon turned around and headed off somewhere, while Issei had continued heading back to his house. The white haired devil known as Koneko walked into view, licking the Popsicle she was carrying on hand. Once she sensed he was far enough away, she slowly followed him, and for pretty much the whole trip, nothing eventful happened and she expected by the time the sun was almost gone over the horizon she'd just go back to Rias and report... until she had showed up.

'Huh?" Koneko thought, noticing Vali as she tackle hugged Issei and knocked him into the ground. Then hearing them clearly show they knew each other and then his parents knowing this girl?

Koneko suddenly felt Rias' expectations were going to be completely thrown off, because what was odd about this girl that seemed normal to everyone else... was that she was a Devil, but what kind she couldn't really make out as she wasn't too knowledgeable in how to tell the kinds of Devils appear from a glance.

'I should get back to Rias.' Koneko thought as she finished her Popsicle.

Koneko soon headed back, and once she did Rias and Akeno who were still in the club room despite it was now being early in night the night turned to see her.

"So how did it go?" Rias asked. She was expecting she had called things right, but Koneko's expression quickly made her worry.

"Once I got to his house, this girl suddenly came out of nowhere. What was strange about her however? Well... she was a Devil." Koneko quietly revealed, shocking the crimson haired Devil.

"Another Devil, on my territory? How can that be, I was sure only Sona and her peerage were the only ones besides us... did you get a name?" Rias wondered, this new Devil's appearance was making her nervous. True losing Issei was possible, she had accepted the fact, it was not knowing about this Devil that worried her.

"Yeah, her name's Vali, and apparently she's his neighbor. However I don't recall seeing her before today." Koneko replied, curious about the silver haired Lucifer's lack of presence. In the 5 years that Rias had gained ownership of Kuoh as her territory, Vali had already been out training for two years by then. Akeno looked around some registration files and soon found her name.

"Ah, here she is. Valina Lucilee, it says she's the adopted daughter of a Austin Azel who bought the house next to Issei's after the previous family moved, and have been living here since the following week after they had left, but... oh? It seems she was traveling abroad with some relatives for the past 7 years. She wasn't here when this area became your territory." Akeno said as she read the info, though she swore the name of Vali's adoptive father was familiar for some strange reason.

"So this is legit, still... guys, I think we need to rethink what we should be planning next. Right now this new Devil's intentions are a bigger worry than adding to my peerage." Rias said, both Akeno and Koneko nod in understanding. Rias always put the town's safety above all us, she might risk Issei dying or not having him join her peerage, but if the entire town was a risk she couldn't focus on a single live in the bigger picture.

* * *

The following afternoon, Issei was waiting as he was at the meeting place for his date with Yuuma. He looked around a bit worried.

"She should have gotten here by now, shouldn't she?" Issei wondered, either he was just early, she was late, or considering how she she was... she might actually be right around the corner and was just a bit nervous about Issei seeing her in her outfit. Luckily right as he thought this...

"I-Issei, hey!" Yuuma called out, and Issei turned to see her. She was wearing a short black dress with a small, light purple jacket on top and wearing short heeled sandals. Hanging on her left arm was a pink purse.

"There you are, I'm glad you came. You look really nice in that outfit." Issei said once he saw her, making Yuuma blush. She had been really nervous if she had picked the right outfit.

"Thank you, so you ready to start this date?" Yuuma asked, and Issei nodded. Right as they began walking to their first destination, Yuuma double checked her purse to make sure she had something, and luckily saw the flier still in view to her relief. How did she get this flier exactly, well...

* * *

Vali waved by to Issei and his parents as she walked out of their house, but instead of returning home she instead looked around before taking to the skies and flying. She quickly left the more populated areas to begin her search.

"Albion, notice the energy of anyone out of the ordinary?" Vali asked.

**(I do, a faint but clear Fallen Angel energy signature's resting near one of the warehouse docks.)**

"Alright, thanks partner." Vali smiled, soon zooming towards said docks before she landed. She walked inside and noticed the sight of a sleeping Yuuma against the wall,oddly comfortable despite the state of the place, and soon she shakes her awake. Yuuma's eyes scrunch a bit before she sees her, and after she blinked twice... she screamed in fear.

"W-Who are you!?" Yuuma stuttered in a panic, scared by the sight of the silver haired Lucifer before her.

"...Yep, I knew it. I thought I recognized your name. Yuuma Amano, you're one of the members of my father's faction in Grigori." Vali stated, while she wasn't really working under Grigori due to her experiences with Rizevim making her adverse to fights that didn't involve her loved ones being in danger, she was atleast familiar with most of the fallen Angels working under Azazel.

"F-father? Wait, that means your Lord Azazel's daughter, Vali Lucifer! Please don't hurt me, I beg you!" Yuuma whimpered, suddenly afraid Vali was gonna murder her based on how she came her, Vali was surprised she was so timid. That must have meant she was a low-ranked Fallen with only two wings, possibly still a rookie with little experience.

"Relax, I'm not here for that. I just wanna know the real reason you wanted to go on a date with my childhood friend." Vali asked, making Yuuma blink a bit. She was aware Azazel was interested in Issei, but only the higher tier Fallen knew more about Vali herself, mainly the cadre.

"Yeah, Issei and I've known each other since we were six. I just want to know why you're here, you can't just want to go on a date."

Yuuma's shaking slowly stops, and she sighs in relief as she realized she wasn't gonna die. She couldn't help it, she had always been a bit timid due to her time having to be an aid to a Fallen in Kokabiel's faction, the only exception being two Fallen she knew from Penemue's faction. Though now she was worried if Vali would yell at her for what she was about to say.

"Well, you see..." Yuuma looked left and right before whispering it to her, making Vali's eyes widen before scaring Yuuma by having her dragon's aura flare out slightly.

'I'm too young for this, please someone help me!'

* * *

Yuuma soon regained her focus before Issei noticed, and mentally did a raided fists pose of determination.

'Vali entrusted me to make sure Issei would survive this, I'm not gonna let her down!' Yuuma thought, trying to psyche her usual timid self up. Soon the date went by pretty fast, the two visited a clothing store where the two held up shirts to Issei with their facial reactions being a bit hilarious, as Yuuma looked around somewhere for a bit, she felt Issei tap her on the back.

"Here, a little gift." Issei said, holding up something he had just purchased. Yuuma blushed as she opened it to see a pink scrunchy like bracelet. She puts it on and shows it while still blushing shyly, Issei giving a thumbs up of approval.

Soon after they went to a small diner, Yuuma bought a parfait while just had a small lime frostie, though while Yuuma was eating she didn't notice her outfit slip due to the unintentional bouncing her chest, causing him to blush and look away out of respect. Though he did realize he should point it out before she accidentally gave any other boys a show... or possibly worse if she somehow were to unbutton it.

"U-uh, Yuuma? You might wanna... fix your jacket." Issei said loud enough for her to hear him, but quiet enough it was a whisper to anyone else. Yuuma blinks and looks down, suddenly blushes as she notices her jacket having slipped to show the edge of her bra. She quickly ducks a bit to pull it back up.

"I-I'm so sorry about that." Yuuma blushed, her face beet red. Issei waves his hand, silently telling her not to worry.

After that, the sun began to set as Yuuma and Issei were walking through the park. Yuuma was blushing a bit, having actually had fun despite her nervousness over the whole thing among watching out for any trouble. She took a look at her purse again, and didn't notice the flier so she checked for a second to see if it slid down... and soon showed a bit of worry as she couldn't find it, she swear she had seen it in her bag as they walked into the park entrance.

"Is something wrong?" Issei asked, noticing her suddenly rummaging through her bag as he stopped near the fountain.

"I'm so sorry about this, but I think something fell out of my bag after we came in. Let me go look real quick, just wait here!" Yuuma said in a panic, and Issei watched as she ran to look before he could ask to help... or before Yuuma realized she had left Issei alone and vulnerable.

And unfortunately for her, that had been a bad idea.

"Finally, I wondered when that little brat would leave the two of us alone." Issei suddenly became alert at the voice and moved his arms into a defensive stance, however it meant little when suddenly someone dropped in front of him and made him fall over. He looked up as he saw someone standing in front of the fountain, to his surprise she looked a lot like Yuuma, but it was clear that this wasn't the same person.

She was older looking in both facial appearance and body structure, had a slightly darker shade of purple for her eyes, and her outfit was best described as what some would call 'stripperific' with a dominatrix theme, leaving very little to the imagination... but what was the true difference was she had two crow like wings on her back.

"Who are you?" Issei said, he didn't know why, but something told him by her look towards him that she wasn't up to anything good, and not in a sexual way like her outfit would probably imply to some.

"You can call me Raynare, I see you had some fun with my younger sister. She was always so innocent... and very naive, and that mistake of hers will cost her here and now." Raynare answered, surprising Issei with the mention she was Yuuma's sister, then again she did seem like a older Yuuma.

That focus soon got shifted as he noticed her make some kind of spear in her hands, it looked like it was glowing with light, but it also gave of something... dark, like it was light touched by something dark or evil. Issei prepared to move and block her strike, having trained for such situations but...

"It's no good, time to die!" Raynare shouted.

Issei felt his hands burn as he tried to catch it, the spear not like the training ones he had practiced with, and soon he felt it stab him through the stomach. THhe spear vanished afterwards, causing himself to collapse on the ground as he starts bleeding to death.

"So sorry, but the fact was you were far too great a risk to us. I had no choice but to kill you. If you want someone to blame, then blame 'him' for giving you the Sacred Gear." Raynare said before she chuckles cruelly and flies off, Issei wondering what he was even talking about.

'...This is, am I really about to die? I only just got to see Vali again, this isn't fair! Mom... dad... Vali... I wish I could have atleast gotten to say goodbye to all of you. I didn't have the most fulfilling life, but...' Issei thought, however he couldn't finish as he starts to black out, he focus fading away. Right at that moment, Yuuma comes back and gasps in horror at the sight.

"Issei! Oh no, why'd I just leave him by himself, how bad it it!?" Yuuma panics, she checks his pulse and notices it's still weak and his body still had some warmth. She wasn't too late yet.

Grabbing the flier she had just found, she thinks of Vali, causing it to glow as she teleported via a magic circle. The heir of Lucifer's feet soon landed on the ground, and she opened her eyes to see the horror before her.

"My god, what happened!?" Vali asked, Yuuma shook her head to answer she didn't know. The fact that Yuuma had summoned her told Vali it wasn't too late for Issei though, she looked around her Evil Pieces. First a pawn, then a knight, and holding up more pawns until she found all 8 weren't enough and she came to her queen piece which glowed, making her sigh in relief.

"To think he's worth 9 pieces. Don't worry Issei, you're not gonna die, I just hope you'll understand this when I get the chance to finally tell you." Vali muttered to herself, Yuuma walking back a bit as she puts the Queen on Issei's chest.

**"In the name of Vali Lucifer, I call to Issei Hyoudou. Hear my command! Return my soul from the shadows of death to the human realm, rise once more as Devil's servant, rejoice for you have been given new life! Wake as my trusty aid and queen!"**

Soon the Evil Piece sinks into Issei's body, and a bright red glow goes off. Meanwhile within Issei, a strong power awakens from it's dormancy.

_'[He has awakened]'_

* * *

***Trip -Innocent of D- begins playing***

**(Instrumental plays)** Soon colored figures of a few girls slowly pass vertically up the screen before tons of the Highschool DxD logos flood the screen.

**(Instrumental picks up)** Vali in her casual outfit's seen from the front before the view shifts to her backside as all eight of her wings come out, and then Rias in her school outfit appears in the same was in the opposite direction with her two wings popping out. Both their families' magic as the fanfic title "A Dragon's Heavenly Bonds" appears ago in large size, sparkling a bit.

**(I'm intersecting these two worlds lines, as... I call out to the faraway sky.)** A young Issei runs before a magic circle appears under him and his older self appears, he looks towards a young Vali before she too becomes older as the moonlight shines down on her.  
**(As I'm dancing under the cross, a shivering voice creeps before eyes!)** An image of Kuroka, Bikou, Arthur and Le Fay all appear in succession with their own respective poses.  
**(I don't want to show you my weaknesses, but I can't seem to hide from my own life...)** Asia was seen by a artificial lake looking to the right before smiling as the the scene turns and a timid looking Yuuma looking nervously at a abandoned church as Raynare's form stares at her viciously.  
**(I'll receive the wind's blow... then shake it off all doubt... and move on beyond the end!)** Issei stands in an open field at night with his eyes, then opens them sharply, and raises his hand as the silhouette of Ddraig forms behind him and sets it all aflame.

**(Two drum beats before a guitar wail)** The sight of Sona and Tsubaki on the screen appears before showing Saji and the rest of the student council afterwards.

**(Release the impulse that's deep inside! Don't slow down as you build up your heart and will...)** Vali charges her darkness power as the image of Albion appears behind her, and then Koneko standing in the streets of Kuoh turns as tears shed down her face as she turns around to see the silhouette of a sad looking Kuroka.  
**(I... won't forget the longing look of yours deep inside!)** The Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing's forms circle each other as they near each other before a an image of Vali, Rias and Sona all appear like they were having a camera take their pictures.  
**(Regardless if I move forward or looking back...)** Issei and Vali both collide with Riser as he throws a punch at them.  
**(I won't ever stop walking towards the future of tomorrow!)** Everyone in both Rias and Vali's peerage post for a group shot in the club room.  
**(The light in my heart... it's been reborn once again, and I'll free within me the DxD!)** Issei Vali stand back to back against each other, their eyes closed before they open them and slowly reach up, a flash revealing their incomplete Balance Breakers before they fly off.

**(Instrumental)** Issei's suddenly surprised as Kuroka hugs him from behind and then rubs his cheek before Le Fay pouts from the other side and then hugs him too as Arthur and Bikou watch. Vali walks into view before the whole group sees Rias and her peerage before they all look forward as Ddraig and Albion's silhouettes in their respective colors appears in the background behind them.

* * *

Issei suddenly hears his phone alarm go off, and soon reaches his hand to turn it off as he wakes up.

"Man, I feel like I got hit by a truck, why am I so tired?" Issei groaned as he rubbed his head, suddenly he blinks a bit as he feels something's off. He swore he had just been at the park a while ago.

"Hold on, when did I get back home? Better yet why is it morning already?"

Suddenly Issei heard his phone ring, and he answered it to hear Vali pick up.

"Oh thank goodness Issei, you finally woke up! Around late noon last night that Yuuma girl saw you passed out on the ground, I ran over to help you home, are you alright?" Vali said, sounding both panicked yet relieved. Guess that explained why he was back in his room all of a sudden, he must have really worried Vali.

"I'm fine, and thanks for helping me out. I don't really remember what happened so I'm guessing it was a good thing you should up. Oh, is Yuuma alright?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, she was all freaked out but that was the worst of it for her. Anyways get ready, I'm starting school with you today, so let's make it a good first together." Vali said, Issei smiled and nods. Vali being in school with him again was really nostalgic, so he was as excited as she was, he wasted no time getting ready that he just grabbed a cereal bar for breakfast.

Vali had told him to go on ahead through a text, wanting to surprise him when she was in uniform, also unaware of another surprise she had planned.

* * *

Soon once Issei had gotten to school, he sat himself in class as the teacher walked in.

"Everyone, I have some exciting news, today we have a new transfer student joining our class. I hope you all give her a warm welcome." The teacher stated, Issei gasped silently as his teacher said it was a new 'female' student. That could only mean one thing...

Soon the door opened, and it was none other than Vali who walked into the classroom. Most of the guys all went nuts at the sight as Vali wrote the kanji for her human name, Valina Lucilee, on the board.

"Hello everyone, my name's Valina Lucilee, but please just call me Vali. I'm really excited to meet all of you." Vali said, giving a bright smile that made most of the guys scream internally. Including Matsuda and Motohama especially.

"Holy shit, she's hot!" Matsuda shouted, steam briefly blowing from his nose.

"Bust 108, Waist 57, Hips 91! I've never seen such a girl with such a supermodel body!" Motohama stammered, his scouting sight overloading. Vali suddenly blushed and covered her chest at his comment, feeling a bit violated by both his comment and the fact he somehow knew her sizes, before any of the girls could retaliate against her lechery the were shocked to see Issei karate chop the former's head while tossing an eraser at the latter due to his seat being further away.

"Oh no, for once I am not letting you perv out over a girl. That's my childhood friend you're gawking at!." Issei said, he was honestly appalled that the two did that in class of all places.

"SAY WHAT!?" Most of the class shouted.

"It's true, we've known each other for almost forever. I've been traveling abroad across the world with my ant and uncle for the last seven years before I came back home." Vali explained, smiling brightly as she was glad Issei told his two friends off.

Issei on the other hand had to do his best to hold the two back, trapping them in a lock hold while trying to avoid a ton of swinging fists from both of them while they spewed out curses like the plague. At the same time, Vali was already talking with some of the girls in class, including the kendo club captain and vice captain Murayama and Katase who seemed to become quick friends with her and also warned her about the usual trouble the boys brought to girls.

'She already looks like she fits in with everyone, and how lucky was it we're in the same class? It's just like third grade again.' Issei thought, still smiling despite his two friends attempts to strike him while insulting him.

Meanwhile unseen to either Vali or Issei outside the window, a strange cartoonish bat like creature watched them before flying off back to the old school building. After the time for lunch break came, Issei and Vali both sat together outside where Issei heard his stomach growl loudly.

"Maybe I should have grabbed more than a single cereal bar." Issei chuckled embarrassingly. Sighing like she expected the result, Vali holds out a packed bento box for Issei to his surprise, making his eyes sparkle.

"Honestly Issei, sometimes you're so hopeless. Be lucky I learned to cook while I was traveling the world." Vali giggled, sticking her tongue out. Issei smiled at that comment before looking at the amazing japanese lunch she had made him full of a rolled omelet, friend rice, takoyaki and a fresh salad with tomatoes. Issei takes a bite and soon his mind imagines him floating into heaven from the taste, his eyes tearing up.

"This is one of the best things I've ever tested, you'd make a good wife to whoever you end up marrying Vali." Issei said, completely missing how Vali's face went red briefly at the comment. She chuckles playfully before eating her own lunch.

* * *

Soon classes ended for the day, and Rias walked into the old school building as her Familair noticed her appear and flew onto her finger.

"I see, good work. So what can you tell me?" Rias asked, soon she listened to her Familiar's language that only she could understand in her current form, and soon some of the info she learned about Vali was... interesting.

'A half-devil, half-human? So she's not a pureblooded Devil or a reincarnated one. Then she shouldn't a real threat, still I should probably meet-'

She soon however had to focus again as she suddenly heard her familiar continue, mentioning something new about Issei. Rias's eyes widen as she heard the last thing that she expected to her.

"What?" Rias gasped, it was clear now. She needed to talk with this Vali girl now, what she just heard wasn't something she could ignore anymore, and she hoped things would be resolved peacefully. She would rather have an ally she had yet to meet then an enemy that hides her identity on purpose. While that was going on, Issei and Vali were packing things up for the day.

"Hey Issei, mind heading back without me? I wanna get more familiar with the school's layout for a bit." Vali asked.

"Sure thing, I'll see you later." Issei replied, waving to her as she waved back. However as he began heading home, he walked by a spot as the sun began to set that normally was too dark for him to see in, surprising him a bit.

"What the hell?"

Suddenly the sound of a child crying soon reached over to his ears, he looked around and noticed about 10 yards away, a young girl was crying towards her mother as she accidentally let go of her balloon.

"They're so far away, but I hear them perfectly. That shouldn't be... what's happening to me? It's like my body's changing." Issei muttered, starting to breath heavily as he felt a bit panicked. Suddenly his eyes widened as her recalls the fountain area of the park and runs over to it. After he stares at the water a bit... it suddenly comes back to him, how he was killed by some girl claiming to be Yuuma's sister.

"That wasn't a dream... it was real. So why is it that I'm still alive? Does Yuuma know about this, does... Vali know?"

Suddenly Issei felt a strange chill enter his body, almost as if some new sixth sense was screaming "danger, danger!" throughout his body. He turned around to suddenly see some strange weapon of light fly at him, Issei tried to back up only to jump like an Olypmic gymnast would. He was wondering if he should question what he could do anymore a this point.

"Well, well. This is unfortunate, me running into you that is." Issei looked to see a man in a trench coat walking from where the weapon of light had just been thrown, confused what was going on. "Looking for a way out?"

'What's this guy talking about!?' Issei thought as he prepared to run, however the man suddenly unfolded wings like Raynare's and flew the way he was running to Issei's shock.

"I hate the cowardice lower class beings like you have. Now Let's see here... your friends and master are nowhere to be found, you don't show signs of disappearing or any magic circles being deployed. Taking all of this info account, I'm going to assume you are nothing but a stray, so killing you won't be a problem!" The man shouted as he prepared a sword of light and threw it at Issei.

'No, am I going to die again, someone help me!' Issei thought as it neared him, only for a magic circle to appear and the sword of light shattered as a magic spell struck it. The winged man suddenly surprised as Vali herself appears from the magic circle in her usual outfit from yesterday.

"Vali!?"

"Keep your hands off of him, kill my Queen and I won't think twice about taking your life." Vali said coldly, a side of herself she only revealed when her love ones were threatened. The Fallen Angel man gasped as she saw her.

"You... you're lord Azazel's daughter! Well who knew, so he's one of your household?" The man noted, Issei was confused by what he was even talking about, or why Vali had just suddenly appeared before them.

"My apologies then for the misunderstanding. My name is Dohnaseek, and I pray you and I never again cross paths."

Vali watches as he flies off, and sighs from the narrow close call. However when she turns to face Issei expression had changed into one of guilt and also extreme worry, almost terror and fear from what Issei noticed.

"Vali, what's going on here... what did he mean? About a household, Azazel and... and how you just appeared form nowhere." Issei asked, his mind flooded with questions. Vali looked down, knowing the day she feared most had finally come. The day she revealed the truth to Issei.

"It's simply Issei, I'm not Human... or atleast not purely Human." Vali answered solemnly, confusing Issei before she suddenly revealed her eight Devil wings to him. He gasped at the sight of the leathery black appendages on her backside before they retracted into her back again.

"My true name is... Valina Lucifer. I'm a Half-Devil Issei, and as of last night, so are you. I won't blame you if this changes everything about how you think of me."

Issei stares before Vali, his best friend, and the sudden reveal that she wasn't just some mere Human, and now the name Azazel had made more sense, he was a well known Fallen Angel in religion. Recalling how he had been killed last night, he soon realized why she claimed he was a Devil... it was how she saved his life. As Vali expected rejection from him... she suddenly felt Issei hug her.

"...I don't care what you are Vali, you're still my best friend. That's never going to change. If anything I wish I had known sooner, maybe I could have done more to help you back then." Issei said, not a shred of doubt to hesitation in his blood. Vali suddenly teared up, hugging back as Issei's words echoed in her ears over and over. He didn't reject her, he accepted her just like he always had.

"Issei... thank you." Vali says, sniffling happily.

However, soon the tender moment quickly ended as Vali noticed the presence of another Devil and a familiar white haired girl entered the area. Vali and Issei turned to look at her, and soon enough...

"If you wouldn't mind following me, I have someone that would like to me you." Koneko asked, and the air around the three went still. Vali suddenly sweated a bit.

'...This could be bad.'

* * *

**No more life as a normal human for Issei, he's finally begun dancing with the Devils. *hears crickets chirp* ...OK, that was a bad pun there. I hope that little song insert that basically was this fanfic's version of the Season 1 opening (with the lyrics I chose essentially what I'd use if I was doing a english cover of the song) of the anime doesn't bother anyone too much, I just really wanted to do that in a fanfic. Don't worry though, it won't be a once per chapter thing, and I might only do it once more for Season 2 before it stops for good.**

**Since Issei's now a Devil under Vali, I should explain how strong he currently is compared to his canon self was at the beginning, and why I chose to gave him a Queen Piece. I'd define Issei's his physical strength is higher than his post-Tannin training self, his magical strength is atleast enough to jump through magic circles, and for his Sacred Gear it'll improve fast once the Raynare arc ends.**

**In regards to Yuuma/Raynare's situation in this story... surprise! I honestly like how Raynare's presented in her Yuuma alias, and I feel she had unused potential, yet she still needed that villain role, so I figured I'd make Yuuma as a separate character. The fact they're actually siblings will be important to this arc and Yuuma's later development in the story, so I hope you like this twist because to my knowledge, I think I'm the first one who's used such an idea in any DxD fanfic.**

**Twists like that aside, Chapter 1's finally done and I hope you enjoyed it. I personally feel it wasn't as strong as the Prologue was, but you can't make a story if you're not willing to make the occasional sacrifice of what may not be one of your better chapters. I do think it might have just been cause of how things work with Issei becoming a Devil so... yeah. Now that I've got the script for the first season all set, expect chapters around to be as soon as 1 day on my best, and three days at my worse, possibly later depending on the situation and real life.**

**For anyone asks why Vali chose "Lucilee" as her human alias' surname, its because the name Lucy and Lee's meanings. Lucy means "Light", while Lee means "Clearing, or Meadow," which makes the name mean "Clearing/Meadow of Light." Both meanings are foreshadowing, the latter relates to her past, and the former to an event in a later season of the story.**

**Now it's time for some additional info related to the story... admittedly this is the first time I've done this, so it might be kinda messy and sloppy with it. If anyone has suggestions on how I can fix it and clean it up, just let me know.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali**  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - ? (x1), unclaimed Bishop  
Knights - ? (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - ? (x1), ? (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias**  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (x1, became Mutation Piece, sealed), ? (x1, Mutation Piece, sealed)  
Knights - Kiba (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Koneko (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome back everyone, it's finally time for Issei and Vali to meet with Rias directly, while Issei learns a bit more about what it means to be a Devil and the things Vali and her father no longer need to hide from him.**

**Before I begin this chapter, I think some of my readers may have noticed that I had a few minor spelling mistakes all over the place, even if no one's told me about them. I apologize for that. It may be because I'm just getting back into the writing game, but for reasons I don't understand, if I make a mistake in my writing and it's not a spelling error, especially if the word is spelled correctly, I have only spot it 50% of the time.**

**Even if I double or triple check everything I might not see it, yet I easily spot it once the chapter's in public. I honestly don't get how it happens, except that I think this ends up happening most often when I delete or edit a line of text. I'll do my best to avoid to and amend this issue. While the mistakes are relatively minor, they still annoy and stress me out, and I'd rather limit the number of them that come up.**

**Most of you managed to figure out who'll be in Vali's peerage, though I don't think my intro song really hid that fact from all of you ^^;, I will say right here that they won't be appearing until the Raynare arc ends, right now I feel I should only focus on Vali and Issei or I'll overload myself managing the characters. Best to develop a few slowly, then move on to another group when the time is right.**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'**

* * *

** -Shadow Realm- **

**The Shadow Realm is the land that the Demons live in, it's discover was first made after the news of the Devils' creation reached the ears of Heaven's Angels. When the one faction of Angels decided to deny God and try to become different like the Devils, they searched around until they managed to find a realm that was the hidden shadow cast by Heaven.**

**The shadowy energy there was just what the Angels felt they would need to transform themselves like the Devils, and after trying to purge themselves of all their holy power took it into their bodies. However they were unable to completely do so, and lingers of the remaining holy energy mingled with the overflow of the shadowy power they had absorbed, twisting them into the form that created the Demon race and changing the realm to suit the civilization they would soon build.**

**The Shadow Realm's location is said to be below Heaven, but entirely invisible to non-Devils and non-Demons, and just as non-angels need a halo to enter Heaven, Angels need a similar form of aid if they wished to enter the Demon realm, otherwise they'd be harmed by the energy the Demons' presence has influenced over the last eternity. The Shadow Realm's most notable feature is that it has no day, just as Heaven is without the night, a result of being it's shadow which lead to the Devils giving it the nickname of "Dark Heaven".**

* * *

Vali had never been this worried or nervous one in her life. Having to fight and deal with things while under her grandpa's grasp? That just got her scared. Her training journey? She was pretty sure Penemue's big sister nature to her had been what kept it from being too bad. Being separated from Issei? She wanted to meet him so bad she didn't care if she had accidentally ran into him naked, so she had no doubts this was the worst case she had of getting cold feet.

Koneko lead them to the Old School building, making Issei blink at the sight as he remembered when he had been here with Matsuda and Motohama the other day after their kendo attack debacle. Vali noticed this reaction.

"You know this place Issei?" Vali asked, and soon noticed Issei nod before he answered.

"Yeah, I stopped by here the other day when those two friends of mine were being dumb. I think this is where I first saw Rias Gremory." Issei said, suddenly he noticed Vali freeze up and stop in place as she shook a bit.

"Vali?"

"...Issei, Gremory is a Devil's family name. Which means that this place has to be... aw hell, we're walking in magma now." Vali said, suddenly terrified for a variety of reasons, half of which Issei didn't understand due to them being personal or Devil related problems... and then a few that was just because he was a guy and didn't understand some parts of the female mind.

"Shut up and pull yourself together." Koneko said bluntly, surprising the two by how cold the response was.

Soon Koneko opens the door and they walk inside, and soon Issei notices a familiar blonde haired boy with a birthmark by his eye. He was one of the few boys that was more popular than Issei. In fact he was the most popular guy in the whole school, the "Prince of Kuoh" himself: Kiba Yuuto.

"No way, that's Kiba." Issei said, finally voicing his thoughts aloud. Vali looked at Issei confused, as she had only just transferred to the school as of today, she hadn't of the school's most famous pretty boy.

"Ah, hello there. It's a pleasure to meet the both of you." Kiba said as he lightly waved at them, and that was just one of the few things that made him so popular with the ladies. He was quite the gentleman, although Vali didn't really get why that was a thing due to her travels, she always assumed it was just some kind of trend like the fashion choice of a certain Dragon she recalled meeting near Kyoto.

"And I believe you've already met Koneko Toujou?"

"Wait, as in the school mascot? That Koneko?" Issei asked surprised, he looked at Koneko who had seated herself and was now eating chocolate. She just looked and slightly nodded to confirm it.

'Note to self, I need to talk with Issei about notable people in this school.' Vali said, mentally sweat dropping at what she was hearing.

"Ah, you must be our guests. It's nice to meet you." Akeno said, walking into view as she had clothes laid out by the shower that was currently in use. Issei quickly recognized her as Akeno Himejima, the second of Kuoh's two Great Beauties... or rather three considering Vali's looks and quick popularity might put her into the same group quickly enough.

"I'm the Vice-President Akeno. No need to worry, everyone here is super nice."

Vali felt a bit more relieved, she had heard rumors the Gremory's treated their servants with kindness, almost like part of the family. Something she wanted to follow herself after she got her own Evil Pieces. Right at that moment, the shower stopped as Rias got dressed and came out.

"Sorry for making you wait, I didn't think you'd arrive so fast." Rias said, drying off her hair. Vali blinked in surprise, the familiarity to another Devil she had met was so uncanny. He had mentioned he had a younger sister, but she didn't expect her to look like a younger female version of him.

"With that out of the way, we'd like to welcome to the Occult Research Club. I'm the club president Rias Gremory, but I think you know what I really am, am I right?"

"Yeah, Rias Gremory of the Gremory family I presume. A high ranking Devil family under the 72 pillars." Vali answered, making Issei blink in surprise.

"Wait, Rias is a Devil!?" Issei suddenly shouted.

"Yep, and it's not just here. I'm guessing this is your entire peerage you've got here?" Vali asked, she had noticed when she came in that Kiba and Akeno had both giving off the same aura as a Devil, although for some reason unlike Kiba and Rias, both Koneko and Akeno's auras were different, with the latter's being familiar to her. She wasn't sure why though since she hadn't met that many reincarnated Devils.

"Most of them, but they're still relatively close by so I guess it's not technically wrong." Rias said, revealing her wings before the rest of her peerage followed. Issei gasped in shock before he somehow did the same out of reflex. Unlike Vali however, he noticed they all had two, he was gonna ask about it... and then Vali gave him a look that instantly shut him up.

"You seem to have a diverse group there Rias. As you know I'm Valina Lucilee, or at least it's my human name, and this is my queen Issei Hyoudou." Vali replied, Issei tilted his head about the whole Queen thing but figured he'd probably learn about it later.

"Then what's your true name?" Rias asked, wanting to learn what Devil household Vali was part of and possibly the heir to. However...

"...I invoke my right to remain silent." Vali said with little emotion, suddenly giving a serious yet somber look. Rias was about to ask again, but Vali focused her look, and Rias clearly noticed she was pushing too far.

Then again, Rias admitted she understood a bit on why she might be hiding her true Devil name. Her best friend Sona had to hide her true Devil name in the human world because unlike her own, one didn't need to know any demonology to be aware that it wasn't just some fancy foreign name but something unnatural by human standards. Not to mention having her household's name has given her... some recent troubles, Vali may have a similar if not bigger trouble.

"My apologies, if you honestly don't want to share it then I'll respect it. Though I do need to ask is this really your whole peerage?" Rias asked, she was pretty sure Vali didn't just have the one servant with Issei in her fold. While it wasn't uncommon to make someone your queen first, Rias had made Koneko her Rook only a short time before they met and she became her Queen.

"Oh it's not, they're actually on their way here. I just wanted to hurry back and see Issei again so I kinda went on ahead without them... or even telling them I would." Vali admittedly sheepishly, after a bit of staring... Rias suddenly found herself giggling at the situation.

"I assure you though Rias, I'm not here to cause any trouble. I didn't even realize this had become your territory in the time I was away."

Everyone looked as Rias held up her hand slightly, needing a moment to stop her laughter. Vali sweat dropped and wondered if her going off ahead of the rest of her peerage had honestly been that funny. Once Rias could breath again she sat back up.

"Sorry about that, it's been a while since I've had a chance to let loose like that. I believe you though, I just want to make sure you were aware of things, I'd rather us be ally Devils. I'll be honest in saying we're not the only group of Devils here." Rias explained, making Vali blink. She had noticed something odd while she had been around the school, so it had been other Devils.

"I see, if you don't mind us, we should probably get home before my Issei's parents worry." Vali said, and after seeing Rias nod, she and Issei began heading back home.

"So, what do you think about them?" Koneko asked once their presence vanished.

"To be honest, I'm not sure. I will say that I think we've luckily managed to befriend a powerful duo of Devils at the very least." Rias smiled, while she didn't get Issei on her peerage, this was probably the next best result she could hope for.

* * *

As Vali and Issei walked home, Issei looked at Vali and it didn't take long for her to realize what he was wanting to ask her. So she decided to begin her explanation.

"Alright, we have the time so listen close Issei. There are various pantheons across the world, and all things supernatural and mythical, including cryptids, all exist within them with 99% of Humanity unaware that they even exist under their noses. For Devils we represent the Christian Faction. Along with us Devils, there's the Angels of Heaven, teh Fallen Angels of the Underworld, not to mention there's also the Demons of the Shadow Realm."

"Most thing Devils and Demons are the same which isn't true, Demons are Angels who chose to stop serving God and removed most of their holy powers where Devils were the result of Lucifer's hate of god which replaced his holy force with a dark power, and then alongside the original woman Lilith gave birth to a true shadow of the Angels. I'm the great granddaughter of Satan Lucifer himself to be exact."

Issei listened, surprised at what he had been hearing so far.

"Believe it or not, remember Yuuma? She herself is a Fallen Angel, specifically one under my father Azazel's faction, she was apparently following a lead that you'd be in danger due to your Sacred Gear."

"My what now?" Issei asked, wondering what she meant.

"Do you recall how when we were young, most people didn't want to get near the power of us? Those with supernatural powers or the Sacred can emit a power, and it can be so overwhelming they're treated different. Your aura was so strong, you didn't realize you intimidated people with it, your training in martial arts likely quelled this." Vali explained before taking Issei's left arm and holding it up to him.

"This is where your sacred gear lives Issei, you possess the power of the Red Dragon Emperor, the Boosted Gear."

Issei gasped silently at that, he had the power of a Dragon? Well that helped explained what Vali meant by intimidated people. He had seen enough myths, TV shows and video games to know Dragons were often considered some of the most powerful beings in the world, it was even often said they were second only to Gods, and that was just on average considering some Dragon deities like Quetzalcoatl.

"So that's why that freaky woman calling herself Yuuma's sister meant... is there a way for me to bring it out?" Issei asked, wanting to see what this power of his really was. Vali thought on the best way to explain how to draw it out.

"I have a Sacred gear myself, so best explanation... think of the part of you that you feel is strongest and then focus on it. That should make it appear." Vali explained.

Issei nodded, and tried to focus on bringing it out, after a few minutes of no luck and Vali getting tired of just standing...

"...OK, you can stop for now. It might be still a bit hard since you just became a Devil. Then again you may not be able to summon it unless you're life's in danger." Vali said, remembering how it happened for her.

Yeah... having her Grandpa drop her from a cliff was not the best memory, and it was completely crazy since no one knew her Sacred Gear would be a pair of wings that would stop her from splatting into meat on the ground.

Soon enough the two had made it back home, after Issei had made it to his room, he suddenly felt himself get teleported into Vali's room. After the initial shock had ended, he resumed listening to Vali's explanation on the supernatural.

"OK, now big question... why is it that I'm not dead exactly? There's no scar on my stomach either." Issei asked, and soon Vali showed her a flier and a chess piece.

"See these Issei? On your date, I couldn't just follow you to watch over you. I had Yuuma hold this flier so if something went wrong, she could summon me with her thoughts. After you had been stabbed she did just that. Then I used one of these to save you. Vali began explaining, soon holding the piece closer to Issei as he grabs it to take a look.

"That's an Evil Piece, it's how Devils reincarnate others into Devils. Either by request, or to revive someone that's dying or recently become deceased. I used one of these to save you. Technically that makes you my servant, but I don't like defining people like that, if anything your part of my team."

"So you can have 14 others like me with these?" Issei asked, Vali however shook her had.

"Well... not exactly, there are limits to them. For one it's impossible to use an Evil Piece on a deity, they're immune to it, and depending on the power of the one you reincarnate they can consume multiple pieces." Vali began, soon taking out some yen coins to give a visual example.

She put some of her unused pieces out, leaving a single coin by a Pawn, three by a knight and bishop, five in the spot beside that and then nine after that spot. She didn't have any more Rooks or her queen to use them visually.

"Pawns are worth one piece, Knights and Bishops are the same as three, a rook is worth 5 and queens are worth 9. There's no worth for a King because of how you get your pieces, plus each piece gives a special power." Vali continued, making Issei wonder what those powers were.

"Like what?"

"That's not as important right now, so let's continue with the consumption topic. If some was worth two pieces, then I would need to atleast use two pawns on them. So that means I'd only be able to have 13 others. You Issei? When I checked my pieces to revive, you only my queen was could do it, meaning you're worth 9 pieces." Vali answered, making Issei gasp. Was that Dragon inside of him that strong he needed that many pieces despite he was only a human at the time?

Something told Issei that this wasn't some normal power he had been born with, he may have essentially gotten the superpower equivalent to the lottery, and he needed to be careful as a result of this.

"Wait, so what if you don't have enough pieces?" Issei asked, Vali only grimaced at that.

It didn't take Issei much to realize that would mean either it would simply fail should the subject be alive, or if they were dying/dead... there was no way to save them. Issei clears his throat so she knows to change the subject and continue.

"Though sometimes there's a way around this, a Mutation Piece. It's a beneficial glitch that allows a piece to be worth more. I've only heard rumors, but it's said it may possible lack a limit, or atleast double the worth. One of my Rooks was a Mutation Piece, and the person I used it on? My queen wasn't enough even." Vali continued, recalling the situation he had met her in.

"Whoa... so all of that just to revive people as Devils?" Issei asked, wondering why that was even needed.

"Yeah, truth is the Devils are facing a bit of a crisis with their numbers. So this is the best way for them to recover." Vali answered, she didn't say anymore because right now she didn't want to explain the Great War to him. Times weren't so bad that it was needed to be learned.

"Anyways, it's more than that. For the few humans who do know about us we have clients we need to visit. Since I'm a high-ranking Devil, I can only take certain jobs worthy of that level, but a reincarnated Devil is a low rank and more free in choice. So let's get you some fliers to hand out and find a client."

Issei blinked at that.

"Huh?"

* * *

Issei was riding on a bike, visiting various houses that a devil like GPS told him to stop at to drop off fliers.

"I don't know if I'm gonna ever get used to this. So I'm a Devil now huh, and I've got a Dragon inside me... well, I can see better at night atleast so I guess there's a few pluses to this job." Issei commented to himself, he wasn't really upset about not being a Human, but he honestly couldn't just be fine with it after just a single day.

After he got all the fliers passed out, he heard his phone ring and answered it.

"_I just noticed you got all the fliers out, so are you ready to jump to your first client?_" Vali asked through the phone, currently taking a bath with her hair tied up.

"I guess, but how do you do that though?" Issei asked.

"_I'll send you a picture, but focus your magical power to create a symbol on the ground and then use it as a gate. The client's flier will transport you over right after in response._" Vali replied, holding the phone with her shoulder as she washed her upper right arm. "_Good luck Issei."_

Issei heard her hang up before he got a picture texted over of the Lucifer family crest.

"OK, let's see how this works." Issei said to himself as he used his magic to create a magic circle. One he did he stepped onto the middle and was transported somewhere, soon finding himself an apartment where a guy with glasses sees him appear.

"Uh... were you the one who summoned a Devil from the House of Lucifer?"

"Yeah I did, I wanted to call Koneko over but she's double booked today already. So since you'll be my stand-in, what exactly can you do?" The client, Morisawa, asked Issei. Taking a look around the room, Issei noticed he seemed to be an anime otaku.

"Well what does Koneko usually do out?" Issei asked, and soon he noticed Morisawa hold up a sailor outfit.

"Cosplay, save the princess! I've looked everywhere for another cute young thing to sweep me off my feet on a weekly basis. I can't just grab one off the street exactly." Morisawa explains, while Issei suddenly imagines Koneko in that outfit holding him like a princess.

"I... see.." Issei honestly had no idea how else he could reply to that without it sounding weird. As he looked around, he soon noticed a certain game lying by Morisawa's computer and gasped.

"You have Hyper Road Warrior 4!?"

"You know about this game?" Morisawa asked, suddenly getting a bit excited.

"Of course, it's said to be so insanely hard that no beginner can play it, the insane gameplay has a near impossible level of controls that only an expert can master. I once went to tournaments with my best friend's father in my free time!" Issei said, feeling the call of a fellow gamer begin to surge.

"Impressive, I've been looking for a fellow challenger to face me." Morisawa said, soon taking out a set of controllers. GIving a fierce challenger lookk.

"Wanna go a few rounds?"

"Yeah, sure thing." Issei said, giving a similar expression in response.

After about an hour, Issei soon waved goodbye as he walked outside the house and wiped his forehead exhausted.

"Wow, few rounds my butt. We ended up challenging the entire arcade mode. Atleast I got a pact out of it, just hope taking so long isn't an issue." Issei said, right as he prepared a magic circle to go back to his house, he suddenly felt a chill go up his spine.

"Oh no... you're kidding me."

Issei turned as the sight of a masked Fallen Angel appeared into view. He formed a spear of light as he got closer.

"So... you're the one I've been sent to kill, it's time to take care of this!"

The Fallen tosses his spear of light, and Issei jumps out of the way, but soon Issei notices him quickly take the the air and forming another two to toss.

'This is bad, at this rate I'm just gonna get killed again! That power I have... I need to use it now, or I never will!' Issei thought.

_"Think of the part of you that you feel is the strongest, then focus on that strength." Vali's voice echoes._

"FOCUS!"

Issei raises his hand, and a powerful green aura flies of, the Fallen's spears break apart as the energy burns him like a searing blaze of fire. Soon on Issei's left hand, a partial red gauntlet forms on his hand. The Fallen Angel crashes on the ground and looks in shock.

"Whoa... this is my Sacred Gear?" Issei said, it didn't seem like much, but he felt the power inside of it.

"Damn it! You just had to awaken it now, I'm gonna let someone stronger deal with this shit!" The Fallen said, quickly disappearing. Issei stares before looking at his sacred gear again, soon seeing it vanish as he wonders how he'd hide it.

* * *

Vali looks at Issei's Sacred Gear as she showed up inside his room, right now she noticed it's form wasn't it's true form.

"Good job Issei, you've finally awakened it. Though I'll tell you right now that this isn't even it's complete form. Right now it looks like a Double Critical." Vali stated, knowing that many of the Longinus had weaker versions through other Sacred Gears. Her own Divine Dividing had such a gear called the Half Divide, which only half the enemy's power once compared to unlimited usage of her [Divide] technique.

"You mean this thing's even more badass then what I've got right now?" Issei asked, he had wondered if it hadn't looked like much but didn't think it actually was.

"Yep, so until it's fully awakened, pretend it's called a 'Double Critical', if anyone else tries to attack you that'll throw them off." Vali continued, knowing that right now, Issei would be limited to a single [Boost]. Against the wrong enemy, this could be bad, if atleast making a slight drop of guard helped, it was better than nothing.

"Although now I'm worried... you've been targeted three times by other Fallen Angels. This is beginning to worry me."

"Why's that exactly?" Issei asked, and Vali sighed in response.

"My father Azazel? He's the leader of the Fallen Angels, the one that lead to them Falling in the first place. If his own faction is attacking you when he never had the intention too... something really wrong is going on. Not to mention, I wonder if Yuuma may be aware of it considering her sister killed you." Vali answered, making Issei gasp silently. So Vali's father was the leader of an entire faction? What was next, Vali knew God in person?

"We may be dealing with a rogue faction of Fallen, and I could be a target due to my own sacred gear, so I'm gonna try learning what I can. Not to mention I've gotta send the message over to Rias since this is her territory. Don't worry Issei, we'll make it through this." Vali smiled, hoping to ease any worries from Issei.

"Right, now I'm gonna go to sleep. Night Vali." Issei said, soon falling onto his bed and passing out. Vali gave a smile before she used a magic circle to go back to her room.

**(Vali, you do realize you'll need to tell him eventually.)**

Vali stops for a moment before sitting on her bed, staring at the ceiling.

"Yeah, I know Albion. I can't just hide the fact about our sacred gear's histories forever. I know one day I will have to tell him, and when I do..." Vali answers, understanding Albion was looking out for her. If she waited too long, she risked Issei misunderstanding from Ddraig.

"That's why I didn't say anything right now though. Since he just unlocked his sacred gear..."

**(Ah... I get it, you know you can't wait too long, but it also feels it's too soon to tell him. To reveal that now would have likely led to a misunderstanding.)**

Vali nods, glad Albion understood her reasons.

**(At the very least, I'll watch his power. If I think he's getting close to where Ddraig can begin speaking with him, then you'll have to tell him then, otherwise Ddraig could make a bigger misunderstanding.)**

"Right, I'm counting on you." Vali said, soon breathing deeply. Ddraig was always the more emotional to Albion's more logical, if Ddraig said something stupid that confused Issei about the rivalry thing... that wouldn't end well.

* * *

Meanwhile at Grigori, Azazel was standing before Yuuma who had delivered a report about what had happened with Issei and what Vali had let her do. As explaining the reasons she decided not to let the news reach him as planned.

"I see, so Issei's no longer blind to the supernatural world and he's my daughter's Queen now. While I admit you were a bit reckless, and you made a bad call leaving Issei alone near the end..." Yuuma sighed and lowered her head at hearing that, she got it by this point, her choice of looking for the flier alone had been a bad idea. "...but I think you atleast were right to consider how I acted would have probably attracted attention." Azazel finished, surprising Yuuma.

"R-Really?" Yuuma stuttered a bit, she honestly expected he'd be a lot harder on her than what he just gave her.

"If it had been a Demon, an Angel, or even another Devil then I'd have been more worried. A Fallen Angel on the other hand? That's cause for worry, because someone's disobeying my orders, and you're sister has been a rather unstable wild card."

Yuuma could only give a sad nod, Raynare had never been the good child, but she was never as bad as she was now. She had been a strong member of Armaros' faction of Grigori before things suddenly changed. She had originally been planning to join the same faction, but her sister? Raynare scared her after she changed, so despite it was seen as cowardly she instead changed her mind and joined Azazel's faction.

"Right now, Vali might need someone from us we can trust, and with me and most of the cadre busy... I guess that's you. Think you can do this?" Azazel asked, Yuuma gasped a bit and soon nervously nodded.

"S-Sure, I won't let you down Lord Azazel!" Yuuma stuttered, with that Azazel nodded and she saluted as she was dismissed.

Yuuma soon began walking through the Grigori base and sighed, partially of relief, and partially of fear cause helping Vali meant she'd likely have to deal with her older sister... and probably have to take her life. As she walked she noticed a familiar and young blonde Fallen walking by.

"Hey Mittelt." Yuuma called out, the tiny Fallen turned to her and smirked a bit.

"Hi there Yuuma, so what're you up to?" Mittelt asked, Yuuma smiled a bit before frowning again.

"Mind if we find Kalawarner first... I've got something important I've gotta tell you both." Yuuma answered, and with that, Mittelt suddenly sighed. Yuuma only switched to a smile for that briefly unless something serious happened. Right as that happened, a tall, buxom and blue haired fallen Angel walked by.

"I'm here, so what is it?" Kalawarner asked, Yuuma looked at them and breathed deeply.

"Well, you see..." Yuuma began.

* * *

Soon the next morning came, and Issei reached for his phone again like usual as the alarm went off, only for him to knock it onto the floor and out of reach. Issei groaned as he got up to reach it and turn it off.

"Damn it, being a Devil has turned all my morning wake ups into a living Hell." Issei sighed, as Devils were creatures of darkness, they weren't exactly known for being morning people. Issei himself was now dealing with that fact as his current and previous mornings began with him wishing the night had longer hours to sleep in and avoid this hassle. He opened his phone to see he got a text from Vali that said "I'm already at school to talk with Rias about last night, see you there."

With that, Issei got ready and ate his breakfast, on the way to school however...

"Ah!"

Issei turned, and then suddenly blushed before covering his eyes as a girl in a nun outfit had fallen over, which for some reason caused her panties to become fully show with how her dress had fallen with her. Issei may only show his perverted side in his mind, but this wasn't the kinda flashing he liked. For one, in this situation it was disrespectful and rude, and two... it was real life, not an anime, enjoying this moment now would make anyone look like a creeper.

"Oh no, it looks like I feel down again. I'm such a klutz!" The nun girl said softly, she sighed as she got up and Issei could uncover his eyes again. For some reason, despite he heard her say Japanese, he was sure she had spoken... Italian maybe? Issei began to wonder if Devils had a universal translator or something as an ability. The girl soon looked towards Issei, revealing she was a long blonde haired girl with green eyes.

"Oh, hey are you alright?" Issei said, finally deciding to act like a gentleman and help her up.

"Yeah, I'm OK." The girl said, taking his hand. "That was very sweet of you, my name's Asia Argento. If you don't mind me asking... I'm a bit lost, can you help me out?"

"I'm Issei Hyoudou, and of course. Where do you need to go?" Issei asked, he had an idea, but she might just be looking for a house and not the church.

"Do you know the way to the church? I was just assigned to serve the one in this town." Asia asked.

So it was the church then, that wasn't too big a deal for Issei.

"Sure thing, just follow me and I'll lead the way." Issei replied, and Asia began to follow him. Though for some reason he felt something off in his left hand. During the trip, they heard a little boy crying, his knee scraped pretty badly. Asia ran to him.

"Don't cry little one, you're gonna be fine." Asia said gently.

Asia soon held out her hands, and to Issei's surprise, the boy's scrape vanished as a green energy healed the wound completely. The boy looked as it vanished, while Issei suddenly felt his left hand tense. The boy stared amazed that his knee was all better.

"There you go, all better now." Asia smiled sweetly, and soon noticed Issei stare at her. She tried to make cute face, hoping that Issei might not ask questions... atleast until his next words were said.

"You have a Sacred Gear too?" Issei asked, surprising Asia a bit. Though it also relieved her because it meant Issei understood what her power was a bit more. She nods.

"Whoa... that's pretty cool, so you're a healer?" Issei asked, the two having since resumed their walk to the church.

"Yeah, I consider it to be a gift and a blessing. Truly... it's wonderful." Asia replied, though Issei felt something off at that last bit, it sounded kinda sad.

"Hey, there it is! Thank goodness I found it."

Issei looked as it had come into view... and then suddenly his vision zoomed in on it as a powerful chill rushed through him. Bigger than any he had felt so far. He suddenly shivered, but not enough to be noticed. He then recalled how Fallen Angels made him react this way, so normal Angels must be the same, he was getting too close to a Devil's danger zone.

"Let me thank you properly, would it be a problem for you to come in with me?" Asia asked, and Issei was suddenly forced to think of an excuse... and then realized he had school anyways.

"Sorry, but I'll be late for school at this rate." Issei replied.

"Oh, I understand. It was sweet of you to help me out." Asia said with a smile, soon heading towards the church while Issei headed to school.

'She's the nicest person I've ever met... it's too bad I can't see her again, not while I'm a Devil and she's with the Church.' Issei thought, hoping that Asia wouldn't remember her and he didn't hurt her because of this.

* * *

**Damn it... I always hate seeing this scene, it reminds me of stories like Orihime and Hikoboshi because of how much it feels like a star-crossed lovers moment. I mean sure, this isn't the case forever, but that doesn't make it less painful when you watch it in present tense and haven't reached the moment Asia becomes a Devil. I almost wanted to skip it entirely so I could avoid writing it, but if I had, I felt like I'd be taking out something important related to Asia for later on in the story.**

**Well, this chapter was mostly just Rias and Vali finally getting settled on the former learning she's no threat to the town, and the latter about worrying if she caused trouble... or if Rias would realize who she was. One of my reviewers did bring up a good point I feel I should share, would Rias have been able to tell? The answer is actually no, in canon, not even Sirzechs or Serafall realized Vali was a Lucifer until Azazel pointed it out. She can tell Vali's a Devil, but not even the strongest Devil can define what household a Devil comes from under the same method, so Rias is no exception.**

**Also, there's the obligatory scene with Kalawarner and Mittelt thrown in there, I'm not sure how often I'll use them, but I didn't wanna kill them off. Maybe in the future with Yuuma specific scenes I'll have them pop in, but by all means they'll be more minor characters than secondary ones.**

**Vali's also got the worry of having to explain to Issei about his Boosted Gear now, because Vali will have to expose her own or someone will mention it. A big theme of this story is how she and Issei are going to fight against the usual destiny of the two Dragons, and while Albion's accepted Vali won't fight Issei, Ddraig hasn't gotten to know Issei the same way so... problem if he can speak to Issei before Vali does. Not to mention, she's not in the mood right now to reveal she even has the Divine Dividing or her heritage as a Lucifer.**

**Trouble's about to brew, and soon the wind's gonna be blowing it everyone's way... so wish them all luck, cause only I know what's in store for them.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali**  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - ? (x1), unclaimed Bishop  
Knights - ? (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - ? (x1), ? (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias**  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (x1, became Mutation Piece, sealed), ? (x1, Mutation Piece, sealed)  
Knights - Kiba (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Koneko (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**


	4. Chapter 4

**Asia's finally made her way into the story, and that means everyone's about to be pulled into the mess Raynare's unfortunately started. At the same time... I'm gonna feel my heart broken constantly because for Asia's role in the story to happen, I have to write a lot of scenes for her I'm honestly going to hate writing, but I have to. Well, better get it done sooner so the thoughts about it don't torment me.**

**Some of you might be wondering what my plans for Asia if you've noticed that Rias already has both her Bishops used, well the only thing I can tell you is that she's like Issei in that she won't be part of Rias' peerage in this story. What will happen to her will be revealed in this chapter however.**

**Something I'd also like to bring up is someone asked me if Vali will have her own clan power that comes from her Lucifer heritage, the answer to that? Yes she will. I can't say much yet other it's name and strength will be revealed in this chapter, and that it's much more dangerous than Rias' Power of Destruction, as in it's the only clan ability that's surpasses it. The Lucifer bloodline is one of the few that surpasses the Bael clan in ranking after all.**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'**

* * *

** -Darkness Energy- **

**The dark force born between Lucifer and Lilith that lead to the creation of the Devils, and what turned Lucifer into the being known as Satan. It's never been truly understood what this power is other than it's the exact opposite of the holy energy gifted by God.**

**While holy energy relies on prayers, love of God, cleansing of desires and represents light... darkness energy is a power that denies all prayers, hatred of God, represents and manifests as desires and represents the dark that's from the shade cast by light. The very existence of this energy is a contradiction achieved by the result that God could never expect when Lucifer denied his being as an Angel.**

**However while this power can harm beings born of holy energy, those born from it are also harmed by the same holy energy it can overwhelm. Neither can truly overwhelm each other or destroy each other, as long as Angels and Devils exist, so will both of these forces.**

* * *

"YOU WENT NEAR WHERE!?" Vali screamed, Issei flinched as she saw the worry and panic on Vali's face as he told him what happened on his way to school. She had good reason to, Issei was a Devil now, and the Church was the last place you would ever want to have a Devil go to if they valued their lives.

"Whoa, calm down Vali! I may have gone near the church but it was only to help someone who was lost. It's not like I tried to get close for the fun of it." Issei replied, hoping Vali would calm down. Luckily for him she sighed and relaxed herself a bit. "I'm sorry for worrying you."

"It's fine Issei, it's just... if something happened and you weren't there I'd never forgive myself. I already partly feel that way with what happened with Raynare." Vali answered, while she entrusted Yuuma with the flier, she still wished she had been there to prevent Issei's death. Seeing him bleeding on the ground was an image she wouldn't soon forget.

"Just out of curiosity, what exactly makes a Church a threat to Devils aside from just the Angels associated to them?" Issei asked.

"Quite a lot unfortunately, for one simply setting foot could create major problems. Worst case scenario it would be a war. It's not just Angels that are a worry, there are people with Sacred Gears that could really hurt Devils, often most Sacred Gears end up with a faction that with powers they link to or represent." Vali began, thinking about someone in Grigori she knew would work well as a Devil based on his Sacred Gear.

"But the worst result? If you got a cut or a wound, I have a method that could heal you. However... if holy energy were to purge your being... you could never come back for that. It's the equivalent of being erased from all but memory."

Issei sweated at that, it was quite easy to think of anime scenes where someone did some exorcising to evil spirits to tell him what would happen. The thought of being such a person? Yeah... he didn't wanna think about it.

"Just promise me you'll try to be more careful is all, atleast until you can fully awaken the Boosted Gear. You're still new to the supernatural world, I don't want you dying because you didn't know of something that could have saved you." Vali replied, and Issei nodded. Soon they heard the bell for class ring.

"Come on, we better hurry before we're late."

* * *

After classes ended, Issei and Vali were both in the Occult Research Club's main room. While he didn't get the full details, apparently while neither were actual club members, the two of them had to show up to the club every day for some reason he didn't understand. Vali described it to him best as "Devil Politics", and Issei figured he shouldn't ask further, politics tended to be confusing.

Luckily his parents didn't ask where he was at this time of day because he just told them he and Vali were hanging out and catching up, the advantage of Vali having been away for 7 years is that made such a claim believeable and long lasting. Right at the moment he expected the two could begin heading back home, Akeno walked in.

"Issei, Vali, would it be too much trouble if we asked you to come somewhere later tonight?" Akeno asked.

"Not really, but can you atleast tell us why?" Vali asked, looking up at Akeno from the couch.

"We just got some orders from the Archduke, a Stray Devil has been causing trouble nearby. It's quite urgent." Akeno answered, making Vali gasp lightly. "We thought it might be a good chance for Issei to see how Evil Pieces work in combat. Plus you may be doing this work at some point yourself."

Vali nodded at that, while she didn't like the thought, she was sure eventually her true last name was gonna be revealed in some manner. Issei gave a confused look upon hearing "Stray Devil".

"What's a Stray Devil exactly?"

"Stray is a term for a Devil that's either killed their master, abandoned or run away from them, or lost their master. Often enough if they just turn themselves in they can get a light punishment, or wait to be transferred to a new master, but..." Akeno began, Vali stood up and stretched a bit.

"Sometimes they just run off and try to gain power or fulfill their own desires. At this point, the stray is sentenced to death and another Devil has to kill them." Vali finishes.

"Yikes, so there's even a moral black zone for Devils?" Issei said, surprised yet horrified what it took for a Devil to break a rule. After a bit, the Gremory peerage alongside Issei and Vali appear at an abandoned building.

The Stray Devil that they were hunting in particular was named Vizor, a female Devil who had been known for her extreme lust and hunger. She had run away from her master and soon began tricking people into a building to eat them. Once they walked inside...

"Now what could that fowl fickle smell be? It smells quite delicious, will it taste sweet... or bitter!?" A woman's voice said.

Suddenly the sight of a woman, though with an unseen lower body, had come into view.

"Vizor you wretch, you betrayed your master and ran away to fulfill the lustful wants and desires that have now consumed you. Your sins are worthy of a thousand Hells. In the name of Gremory, begone or meet your death!" Rias declared.

"Oh give it a rest you slut, you've always had it in for me." Vizor mocked, groping herself.

"Am I missing something, cause she seems kinda normal." Issei noted, the only strange thing was her lack of legs and he just assumed that might be a Sacred Ger or something.

"Give it a moment, you'll see it." Kiba replied. Soon enough, Issei got his answer as Vizor's 'leg' finally came into view... said leg just happened to be a clawed hand, and soon Issei saw she was now some kind of mutant centaur like monster with a snake tail. "See what I mean? When this happens, it always ends in ugliness."

Soon Vizor began to laugh as suddenly her body began to mutate further, gaining a more bestial like face.

"Kiba!" Rias shouted. Kiba nodded, soon vanishing from view before appearing in front of Vizor and slicing frontal legs off, making her scream. "Kiba's Evil Piece is the Knight, it's attribute is speed and making weapons the ultimate attacking method."

Issei paid close attention, surprised by how quickly Kiba had moved. So the Knight enhanced one's speed and was best suited for those who used a close-ranged weapon like a sword, it easily fit how a Knight in chess was represented by a Jousting Horse. Right at that moment, the mouth on Vizor's lower area targeted Koneko and devoured her.

"Koneko!" Issei shouted in worry.

"It's alright, she's fine." Rias smiled, and Issei saw Koneko rip Vizor's maw back open. The only damage she took was her outfit and some drool. "Koneko's Evil Piece is the Rook, it's attribute is an unparalleled strength and defense. Vizor won't be able to put even a even on dent her."

At that moment, Koneko swung her fist and broke all of Vizor's teeth, and then she got flung into the wall, causing it to collapse on her. Issei stared in shock at how strong Koneko was despite her size and stature. A rook represented a castle wall, so strength and protection were a fitting choice.

'Mental note to self, don't ever piss off Koneko if I want to live.' Issei thought, gulping in worry.

"Akeno?" Rias asked, and suddenly the black haired Queen closed her eyes and gave a smile that suddenly raised a red flag to Issei.

"Oh, is it my turn? How exciting! I so love this game." Akeno said before stopping and holding out her hands, electricity sparking off of them. However while no one noticed, Vizor's dismembered arms came to life and tried to jump Rias from behind. Luckily Issei and Vali noticed.

"Look out!" Issei shouted, Rias turned to see them right as Issei summoned the Boosted Gear and punched one of the arms. The doubling of his strength made his punch rip the arm to shreds.

"Time for you to freeze!" Vali shouted, creating a small white magic circle that sent a strong blizzard to freeze the second arm, shattering it to pieces once it fully froze.

"Thanks for that you two." Rias sighed in relief, not wanting to even think what would have happened otherwise. "Now finish her off please."

"I've got news for you, you're not the only one who likes to play rough!" Akeno said as she unleashed her lightning, making Vizor scream as she got fried and zapped by it. Issei noticed her blushing at it and quickly realized she was a sadist, making him shiver a bit.

"Akeno's Evil Piece is the Queen, it's the perfect combo of the Knight, Rook and Bishop's abilities." Rias explained. "And since I don't have a Bishop here, the Bishop Evil Piece enhances one's magical abilities and often a good choce for long ranged fighters or healers."

Vali and Issei wince as Akeno keeps blasting Vizor with lightning, starting to think she was going a little extreme with it. Luckily Rias thought the same.

"Akeno, you can stop now." Rias said, and Vizor drops to the ground fully while Akeno giggles a bit. Rias walked up to the crippled Stray Devil. "Now any last worlds before we finish this?"

"Go to Hell..." Vizor sneered. Rias sighed before holding out her arms, soon ending the Devil's life with a black and red energy. Surprising Vali a bit.

That power Rias had just used was known as the Power of Destruction, it was pure annihilation energy at it's finest. However Vali knew that this ability wasn't the clan ability of the Gremory household, it was the Bael Clan who were ranked 1st of the 72 pillars.

Even still, while one of most deadly abilities possessed by Devil kind, there was only one that the Power of Destruction was inferior to... Primal Abyss, the ability born of the Lucifer clan, the ability that came from Satan himself. Vali had used it before and could easily tell how much more deadly it was to Rias' power, and that was why she rarely used it, preferring a focus in ice magic instead.

"We're done here, now let's head back home." Rias turned, smiling now that the job was finished.

"The Power of Destruction... Rias, are you somehow related to the Bael Clan?" Vali asked, trying to confirm what she thought was the reason behind Rias owning that power.

"I am, my mother was originally part of the clan. You might remember her nickname 'Brunette Ruin Princess', from her younger days'?" Rias answered, making Vali gasp. She wasn't fully aware of the history behind Rias' mother, but she had heard the current Lord Gremory's wife, also known as called the 'Brunette Madame of Extinction' was from one of the higher pillar family's.

Soon as Rias and her peerage began leaving, Issei blinked and waved his hand over Vali's face as he tried to get her to respond.

"Vali?" Issei asked, wondering what was distracting her. Soon she shakes her head, regaining her focus.

"Sorry about that Issei, that just took a while to sink in." Vali said, embarrassed Issei had seen her spacing out like she just had.

* * *

Issei was currently out delivering fliers again, deep in thought about what he had just learned. He did wonder why Rias didn't bring up anything about Pawns, but he then just assumed maybe like some Pawn types they could promote under the right conditions.

"Let's see... I'm a Queen like Akeno, so I've got all the pieces' traits." Rias wondered to himself. "I'll probably be using the Rook half of my powers and the Knight's speed most for a while atleast."

Issei was mostly a close range hand to hand fighter due to his years training in martial arts, while he had practiced a bit of kendo, he knew he didn't have swordsmanship on the same level as Kiba did, so the weapon enhancement wouldn't help.

The Bishop he wasn't sure about, only because Vali was dealing with paperwork Rias asked her to do and couldn't teach him yet. Vali did apologize about it though and told him that she'd get to it the moment she was done, for now he atleast had enough magic to jump to a client. Issei soon suddenly stopped.

"What the?" Issei turned, suddenly getting a strange scent near his nose. He looked and saw someone's door to their house was wide open. While he figured maybe he shouldn't... Issei unfortunately decided to walk in. "Hello, anyone here?"

As Issei walked inside, he stepped on something wet, he looked at his feet and noticed he had stepped in... a puddle of blood! His eyes turned to see a mangled corpse on the ground, full of sword slashes and bullet holes. Issei soon held his mouth, feeling he'd vomit from the sight.

'Holy Shit!' Issei thought, now worrying what he had just walked into.

"Punish the wicked..." Issei turned as he heard someone's voice, turning to the couch he saw a white haired man slowly turn to him. An insane expression on his face. "Words to live by. Yes, wise advice to heed from a holy man."

The man soon stood up and faced Issei.

"Well well, you just walked into the wrong house my friend. Freed Sellzen at your service, and you must be the scared little Devil this priest gets to exorcise!" Freed said, an insane excitement in his voice as he did a dance like motion.

"A priest? So you did this to him!?" Issei shouted, surprised this man killed a normal human.

"He tried to summon a devil, and that means he was done being human. End of the line sinner!" Freed cackled, grabbing a sword handle and gun from his trench coat. "So I chopped him into pieces. Putting down devils and those who summon them is my job, and no one's better at it than yours truly!"

Issei felt his danger sense kick in as the sword and rifle as the former grew a holy blade and the latter gained holy energy.

"Time to cut our your Devilish heart and then shoot your evil face! How does that sound!?" Freed asked before firing the gun, Issei narrowly dodging before rolling across the ground and summoning his Sacred Gear. "Ooh, we've got a live one here. Atleast you won't leave me half-cocked!"

Suddenly both heard a girl scream, the two turned as she saw the dead body. Issei's eyes widened when he saw who the girl was... it was Asia!

"What are you doing here, are you done creating the barrier!?" Freed asked annoyed. "You know full well what the job entails, we disposed of people bewitched by Devils and the Devils they call."

Asia soon notices Issei and gasps, while Issei looks in horror as he realizes what she was going to find out about him.

"Issei? Why... why are you are you here?" Asia asked, her voice shaking.

"Because... I'm a Devil." Issei replied, making Asia gasp as she tried to deny it. "I didn't wanna lie to you, so I decided it was best we never saw each other again."

"Oh Issei..." Asia cried.

"What's this, you two know each other? Well then you should know now that you two have no right being together. The Fallen Angels have expressed contact between us is forbidden." Freed replied, prepared to swing at Issei who was still distracted. However Asia stood before him.

"Please stop this, I beg of you." Asia cried, despite Issei was a Devil, she had been touched by his kindness earlier and couldn't see him as a bad person just because he was one. She just couldn't.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me, we've got a Devil sympathizer now!? They said I couldn't hurt you... but I can punish you for your bullshit!" Freed slashes at Asia, cutting her nun outfit and bra in two, making Asia cover herself in response. Issei seeing this ended up snapping in anger.

"BASTARD!"

Freed turned as Issei rushed at him, managing to get a slight cut with his sword on Issei's shoulder. Despite the pain however, Issei also managed to deck him hard in the face, sending him flying into the wall while holding his shoulder.

"Alright Devil scum... time to chop you up!" Freed said, jumping with his sword out. However the Gremory magic circle suddenly appeared and Kiba jumped out of it, Akeno and Koneko following shortly after. His sword collided with Kiba's. "Ooh, are you the pitcher to his catcher?"

"Kiba!" Issei called out in surprise.

"Hey Issei, sorry for being late." Kiba aid looking at him, then giving a slightly disgusted look at Freed. "As for you, for a priest that's quite the mouth you've got."

"What are you, the impiety police? Hunting your kind's my only concern!" Freed spat out in anger.

"My my, you're certainly a piece of work." Akeno said in a flirty manner.

"You're the worst." Koneko said bluntly.

"And you my dears are a hot piece of ass, those eyes are killing me. There's nothing I lust more than a sexy Devil bitch!" Freed said, hugging himself at the thought.

"If you want it, come and get it." Rias' voice echoed, making Freed's eyes widen as he dodges her power and Rias appeared in front of Issei. "But I don't think you can handle it."

"Rias... talk about good timing." Issei said, smiling at their timely arrival.

"We should be thanking you, we would have been probably walked right into a trap if you hadn't gotten here first. You aren't hurt are you?" Rias asked, while Issei wasn't part of her household, Vali was a fellow Devil and she'd protect those under her friends.

"He got me in the shoulder, but that's about it. Right now I'm more concerned about saving Asia." Issei said, making Rias look at the nun. "I met her and she clearly was expecting to follow Angels. Not be a pawn for some Fallen Angels."

"I never forgive people those who pick on the weak, especially insidious wretches like you!" Rias said, and Issei saw her aura glow as her anger began to spill out. "Your evil has no place in this world, that's why I'm here to purge it!"

'Damn it, big red might be a problem. Oh well...' Freed thought as he grabbed some spheres from his pocket. "He who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day!"

Freed throws the spheres at the ground, blinding the group as holy energy goes off, Issei hears Asia scream. Once they could all see again, Issei saw him jumping towards a Fallen Angel's magic circle to escape.

"ASIA!" Issei screamed, reaching out to her in vain as she disappeared with Freed.

* * *

Meanwhile in Vali's room, she suddenly noticed a magic circle before Issei appears holding his shoulder, the rip in his clothing still there which made her gasp.

"Issei, what happened to you!?" Val said, quickly cupping his face. She didn't need to hear his answer once she noticed the wound. "You were cut by a holy sword... why were you even near one!?"

"That's... a long story, let's just say I owe Rias." Issei answered, Vali noticed he looked said and any anger she had faded.

"Issei, I'm gonna heal your wound but..." Vali began, soon blushing. "I'll need you to take off your clothes."

Issei soon went wide eyed at that and took a step back.

"WHAT!?"

"G-Get your mind out of the gutter! I didn't make this, but without healing abilities a Devil can only heal another Devil by skin contact to transfer devil power and heal the wound! It just only works if we're both naked!" Vali said, blushing heavily at the fact she even had to do this.

"You're the one who said that without explaining why!" Issei retorts loudly.

Soon the two were undressed while Vali presses her breasts against Issei's back, blushing and looking away as she takes a few seconds to have her devil power close up the wound. After which both got dressed again while Issei explained the situation.

"...To think you ran into a Stray Priest like that, and for that girl you met to be with those rogue Fallen Angels against her own choice. That's despicable." Vali said, clearly made as she was reminded of her own past. "Issei, you did the right thing. So I'm not mad at you. What I am mad about is that you didn't ask me to come help."

"Sorry, I guess I got caught up in the moment." Issei said, rubbing his head apologetically. "What do you mean by a Stray Exorcist exactly, that kinda like a Stray Devil?"

"Not exactly Issei, a Stray Priest is simply someone the Church Excommunicated, it's often they land with the Fallen Angels as a result of having a similar banishment. More often than not these are with the more criminal side of the Fallen because I've almost never any at Grigori." Vali began explaining as he wrapped Issei's wounds in bandages.

"Not to mention they can snatch people from the Church into their ranks. My guess is that Asia came unaware that the church here is abandoned, therefore..."

"You mean there's no place for the Angels here?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, I asked Rias about it and before she claimed this land as her territory, there was an incident that ended with the Church being abandoned." Vali nodded, soon finishing Issei's bandaging.

Seeing Issei's look, Vali puts her hand on his shoulder.

"You wanna save her don't you? Well then, let's raise Hell on these traitors." Vali said with a smirk, surprising Issei.

"Huh, but I thought that Rias would-"

"I had a friend on my side look around for some evidence, Rias' only concern was preventing a war. Said friend has helped me find evidence these Fallen Angels went rogue and won't lead to that." Vali explained, a magic circle appearing as she transports someone into her room. A familiar Fallen Angel appearing from it.

"Yuuma!?" Issei gasped, surprised by her showing up.

"H-Hey Issei, it's been a while." Yuuma said, fidgeting her fingers a bit. "I discovered my sister and a few others all left because they wanted Asia's sacred gear, an order that went against Azazel's."

"Wait, why do they want Asia's sacred gear?" Issei asked.

"It's the Twilight Healing, it's said to have healing powers equal to a phoenix's regeneration. Apparently Asia was excommunicated because it's able to heal Devils despite the healing being holy in attribute." Vali explained.

That shocked Issei, Asia had been excommunicated? That didn't make sense... why would Asia be excommunicated for that? It didn't make any sense. Vali herself noticed and snaps him out of his thoughts.

"We can ask about that later, right now we've gotta save her. If they take away her Sacred Gear... she'll die." Vali said grimmly, finally getting Issei to stand up.

"What are we waiting for, let's get moving!"

Vali smiled as Issei rushed downstairs and giggled a bit before following, but not before turning towards Yuuma. Almost as if to ask her permission for something.

"...Vali, if you have to. Don't hesitate to kill Raynare. She..." Yuuma began, slightly tearing up despite knowing how she felt about her, Raynare was family no matter how much she tried to deny it. "She's not my sister, not anymore."

Vali looked at her sadly, and soon rubbed her head before she left with Issei. As much as she wanted to go and help, Yuuma knew it wasn't a good idea, not while her sister was present.

'Please... all of you come back home.' Yuuma thought.

* * *

The masked Fallen from before was standing by a tree when the sight of a Gremory magic circle formed, and soon he noticed Rias and Akeno forming from it.

"Look at that, if it isn't a Devil and an Devil's idiotic servant. You stepped into the wrong place." The Fallen claimed.

"This guy's really confident in himself, isn't he?" Akeno commented with a giggle.

"Since you're out here standing guard, my guess is your people are worried about an attack?" Rias questioned.

"Worried? Hah, not the slightest. We just have a ritual we don't want your filthy Devils interrupting." The Fallen replied, right as another magic circle formed behind Rias and Akeno and brought Vali into view.

"Hate to burst your bubble, but the rest of our group's already sneaked by you and are heading there right now." Vali smirked, catching the Fallen off guard.

"They're what!?" The Fallen screamed. "You Devil bastards, you took my attention on purpose! Alright then, if that's the case then I'll just have my friends and I kill you for Lady Raynare!"

The Fallen fires into the air, and soon the three see multiple Fallen Angels all teleport into view around the group.

"Akeno?" Rias asked, making the black haired Queen smile.

"Already on it." Akeno replied, she rose her hand into the air and lightning struck her. She quickly revealed how she became named the Priestess of Thunder as a Miko outfit formed on her body. Once it did, she made hand motions and shouted as a barrier formed.

"What the hell!?" The Masked Fallen yelled out.

"Sorry, but I think you just fell into our trap. Hope you're into being filleted alive." Vali answered as Rias and Akeno began forming their respective abilities in their hands.

* * *

Issei appeared from Vali's magic circle in part of the forest near the church, looking around however she didn't notice the silver haired Lucifer anywhere with her.

"Issei, over here!"

Issei turned to see Kiba and Koneko waiting by one of the trees.

"Kiba, Koneko? Where's Rias and Akeno, and Vali for that matter?" Issei asked, curious why the group hadn't come together.

"A diversion, Rias and Vali are with Akeno to draw the most of the others away from us. Their stronger auras will attract them like flies to honey." Koneko replied, motioning Issei to the church. "They already know we're here, but we can atleast move the big shots out of the way."

"So we'll be backing you up here." Kiba said drawing his sword, Issei nods and smiles. Once they got close, the auras they felt weren't too strong, but the quantity of it was overwhelming too.

"Whoa, you feel that guys?" Issei asked.

"No kidding, there must be a ton of priests inside there right now." Kiba replied.

"I'm glad you guys are here, I don't think I'd be able to handle that many on my own just yet." Issei said, turning to them both.

"Well hey, you and I are bodies right?" Kiba answered, though Issei noticed his look get serious for once right after. "Besides... Stray Priests are my most favorite things. Truth is I have plenty of reasons to hate them, but that's not important right now."

Koneko soon walked up to the door and kicked it open, as the three walked inside, they saw Freed Sellzen clapping as he walked into view.

"Well well, we meet again! Glad you could make it. Am I a sight for sore eyes?" Freed asked, making the three give him a cold stare. "Well I pride myself on never having to fight a Devil more than once. So I don't like your presence rubbing that fact in!"

"Where's Asia!?" Issei demanded.

"The Devil loving whore of a sister? Oh, she's below us having some fun with Raynare, but I won't give you the chance to say hi to them." Freed said, but soon his eyes widened and he moved away from the church benches that Koneko threw.

"Well, aren't you a strong little Devil midget?"

"Piss off." Koneko replied, not appreciating the wise crack about her height.

Kiba soon jumped into the air during the chaos of the bench tosses and dived at Freed, locking blades with him while dodging his gunshots. After a few shots, Kiba got close and smirked as he readied his sword.

"Alright, time for me to get serious about this." Kiba said as his sword glowed black, as his sword collided with Freed's, Issei noticed it devouring the holy light.

"What the hell is this?" Freed said, shocked his sword was devoured. "Wait, you have a sacred gear!?"

"You can call this the Holy Eraser, it's a sword of darkness that consumes light." Kiba answered, slashing at Freed who dodges his sword.

"Hey asshole!" Issei shouts as he charges at him.

"I don't think so! Enough of this bullshit!" Freed shouts as he fired his gun, however Issei summons his sacred gear and then uses his rook traits to let his magic passively create barriers to block the shots at him, making them useless and causing Freed's eyes to widen. "...Yep, I'm fucked."

Freed got punched in the face and flung through the wall again, causing part of it to collapse on him. Koneko soon smashed the altar out of the way to reveal some hidden stairs to the basement floor. They all rush down the stairs and soon see Asia hanging on some cross shaped device, Raynare standing by her and multiple priests across the ground between them and the trio.

"Well, looks like you've finally joined us. Sorry to say but you're too late!" Raynare smirked darkly, Asia weakly looking to see Issei.

"Issei..." Asia said, immediately after that the cross glowed green and she screamed as a pair of rings are ripped out of her body. Issei stared in horror, they had been too late to stop the ritual.

"Finally, the Twilight Healing is mine!" Raynare said, grabbing it and putting it inside of her, making her glow green and grin viciously. "I've lusted after this power for years and now it's mine! All those pricks who screwed me over are soon going to regret it!"

"I don't have time for this!" Issei shouted.

Issei rushed forward towards Asia, the priests take out their blades and try to cut him. Though Issei dodged and punched any that got close. Kiba used his Holy Eraser to devour any blades that neared them while Koneko gave some strong old fashioned fisticuffs. Opening a path to Issei who makes it to Asia.

"I got what I need, you can have the little bitch." Raynare said before snapping, causing the chains holding Asia to release her. She fell into Issei's arms. "So you ready to die together? Cause I'm absolutely thrilled at the fact!"

"Issei, we're outnumbered! We've gotta fall back!" Kiba called out, he and Koneko finally being starting to get overwhelmed.

'I might be a Devil, but this bitch is pure evil!' Issei thought as he saw Raynare's face contort into a monstrous manner, he dodged Raynare's sphere of light and began running off. As he did, Kiba and Koneko covered his escape. "Kiba, Koneko?

"We've got this, get Asia to safety! now run!" Kiba said slashing another priest. "We'll be fine!"

Issei stared at shock before tearing up a bit.

"Thank you my friends, I swear when this is over I'll become so strong you'll never need to bail me out again! That's a promise!" Issei shouted before he kept running, Kiba abd Koneko smiled before they continued facing the swarm of priests before them. Neither noticing Raynare had vanished.

* * *

Akeno throws up a barrier as she blocks off another flurry of light weapons, Rias unleashing another burst of Destruction energy to destroy a few Fallen angels that it struck. However the both of them were looking a bit drained. Vali looked worried at the sight.

'Crap, at this rate they'll burn out. I might have no choice but to use my real powers if they wanna make it out alive.' Vali thought.

"I bet your friends think you've dropped them like a bad face lift! You already name your jokes after chess pieces." A fallen comments and cackles, finding his own joke hilarious. "They're just as sacrificial as your game pieces!"

"Nonsense, we'd never sacrifice any of our members. We're family." Akeno replies, and soon the fallen surrounding them all prepare another wave of light weapons.

"Oh really? That's funny considering how you trusted Yuuma and she let that idiot die, sounds like a sacrifice to me!" The masked fallen laughed, unaware of the fact that he and all of the other Fallen present just sealed their fates.

Vali's face suddenly turned dark and both Akeno and Rias felt the chill of her rage flow out as the Fallen sent out their light weapons. Vali holds her hand up, and suddenly a powerful black darkness suddenly forms from her fingers before amassing in the middle of the barrier and suddenly sucks in all the feathers of the dead fallen and the weapons of light in an instant.

"That power, it... it can't be!"

"The Primal Abyss? But that ability can only be used by the..." RIas begins, suddenly realizing why Vali didn't reveal her Devil name. At that moment, Vali reveals all eight of her wings.

"She has eight wings, I don't believe it." Akeno said, just as surprised."

"**Issei is NOT a joke, no one laughs at my Issei.**" Vali darkly.

All the Fallen Angels present scream as Vali forms another burst of her Primal Abyss' power, devouring all of them and the barrier itself in an instant as if a living black hole's force spewed out and swallowed them to satisfy it's endless hunger. After it was over, Vali turned at the two as she folds her wings back.

"...Rias, do you understand why I refused to share my Devil name now?" Vali asked with a sad look.

"I do, but..." Rias began, smiling. "You're still a friend, I won't tell a soul, that's a promise."

Vali was surprised by then before smiling a bit.

"Thank you." Vali smiled back.

* * *

Issei soon made it back upstairs, and laid Asia down on one of the benches. He takes her hand right after.

"Hang in there Asia, once we get out it'll be OK. I promise!" Issei breathed out, he knew there was nothing he could do, but he refused to think she couldn't survive this. Asia weakly looks at him. "That's it, you have to fight!"

"I know it wasn't for very long, but... I'm blessed I finally made a friend." Asia quietly said, surprising Issei a bit. "When I was a baby... I had been abandoned by a church by my real parents. The sweet nuns there raised me. One day... a puppy that was hurt made it to the church, I begged God to spare him, and that's when a miracle happened... my power to heal saved his life."

"Because of my power, I was taken to a larger church... many men and women came so I could heal them if they were. To be able to help other people... I felt I had a purpose, but then one day I ended up finding an injured Devil without knowing he was a Devil... and when I healed him, everything changed. They said... to be able to heal Devils, they aid anyone with such a power was a heretic."

Issei's eyes widened, that was the only reason? They kicked her out just because a Devil by accident? That was... it was anything but fair, Asia was a good person, she only wanted to help people. Now he wondered if Asia ever had the right to make her own choice.

"Stop, don't talk like that! You can't give up damn it!" Issei said, starting to tear up.

"I wish it could be different, it would have been great to... live in this country, and go to school with you..." Asia said, her eyes beginning to close.

"Forgive me, for... making you cry Isssei. Goodbye."

Issei could only watch as Asia's hand went limp and fell to the ground, Issei could only stare at her now deceased form. She may have been smiling... but Issei knew that she had only done it to be strong for him, she had been crying on the inside the whole time, the tears on her face proved it.

"ASIA! Why did you have to die, she was a healer. Why God? Why did you forsake her, aren't you the one who teaches about forgiveness! Didn't you ever hear the prayers of someone so innocent and kind, if you didn't... then what kind of God are you!?" Issei screamed, hugging her tightly and crying his heart out.

"Bring her back!"

"See, this is exactly why we Fallen refused to agree with our God." Raynare said, Issei's eyes widen as he turns to see the Fallen Angel staring at him with a satisfied smirk. Almost as if she was impressed to hear Issei curse God's name so heavily.

"...Shut up, you think you're any different? Even if God didn't spare her... you're the reason she's dead. Why couldn't of it have been you!?" Issei growled, his sacred gear glowing. "I WANT HER BACK!"

Raynare's eyes motioned to Issei's sacred gear.

"A mere Double Critical, you think that toy's going to scare me?" Raynare said mockingly. "Oh please, you can't beat me with double power, nor would you if you could even triple the power you have now!"

Raynare took to the sky as she dodged Issei's charge and punch at her, once she did she formed two light spears and tossed them into Issei's legs! Issei screamed in pain as the holy energy burned him.

"How's that, light is the most toxic thing to a devil. It's the worst pain you can even imagine right now." Raynare smirked, expecting Issei to keel over from it... however to her surprise, Issei simply grabbed them and yanked them out, despite it caused his legs to bleed more as a result.

"This is nothing compared to the pain Asia went through!" Issei screamed. "If I've already cursed God, then I need to call Satan. I'm a Devil now like you... so just this once, I want you to give me the strength I need. Let me destroy her ass!"

"What!? This is impossible, that light should be burning you form the inside out, how are you able to stand right now!?" Raynare now, unable to comprehend how Issei was alive, much less still capable of fighting.

"Don't get me wrong, this doesn't tickle. I'm surprised I didn't pass out... but I don't care!" Issei's Boosted Gear glows brighter. "I'll fight through it to take you down!"

**"[EXPLOSION!]"**

Issei screamed loudly as his Sacred Gear morphed to gain claws and extend across his arms, finally assuming it's true form! Raynare gasped as she saw the energy it admitted, and realized what what it really was.

"The Boosted Gear! T-that's impossible... you're tricking me, that thing's just a Double Critical, isn't it?" Raynare muttered terrified, all her courage fading as the fear of a Dragon's power chilled her very blood.

"[BOOST!]"

Issei walked towards Raynare, the Fallen Angel threw a light spear, but Issei swiped it away with ease. Knowing she was outmatched, Raynare screamed and tried to fly away. Unfortunately, Issei ran and caught up to her in almost no time at all.

"You're not getting away bitch!" Issei shouted.

"No, I have... I have... I-" Raynare stuttered. Issei pulled his hand back, his eyes glowing green like his Sacred Gear.

"THIS ONE'S FOR ASIA!"

Raynare screamed loudly as the Dragon's energy from the strike burned into her body, incinerating her to death, but not before her body was tossed through the church window. Issei panted as he saw Asia's sacred gear float down into view as he panted.

"That's for Asia... for what you did to her." Issei panted, finally collapsing to his legs, but not before Kiba ran up and caught him.

"Look at you finishing things up on your own." Kiba said, smiling at Issei.

"Thanks, though what held you up?" Issei asked.

"Rias gave me and Koneko orders to stay back, Vali's request apparently." Kiba replied, shocking Issei as the silver haired Lucifer came into view.

"I believed in you Issei, I knew you would defeat her. You proved that without a doubt." Vali said, picking Asia's sacred gear up and containing it in a magic sphere so it wouldn't disappear. "And you finally awakened your Boosted Gear fully, you don't know how proud I am of you right now."

Issei blushed at that right as Rias and Akeno walked in, but soon looked at Asia's deceased form again. Vali put her sacred gear's rings back on.

"...I'm so sorry Asia, I tried everything I could to save you. Fought as hard as I could. In the end, I failed, please forgive me!" Issei cried, and at that moment Vali looked at Rias.

"Rias, would you-" Vali began, soon surprised as Rias nods before she even finished.

"Issei's the one who came to save her, it's only fair that she joins you." Rias answered honestly, plus she knew Asia would be better as a Bishop, and she already had used both of hers despite their current absence. Vali smiles and walks up to Issei.

"Issei, you don't fail. Not yet." Vali replied, making Issei look as she held up one of her pawns. "Our good sister's about to be born again."

Issei gasped as Vali laid Asia on the floor before placing the Bishop on her body.

**"In the name of Vali Lucifer, I call to Asia Argento. Hear my command! Return my soul from the shadows of death to the human realm, rise once more as Devil's servant, rejoice for you have been given new life! Wake as my healer and clergyman!"**

The Bishop sinks into Asia's body, and her eyes twitch slightly before she wakes up. She looks and then sees Issei.

"Issei, am... am I here?" Asia asks, soon getting hugged by Issei as he sheds happy tears. Everyone smiles at the sight.

"Yes, and I'm so happy. Welcome home." Issei replied, any guilt he had fading away.

* * *

Soon the following day, Issei walks into the ORC club room to see Vali groaning on the couch, she had just finished all the paperwork she needed, though had extra to work on because Rias knew her actual Devil name now. Atleast she was glad Rias didn't think of her badly for hiding it.

"Hey Vali, you alright?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, just a bit tired out. I'll live." Vali chuckled, trying to distract her self from how boring and stressful the process had been. Soon she noticed Issei looking at her. "Something wrong?"

"Well... I didn't wanna be rude at the time, but back when my Boosted Gear finally awakened all the way? I felt something." Issei said, making Vali silently gasp. "It was odd, it was like I could sense something contradictory to my power nearby. I'm not sure why."

**(...Vali?)**

'...I know Albion, if I put this off any longer I risk everything.' Vali replied mentally, she already revealed one secret, and while she wasn't ready to tell the others she possessed the Divine Dividing... she had to tell Issei now or she never would.

**(Know this Vali, no matter what happens I will stand by your choices.)**

Vali mentally smiled, and soon stood up before turning to have her back face Issei.

"...Issei, I have something to reveal. I don't know how you'll react to it though. When you hear it, I just hope you understand my reasons for not telling you before." Vali replied, confusing Issei.

Soon the sight of a pair of white wings with glowing blue light forming from them appeared on her back briefly, making Issei's Boosted Gear tense up before she dispelled them.

"Issei, you are the Sekiryuutei, the wielder of the Red Dragon Emperor Ddraig's power. However... I am the Hakuryuukou, the wielder of the White Dragon Emperor Albion's power." Vali began, soon turning to Issei, looking at him sadly. "...These two forces are rivals in a eternal conflict. Throughout history the wielders of Albion and Ddraig have fought one another."

Issei suddenly gasps, and begins piecing some things together. Including that day when they were six and Vali ran off crying.

"I realized it when I was so young, and I was so scared... how could I do that to my best friend? Fate cruelly put me in a cycle I didn't want to be part of. Now you know..." Vali said, closing her eyes as she shed some tears, only to feel Issei hug her.

"Issei?"

"You have nothing to apologize for, I get it. I'd never wanna fight you either." Issei said, making Vali gasp at his reply. "As far as I'm concerned you fought against that fate all this time. It doesn't matter to me what you are, your still you Vali. If I don't like what destiny brings, then I'll change it! I promised I'd protect you, and if that means defying destiny that's what I'm gonna damn do!"

Vali sniffles a bit before smiling and hugging back.

"Issei... I don't think I'll ever realize what I did to deserve a friend like you, thank you so much." Vali cried, making Issei rub her back. Soon they heard sniffling and saw Asia, now wearing the Kuoh Academy uniform, wiping tears from her eyes.

"Please forgive me, I walked in a while ago but thought it'd be rude to interrupt. Dear Lord, please show these two the path to happi- Augh!" Asia cried out as the prayer led to the feeling of being stabbed in the head.

"Asia, you're a Devil now. Praying to god's gonna hurt you." Vali said, sweat dropping a bit. "Do you regret it?"

"Not at all, the best part is Asia and I can be friends for a long time now. That's all I ever wanted." Asia smiled.

"That's great... say, why don't we all go out and celebrate? We should properly welcome Asia to the family. I'll leave a note telling Rias where we went." Vali said, both Asia and Issei nodded at that. "Alright then, let's go guys!"

The three all leave as Vali left the note, unaware of a phoenix looking from the window. Showing the image to someone ni a dark room somewhere else.

"Wasn't that a sweet ending... gag me."

* * *

**I hope no one minds that a majority of the scenes between Freed's first appearance and the attempt to rescue Asia were removed, but I just figured that since Issei's part of Vali's peerage and she has ties to Grigori through Azazel, plus Yuuma and Raynare's split, it would be a lot easier to have Rias learn it won't cause any problems if they try saving her. Not to mention I feel that Raynare wouldn't have really waited a day before taking Asia's Twilight Healing after the Freed incident.**

**I think I've made it clear how dangerous the the Primal Abyss ability just happens to be, it's like a Black Hole in all but name and being an endless vacuum, calling it a controlled black hole that's born of darkness rather than gravity would be the best description for it. Not only is it incredibly destructive and dangerous being a reason Vali's reluctant to use it, but at the same time... Vali's the only Devil that can actually use this power right now. Rizevim is a Lucifer, but for this fanfic he's like Sairaorg in despite it being a bloodline ability, he can't use it.**

**And Asia's now a Bishop under Vali, the novels revealed there's another healer that Rias could have, so I gave Asia to Vali so they each had one. With this chapter, the Raynare arc has finally come to an end, what happened to Yuuma now that her sister's dead will be revealed next chapter. Also as of next chapter, the wait is over and the rest of Vali's peerage will finally be making their appearance.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali**  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - ? (x1), Asia (x1)  
Knights - ? (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - ? (x1), ? (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias**  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (x1, became Mutation Piece, sealed), ? (x1, Mutation Piece, sealed)  
Knights - Kiba (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Koneko (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**


	5. Chapter 5

**The time has finally come, the rest of Vali's peerage will be appearing after their long absence due to, as Vali claimed, rushing off ahead of them to see Issei again. *chuckles* That particular detail will be fun to make them bring up. Since most of you have guessed it, and I pretty much implied it via that song scene in the second chapter, the rest of Vali's peerage is the Vali Team minus Gogmagog and Fenrir.**

**And yes, Kuroka's appearance WILL be leading to Koneko's arc being resolved a lot sooner than in canon, also there will be something in this chapter about Kuroka that I'll be explaining that relates to what was mentioned about Strays in this chapter. Like in canon, Kuroka did kill her original master to protect her little sister, but she's already been pardoned due to something Vali did while training in Hell.**

**On the other hand, Kiba will not start acting weird due to seeing Arthur's sword, especially since Excalibur Ruler gets summoned from another location and is not on hand for Kiba to sense. That and Caliburn is a sword only Arthur's family holds, so while technically a Holy Sword, I'm gonna make it so that it's Holy energy is only able to be detected by his bloodline, so Kiba won't realize it's one just yet.**

**Also, now that Issei's got his Boosted Gear fully unlocked you may want to know how strong Issei is. I'll say Vali is still a bit stronger, but she'll finally start training him as of this chapter, and it won't be too long before he and her become more equal in strength. Just as a friendly reminder, the Vali in this fanfic is more pacifistic than her canon self, so she's closer to level and it's also kept her from achieving her Balance Breaker as of yet.**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'**

* * *

**One of my reviewers mentioned Vali's clan power, the Primal Abyss, seemed a bit like the Power of Hole used by the Abaddon's, so let me clear up that there's actually many differences between them.**

**For one, the Power of the Hole in my view is more like a wormhole that takes the shape of a black hole, while Vali's power is just black streams of shadow and darkness that acts like a black hole, this is why she could control it so that Rias and Akeno didn't get swallowed by it.**

** -Primal Abyss- **

**The most powerful of Devil abilities exclusive to Satan and his descendants of the Lucifer Bloodline. When Lucifer created the abilities of each clan bloodline, he gave the Bael Clan the Power of Destruction as a last line of defense to trick anyone who'd manage to reach him that they had bested the most powerful ability the Devils had to offer.**

**The Power of Destruction while strong is best described as raw unstable magic burning into the forces of creation that give birth to a being or object and destroys it, making it a force of annihilation. Meanwhile the Primal Abyss, born of the purest form of the darkness that gave birth to all Devils, consumes all in a void of darkness that only the light used by God and the lord of the Angels himself can survive and escape its power.**

**Unfortunately, the Primal Abyss is currently on the verge of become extinct from the powers of all Devils, the only current known user of this power is Vali Lucifer due to Rizevim being born without it and the death of Satan's grandson.**

**According to Vali, the Power of Destruction is a mercy compared to this ability as any living being sucked into the abyss will be forever trapped and unable to die, making it a fate worse than death. Aside from God, it's also noted this power has no effect on Ophis, Great Red or Trihexa due to being so different from most life forms.**

* * *

Issei was seen running outside as Vali followed behind her on her bike. She was having Issei warm up before she began training him in magic, her reasoning being that while she trained with the Valkyries in Asgard, she had to start her day the same way, something about the exercise making it easier to draw out one's magical power due to the blood flowing? She didn't know, but admittedly it did seem to help.

"Alright Issei, that's enough. Let's start working on it now." Vali said as she stopped the bike at the park, Issei stopped a breathed before walking back a bit and into the park. "The most important thing about magic when it comes to Devils is this, visualization is the essence of all magic. The image of your mind and imagination makes it real."

Issei watches as uses the small bit of water in her water bottle and freezes it, ripping the bottle to shreds. Issei gasped surprised and amazement.

"That's bad ass! Though quick question, any rules or limits to what I can imagine?" Issei asked.

"Not a bit, but I will admit that sometimes isn't always the best thing." Vali said, paling as she remembered a certain Devil's ability before shaking her head to forget it as Issei stared oddly at her. "...Please don't ask. Just start by trying to make a ball of light."

"OK?" Issei replied, wondering what gave Vali such a reaction. Issei soon held his hands together and tried to focus, after about two minutes of waiting, Vali notices Issei make a small ball of light.

"Alright. It's small, but for a Devil that's an averagely sized sphere." Vali smiled, impressed by the result "Now let's try changing that into an element. Ddraig was a fire drake, so let's start with making that into a flame."

Issei nods and tries thinking of a fire, but soon the two panicked as Issei formed a giant flame, nearly burning the both of them, and forcing Vali to use an ice spell on it.

"...OK, I hope nobody saw that. I'd rather not erase anyone's memories if I don't need to." Vali breathed, a bit shocked over how big the flame was. "Speaking of which, I wonder what's keeping them?"

"Them, I thought only Asia was coming?" Issei asked.

"I'm here!"

The two turned as Asia in her nun outfit, she still had the cross on since according to what Vali had told Issei, wearing it had the Evil Piece effect it as well. Admittedly other Devils still couldn't touch it, so it only didn't hurt Asia. **(A/N: If Issei giving up his arm to Ddraig let him hold a cross, then I think this could work too, plus it's a fanfic after all)**

"Hey Asia, you made-" Vali was caught off as Asia tripped during her run. "Oh my, are you OK Asia?"

"I'm not good at running and talking at the same time!" Asia replied, noting how she always seemed to trip if she spoke while she was moving when she did so. Issei helped her up. "Thank you Issei."

"No problem." Issei replied. Soon after that, he heard something through the bushes and noticed Yuuma walk into view, stretching as if she just woke up, or forced herself to. "Wait, Yuuma? What are you doing here?"

"Well, I am part of Vali's peerage after all. Why wouldn't I be?" Yuuma asked, then noticing Issei's shocked expression while Vali blinked before face palming. Realizing what she had forgotten to tell Issei earlier. "...Vali, did you-"

"Yeah, I was too focused on Issei's magic training. I guess now's a good time so... surprise Issei! Yuuma's my new Pawn, or two of them to be specific." Vali answered, rubbing her cheek in a sheepish manner. As if to confirm it, Yuuma showed her new Devil wings to Issei.

"After what happened with my sister... I just can't bring myself to go back to Grigori again, and it was hard to really live as a Fallen Angel with that fact. So, I begged Vali to let me join her." Yuuma explained, her face a bit somber when mentioning Raynare. She soon bowed her head. "So... please take care of me from now on Issei, Asia!"

"Sure thing, but no need to be so nervous around us." Issei answered, Yuuma sweat dropped at that response. "Say, how is living at Vali's house doing for you Asia?"

"It's doing great, Azazel's already treating me like part of the family. I'm really grateful for them both." Asia smiled, making Vali blush a bit. Yuuma giggles at her new master's reaction. It just proved that Vali was above all us as much as a teenage girl as she was.

Soon at that moment, Vali has a magic circle appear by her ear to her surprise. The three looked as Vali whispers into it like she was talking on the phone, her eyes widening in surprise before she smiles and nods excitedly. After about another minute or two, she hangs up and turns back around.

"I've got exciting news, the rest of my friends and your fellow peerage members are finally about to arrive in Kuoh." Vali answered, making the three gasp. Vali had mentioned she had four others in her peerage that didn't arrive in Kuoh with her because of her excitement to get back and see Issei. Looks like they'd finally meet them.

"So where do we meet up with them?" Yuuma asked, curious to see who she'd be calling her team from now on.

"I asked them to meet us at the Occult Research Club, Rias and her peerage are out on some errands right now, and will be back soon, so they can meet with them soon enough as well." Vali replied, just as excited to see her friends. "In fact, the timing's perfect, I've been waiting to get us all a couple of Familiars."

The three tilt their heads confused, while Vali gives them a smile with her tongue out to basically say she'll explain it later. The group heads on over to the Occult Research Club and waits there for a while, after a bit an octagonal shaped magic circle appears and a group of four appears from it. Vali stands up and smiles at the sight.

"You guys finally made it!" Vali shouts happily.

"Yeah, after you left us in alone in Okinawa to rush ahead to meeting your childhood friend again." A monkey like man claimed, causing Vali to face fault in response. She chuckles embarrassingly as she gets back up. "Yep, you had that one coming."

"Well everyone, let me introduce you to the new members of my peerage. This is my second Bishop, Asia Argento. My Pawn, Yuuma Amano. Then there's my childhood friend and now my Queen, Issei Hyoudou." Vali said, introducing each one of them.

"Hey there." Issei waved.

"Nice to meet you." Asia bowed.

"Uh... h-hi." Yuuma said timidly.

"Issei, Asia, Yuuma. These are my friends and initial peerage members, first up we have my first Bishop, Le Fay Pendragon. A powerful wizard from the Pendragon family." Vali began introducing, starting with a girl that had curled up shoulder length blonde hair, a huge blue hat with a black bow and yellow stars and matching cape with pink flowers and a white interior, a Japanese school girl uniform consisting of a grey blazer with blue plaid accents over a white dress shirt with a black tie, a black skirt, and black shoes.

"Hi there, nice to meet you." Le Fay replied, smiling brightly while waving at the three.

"Then there's my Knight, and Le Fay's older brother, Arthur Pendragon." Vali said as he motioned his hand to the man next to her. He was a bespectacled young man with blonde hair with a strand of hair across his face, who is usually dressed in a business suit. A powerful looking sword was sheathed to his side, and Issei had a good idea what it was considering he was a Pendragon.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance." Arthur said, holding folding an arm over his chest as he bowed.

"Next up is my first Rook, a Youkai and descendant of Sun Wukong, Bikou." Vali said, motioning to the monkey man. He had short light-colored hair and was dressed in ancient Chinese armor. Yuuma recognized it as an armor that was used during the Three Kingdoms period, and a replica of the Ruyi Jingu Bang in his hand, he probably had access to the same golden cloud as well.

"Charmed to meet you all." Bikou said, saluting playfully.

"Finally, this is my second Rook who I needed a mutation piece for. Former SS-Class stray and a powerful Nekoshou clan Nekomata, Kuroka." Vali finished, motioning her hand at a beautiful and attractive young woman with a voluptuous figure, long black hair with split bangs, and hazel gold eyes with cat-like pupils.

Her attire consisted of a black kimono with a red interior that was open at the shoulders, a yellow obi, a set of golden beads, and an ornately detailed headband. She also had a pair of black cat ears and two black tails, and if Issei recalled his Japanese history right, Nekomata were a form of Cat Youkai.

"Hey, so this is the childhood friend who has the power of a Dragon? Nice catch." Kuroka said, laughing as Vali blushes heavily in response to her playful tease.

"Not funny Kuroka!" Vali yelled, still blushing.

"Wow, you've got a really diverse group here compared to Rias, then again you did travel the world for seven years." Issei replied, noticing that the rest of Vali's group didn't seem to just be reincarnated humans like Rias' was.

"Yeah, I guess I do. Though I don't think Akeno, Koneko and Kiba were all former humans." Vali said, unaware of Kuroka's slight flinching at that before hiding her ears and tail somehow. "I'll have to ask her about that later."

Both Issei and Yuuma looked at each other, confirming that Kuroka seemed to react oddly the moment Koneko's name had been mentioned. Did she know Koneko or something? At that moment, Rias and her group all came back in, and Kuroka vanished from view.

"Ah, just in time Rias. This is the rest of my peerage." Vali said, waving hi to her.

"So, these are the other members of your household, it's very nice to meet all of you. I'm Rias Gremory, heir to the house of Gremory." Rias introduced, however soon noticed only three people rather than the four Vali had mentioned before. "Vali, is one of your group out right now?"

"Huh?" Vali turns to see Kuroka missing. "That's weird, where did Kuroka go?"

Rias' eyes widened at that before she turned to see Koneko react, confusing Vali once she turned to notice... until Vali suddenly connected the dots and gasped.

"Wait, you mean..." Vali began before Koneko suddenly ran out. "...Aw crap, this could be bad.

"Vali, what just happened?" Asia asked confused on why Koneko had run off.

"...Rias, have your familiar try to go find Koneko. I'm gonna need to explain this, mainly cause there's a side to the story that I don't think you know because Koneko doesn't know about it." Vali asked, and Rias nodded as she sent her bat creature out. Vali soon breathed. "As I just found out, Koneko is really Shirone... Kuroka's younger sister."

"They're sisters!? Wait, but then that means Koneko's a Nekoshou too?" Yuuma asked, wondering why Koneko hadn't ever shown that side of herself.

"Yeah, I thought Akeno and Koneko's devil energies wasn't like Kiba or Rias. It's because she wasn't originally Human." Vali answered, luckily unseen to her, Akeno seemed relieved she didn't seem to know what she was, but Yuuma noticed it yet was silent.

"You see, the Nekoshou clan is on the verge of extinction and Kuroka and Koneko are the only two survivors. The two were even orphaned and homeless for a time with only each other. Eventually a Devil picked them both up, and Kuroka became both Bishops under that Devil. That's where the stories become different. At first, everyone believed her hidden power that overflowed her drove her mad, and she killed her master as a result."

"Yeah, that's the story I heard. Koneko was nearly murdered for act, my brother however stopped it and gave her to my household so that didn't happen." Rias replied. "So, what really happened if that's the case?"

"...Kuroka killed her master to protect Koneko." Vali bluntly revealed, making everyone gasp. "I don't know all the details, but this master experimented on his peerage and Koneko was going to be next. She had to kill him to stop him, by that point his entire peerage was already suffering, it was mercy. When I found out her story, I helped find evidence to clear her name, that's how she became reassigned under the Mutation Rook in my peerage."

"But Koneko doesn't know this... poor thing." Yuuma said, knowing what it was like to see one's sister as their enemy. "Is that why Koneko doesn't use her Nekomata powers?"

"Yes, she's so afraid... afraid that she'll end up like her sister. Enough that she stopped responding to her real name, yet now that I know this..." Rias said looking sad, Vali patted her shoulder.

"...I know what that feels like. I had someone I didn't wanna end up like either, Issei's the only reason I never did." Vali said, surprising Rias a bit. She wanted to ask but knew better than to do so considering Vali didn't like to talk about certain things, probably all painful memories.

"For now, we gotta figure out a way to get the two sisters to figure things out. Though I think right now might be too soon."

"Yeah, I don't think Kuroka's anymore ready. She didn't to see her little sister here." Le Fay said worried, she and Kuroka were close friends and she worried about her.

At that same time however, someone knocked on the door. Everyone turned to it.

"Come in." Rias answered.

Soon a girl with short black hair and glasses walks in, several students alongside her as she did so.

"Sorry to interrupt." The girl said.

"Whoa, Sona Shitori? What's the student council pres. doing here?" Issei asked surprised, Sona looked at Vali who notice.

"You must be Valiana Lucifer correct? I must say, interesting choice of using a name that's similar to your true name's meaning." Sona said, surprising Vali by the fact she already knew her Devil name. She looked at Rias who shook to show she never said anything.

"OK, scarily impressive... wait, Sona Shitori?" Vali stated before blinking. "By chance is your real name Sona Sitri, the next heir of Sitri?"

"Wait, she's a Devil?" Issei asked, getting a nod from Akeno. "So, there's other Devils aside from us?"

"Rias, I'm hurt you never told them about us." The only boy of the student council replied.

"It's considered rude to get involved in other houses' affairs Saji, it's only natural she held this back." Sona replied, surprising Saji as a result. "Not to worry Vali, I have no intention of spreading word you're a Lucifer. I knew you had your reasons for hiding it."

"Oh... thank you." Vali said, mentally sighing in relief. "I'm assuming the entire council's your peerage, aside from a member who's... occupied at the moment, these are the members of my peerage. Issei, Asia and Yuuma here being my newest members."

"Pleasure to meet you all, this is my newest servant. My Pawn, Saji Genshirou." Sona said, introducing the sole male member of the council.

"So, you're a Pawn too, how many pieces? I'm two." Yuuma asked, Saji smirked at her question.

"I took up four pawn pieces." Saji said, holding up four fingers to emphasize that. "I'm even gonna be getting a Familiar soon."

"Wait, were you planning that today?" Vali said. "That's a problem for my group, Satoji only takes a single group per month and my entire peerage needs a familiar. How about we settle this in a friendly competition since my group hasn't had the chance to work together yet."

"Are you suggesting a Rating Game?" Sona asked, getting Issei's attention. Vali chuckles and sweat dropped.

"I'd never get permission for that. I was thinking more at the school level, old fashioned sports." Vali replied. "How does a game of dodge ball sound?"

* * *

Soon all of Vali's peerage, Kuroka having since come back from hiding, all were in gym uniforms as Sona's group was on the other side of the gym room's court. Rias on the sideline as a referee.

"Alright, the one with the most points after 15 minutes wins. If you catch the ball you can bring back the first player that had recently been eliminated. If you get hit while your side has only three members, your side has the first eliminated swap in. Now..." Rias explains before whistling.

Sona's Rook, Tsubasa, throws the ball at Le Fay, who tries to dodge it but has part of her outfit shredded. Rias blows the whistle and holds up the flag.

"That's a point!" Rias calls.

"Aw man, so clothes contact works?" Le Fay said worriedly, going to get a drink since she was eliminated.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Sona's Queen, Tsubaki, called out as she tossed it at Vali, who caught it with her hands, letting Le Fay get back in.

"Time to see the Lucifer counter strike!" Vali shouts, throwing the ball and imbuing it with ice magic. In her attempt to catch it, Sona's Knight, Tomoe, was hit and got a bit frozen by it. One of Sona's Bishops, Reya, tries to hit Issei from behind.

"Gotcha." Kuroka shouts as she jumps over and catches it, making Issei whistle impressed at the catch. "You can thank me for the save later."

Soon the throws of the ball got intense as more magic flying around everywhere.

"I had no idea dodge ball was so terrifying!" Asia said afraid.

"This isn't dodge ball anymore, it's like a fight to the death!" Yuuma pales, narrowly dodging a ball to the face.

"Now... here comes the pain!" Sona yelled out, imbuing magic into a ball.

Issei screams as it flies at him... and then follows him like a heat seeking missile, everyone looking around as it did so until... it hits Issei where the sun doesn't shine! He held his hands between his sweet spot as he fell over and Rias blew the missile.

"That's a penalty!" Rias called out, wincing a bit at having seen that.

"I... can't feel... my everything!" Issei hoarsely got out. Asia kneeled beside him, using her Twilight Healing over his pants.

"Come on everyone, we've got a game to win now for Issei's sake!" Vali said, her fighting spirit suddenly flaring.

"Yeah, for his man bits!" Bikou shouted.

"For his one-eyed snake!" Le Fay added.

"For his dignity." Arthur plainly replied.

Soon Yuuma sweat as she had the ball, and soon saw Saji stare at her.

"Bring it!" Saji shouted, Yuuma gulped and threw the ball... somehow hitting him between the legs as well. Saji cried out in pain and fell over as Yuuma panicked. Rias blew the whistle for the same penalty as Asia began to heal him too.

"...Yuuma, you are a lethal weapon." Vali sweat dropped.

After a bit, the whistle blew.

"Game over, with 14-13 points, the Lucifer team wins!" Rias called out, making Issei and Asia cheer in victory.

"A deal's a deal, although had we had a Rating Game you wouldn't have been able to beat me." Sona said, Vali chuckled as her group left. Issei wondering what a Rating Game was.

* * *

Soon Vali and her peerage celebrated in the ORC clubroom with some juice.

"Great job guys, you did well together." Vali said with a smile.

"Yeah, except me getting nailed in the kiwis." Issei said, chuckling with a sweat drop. Soon Vali makes a magic circle.

"Now come on guys, time to get our Familiars. It's a full moon tonight." Vali said, looking a bit excited.

Soon everyone walks onto it and they get transported to a magical forest.

"Whoa..." Issei said, looking at the forest. He was so surprised he was sure had this been a TV show, people would see him go white to represent he was kinda freaked out.

"WHO WANTS ME!?"

Issei and Asia freak before everyone turns to see an old man look at them.

"The master of the familiar, aka Satoji! If your goal is to find familiars galore, you came at the right time, that's for sure!" Satoji began, starting a rhyme. "The full moon is out to help you decide, and I'll be the one to act as your guide!"

"In case you ask, yes, he tries to make everything he says rhyme." Vali chuckled oddly. The others all sweat dropped, with Bikou snickering a bit at the situation.

"Now how can I help you? Tell me all your wants and desires. A strong one, fast one, or one that likes to set fires?" Satoji asks.

"Uh... anything that won't kill me?" Issei asked.

"I'd like one that's cute and really fun to be around." Asia asked.

"Hopefully this doesn't annoy, but don't treat the familiars like picking out a toy." Satoji rhymed, making Issei think that meant anything could kill him. "Also, fun? Done and done!"

* * *

Soon the group appears by a lake of the Familiar Forest.

"This Lake is awesome, righteous and right. At the bottom you'll find magic Undine sprites." Satoji rhymed.

"An Undine? Sweet, that sounds like the familiar jackpot!" Issei said, thinking he got a winner. Soon an Undine came from the lake, and when it did... it looked like a competitive body builder on roids. "What the hell!?"

"Undines are known for megawatt power! A familiar like that would make your enemies cower!" Satoji rhymed cheerfully.

"No thanks! He'd break me in half!" Issei screamed.

"Not he. Sorry, but this he's a she." Satoji answered, suddenly making Issei and Bikou go white in shock.

"...I think I just threw up in my mouth." Issei said monotonously.

Suddenly the sound of something stampeding enters the group's hearing, and soon the sight of Minotaur charging through caught their eye... as they aimed towards them!

"It's a minotaur stampede! Run away, my advice you must heed!" Satoji screamed before everyone began running, soon getting separated from each other in the ensuing chaos. When it was over, Issei panted heavily and noticed everyone got separated.

"Oh boy... this might be bad." Issei paled, worried what he would run into.

* * *

Asia looks worried as she walks around part of the forest alone.

"Oh no... where'd everyone go?" Asia asked herself, and soon the sight of green slime dripped in front of her, soon a ton of it began falling down and part of it that fell on her clothes ate her sleeve. "W-w-what?"

Asia began running and soon the slime began to follow her, after a bit of running she trips over a tree root and the slime was about to get her when...

"Rah!"

A blue lightning bolt zapped the slime, killing it as it lay motionless and fried. Asia blinked at the sight until she noticed a blue Sprite Dragon land on her shoulder.

"Oh, thank you." Asia smiled kindly, the Sprite Dragon nuzzling her.

* * *

Issei kept walking around the forest, starting to get both tired and annoyed.

"OK, this is getting old." Issei said, swearing he had gone in a circle by now. He honestly wished he could talk to Ddraig already so at least he wouldn't be alone, kinda jealous that Vali already could speak with her dragon.

As he walked around a bit, the ground beneath him suddenly rumbled as he got closer. Issei's eyes widened as he freaked out. He decided that he should move faster before something went after him, soon walking near a cage. However, he quickly discovered that was a bad idea, and soon the sight of a blue dragon roaring as it poked out its head came into view.

"HOLY SHIT!" Issei said, shocked at the Dragon before him. This wasn't one in his hand or in Vali's wings anymore, it was a living, breathing, and apparently adult Dragon!

"**What are you doing here Ddraig!?**" The Dragon spoke, surprising Issei by the fact the voice was female. "**You dare to near me, after what happened last we met!?**"

"W-what are you talking about? I'm not Ddraig! Well... I have him in my arm, but I'm not him! Who are you!?" Issei panicked, the blue dragon roared as she breathed a blue flame near his side, making him go fully white as she implied she could kill him whenever she wanted.

"**I am the strongest of the five Dragon Kings, the Chaos Karma Dragon, Tiamat!**" Tiamat roared. "**You are the possessor of the Dragon I hate most, where is he? Bring that coward out to face me!**"

"I can't, even if I wanted to, I can't talk to him yet!" Issei panicked as Tiamat's eye faced him, looking closer at him, Tiamat realized he wasn't lying. The dragon signs and snorts out steam from her nostril.

"Great, so I'm basically screaming for no reason now." Tiamat said, her roaring volume vanishing in disappointment.

"Uh... if you don't mind my asking, why do you hate Ddraig so much? Just out of curiosity." Issei asked.

This surprised Tiamat, no wielder of Ddraig had ever bothered to ask a question, just flee in terror, then again, no wielder of Ddraig she had met hadn't been able to talk to him by the point she met them.

Knowing her current form wasn't meant to have a conversation with a human, her body glowed and Issei soon saw her shrink herself down in size. Soon Issei saw her take on human form, said form took the appearance of a girl with long beautiful pale blue hair and a cold atmosphere that radiated from her beauty, her figure on par with that of Kuoh's Three Great Beauties. Issei even noted that her choice of clothes wasn't that different from Vali's usual casual outfit.

"Sit down kid, I've got a long story for you." Tiamat said, and Issei decided to listen to the dangerous dragon before him.

Soon Tiamat began talking about how a long time ago during the Great War era, she met Ddraig long after he had reached maturity, which for a Dragon was the equivalent to gaining eternal youth. Then she went into how Ddraig had tried to hit on her often, surprising Issei a bit.

Then Tiamat began sobbing about her stress as a Dragon King and how Ddraig kept annoying her, yet somehow eventually his presence became a comfort to her and he starting to actually gain some affections before they actually became a bit more. Issei soon began to talk and ask questions, and Tiamat began to answer them.

It led to Issei learning that after a bit, Tiamat wanted to have a family with the Red Dragon Emperor, so Ddraig had promised to have one last fight with Albion before they battled again for a very long time. Unfortunately, that last fight was the one that got him, and Albion transformed into Sacred Gears and Tiamat became angry for breaking the promise, and many saw her rampage across the world since.

The reason Tiamat choice to take residence in the Familiar forest was to annoy the Devils who could do little to resist her, and often rampage. In return she had to sometimes interject if the Rating Games got too deadly in a rule breaking sense. After all of that, Tiamat finally stopped.

"...Ah, feels good to let all of that out." Tiamat said, while Issei sweat dropped a bit. Who knew such a powerful Dragon could so much like... a teenage girl? "So, tell me, what's a person like you doing here, Issei Hyoudou?"

"I was looking for a Familiar with my fellow peerage members, and then some Minotaur stampeded by, causing us to get separated." Issei replied, chuckling a bit. Tiamat blinked and stared at him a bit, making Issei nervous. "...What?"

"You interest me Hyoudou. Alright then, it's settled." Tiamat answered, making Issei confused. "I'll agree to be your familiar. Just don't expect me to always come if you call me for something, I've got my own rhythm to follow. Now hurry up and make the pact so I can take a nap."

Issei's jaw dropped... did he just one of the greatest Dragons as a familiar by talking with her?

* * *

After a bit, the group ended up finding each other after Kuroka used her Senjutsu to track everyone, everyone looking a bit disheveled from the incident but otherwise in good condition with their own familiars found.

Notable ones including a small eye with wings that Le Fay found, a black cat that Kuroka decided to name Kuro while unaware of the fact her sister had a white one named Shiro, the Dragon that saved Asia she had named Rassei after Issei and for Vali she got a baby Hydra which was a dangerous familiar few could tame.

"It seems like you didn't find a familiar Issei, and we're out of time. Sorry." Vali said, however Issei chuckled at that to everyone's confusion. "What's so funny?"

"Actually, I did get one. Would you believe if I said that I got a Dragon named Tiamat as mine?" Issei said nervously, making Vali blink three times and stare at him in shock.

"**YOU DID WHAT!?"** Vali screamed loudly.

"Is it really that weird? I mean come, didn't Asia get a dragon for a familiar too-"

Right as Issei tried to touch Rassei, he zapped at everyone that was a male with its blue lightning, making them all cough out smoke.

"Ooh! Something you should know about those creatures, they hate other males. That's just one of their features." Satoji chuckles.

"Really... good to know..." Issei said, coughing out more smoke.

* * *

Soon everyone was back at the ORC clubroom, sending their familiars away until they were needed again.

"I'm impressed with Asia, they say Sprite Dragons only give themselves to the most worthy and pure hearted of masters." Rias stated, looking at Rassei before he was sent off for the day.

"Asia used to be a Holy Sister, so who knows? Maybe that had sway over the little guy?" Akeno added. "I'm more impressed with Issei though. Tiamat hates Ddraig, how'd you do it?"

"I'd... rather not share that story." Issei replied, not like he wanted to explain how he found her by accident and she pretty much demanded him to. Meanwhile outside, Kuroka looked at Koneko somberly and longingly, wishing they could reconnect somehow.

'Shirone...' Kuroka thought sadly, and Vali noticed.

'Don't worry Kuroka, I'm sure you two will be sisters again soon enough. That's a promise.' Vali thought to herself.

* * *

**I want people to be honest with me, how many of you assumed after the last chapter that Yuuma would join Vali's peerage? Cause I'd like to think some of you thought so, the reason why she's a Pawn is because I feel Pawns are better for more flexible characters, as someone who uses different weapons of light, that fits Yuuma better than a Knight would. That and the set Knight for Vali's peerage is already set.**

**Yes, Sona was able to figure out who Vali was just by her surname alone. Lucilee is very similar to her actual last name of Lucifer, and the Roman Goddess Lucina whose name means "she who brings children into the light", which fits how Lucifer means "light bearer." As such, Sona's the kind of character that would notice that it isn't just coincidence, especially since she does the same thing with her own human alias.**

**So, I gave Tiamat to Issei as his familiar, don't worry about that making him too OP. While she is his familiar, she's only gonna bother coming when he summons her when she feels like, and since he's still Ddraig's wielder, that's not gonna be often, in fact I'd say she'll ignore his summons often on purpose just to mock Ddraig through the act of doing so.**

**Before we end things for this chapter, I'd like everyone to know they should be excited for the next chapter, aside from the others attempting to help Kuroka and Koneko's sisterly bond rekindle, Rias has a surprise she's planned for Vali. I won't say what it is, but I can give you this hint, it has to do with the old school building.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay (x1), Asia (x1)  
Knights - Arthur (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou (x1), Kuroka (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (x1, became Mutation Piece, sealed), ? (x1, Mutation Piece, sealed)  
Knights - Kiba (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Koneko (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**


	6. Chapter 6

**Get ready, here's part one of a double chapter posting special!**

**Wish luck to the Nekoshou sisters, because the fractured bond between Koneko and Kuroka will be tested, and either it'll mend or break. Well... technically at this point, you should all know how I'm gonna have it end, it's how I do it that you don't know yet. Let's see if how I do it really melts your hearts or at least makes you all smile :3**

**I hope you enjoy that little surprise I mentioned about in the previous chapter, it's literally gonna be the first scene of this chapter. I could just say it here since you'll be seeing it in a moment, but where's the fun in that? *giggles* Plus I think you've gotta read it, if I told you that'd kill the joy fact I built from the suspense.**

**This is the last chapter that'll have any breather moments, after this the Riser arc's dominating the next few chapters before the first season of this story ends so I can properly plan the next season. So, let's settle things here before the Phenex rises from the ashes. *blinks* ...I really need to stop with the obvious puns already ^^;**

**As of this chapter, you'll see Vali mention that her Great Grandma Lilith is alive, I had this story idea before Vol 23 had officially been out and any info had been revealed, so that one detail about Devil Lilith is non-canon here. What this will do to the Dragon Lilith? Well... I haven't planned that far just yet, so we'll see, at best she'll get different name.**

**Right before that, I've got some information you all may like, I'm doing some heavy world building for this fanfic and the Lucifer Clan's Primal Abyss ability was just the start. The only preview to this that I'll give you (plus the fact there's still much to actually create ^^;) is that you'll all be seeing many more Devil abilities in the future.**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally]**

* * *

** -Shadow Force- **

**The energy of the Shadow Realm that the Demons used to become what they are now. Originally it was just a tangible form of shadows, but when the Demon race forced it into their bodies after unsuccessfully purging all traces of their holy power, the remnant of the holy energy melded with the Demons and transformed.**

**The Demons further presence as they began forming their civilization in the Shadow Realm continuously influenced and mutated the energy to match the beings they were now melded into more and more, soon turning the Shadow Realm into a lethal zone for Angels that didn't have the proper means to traverse through it, making the Shadow Realm impossible for the Angels to invade during the Great War.**

**Despite the traces of holy power that transformed the Shadow Force into its current state, it's not lethal to Devils as the holy element within it is just too small, this small trace is also why Angels' holy power is still highly fatal to Demons.**

* * *

"The second floor is yours to use however you'd like." Rias said simply, making Vali blink in shock at the words she had just heard.

In fact, to make sure that she was completely conscious, sane, and not at all hallucinating from something, she slapped her cheeks twice and then pulled on her arm, making her yelp as she felt the pain from the latter. Yep, she heard it right.

"Are you serious!?" Vali asked, her surprise finally bursting out.

"Of course, we barely use it as is." Rias replied honestly, if she was ever up there she was just looking out the window like with how she first saw Issei. No point in wasting it. "Plus, to be fair, you keep coming here despite not actually being club members, it seems like a fair trade to give you the upper level, so you can have your own club as a base."

Vali's eyes sparkled at the idea, form her own club? Rias' peerage had the ORC, and Sona's peerage technically had the Student Council office. Having a place for own peerage just felt right at this point.

"Alright, I'll take it! Thank you, Rias!" Vali answered, her eyes shining as she showed a level of enthusiasm that Issei honestly saw her rarely show.

"Come on guys, let's set up shop there!"

All of Vali's peerage minus Kuroka all stare in shock as she rushes upstairs, leaving a small cloud trail of dust behind her. Issei chuckled as he and the others follow her, right before that, Yuuma turned at the still distant looking Kuroka.

"Uh... Kuroka?" Yuuma asked, catching the black Nekomata's attention.

"Oh, right." Kuroka said, heading upstairs before a worried looking Yuuma who followed her. At the same time, Akeno and Kiba looked towards Koneko who had a similar look, but where Kuroka's had more sadness behind it, Koneko's was more dulled and apathetic like she wanted to stop feeling anything.

If it had just been a few days since her sister had come back, Rias' peerage wouldn't really be considering it an issue... a few days had been three weeks ago! Koneko didn't even touch or bring her usual snacks, this wasn't good for her or Kuroka.

"...We really need to do something, otherwise I don't like the path Koneko's heading towards." Rias quietly said to herself.

* * *

After about an hour of moving stuff around, bringing in new stuff for them, setting up furniture and everything else Vali couldn't think the specific term of right at that moment had been finished as Vali's peerage finally had their club room finished.

"Whoa, looks badass!" Issei noted, liking what they had all done with the place.

The room wasn't too different to the Occult Research Club's room on the first floor, but where the ORC had a royal middle age feel with a classic style with mainly Occult and Devil items around the room, this room had been made to a hobbyist's room for different mythology based items.

A lot of items that ranged to some magic talismans hung by Le Fay, a shelf of books about various myths and legends that Arthur had provided, Bikou and Kuroka had led a few spiritual Japanese items to reference the Youkai while everything else was a different item for some mythology that Issei, Vali, Asia and Yuuma all had rushed around looking for.

"Alright, now there's only one last thing to take care of." Vali said, writing on a paper already with Rias' stamp of approval to confirm the use of the room's residence and added the club's info onto it. "Once Sona checks and approves this, the Mythological History Club's open for business."

"Any reason for that name?" Yuuma asked.

"Well, Rias' group is the Occult Research Club, and at first glance to someone unfamiliar with them, they all look like former humans. So, the link to devils makes it have an occult theme." Vali began to explain.

"All of us on the other hand? We're a bit more diverse in our origins, and since we all come from what's human myths, Mythological History seemed like a good choice."

"Hmm... yeah, that makes sense." Issei replied.

Vali soon sent the club application to Sona, and in almost no time at all, the Mythological History Club had become official. Issei quickly learned he was made the Vice President, though he actually found this unsurprising when he realized fellow Queens Akeno and Tsubaki were the vice-leaders of their respective school groups as well.

While moving some last few supplies around, Issei noticed Vali writing something on some paper, it looked like a mixture of a sketch and some notes. It had the Lucifer clan magic circle and mentions of ice magic, while also showing some strange dragon like symbol that he didn't recognize.

"Hey Vali, what are you working on?" Issei asked, getting her attention.

"Oh this? Just working on a new ice magic technique, I need more than just a few shards and a blizzard." Vali said, chuckling a bit. "It's a lot easier than thinking of ones for Albion's poison element."

"Wait, what?" Issei said, confused by the latter part.

**(Issei... you might be better off not knowing that.)** Albion replied.

"...OK?" Issei blinked, soon noticing Kuroka was still sitting in place. "Hey Vali, don't you think we should do something about Kuroka and Koneko by now?"

"I've tried, but I'm not sure what do without adding fuel to a fire we're trying to put out." Vali sighed, she wasn't exactly the best with familiar relationship repairing. She lost her birth parents to her crazed Grandpa, her Great Grandpa was... well, she did still have her Great Grandma Lilith and Azazel at least.

The latter had even convinced her to redeem the Lucifer clan by rebuilding it from scratch without inheriting anything from her, it's what convinced her to work hard in the present, so the Lucifer would be seen by her actions rather than the nastier members of her family. She was pretty sure some individuals from other clans that had bad reputations right now were doing the same.

However right at that moment... Vali realized while she may not know what to do, there was someone who was familiar with what it was like to feel alone until they met someone that changed that, but without going through the same level of problems she did. Turns out he was standing right next to her.

"That's it!" Vali shouted, surprising Issei and making him fall back. "Issei, your dragon aura caused everyone to shun you when you were young. Koneko might be able to relate to you through your story."

"OK, I'm following you so far. What next?" Issei asked.

"After you do, imply to her about what she'd think if turned out her sister hadn't killed her master for the reasons she thought. Then convince her to talk with Kuroka directly." Vali replied. "At the same time, I'll talk with Kuroka and convince her to try talking with Koneko. I know it's not much but..."

Issei nodded, they honestly didn't know what else they could do at this point to help either of them. Issei soon formed a magic circle to send the message to Rias downstairs.

"Alright, I'll do what I can." Issei said as he walked up to head downstairs. Vali soon walked over to Kuroka and sat by her, getting her attention.

"Let's you and I talk." Vali stated simply.

Soon as Issei got downstairs, the others all moved to the side of the room as Issei kneeled in front of Koneko directly, forcing her to turn to him.

"Hey Koneko, mind if I talk with you outside?" Issei asked, hoping Koneko would agree. The white Nekomata just stood there doing nothing before nodding lightly to answer. Issei smiled, the hard part of the task having been overcome.

* * *

Issei and Koneko were soon sitting on the rooftop of the old school building, Koneko just staring at the sun. Issei looks at it before looking at her.

"I don't have any siblings to understand what happened to you, or what you might be feeling like right now, but... I know what it's like to feel alone with early the whole world against you." Issei began, slightly joining Koneko's attention despite she didn't look away.

"When I was young, and for a reason neither my parents or I understood... any child I got near, or most adults, were afraid of me. I wasn't bullied, but being shunned is probably worse, because it's like being acknowledged to the world it doesn't want you here."

Koneko's eyes turn towards the ground a bit, remembering how many Devils had treated her after what her sister had did. Wanting her dead just for the mere thought she'd become her. More and more, she hated what she was born as and could never escape, even becoming a devil didn't take her ears and tail, she could only hold them and convince her they weren't real.

"It wasn't until I was 11 people began to actually act like I was there, but that didn't mean I was really accepted. All it meant was people knew I existed." Issei continued, remembering a young Vali and Irina. "The only two people in the world who weren't like that was a boy I remember as Rin, and Vali herself."

"...Only them?" Koneko finally responded, asking to make sure Issei wasn't exaggerating.

"No one else. Vali told me it was because I had the aura of a dragon, I intimidated everyone, it was probably the only reason I didn't get bullied too." Issei said, trying to make a joke to not feel as bad.

"Rin however moved after a few months from when we first met, and Vali eventually vanished on her training journey. Even despite the two other friends I made... it felt lonely without them. Even if I tried, there's no way I can forget people so close to my heart, even if to deny the pain for a moment."

Koneko's grip on her own arms tightened, and Issei looked as she seemed like she was trying to hold back something. He found out when tears began to shed, and even then Issei felt it seemed like she couldn't make herself let them all out, almost as if doing so would mean giving something up.

Issei realized that now was the best and maybe only chance for him to tell her.

"...Koneko, I might sound a bit weird with this, but can I ask you something hypothetical?" Issei asked, Koneko didn't exactly say yes, but she looked at him. "Well, what if by some chance, the reason everyone thought Kuroka killed her master wasn't what actually happened? Or I guess what if she had a reason for it?"

Koneko froze at that, something like that... it hadn't ever crossed her mind. Did Kuroka actually have a reason?

"I can't answer for her, at the very least maybe you should ask her. I'm not saying to do it now, not do you need to reconnect with her either, at the very least... you should give her the chance to share her side of the story." Issei said, about to finish their talk. "We can judge all we want, but she was the one who experienced things first hand. It's only right we listen at least once."

Koneko stood there, soon hugging Issei a bit.

"...Do you mind? At least for the moment." Koneko asked, Issei nodded and rubbed her head as Koneko held his uniform tightly. Feeling afraid not just cause of back then, but now... that maybe it had been wrong, and if it was how could she fix the damage she had helped cause?

* * *

"...I'm not getting the choice to say no, aren't I?" Kuroka sighed, Vali nodding right after and making her groan. "Fine what about?"

"I thought you'd might like to listen to a story." Vali began, taking a deep breath as she realized she was about to air out something she didn't like to talk about. She waved her hand to the others knew to leave the room. "You're aware of how things are for the Lucifer clan right?"

"Yeah, you're the heiress and no one else has your power to pass on to the next generation because you're the last-" Kuroka begins, sure she knew the full story already. However, she'd be proven wrong with what Vali said next.

"There's another."

Kuroka suddenly went silent.

"Satan and Lilith gave birth to a single child, a son. This was the same with the son's and his with who bared a sole son, and then that son had a child but with a human mother. That child was the only time a girl truly held the lord of Devil's blood... I was that child. However, that child possessed a sacred gear. My grandpa was nothing like his father, sick and twisted to the point he had been disowned."

"To him, I was a tool, as was his own child. He had his son, my own father, bully me and treat me like a monster to punish and train... and my grandpa used me as a weapon to satisfy his old boredom. I fought, and probably even killed, all the time without question. Finally... I asked why and said no, and the consequence was my parents were murdered right before me. I only got away not because of what I was or my power, but... because I was just lucky."

Now that shocked Kuroka, she knew how strong Vali had been due to how she was on the last leg of her training journey, and how she stood against a whole pursuit force just because she believed Kuroka had the right to explain herself.

If she hadn't met Vali... she'd still be a criminal to the Devils, and her deceased former master would have never had his vile secrets exposed. For someone to have nearly killed her, Albion's wielder, as a child? She couldn't imagine it at all.

"After that I was found alone in a forest by Azazel, I gained a new father, a new family, a new home. Then I gained my best friend, Issei, and I finally felt alive. I soon met my Great Grandma, she was kind to me and told me this." Vali continued, trying to make it through to the end for Kuroka's sake. "That I should start from the bottom to clear the stain on our name, a stain my father and grandfather created. I may be an heiress, but I have nothing to inherit, I have to earn everything myself."

Vali turned to Kuroka directly.

"That's why to most I don't tell everyone I'm a Lucifer, to clear that name, I must make the name Vali itself represent my entire clan. I have to become the phoenix for its entirety and burn the dark predecessor of its name before me." Vali finished.

"...Vali, this grandfather of yours. What's his name?" Kuroka asked.

"You've probably heard of it, the worst Devil in history... Rizevim." Vali replied, making Kuroka gasp. She knew a horrid Devil by that name from the few times before her master's true nature came. They said the man was so vile, even Satan considered him "evil" for a Devil.

"..." Kuroka tried to say something, but her voice wouldn't come out.

"Kuroka, know this. I hate to fight. My past has made me prefer pacifism over combat, but even if I hate to fight..." Vali began, breathing before fiving a serious face. "Should the things I care for most, or the people most precious to me get in danger, I will throw that all away for as long as needed just to protect them."

Vali turns to Kuroka.

"Isn't that why you killed your master? To protect your sister? If that's the case... then you should stop running from her, or neither of you will ever stop running."

Kuroka's face widened as she gave a silent gasp. Vali nodded with a smile, telling her to go find her.

"Shirone..." Kuroka breathed, soon standing up and walking out of the room. Vali sighed in relief as her job was done. Now, it all depended on how Koneko responded to what she heard from Issei.

Right before that however, Kuroka peaked her head back in.

"Oh, and Vali? It's obvious to all of us. Just make out with him already." Kuroka bluntly said with a smile, making Vali blush and stutter before she vanished again.

"What is she talking about!? It's not like I..." Vali began, but soon stopped.

Vali soon recalled all her years of longing for her, how Issei didn't let being a Devil or Albion's wielder change their friendship and instead making it stronger, her small level of embarrassment of having to heal him when she didn't have Asia. Vali's face widens in shock.

'No way, that can't be... am I falling in love with Issei!?' Vali thought in shock.

* * *

Outside the old school building, Kuroka walked outside, soon beginning to look for her sister's chi, however it didn't take her long as Koneko walked into view. Having been waiting by the trees, thinking about maybe calling her over herself.

"Shi..." Kuroka began, but decided not to for the moment. As much as she wanted to use her sister's real name... for now she had to respect things as they were now. "Koneko."

"...Do you mind if I ask you something?" Koneko replied, surprising Kuroka.

Soon the two were standing by one of the larger trees near the old school building. After some silence, Koneko dropped the ball with her question.

"...Issei mentioned something to me. That I should hear your side of the story, so why did you kill your master?" Koneko asked, on the verge of a break down from the suspense of what she might hear. "He took us in when we had nothing, and becoming his Bishops meant good things. So why?

"...To protect you."

Koneko's face showed some surprise at that, and soon Kuroka continued.

"Our master wasn't the saint he first appeared to be. I discovered something dark about him, he had experimented on his peerage, changed them, they had all mutated into monsters on the inside. Living was a curse to them." Kuroka stated, soon recalling seeing his next planned target. "Eventually, he decided to make you his next project."

Koneko gasped loudly at that.

"I was not going to let him touch you, so throwing all caution to the wind, I took his life without hesitation before he could ever touch you. Then I granted mercy to his peerage and ended their suffering." Kuroka went on, it was just as much of a struggle to tell Koneko this as it was for her to hear it. "But the Devils didn't know this, and then... you saw it."

The scene of Koneko seeing her sister's murder flashed through her head, the look of horror on her face at the blood on her sister's body. That wasn't the worst of it though... Kuroka recalled trying to reach for her sister, and she stepped back.

Before she knew it, she realized that she wouldn't be able to make her see her as anything but a murderer, and just left her behind because it was better than being with a sister she didn't trust. A sister who couldn't guarantee she'd protect her anymore.

"I know what you're thinking. Why didn't I say anything, why didn't I take you with me, why didn't I do something else different?" Kuroka said, and Koneko lowered her head... because that was what she was thinking.

"That face you made, how could I have told you the truth? How would you have believed me? Even if I had brought you with me, I had no way to guarantee your safety. I was labeled a stray, and had to fight for my life until Vali met me. If you had died, I'd have let them kill me."

'Issei... you knew, didn't you?' Koneko thought, a few tears streaming down her face. 'I was wrong all this time, and for once... I'm glad I was.'

Kuroka soon breathed and sighed heavily, expecting that it wouldn't be this easy for Koneko to forgive her, but then she felt a sudden hug from behind and turned to see Koneko was the one doing it before she began crying, and this time not silently.

"I... I'm so sorry! You were always protecting me even back then, I... I should have realized that was the case even then. I let my fear win over how well I should have known my own sister." Koneko hiccupped, making Kuroka's eyes get misty in response. "I don't wanna be scared of it anymore! My powers... my future... or even you. Please, let's just finally go back."

Kuroka finally begins fully crying and hugs Koneko back, outside by the old school building's door, Vali and Rias watched from the window and both smiled.

"Vali, I had tried my best to give her happiness since that day. I didn't think I'd ever be able to unless I could give her back what she needed most." Rias said, soon smiling more at Vali. "It's because you met Kuroka that changed, so thank you."

"Rias, I can't take all the credit. I only helped Kuroka, you were the one that helped Koneko. I just had found the person that gave her that final push." Vali smiled, giving Rias a light bump on the shoulder. "This victory belongs to us both."

Rias sighed and smiled, she could accept that result. After all... her brother was the only reason Koneko made it here, and she's the one that let Vali meet her to let Kuroka see her again. In a sense, Vali was right they each played a part. Soon the two sisters' cries finally faded, Koneko resting her head on her sister's lap.

"From this point on Koneko, we'll be by each other's side." Kuroka said, rubbing her head.

"...Shirone." Kuroka showed surprise at that as her sister looked up. "That is my name, isn't it? I'm here and I've found peace. Meow."

Kuroka smiled a bit and continued rubbing her head, Shirone and her were together again, and as long as she was alive... she'd make sure nothing would dare rip them apart again or she would fight the entire world for her.

* * *

Soon the late afternoon came, and everyone began heading to their respective places of residence for the day, only Rias and Akeno stayed behind for some last-minute work. Rias looking at Koneko, or rather Shirone, did so with a smile she had lost for so long.

"Don't you think it's strange?" Akeno suddenly said, catching her attention. "When we first noticed Issei we were thinking about adding him to our group, and while we didn't, it's as if ever since we saw him that things have changed for the better."

"Is there anywhere you're going with this?" Rias asked, a bit confused why Akeno was bringing it up as she was. Not to mention the manner she said it.

"Just remarking how it feels a bit like a fairy tale after that little miracle with Ko- excuse me, Shirone." Akeno answered. "I guess I'm just curious, do you think maybe Vali and her team might be able to make 'that' miracle happen?"

Rias' eyes widen slightly, did Akeno just imply that maybe they could finally end the greatest problem her status as the Gremory heiress had faced her with? As much as she hated to admit her pride getting to her, she knew how much the promise they made was being bent away from her favor, she had to find a way to break it IN her favor and soon.

"I guess it's a good thing that my best friend worries about me, and I'm running out of options." Rias thinks a bit before setting her mind, she'd tell them tomorrow. "But let's wait for tomorrow, I'd rather it not be on everyone's minds for the entire night."

"Understood president." Akeno smiled, soon standing up. "If you don't mind, I'd like to head home now."

"Understood." Rias replied as Akeno headed out, right at that moment she saw a magic circle appear behind her. Soon a familiar face soon presented itself. Rias frowned a bit over the awful timing it had too.

* * *

Issei had soon fallen to sleep, exhausted after the Mythological History Club's formation today, and barely needing any time to crash on his bed. The strangest thing is soon afterwards he began to dream, and this particular dream?

"Damn it, there ain't no way bro!" Matsuda cried.

"There has to be some kind of mistake!" Motohama wailed.

Issei blinked at why they were crying, or why they were wearing tuxedos for some reason. Soon he turned and saw his classmates, Rias' peerage and Vali's peerage other than Vali herself in similar fancy outfits, but it became clear when he soon noticed his parents in outfits that were only worn at weddings what was going on.

'Wait, I'm getting married!? To who!?' Issei wondered.

"No more looking at other girls Issei." Vali's voice suddenly said, making Issei turn to see Vali in a wedding dress, shocking him as she realized her absence in the crowd was because she was the bride to be!

'When did all of this happen? I'm confused, how did I even get to this point!?' Issei thought, ignoring the priest stating the words for the ceremony. 'This is a dream, right? Well, I guess I should just go along with it and then maybe I'll wake up.'

"-you may now kiss the bride." The priest finishes.

Vali turned to Issei, waiting for the kiss. Issei gulped as he suddenly got really nervous, real or not he was about to kiss his best friend! He breathed before inching closer, expecting he'd have to do it and feel awkward when...

**"[Are you really that flustered over kissing a girl you know? If it's that hard, then here. Dream's over!]"**

Suddenly everything faded and Issei was in his clothes he wore to sleep, surprised at the voice. Strangely he recognized it as... the one from his Boosted Gear! Suddenly a giant green eye appeared in the darkness before a fire spread out through the dream.

"I've remember, it was just once but this isn't the first time I've heard your voice." Issei gasped.

**"[That's right, it took long enough too! My voice never reached you because you didn't have the means to hear me back then. Now that you can hear me, it only seems fair I meet the partner I'll be fighting alongside against. Especially since this time it seems the White Dragon isn't my opponent.]"** The voice said.

"Then... that means your!" Issei gasped, realizing who it was.

Suddenly Issei's mental landscape sets on fire, and from it the sight of a red silhouette appeared before the flames were parted by it, revealing a Red Dragon!

**"[I am the Welsh Dragon! The Red Dragon Emperor, Ddraig! I am the being that lives in your left hand!]"** Ddraig shouted, Issei staring in shock at the Dragon within him.

Issei soon gasped and felt his left hand form his sacred gear, and suddenly he woke up as a result. He looked at his left hand, which had a green circle glow on it.

**[Forgive me, I guess my introduction gave you a rude awakening. Nice to finally meet you directly Issei Hyoudou.]** Ddraig replied.

"So, it really is you?" Issei asked, now knowing what Vali felt like.

**[Indeed, but let's withhold that for now. Something tells me you'll need all the sleep you can get for tomorrow. Let's just say... I have a hunch.]** Ddraig said before the light vanished.

Issei wondered what he meant about that, but soon his thoughts went back to his dream. He had been inches away from kissing the dream version of Vali... and he began blushing at the thought. How could he have a dream like that about his best friend? Sure, she was smart, refined, strong beautiful, admittedly had an amazingly large pair of breasts on a figure that most girls could only dream of having, was kind, sweet, innocent, a good cook and...

"Wait a second..." Issei asked himself, suddenly blushing more as he realized something. "No way, no freaking way. Am I... am I falling in love with her!?"

Issei panicked and stuttered in response to that so much, he actually knocked himself back into unconsciousness again.

* * *

Soon the MHC were all heading to the Old school building together, most of the group noticing Vali and Issei were purposely looking away from each other, neither letting a blush form so no one figured it out... minus Kuroka, but due to her teasing nature she just giggled and said nothing, so they'd realize she was onto them.

"So, what do you think had Rias suddenly call us on a day off exactly?" Le Fay asked her older brother, finally breaking the ice.

"I don't know for sure, but if I had to guess it may be drama related to the house of Gremory." Arthur replied, that was the only real answer he could come up with as he knew little about the heiress of Gremory directly.

"Do you have an idea what might be the issue Vali?" Bikou asked, hoping to get Issei and Vali to stop thinking about whatever and pay attention.

"Hmm..." strangely Rias did appear in my room last night with a woman following her after, I think Rias said she was older brother's queen so-" Vali suddenly stops and makes a serious face, making the others do to. "Actually, I think I have a good idea, but let's let Rias tell us directly."

Suddenly worried, the group hurried over to the old school building and saw Rias and Akeno already present with her peerage, soon the others saw a silver haired lady in a blue and white maid outfit along with them.

"Who's that?" Asia asked.

"Her name's Grayfia, she's the one I mentioned appeared to me after Rias showed up." Vali answered.

"My lady, shall I explain things to your friends here?" Grayfia asked, Rias shook her head.

"No, I'll tell them myself. It's only fair. Everyone, the truth is I'm-" Rias tried to begin, but soon an orange magic circle appeared, and Rias sneered. Vali recognized the clan symbol.

"Phenex." Vali breathed, surprised someone from one of the clans most unscathed from the Great War appeared. Soon a fire spurted out before a blonde-haired man in a burgundy suit appeared from it.

"And Riser's appeared in the human realm." The man known as Riser introduced, Bikou already annoyed because he seemed to use third person on himself. "I've come all this way to see you... my beloved Rias."

"Uh... a-anyone wanna explain?" Yuuma asked timidly.

"This gentleman is Lord Riser Phenex, third heir to the house of Phenex. He is also Lady Rias' fiancé." Grayfia answered, soon nearly everyone but Rias, Akeno, Riser and Grayfia showed shock with few like Kiba and Arthur keeping a calm face.

"Fiancé?" Vali gasped. At that moment, everyone noticed Rias slam her hand on her desk as she stood up. Clearly not happy.

"I've told you before Riser, I will not marry you!" Rias yelled, Riser ignores her outburst.

"But my darling, Riser believes your family's circumstances are still so that you can't afford to be so selfish." Riser said in a cocky manner, all of the guys already hated him, and he had barely spoken more than twice.

"I will not bring my family to ruin, but my husband will be my choice and that choice is not you! My family made this decision because they are in too great a rush." Rias said, barely keeping her power in from her own anger. "Besides, I was told I was free until my graduation, why are you so insistent on breaking that promise? So, for the finally time. Riser... I. Will not. Marry you!"

"For the final time Rias..." Riser said, grabbing her by the chin. "Riser bears the reputation of the house of Phenex and will not let our good name be besmirched. Riser is already bothered by the fire and wind of this world and is only mildly tolerating it. Riser doesn't care if has to burn all your servants to make you come back to Hell!"

Before Riser could burn anyone however, Grayfia sent out an aura that sent chills through everyone.

"Lord Riser, as you know, I am here by order of Sirzechs. That means there will be no disruptions of peace." Grayfia said, her voice unchanging yet terrifying all but Rias and Vali, and just barely.

"So, the rumors are true... the Silver-Haired Queen of Annihilation's power is no joke." Vali breathed, seeing Riser stand down easily.

"My master anticipated there would be a conflict of some sort, as such I have been assigned to offer an ultimatum if things broke down." Grayfia continued. "If Lady Rias still wishes to pursue her personal preferences over her family's, she must settle it via a Rating Game against Lord Riser."

Rias gasped at the offer presented.

"Wait, Sona mentioned that twice. What's a Rating Game exactly?" Issei asked.

"A Rating Game is a competition Devils hold between themselves and their servants, it's why the Evil Pieces are based off chess pieces and have separate abilities and characteristics." Vali began. "It's basically a battle, but only mature noble devils can play it. Riser is at that age... but neither me, Rias or Sona are old enough to participate yet."

"So, your saying Rias' family has already given her a disadvantage?" Le Fay asked. "I know Devils aren't the most noble species, but that's unfair by any standards."

"Rias my dear, are the four by your side the extent of your servants?" Riser asked.

"No, I have two bishops who simply couldn't be here right now." This caught Vali's group by surprise, it honestly seemed like Rias' peerage was only Shirone, Akeno and Kiba. Where were these Bishops at that they've never been seen? "And what if they were?"

Riser laughs and snaps, suddenly from some flames, 15 girls, all with Devil energy within them, all appeared. Vali noticed one of them was a high-ranking Devil however to her shock.

"Riser has 15 pieces, in other words a full set." Riser claimed smugly.

"He's used up all his pieces?" Issei stated, realizing that even if you counted those who had multiple pieces, which Rias didn't have... Rias only had 5 pieces. "That means he outnumbers her 3:1."

"That's right Issei, and unfortunately nothing prevents someone with an incomplete set of any size from playing a game if they at least have one person." Vali said, realizing the odds against Rias were only worsening. "It's not just that, I can tell... one of his pieces is another member of the Phenex household. It's rare, but family can join each other's peerage."

Rias stared silently at Riser, not letting herself being intimidated.

"...I won't let them control my life any further, if they anticipate me losing this game then I'll prove them wrong." Rias said, not afraid of the odds. Everyone realized at that moment what her answer was. "Grayfia, tell my brother I accept the Rating Game."

"I will inform him immediately." Grayfia replied.

"Riser will see you at the game my lovely Rias." Riser stated before he and his peerage left, Riser laughing the whole time.

* * *

**Aww! Looks like Koneko and Kuroka finally got to have their happy ending, or I guess now I should say Shirone and Kuroka, cause from this point on the choice for Shirone to use her real name again is gonna stick. I've rarely seen any fanfics go this path when the sisters restored their bond, and I think more need to do this, so I'll be the next one to add to that chain.**

**Now I think I should add a secondary reason I had Shirone's arc finished here rather than later. Without Issei on Rias' team, someone will need to step up or they'll really be in odds they can't win when they fight Riser. With Shirone accepting her Nekomata powers again, despite needing more training to properly use them, she'll fill in the gap that Issei creates from being in Vali's peerage.**

**For the Mythological History Club twist, I hope you guys liked that. I figured Vali's group needed their own club rather than simply always be at the ORC's club, kinda like how the Student Council are their allies yet of another group. Then I recalled that the second floor of the old school building only ever seemed to be there for Rias to look out the window of, so I figured that's where the new club should set up.**

**I think what most of you liked about this chapter though? Both Vali and Issei are finally starting to notice their feelings for each other, and it's overwhelming each of their minds! *giggles* Let's see how long it takes before they finally confess ^w^**

**Also, that little trick Vali's working on? There'll be a big battle before Season 1 ends where she'll use this technique, and it'll be grand. Until then I ain't saying anything more about said technique or battle ;)**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay (x1), Asia (x1)  
Knights - Arthur (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou (x1), Kuroka (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (x1, became Mutation Piece, sealed), ? (x1, Mutation Piece, sealed)  
Knights - Kiba (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Shirone (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo (x1), Reya (x1)  
Knights - Tomoe (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

**As you'll see there's a slight change with Sona's peerage in terms of the pawns Ruruko has, this is because for this fanfic, they already have their artificial Sacred Gears as real ones, so Ruruko's worth a few more pawns. I doubt Sona will use her last three pawns anytime soon in canon anyways if at all.**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**


	7. Chapter 7

**Now here's part two of the double chapter posting special!**

**Alright, first thing I want to talk to all of you about before we begin? Someone PMed me about a question that I felt was really important, since I had nearly finished the previous chapter I couldn't talk about it there, so I'll do so here. The question was about if, at any point in this story, will there be a Issei/Vali lemon? Well in this story particular, no.**

**This story's rating is T, and I plan to keep it as such, not to mention I don't see a good place to put a lemon in the main story anyways. At the same time, I actually don't know _how_ to write a lemon. So eventually in the story, I'll make a scene at the end of a chapter showing where a lemon would be about to begin, but before it enters M-Rated territory I'll cut it off, and the beginning of the next chapter will be the aftermath of it.**

**Anyways, this chapter will finally reveal Rias' second bishop who'll be unsealed due to her having a healing ability, and I think that'll help clue in most of you right now who the Bishop actually is if you haven't already figured it out. Also, Tiamat will be appearing to help the group with their training for the next ten days, cause both the ORC and MHC will be training despite the latter not participating in it.**

**So, you might be asking what will they all be doing during the game itself then? Well... *giggle* sorry, but that's a secret so big, revealing any clues would be an automatic spoiler, you'll just have to wait and see :3**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally]**

* * *

**Today's Concept Talk will be about something a bit different, something Issei indirectly thought about when he learned of his Boosted Gear **(A/N: Check Chapter 2 - Dancing with the Devils)**, so I figured I should compare his thoughts with the actual standing of Dragons when compared to all DxD species.**

** -Strength of Dragons- **

**Dragons have been prominent in the supernatural world for a long time, one of their kind's births dating back to before God, and possibly maybe the birth of creation if evidence could prove so. The power of the Dragon faction honestly depends on how one asks what their strength is. If one asks on an average scale, then Dragons are second only to the Gods, making them the second strongest species in the world of DxD.**

**However, there are plenty of Dragons known for surpassing the Gods as well, the Five Dragon Kings and the Heavenly Dragons both being groups of mortal Dragons that can challenge if not destroy them, and while not as a whole, there are a few Evil Dragons that are dangerous enough to accomplish this. Some Dragons themselves are actually Gods, one of the most notable example being the Aztec God, Quetzalcoatl.**

**The Dragons' true strength is brought to light when their strongest members are shown, making them THE strongest rest judged by their kind's strongest member. The Dragons hold the honor of two of their own sharing the number 1 spot on the Top 10 Strongest Beings, Ophis and Great Red, the Dragon God of Infinity and the Dragon of Dreams.**

**Ophis is a Dragon that was born from the nothingness of infinity who has no limit to her power, and the Dragon that existed before God and was the only being he feared before Satan. Great Red is a Dragon born from the illusion of dreams who can make dreams become a reality, making him the only one that can challenge Ophis. Both are so strong, that even the third being in the first ranked spot, Trihexa, can both lose and be destroyed by fighting either of them alone.**

**Dragons are a dangerous race, but they don't seem to want to do more than live freely, but make the wrong Dragon your enemy... and even being a God will not guarantee your survival.**

* * *

"Extra time to train?" Rias asked.

"Yes, 10 days of it. Considering your youth, lack of experience, Lord Riser's prowess and your lack of servants to face his larger forces with. Sirzechs felt it was only fair that a handicap would be assigned to you."

"As much as it pains me that he's done little more to help me, I'm glad he's not completely against my choices. That time to train will be vital, especially if we Vali's group to train alongside us." Rias replied, knowing that she had to take it. Vali nodded to confirm her team would help. "Still, four won't be enough to win, and I can't unseal Gasper yet either... I have no choice. I'll have to ask Valerie to leave the Forbidden Room, we'll need her power at least."

"The forbidden room? Is that what that locked door I saw the other day was?" Le Fay asked, making Rias nod. "So that's where the Bishops are, you sealed both of them inside here?"

"No, only my first Bishop." Rias said, shaking her head.

"His sacred gear grew strong and his piece mutated. So as a precaution, my brother asked me to seal him until I could handle it. My other Bishop is a good friend of his, so I left her inside with him, so he had some comfort. Now however I need her strength."

Soon both groups watch as Rias walks to the Forbidden Room, and soon knocks on the door.

"Valerie?" Rias asked.

"R-Rias? What is it, do you need something?" Valerie said, surprised by Rias after her last visit being so long.

"Yes, unfortunately trouble's come, and I need to play a Rating Game, so we'll need your powers and healing abilities." Rias sighed, hoping Gasper understood.

"OK, if you really need me." Valerie said, a whimper was heard inside. "It's OK Gaspar, I'll come back to visit every night when the seal loosens up."

Soon Rias taps the seal, causing the door to slightly creak open before a small mouse scurries out and the door closes right after, the mouse soon takes the form of a young woman with blonde hair and red eyes, Issei noticed however her ears were pointed like an Elf, but as they couldn't transform, Issei realized she wasn't one. Valerie notices the new faces before her and gets a bit nervous.

"Oh, did we get new members since I last came out?" Valerie asked, looking at Rias who shook her head.

"Oh no, they're all part of Vali's peerage, a new friend of ours and the head of the Mythological History Club." Rias said, Vali waving to let Valerie know which one was her. "Everyone say hello to one of my Bishops, Valerie Tepes. Before she was part of my peerage, she was half human, half Vampire."

"What? She's a vampire?" Asia asked surprise.

"Dhampir is the correct term in this case, being half human means she doesn't have the weaknesses of a Vampire." Vali replied, soon getting a closer look. "...Rias, she has a sacred gear. Which one though?"

It was an honest question, Rias said she had healing abilities, but she didn't know of any other Sacred Gears with that power, and to her knowledge, Azazel hadn't found or studied any other Sacred gears that could.

Not to mention she could tell Valerie was using a Mutation piece, probably one that always was unlike the other Bishop Rias had mentioned to them. That mean whatever sacred gear she had was a strong one. Issei was curious about that himself now that he heard Vali ask, remembering when she told him only humans or half-humans like herself could be born with one.

"She possesses one of the Longinus, the Sephiroth Graal." Rias answered, shocking most of Vali's peerage.

"Are you serious, she has that Longinus!?" Bikou shouted.

"I'm guessing this one's a big deal?" Issei asked Vali, and she nodded.

"Normally an Evil Piece can only revive someone if their death was recent, and it does so by changing their species. The Sephiroth Graal however? It can revive anyone who's died." Vali replied, making Issei gasp.

"There is a limit though, that deceased being must still have a soul. People Rias kills with her Power of Destruction are an example of those without souls, and even then, if one overuses the sacred gear, their mind will temporarily suffer being in a near-broken state from the flow of knowledge about the principle of life."

"Valerie has a unique variation on that that takes it further. She's already achieved her Balance Breaker, and it's a unique type of a sub-species balance break that lets her erase a species' weakness or make someone younger." Rias add, surprising Vali. "Needless to say, I only prefer she uses her power to heal others."

"Balance Breaker?" Issei asked.

"Oh right, I never mentioned it to you. Think of it as the moment any limits on your Sacred Gear break. Sometimes, the user can create one and make their own." Vali answered.

"That's not too important right now though. So, Rias, where are we gonna do our training?"

Rias gave a smile at that.

* * *

** _~Training Camp, Day 1_ **

Yuuma panted as she was carrying a heavy bag up a mountain side, her sweat dripping across her face and she was sure 50% of her clothes had already been soaked from the sweat everywhere else on her body.

"V-Vali? Are..." Yuuma takes a deep breath. "Are you sure I can't just... promote to Rook for this?"

Vali was at the top of the hill with Rias and most of both their peerages, the rest behind Yuuma and catching up fast. Yuuma paled as Kuroka and Shirone carried bags three times the size of hers with no effort, while Issei seemed fine with a similar sized bag to her own.

"You could, but I'd just give you a larger bag." Vali answered with a smile, and Yuuma pales before nearly falling back. "It's a training camp Yuuma, I'm not supposed to make it easy for you."

After a bit, Yuuma it to the others and collapses on her feet, Kiba handing her a bottle of water as she quickly guzzles it down. After a small trek a bit further, they find a private villa owned by the Gremory family. Asia, Le Fay and Yuuma all look at it excitedly.

"Now let's get inside and start on this training." Rias said, at that moment Yuuma simply fell onto her back and began crying as if she was being tortured. Rias gives her a smirk like stare. "Now that's just melodramatic."

The guys and the girls separated into different rooms to change, during the process of changing. Shirone, Asia and Le Fay all noticed the other girls' bodies, while their figures weren't that different... they were the only ones who had breasts considered 'small'. All three of them turned away once they got a look at Kuroka, Rias, Akeno and Vali's breasts.

"Le Fay, do you maybe..." Asia asked hopefully.

"Asia, if such a spell existed, don't you think I would have already used it on myself?" Le Fay sighed, making Asia and Koneko hang their heads down more. Le Fay just sighed more before doing the same.

After a bit, everyone was outside in their gym uniforms, Rias and Vali **(A/N: If anyone asks, Vali's wearing the standard one and not the tracksuit)** were standing before everyone else. Ready to begin their training, Rias and Vali finish discussing their plans.

"Alright, since Issei's got Tiamat as his familiar we'll use that advantage to have her decide our training. Can you summon her over Issei?" Vali asked, and Issei nodded. He attempted to summon her... and nothing.

"Hold on, let me try directly." Issei said, making a magic circle. "Tiamat, think you can come for this summon? It's kinda important."

"_Sorry Issei, I said I'd only come when it's convenient to me, and I don't feel like it._" Tiamat replied, making everyone a bit annoyed.

"...Ddraig, please forgive me." Issei muttered. "We're here to train for 10 days, you can torment him through me all you want during all that time if you come over."

**"[WHAT!? Why are you telling her- ...oh no, you tricked me!]"** Ddraig screamed, realizing Issei got him to talk. At that moment, everyone saw Tiamat's human form appear before them, and Ddraig's unseen face began to sweat.

"Hello again Ddraig, mind if we have a chat about breaking a promise?" Tiamat said, giving off an aura that almost felt like a yandere's presence.

**"[ISSEI!]"**

* * *

After the little... incident with Tiamat and Ddraig was cleared up, Tiamat set up everyone's routines and first checked on the groups' knights, Kiba and Arthur. She gave each of them special training weights that amplified gravity on them to ten times its normal limit. Once they were set, Tiamat began explaining their training.

"Alright, with your real swords, I want your both to continuously run without stopping and fight each other in a duel where you must cross blades and blades alone. No physical contact anywhere else of any kind. A knight is weakest at their legs, so you must gain speed and lower body strength in your legs, and learn to overcome tunnel vision at high speeds."

Both of them nod, Kiba summoning his Holy Eraser while Arthur draws Caliburn, surprising Kiba as he saw the legendary sword firsthand. It was an unbreakable blade that even the gods couldn't scratch except maybe Ophis.

"BEGIN!" Tiamat shouted.

The two swordsmen both rushed and kept moving around the forest and they constantly collided their blades against each other, as an added challenge, as part of the challenge they had to watch out for the trees since when Tiamat said they can only let their swords touch each other, that meant the environment itself counted. Soon she noticed various flaws in their movements.

"Kiba, fix your leg stance and shift, it's too easy for a strike to disarm you! Arthur, fix your upper body alignment, your hindering your swing speed and striking power! Both of you, you can only hit the other's swords, but don't focus on it alone!"

They continue clashing for another 20 minutes, Tiamat noticing their speed and reaction times improving well at the rate they went. It finally ended as Arthur's last swing knocks Kiba's blade out of his hands, making Tiamat whistle loudly to get their attention.

"Enough! Arthur, focus on running through the forest for a bit. For you Kiba, have your Sword Birth create a larger sword and practice swinging it while stationary and then while moving, let's build a little more muscle into your arms."

Both start to do just that as Tiamat moves to the next group.

* * *

Shirone, Kuroka and Bikou all stood before Tiamat in a rockier area of the mountains.

"I don't know how well your Youkai abilities work, so that training will be left up to you. As for your rook traits on the other hand? That's where I'll be the judge."

Tiamat gives the same weights she did to Kiba and Arthur to the Youkai trio, but unlike them they had them everywhere, and instead of ten times gravity, the weights made it feel like thirty times gravity. The three were just barely able to move.

"Bikou, let me see your staff real quick." Tiamat asked as she held out her hand, Bikou did so and after looking at it, she used her magic on it to create two solid blue replicas.

"I want you three to all stand on the tips of these staves and keep your balance. Just as you gotta focus on the body's central axis and its core for a strike, the same applies to one's balance, control it and your strength as rooks will increase."

"I get the feeling that's not it, is it?" Bikou sweated a bit.

"Exactly Bikou, you have to stand on the tip of one feet and every minute you succeed, I want you to make all three staves to extend an additional three feet." Tiamat smirks, causing the three Youkai all pale at that. "If even one of you falls off, all three of you have to start over, the training ends once the staff reaches 50 feet in the air."

All three soon struggle to stand on the Ruyi Jingu Bang copies, Tiamat stares at them before creating a circle around them with her magic.

"I'll be seeing the next group now, if any of you leave the circle, I'll know you tried to get out of this training. You do this before any Youkai related training." Tiamat soon walked off, smirking as the three all groaned.

* * *

Tiamat soon stood before Rias, Asia and Le Fay who had the same x10 weights on their arms. She noticed Le Fay had already showed Asia how to create a sphere of light, and one of an impressive size.

"For a Devil, that's considered really good Asia." Tiamat said, soon switching back into her 'strict trainer mode' getting their attention. "Alright, the three of you are all magic users who's magic focuses mainly on the nature of Devil magic. Especially you Le Fay as Magician magic works by remaking its structure."

She stands before each of them, starting with Rias.

"You Rias simply toss your Power of Destruction around like a bucket of water. I've seen Sirzechs use it, and I can already tell you by comparing yours and his that your use of it is the equivalent of a rookie gymnast to an Olympic gold medal champion." Tiamat bluntly said, making Rias pale at the fact Tiamat called her use of it bad. "You need to focus it, that's what destruction needs to be strong, not spread out and diluted. Also give it a definite form to take, even a simple sphere would do."

Tiamat went to Asia next.

"Asia, you may be a healer, but you need to learn at least some offensive magic. I will admit it being the main form of your magical style is a fool's efforts." Tiamat replied, Asia nodding as she knew she wasn't really comfortable at hurting. "It also seems like teaching you defensive spells is too rigid, so we'll have you learn support magic to boost the others alongside your healing instead."

Finally, Tiamat walks up to Le Fay.

"Le Fay, you actually seem to be the one I find the fewest issues with." Tiamat admitted, surprising Le Fay. "You know magic of each type, not just Devil magic. The only weakness I see on you is you lack the mana for stronger and more complex spells. So, we'll add to that and make you practice said complex spells."

Tiamat soon brings magical dummies while taking a strand of hair from each girl and marks magic on them, placing it on said dummies.

"These dummies will use your hair so that they'll only be destroyed if you meet the conditions I used my magic to infuse into them. You will have to destroy them before you can do anything, as motivation, no lunch or snacks until then, only bottles of water." Tiamat said, then looks at Asia.

"Oh, and when you're done, you'll help Valerie train her healing skills, that I have no way to help her with since I've got no experience. Now if you ladies will excuse me."

The three paled as Tiamat heads off.

"...She's really strict, I'm very afraid now." Le Fay said shakily.

* * *

Soon Tiamat stood before Akeno and Yuuma, both having the x10 weights on their arms and legs, and the latter freaking out form her stare.

"Yeesh, I know your timid, but it's not like I'm gonna eat you. Besides, anything that looks human is actually gross to Dragons." Tiamat said, Yuuma's still shaky reaction made her wonder if that actually helped her calm down or not. "Alright, you two are both former Fallen Angels so we'll be training your holy energy."

Akeno was about to say something, but Tiamat glares at her.

"Don't lie to me Akeno, Dragons are much better at sensing the auras of each race, and my level of this is beyond Vali's. I know you've been hiding it and I bet Yuuma realized it already." Tiamat bluntly said, Akeno paled and looked at Yuuma who made a scared apology face. "...Look Akeno, I don't know why you refuse that side of you, but your holy powers will favor Rias' victory. Do you want to tell yourself that you only lost to Riser because of this?

"I... I can't use it! If I do, then... it'll be like I've forgiven him!" Akeno said, catching both Yuuma and Tiamat's attention.

"Hmm... Yuuma, mind covering your eyes and ears real quick?" Tiamat asks, and rather than a strict tone, it was a sympathetic one so Yuuma quickly agreed. Even humming to block any sound that passed through her ears. "Alright, whisper it to me. Who's 'him' exactly?"

Akeno regrettably relents to Tiamat, and as the dragon listens, her eyes furrow in surprise at what she heard. Though at the same time she figured out how to walk around the problem itself thanks to it. She taps Yuuma to let her know she can pay attention again.

"Ah, I see. However, I think I can help work around this." Tiamat asked, confusing Akeno a bit.

"How, there's..."

"The problem is what your holy energy goes into, when have you ONLY had lightning magic?" Tiamat asks specifically, making Akeno's eyes widen. "That's right, you shouldn't have the same issues under that condition. Plus, it can actually work better in tricking your opponent, which could be an advantage, especially if you don't make light weapons. So, think you can at least handle that?"

"...Yeah, I think I can bear with that much at least." Akeno replied with a nod, Yuuma scratched her head confused but just shrugged.

"As for you Yuuma? I want you to train your holy energy to not just make weapons, but magical spheres and even a shield. You lack a focus, but your timid nature makes you adapt fast, so I believe for you, variety and evasion are better than pure power." Tiamat explained. "So, while doing that, you'll have Akeno attack you with her lightning, Vali's given you permission to promote, so make yourself a Knight for this."

The two nodded and took flight, Tiamat watches their aerial battle for a bit before moving on to the last group. The one she was most excited to train no less.

* * *

In a more remote area of the mountains, due to Vali requesting that the others couldn't see their training even just by attacks, Vali and Issei were standing as Tiamat appeared to them. Tiamat's wanting to really push Ddraig through Issei, and apparently maybe Albion according to Vali's thoughts since he was kinda related to why Ddraig got sealed, as both of them were struggling to move at all as Tiamat gave them the same gravity weights, but for them they were **fifty**times normal gravity.

"Alright you two, time to fight me like fellow Dragons, so..." Tiamat begins before taking her Dragon form. "I'll actually take my Dragon form to face you, your training is to fight until you can at least do enough damage to leave a scratch. To make it possible, I won't defend or dodge your attacks at all."

"She's more serious with us... alright, ready Ddraig?" Issei asked as his Boosted Gear formed.

**"[No, but I doubt Tiamat will let me be ready. So, I'm at least prepared to fight!]"** Ddraig replied.

"Albion, let's do this." Vali said, her Divine Dividing forming on her back.

**"(Right, let's hold nothing back.)"** Albion stated.

Tiamat roared and breathed out her blue fire at the two, both barely dodging it. Issei soon held out his left hand as the Boosted Gear was set on fire by his fire magic.

**[BOOST!]**

"DRAGON... **SHOT!**" Issei screamed, throwing a flaming energy beam at Tiamat who simply ran through it unscathed, while Vali flew behind her and dove at Tiamat.

"Time feel my type of burn!" Vali shouted, forming magic circles that fired small chunks of poison slime at Tiamat who turned at Vali before she dove for a strike on the back.

**[DIVIDE!]**

Tiamat felt a bit weaker, but not enough for it to be a difference. Soon the Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou both charged at Tiamat with a mighty yell as the Dragon charged at the two and roared, a burst of blue, red and white energy exploding around the area unseen to the other eleven members of both peerages.

* * *

Everyone was soon back at the villa, Tiamat watching them as they all rested, surprisingly they all did their jobs and completed the training for the day. Well... Issei and Vali didn't, but that was because their goal would require all ten days and was the only task she had for them.

"Alright, you guys did good, take an hour to rest, then you can eat and then bath off all that sweat. After that, early to bed, early to rise." Tiamat stated.

"OK..." All thirteen of them weakly replied. Tiamat soon went to part of the mountain to just unwind and relax in her dragon form. After the others all managed to regain the ability to move, they all groaned a bit and got inside.

"Tiamat doesn't hold back, I think I still feel her fire's heat stuck on my body." Vali said, rubbing her back before cracking it back into place. "Alright guys, I'll take care of dinner, you can all rest for now."

They all silently gave motions of approval as Vali headed into the kitchen.

Needless to say, the wait for the food was worth it, all of Rias' peerage, Asia and Yuuma were amazed by her food, none of them having tasted it yet like Issei and her original peerage members.

"This is delicious, how do you make it taste so good!?" Yuuma asked, crying happy tears from it.

"Nothing much, I think my travels around the world just helped me know enough about food to become a good cook." Vali said bashfully, not wanting to admit it was just for Issei's sake.

'...I'm not helping my case on telling myself I don't love him, am I?' Vali thought to herself, she was still so confused and unsure about these how she was feeling. Especially after their talk during a break in their training with Tiamat.

* * *

-Flashback Start-

"Alright, a five-minute break before we resume." Tiamat said, seeing the two needed a moment to regain their breath. She took the chance to repair some of the battlefield's damages. After a bit, Issei gets up and looks at Vali before helping her up too.

"Hey Vali, weird question but... why do you not show your sacred gears to the others?" Issei asked, surprising Vali a bit. Tiamat turned slightly to listen, she had been a bit curious to why they weren't trying to fight already, and Issei explain that was due to being childhood friends, but Vali's request to train out of sight had still stumped her a bit.

"Is it cause of the whole rivalry thing between our Dragons?"

"Not at all Issei, it's more about me... you know, my past and my grandfather Rizevim?" Vali answered, and Issei tightened his fist a bit. After Azazel learned Issei had become a Devil, he explained what he couldn't before.

It took only seconds for Issei to hate him to the point of wanting to struggle the insane madman of a Devil to a long, painful and violent death. Azazel was glad Vali hadn't seen the reaction cause for Issei, that was way out of his character. Sure, he did kill Raynare, but it wasn't in the brutal manner he had thought for Rizevim.

"Let me guess... kinda like with your status as a Lucifer?" Issei replied.

"Yeah... but mostly if they learn, they'll ask questions and I'm afraid I'll relive those moments and break down. They're just so painful." Vali said, shaking a bit.

Vali's past was even now still too traumatic for her to fully overcome, she'd always get occasional nightmares about the past, being sometimes twisted, worsened and even ending with her dead in the end.

Issei had gotten enough calls over the last seven years, and more recently Vali coming to his room and waking him up, to know they were still bad even if uncommon. Vali soon felt Issei hug her, making her blush as she began to calm down. She slowly moved her arm over his hands, smiling a bit as she quickly relaxed, Tiamat staring more.

'Those two... I don't think they realize it, but they're more than just friends.' Tiamat said, smiling slightly. Wondering what kind of light the current Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou would bring to the world compared to their predecessors.

-End Flashback-

* * *

Vali sighed at that, making Rias notice it and blink. After a bit, everyone went into the baths and then went to bed. As Issei was about to go to sleep in his room, he heard a knock on the door and turned.

"Door's open." Issei said.

Vali opened the door and came in, wearing loose white pajamas with blue polka dots on them, some of her cleavage showed as Vali had to keep the top unbuttoned for it to fit. Issei blushed slightly before biting on his tongue lightly to distract himself.

"Uh... hey Vali, what's wrong?" Issei asked.

"Issei, I don't feel comfortable sleeping alone tonight. Do you mind?" Vali asked, hiding a blush. Issei went a bit red at that for a moment.

"V-Vali! We're not kids anymore, that would be..." Issei tried to think of an excuse. When they were younger, Vali would often sleep with Azazel or Issei due to her nightmares or if she was just too worried and uncomfortable to sleep alone. Unfortunately, they were now teenagers, and Issei had another reason why he didn't feel comfy with this anymore.

"Please Issei?" Vali asked again, this time her eyes shining enough for the puppy dog eye effect... Issei's resistance broke down and he sighed defeated.

"Alright, just for tonight." Issei replied.

Soon the two were in bed together, at first it was on opposite sides, Issei turned to look at her and see if she seemed calm, which she was.

'Who knows, maybe she's old enough now that-' Issei thought, and soon...

Issei blushed as Vali turned in her sleep and hugged him by his side and arm, and he felt her huge breasts hug into his body as a result, making him go red faced and white eyed as his ears steamed up, the sensation of the touch causing his internal perversions to start heating up a bit. THIS had been the main reason he didn't want her to sleep with him, because... Vali was a cuddler.

Whenever she slept, she had to hug something, be it a stuffed animal or just a large pillow, it helped calm her. Though for some reason if someone was in the bed she'd cuddle them, Issei as a child even learned she always went for the person, trying to put something in the way to fool her wouldn't work, almost as if she instinctively knew what to find and avoid.

As kids, Issei had little problems when she did this because it was innocent and cute. Now however, she was a teenager with a sexy body and had a massive pair of pneumatic knockers, which meant due to said cuddling... cuddled onto his body. He honestly didn't like thinking anything perverted about his best friend, but he was still a guy, and the wrong situations like this one made that impossible. His only consolation was his self-control.

'...Someone help me please!' Issei silently cried, not feeling comfortable.

"...Issei." Vali said in her sleep, distracting Issei as he looked at her, soon noticing her crying a bit to his surprise. "...I think I love you, but I'm afraid."

Issei would have been surprised, but she was asleep, so he didn't know if it was a dream of something and she was sleep talking about it. So, he just kept listening to her talking, regardless of how true her words would be.

"I don't... want things to change, I just want to be close to your side... like always." Vali continued sleep talking. "When you're with me... I don't feel any pain or sadness... the past just disappears. Please... always stay with me."

Issei gasps silently at her words before her cuddle position shifts to something more like a hug, and soon he hugs back. He had been more familiar with Vali's hugs since she returned, so this position was one he was more comfortable with.

'Vali...' Issei thought. 'I don't know how true that first part was, but if it is... I need to really know my answer before I say anything. However, for right now... I won't ever leave your side.'

Issei held her closer and soon fell asleep, Vali almost as if hearing his thoughts soon smiled a bit, her mind finally at ease as her slumber finally became peaceful.

* * *

** _~Training Camp, Day 9_ **

More a week had passed for the training camp, and now everyone was on the last night of day 9 where Vali was standing alongside Asia, Yuuma and Le Fay to the other.

"Tomorrow we'll be ending the training camp with the last day and heading back by the afternoon. So, I think it's time for a good history lesson since not all of us here know about this and it might help Rias' team during the game. Vali began.

"I'll be talking about the Great War for our factions and then Devil history. Yuuma will talk about the formation of Grigori, Asia will tell us a bit about the church, and Le Fay will explain a little that she's dabble in about Demon technology and what it led to."

Everyone else but Vali soon sat down, Tiamat leaning against the wall with mild interest.

"Alright..." Vali began.

"For reasons forgotten by time, over an eternity ago, a massive war engulfed the war, started by the Four Great powers that made up the Christian faction. Regardless who struck first, the Angels, Devils, Fallen and Demons all enveloped the world in a giant war. Nowhere was safe, and various species with the exception to those tied to other pantheons and the Dragons had to side with one faction for their own survival's sake."

"In the end, the war had no victory, every suffered immeasurable losses with most of their kind dead or missing. Compared to Humanity, these species have low birthrates but incredibly long lifespans, so all of their existences were nearly threatened to near the path of extinction due to the sole impact of this war. Knowing any more fighting would doom the entire faction, all four sides agreed to a truce and ended the fighting between them."

"The Devils casualties were best measured by this. The most notable clans in the Devil world are the Lucifer clan that descended from Satan, the Elite Devil families that served the Five Great Devils under Satan, and the 72 Pillars that Rias and Sona's families come from. My family and the Elite Devil families nearly lost everyone but survived, however... out of the 72 pillars, 39 of them are either extinct or lost their pureblood status."

Issei gasped at that, 39 out of 72 clans were gone or not able to keep their bloodlines purely Devil? And this was just Devil casualties he was hearing.

"It wasn't long until a Civil War broke out and some of my clan and the Elite Devil clans who had some of their own want to continue fighting, dragging these clans' names into a dark history Devils still don't forget today and forming the Anti-Satan Faction. The Old Satan faction opposed them and won, and the six strongest Devils took the titles of these clans to become Hell's new ruler and vice-leaders."

"Shortly after this, the Evil Piece system, and its counterparts for Angels, Demons and Fallen Angels were created, to help replenish our numbers. After that, the Rating Games were created for the influence of ranking and nobility, and to help their servants train in combat experience without war or a fear of death. Nowadays it still has a high impact, being a big influence on the culture and civilization Hell's slowly began rebuilding."

Vali soon took a breath.

"OK, I'm gonna go make us some tea. Asia, how about you start sharing about your church life now?" Vali said, Asia nodded as the former headed into the kitchen. Asia placed out a few items onto the stand beside her.

"OK, the church's main focus was to teach about forgiveness and spread faith. Also, they did exorcisms against evil spirits that may have influenced people." Asia held up a bottle of water with a slight glow inside it. "Two primary ways to do this are a cross like the one I'm wearing, and holy water. Devils should never touch this."

"Is it gonna make us melt?" Issei asked.

"I don't know, but... it will do something bad at least." Asia said, not even wanting to know what would happen. "Also, while less effective there are the verses for the Holy Bible. It used to be my favorite book, but now reading even one verse hurts me."

Asia opens the book and holds her head in pain, showing it firsthand.

"Dear lord, forgive me for being unable to read your word- AH!" Asia screamed as she accidentally harmed herself by praying, making the others sweat drop.

"Is this common?" Arthur asked.

"Uh... every once in a while, I guess?" Yuuma asked, not sure how often Asia did it out of habit. Soon Asia sat and held her head as Yuuma took the stand and Vali sat down with the tea in hand.

"Alright, let's see... Grigori was originally just a big group of the united Fallen Angels called the 'wings of Dawn' formed under Azazel after their fall. This is still rumor, but as the Fallen Angels pulled out of the Great War first, it's thought by them that they also began it first. Azazel doesn't confirm it, but doesn't deny it either so..." Yuuma scratched her head at that.

"Anyways, after the war was over, Azazel named the seven strongest Fallen in the war as the cadre. The Fallen Angels would then be divided into factions serving under each cadre, and Azazel then formed Grigori, his most trusted members being Shemhazai, his right-hand man who was named Vice-Governor General. Penemue, Azazel's sister and later Chief Secretary. Finally, Baraqiel, who put himself as risk when the Fallen fell back and minimized casualties."

Yuuma blinked for a moment before she got a bit nervous and brought out her notes for a second.

"The others were Kokabiel who lead the military forces, Armaros who began research on anti-magic and combat training, Sahariel who began research on the moon and other celestial forced and bodies, and finally Tamiel who became head of the business department." Yuuma continued.

"Yuuma, don't be so nervous. You're not being graded." Vali giggled a bit, making Yuuma chuckle embarrassingly.

"Right. Usually, one's born into a faction and joins it by their teenage years, but one can change it... unfortunately it's frowned on. My sister was of Armaros' faction and I would have been, but I chose Azazel's faction." Yuuma continued.

"So, does each faction have its own jobs or something?" Bikou wondered.

"Actually yeah. In Azazel's faction, I did stealth jobs to help stop conflicts, or recon to study sacred gears like Asia's since we study sacred gears." Yuuma continued, soon thinking for a moment. "I had two friends from Penemue's faction, and I believe they said their jobs are rescue and medical emergencies, also escort jobs. That's about all I can say."

Soon Le Fay takes Yuuma's spot and holds up a strange gun.

"This device is an example of Magi-Tech, after the war, Demons apparently tried learning how to meld technology with magic to help their recovery." Le Fay explained as she turned it. "It might seem like the gun an exorcist uses, but here's the difference. Watch."

Le Fay aims at the wall and fires the gun, the bullet that comes out becomes a magic circle that casts an ice spell to slightly freeze the wall to some of the group's surprise.

"This is an old model, nothing like more recent creations. However, this inspired the current Beelzebub of Hell to create what became the Evil Piece system. In fact, a major reason the truce holds today is because it was shared to help all factions recover in a similar manner." Le Fay continued, soon chuckling and rubbing her hat a bit.

"However, it's also why the Demons and Devils, and Angels and Fallen Angels have similar systems for reincarnating servants. Still, you could say the Demons are why things are better for each faction right now."

"Wow, sounds like each side has their own culture, and to think they still don't get along?" Issei noted, making the others all sigh a bit to that.

"Yeah, wish things were easier, but by all means we're still enemies that just don't fight." Vali sighed, wondering if this is why incidents like Raynare's happened. "Let's focus on here and now though, not what was or will be."

Everyone nodded, and soon they went to sleep for the night.

* * *

** _~Training Camp, Final Day_ **

Tiamat roared out her blue fire at Issei and Vali who both dodged it, rushing at the blue Dragon King again.

"Vali!" Issei called out, soon holding out his left arm.

**[Transfer!]**

Vali felt the energy go into her, making her tremble at first.

"OK, time to finish this!" Vali said before flying up and making a magic circle. "Now freeze!"

A giant icicle shot at Tiamat, and soon the battlefield became covered in a mist, Vali landed by Issei as they saw the mist clear and Tiamat came back into view... she turned and saw one of her scales chipped.

"Impressive, you finally did some damage to me. That means you've both passed the training!" Tiamat smirked, impressed by the result.

Issei and Vali both made happy faces and cheered, clasping each other's hands and spinning in a circle as they did a victory dance.

"We did it Vali!" Issei shouted.

"Yeah, great job!" Vali replied.

It took the two a few seconds to realize what they just did before blushing and turning away embarrassed, making Tiamat laugh at the two.

**'[Uh... really you two? Are we thinking the same thing]'** Ddraig thought, while talking to Albion at the same time.

**'(This is starting to get predictable, so maybe we are. Let's see what we both think the.)'** Albion mentally replied.

**'[Will the two of you just make out already!?]'**   
**'(Will the two of you just make out already?)'**

Needless to say, both Dragons were soon shocked to know they HAD been thinking the same thing. Meanwhile Tiamat smiled as her laughter faded.

'I think those two will be the greatest Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou we'll ever have, don't let us Dragons down kids.' Tiamat thought happily.

* * *

**And that's it for the double chapter special!**

**To anyone who knew Valerie was the unknown Bishop, a small congrats from me to you. I hope you liked the brutal training I had Tiamat give everyone, I felt it was right to really level up the entire group considering the next arc makes them deal with Kokabiel, and they'll all need it. Also, I think you could say this was a Issei/Vali focused chapter considering all the moments I gave them.**

**Also, a bit more info on the Demon Race, they actually were the ones who inspired Ajuka's creation of the Evil Piece system by creating the foundation for the system he perfected himself. I decided to give each race their own while already having the Brave Saints made just because... well why not? It's a fanfic after all XD**

**I don't really have anything else to say except next chapter the Rating Game begins... oh wait! I do have one more thing, something I honestly forgot to mention something that's different in this story from canon. Angels can't fall anymore because of what happens with God, as in this story, they fell after God learned of their acts, and Michael can't do the same. So... just something to keep in mind there I guess.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay (x1), Asia (x1)  
Knights - Arthur (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou (x1), Kuroka (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (x1, became Mutation Piece, sealed), Valerie (x1, Mutation Piece, sealed)  
Knights - Kiba (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Shirone (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo (x1), Reya (x1)  
Knights - Tomoe (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali  
Gasper/Valerie**


	8. Chapter 8

**Now it's time... *voice echoes* for the event we've all been waiting for... *voice echoes again* the Rias vs Riser Rating Game!**

**The MHC are gonna be taking a backseat for a while, the only time where they'll end up appearing is when Sona and Tsubaki do for their commentary scenes. Also, we'll be seeing Shirone finally take her Nekomata form for the first time in the story, and since I've never seen anything mention how a Nekomata matures to get a second tail, I'm gonna consider Tiamat's training was enough to give her one so... yeah, there's that odd bit of info ^^;, plus it's a fanfic**

**And yes, Shirone will end up arguing with Ravel like in canon since she's gotta take over all the moments from the canon fight that include Issei in them. I'm not sure what to make them say though so... I guess for once I'll wing it when I make the two finally begin arguing, sounds like it'll be a fun experience to try out here.**

**Oh, and in response to a review I got and what I talked with said reviewer about, I feel I should mention this in case anyone wants to know. While this story does follow canon, it won't be a carbon copy of it either. I do have some planned original content and world building, but right now we're just too early into the story for me to implement any of it, plus admittedly most of it is still in the WIP stage. That's why I plan the story in 'seasons', so I can write things out, and know the right places to implement original content if needed.**

**Also to a guest reviewer for Ch 5. Don't worry, I planned to make the Demon's official leader a female from the start of this story, honestly for the same reason you felt she should be a girl. Can't promise the thing with Issei though, that depends, so we'll see. I won't say any more about the Demon Leader for now due to spoilers, so wait for the Summit arc.**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally]**

* * *

** -Magi-Tech- **

**Magi-Tech is a creation made by the Demon Race in an attempt to recover from the Great War by fusing technology with sorcery, while initial results were met with limited success as mainly weapons that could fire magic or store it within their structure, Magi-Tech is considered to be what truly began saving the Christian Faction from extinction.**

**After the Civil War between the Old Satan and Anti-Satan factions, the current Beelzebub learned of Magi-Tech and as part of a deal, asked to work on it for a project in exchange of sharing the results with the Demons. The result lead to the Evil Pieces, and then shortly after to the birth of all four species' reincarnation systems, solidifying the strength of the Four Great Powers' truce.**

**Current Magi-Tech today is shared within the four species, resulting in the creation of magical vehicles like the Devil's Train transport between the Human World and Hell, Grigori's many Artificial Sacred Gears, and some methods to aid the church in alchemy... but was unfortunately also the catalyst that allowed the Holy Sword project to happen. Demons however keep the most advanced Magi-Tech, only sharing it among the other species after they've advanced their highest works to a certain level.**

* * *

Issei was currently in Vali's house in the living room, looking at one of Azazel's odd clocks to see how much time ORC had left before they began the Rating Game. Issei, Asia and Kuroka were all waiting until Vali and the others got word that they could see the Gremory Team off.

"Oh man, I'm not even the one fighting and I'm nervous as Hell." Issei said, unable to relax. Then again, he had a good reason for it. Rias, Shirone, Kiba and Akeno, even Valerie who he'd only known for 10 days so far were all good friends of his. He didn't want them to lose, and didn't want Rias to be forced to marry that Riser jerk.

Soon he heard a knock and looked to see Asia by the doorway, wearing her nun outfit.

"Hey Asia, I haven't seen you wear that in a while." Issei said, not so surprised by her wearing it in general, but why she was currently wearing it.

"I thought it might make me feel more comfortable, I'm having trouble trying to stay calm. Asia said, blushing slightly in embarrassment thinking she was weird to worry.

"Join the club, my nerves are on edge too." Issei chuckled, making Asia smile a bit knowing she wasn't the only one.

The two turned as Kuroka woke up from her nap on the couch, rubbing her face like a cat purring as she did. She groggily blinked before looking near the clock and frowning a bit at the time.

"Is it really still not time? I wanna see Shirone kick some Phenex ass already, I can only sleep so much right now." Kuroka yawned, clearly bored out of her mind. At that moment, Vali walked in the front door. "Please tell me what I'm hoping you are."

"Not to worry, it's time guys. Let's give Rias our best before they give Riser his worst." Vali said, smirking after her last word. Issei, Asia and Kuroka all got up and followed Vali, meeting the rest of the MHC outside before they took a magic circle over.

* * *

Once the MHC members had arrived, they saw everyone prepping for the upcoming fight. Kiba had prepared a fresh Holy Eraser from his Sword Birth, Shirone put on some gloves before popping out her ears and her twin tails, Rias and Akeno were sipping some tea in their respective spots and Valerie walked back in from talking with Gasper.

"Wow, Rias doesn't even look worried about the game." Asia noted.

"Don't let that fool you Asia, while she might seem fine, I'm pretty sure on the inside it's another story. Being able to keep it in is a better option though in the long run." Bikou replied. The sound of the door opening is heard, everyone looked to see Sona and Tsubaki had walked in.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting anything." Sona apologized in advance.

"No, please come on in Sona." Rias smiled, the two doing so. "I'm actually glad you could make it."

"I didn't expect you two to be here, what gives?" Issei asked.

"There's a live broadcast of the competition so our family members and all of you can watch. Sona and Tsubaki are here to manage it." Rias said, Issei gives a silent 'ah' in response. It made sense that Sona would be running such a thing, she did manage the entire Student Council after all.

"Besides, it's her first Rating Game. I wouldn't miss it for anything." Sona replied, making Rias smirk.

"Then I promise to make it interesting for you.

At that moment, everyone notices a silver version of the Gremory symbol appear behind them, and it was mere moments before Grayfia appeared from it. However, unlike most cases the glow only dimmed, and the circle didn't vanish.

"It's almost time, I hope you're ready for this my lady?" Grayfia asked, Rias nods to that. "Very well. In a few moments we will use this magic circle to transport you and the rest of your team to the battlefield. Also... you should know Lucifer will be watching the game."

"You mean Satan's gonna be watching, didn't know he had that kinda free time." Issei wondered.

"Not that Lucifer Issei, the one she's referring to is her King. My older brother." Rias answered, making Issei and Asia gasp in shock.

"That's right, her older brother Sirzechs was the original heir to the Gremory household. However, he led the Old Satan Faction to victory in the Civil War and as a result was named the new ruler of Hell. After that, Satan decided to retire." Vali answered, although she knew that was false.

Her great grandfather and even God had been dead as long as the war, but Azazel had told her never to tell anyone about it. It was information that all four factions' leaders agreed must never be known for the Christian Pantheon's own protection.

"Unfortunately, becoming our new ruler meant Rias was forced to become the household's heir. My guess is this marriage is the result of the fact there's no other heir if something were to happen to you." Vali asked, and Rias only nodded. Issei only stared, now realizing it was more serious for Rias than she realized.

"It's time everyone." Grayfia stated, the magic circle having turned red to signal the game had begun. All five of Rias' peerage walks onto it. "Try to keep the play by play fair Sona."

"Oh, I'll keep it clean. Though if I was a betting girl..." Sona began, soon smiling a bit. "I'd say you'll beat that scumbag seven ways from Sunday."

Rias smiles back before her peerage is sent over.

"Come on everyone." Sona said, leading everyone to the student council room. At the same time, the Gremory peerage arrives at the alternate space for the Rating game, a complete copy of Kuoh Academy. It was another handicap given to Rias as Riser was not as familiar with the location as her.

"_Your attention please, my name is Grayfia and I'll be your referee for today's Rating Game._" Grayfia's voice rang out, everyone who was watching the game having gotten comfortable and adjusted. "_Good luck to all. The game has now begun, there will be a 30 minutes grace period for each side to plan and set up necessary measures before the battle begins._"

Rias gives everyone a glowing magic orb to work as intercoms between then all, then lays out a map as they begin planning.

"The enemy base is just across the way, cutting through the school grounds might be quick but it won't be an option." Rias began, already noting what would be a bad idea just on what Riser may expect. "We'd be seen coming and end up setting ducks."

"What about sneaking to the back through the track field?" Valerie asks.

"True the element of surprise would be there, but it's also obvious and Riser knows that." Rias answers, pointing at the club house's spot on the map. "He'll likely place knights or rooks with high mobility there."

"That doesn't leave us with many options does it?" Akeno wonders.

"I think I have an idea. Let's take the gymnasium first, it's in the center and adjacent to their home base and not too far from us." Kiba replied, pointing to it on the map. "Most important, we could use it as a diversion."

Rias thinks for a bit, and soon nods.

"I'd say right now that's the best move we can make. Shirone, think you can handle getting in there and locking it down?" Rias asked, and the Nekomata nods in response. "Alright, then let's set up a defensive perimeter with our familiars. Akeno, prepare some illusions afterwards, and Kiba? I want you prepared at one of them."

Everyone holds out their hands and summons their familiars, they quickly head out and begin setting traps. Akeno and Kiba soon head out, and Shirone prepares to head to the gym.

"Valerie, I'll need you here with me. For right now you'll be my healing support unless things go south." Rias said, looking at the former Dhampir. Valerie nods at that. The preparations continue until the bell signifying the time for fighting was allowed went off.

* * *

Inside the Student council's room, Sona, Tsubaki and the MHC members were all watching as the match officially began. Le Fay noticed one of Rias' movements and figured she was about to make her move.

"It looks like Rias is gonna try drawing he first blood here, that means Shirone's likely gonna be fighting the first battle." Le Fay noted, and Kuroka look closely as her little sister as she made her way to the gym.

'Give them Hell Shirone, all your training was for this. You can do it.' Kuroka thought, wishing her luck.

* * *

Everyone was listening as Rias gave her main order.

"Once you're in the gym, you won't be able a confrontation. Be sure to follow the plan. Kiba, get ready. Akeno, stand by to move." Rias said, and all nod. "Alright, then commence operation 'Phoenix into Ashes', show no mercy to Riser as he won't show it to you."

Everyone moved out, and soon Shirone made it to the gym and hid behind some curtains, soon sensing four people present.

"...They're here." Shirone said, right as the lights went on.

"Smells like Gremory filth. Come out, come out wherever you are!"

Shirone soon walks into view, knowing stealth wasn't gonna matter anymore. Before her was a black haired Chinese girl wearing an open blue qipao dress, a pair of green haired twins, and a blue haired girl wearing a red obi and a white haori under a red happy coat.

"Alright, so who am I facing exactly?" Shirone asked.

"I'm Mira, and I'm a Phenex Pawn." The blue haired girl began.

"I'm Xuelan, a Phenex Rook." The Chinese girl followed.

"I'm Ile, and I'm a pawn!" The first twin began, the second one following after. "I'm Nel, and I'm also a Pawn!"

'That rook chick... she's the big problem here, based on her aura she's more like a Queen.' Shirone thought as she noticed her chi and power flow, soon she jumped and flipped into the air. 'Guess it's time to let this cat out of the bag.'

Shirone wrote some symbols using Youjutsu as she landed, creating a mist that caused each piece to be separated and see an illusion of her. The real one went after Xuelan, knowing she needed to be taken out first.

* * *

Meanwhile in an area of the forest, three of Riser's pawns, two maids named Marion and Burent, and an Arabian belly dancer named Shuriya, were all traversing through some fog towards the Gremory base.

"Damn, this fog is so thick that we won't be able to see anything." Burent notes to herself, right at that moment one of the traps fires off at them. All three of them managed to dodge it however.

"A trap? Did they really think such a cheap trick would work?" Shuriya asked.

"The Gremory's must be dumber than I thought." Burent replied.

"A cute trick from a Rating Game virgin." Marion followed up.

* * *

Xuelan began trying to strike Shirone with a flurry of kicks and a few punches, but the Nekomata was able to react and dodge each strike in time. She gives a mighty shout as she tries to give a fast kick, only for Shirone to bend back and backflip out of range.

"Almost..." Shirone muttered as Xuelan's kicks became more swift and fierce, and then at the right moment she dodged and used her tails to wrap her leg in a restraint. Making her gasp. "Gotcha."

Shirone used her tails to pull Xuelan and punch her hard in the face, she nearly lost balance but kept herself steady.

"Nice one." Xuelan admitted, but didn't realize Shirone rushing at her and striking her palms and a few specific spots, targeting her important chi points before kicking her. Xuelan screams as she falls over, but becomes unable to move. "Who the hell are you... tell me!"

"I'm Shirone Toujou, and you've just been grounded. Meow." Shirone replies before turning to see her illusion fade. The twins holding chainsaws and charging at her as she backflips away.

"Why are you running pansy kitty?" Ile begins, then Nel responds with. "Not a fan of chainsaws!"

Shirone sighed, unable to take the two seriously as they just kept repeating 'Slice!' repeatedly afterwards, however her eyes widen, and she jumps straight up as she dodges Mira's staff.

"No way..." Mira muttered, surprised that she noticed it in time. The twins jump and try to slice her.

"I don't think so." Shirone sends out some hinotama at the two, knocking them back a bit. Once they fell to the ground, Shirone rushed forward at them. "Here's a present."

Shirone put her hand on both of them, leaving a Youjutsu symbol on each of them. She turns as Mira thrusts her staff at her again, but blocks it with her hand before she snapped it in half, surprising her.

"Don't worry, I didn't forget you." Shirone said, tapping her with the symbol too. Soon she raises her hand and snaps. All three of them soon have a set of dark chains bind them in place, trapping them. "And that takes care of that."

* * *

Issei felt Kuroka hug his head tightly as she screamed in joy over Shirone's one-sided fight.

"Now that's how my little sister does it!" Kuroka shouted, full of pride that Shirone incapacitate the whole quartet.

"And it was smart to handle that Rook before she dealt with the others, now the question is why did she choose to bind them instead of beat them?" Vali asked herself, curious to the plan Rias had. "Or maybe that's the point?"

"Rias did want to get the Gym first, I get the feeling I know what she's planning." Sona added, now the question she wondered is if she was right.

* * *

"_Shirone, what's your status?_" Rias asked.

"I incapacitated three Pawns and a Rook, so I'm done here." Shirone answered.

"_Good work. Akeno's in position, so get out now._" Rias replied, Shirone nods and does so.

"Get back here, this fight isn't over yet!" Xuelan yelled, however soon she heard something, but before her or the Pawns could react the Gym exploded!

"_Three of Lord Riser's Pawns, and one of Lord Riser's Rooks. Retired."_ Grayfia announced.

"Boom!" Akeno giggled.

"Nice job there Akeno, that's why your called the Priestess of Thunder." Shirone smiled.

"I hope we'll be ready again soon, I'm not satisfied with just this." Akeno said, her facing beginning to show her sadist side.

* * *

Issei, Asia and Yuuma all flinch at the result while Bikou and Vali show some mild surprise at the sight.

"Did she just blow the gym up!?" Yuuma shouted in surprise.

"I see, it was a strategic location, so she used it to her aid and then Riser's harm." Arthur replied, slightly impressed.

"Yeah, but there is a downside though." Bikou added, knowing that Riser didn't like what she pulled off. "He's gonna go out guns blazing now."

"The odds are in her favor for now at least, Shirone and Akeno didn't use that much power and took out a whole fourth of Riser's forces." Vali said, though she didn't smile. "However, I am worried about one of his pieces, and I still don't see her. His queen."

* * *

Shuriya, Marion and Burent were taking out the remaining traps around them, Marion soon taking the last one out.

"...Do you really think the Gremory's believe these stupid traps will stop us?" Marion wonders to the nearby Shuriya, only for them to turn as Burent gasps.

"That's their home base, isn't it?" Burent asked.

The three all head towards it, but soon it fades, and a magic barrier traps them within. Now they had realized they had walked into the real trap and the ones before them were feints. Kiba soon walks into view.

"Hello ladies, you gals looking for some company?" Kiba asks, soon taking out his sword with a confident look.

* * *

"_Shirone, head to the athletic field while Akeno takes some time to recharge. Stick to the plan, and I promise you we will win this._" Rias stated, making Shirone nod. However right before she moved, she noticed something move towards them. "_What is it Shirone, do you sense something?_"

"Yeah, it's Riser's queen, she's heading towards this area. Probably a sneak attack." Shirone said, making Rias bite her lip a bit. She had to chance tactics now.

"I'll handle it Rias, I'll distract her so the rest of you have some time to even the odds." Akeno replied through her ear set, making Rias nod.

"_OK then. Shirone, continue to the athletic field and meet up with Kiba as planned_." Rias said, Shirone nodded before running off right before Akeno sent out thunder to collide with a magic circle that exploded on contact. Yubelluna soon appears in view before her.

"I've been wanting to fight you since what seems like forever, Priestess of Thunder." Yubelluna smirked.

"How sweet. The pleasure's all mine, Bomb Queen." Akeno giggled.

Shirone continued her run, towards the track field, as she did...

"_Three of Lord Riser's Pawns, retired._" Grayfia announced.

"Three pawns? Then that would mean..." Shirone looked to see Kiba standing and waiting for her. "Totally called it."

"Thanks to Akeno's barrier, she made it pretty easy for me." Kiba said with a smile.

* * *

Sona and Tsubaki bring up the status screen, showing six crossed out pawns and a crossed rook on Riser's side, while none of Rias' had any crossed-out pieces.

"So right now, Riser's lost nearly half his force and Rias hasn't taken a hit yet, that's good for Rias, right?" Le fay asked.

"Well it shows she's doing good, but she still doesn't have the advantage. Aside from having more pieces, Riser's side still hasn't had most of them fight yet." Issei replied, looking at how Rias was still playing carefully. "Rias and Valerie are the only ones who've yet to fight and Valerie might not fight at all depending."

"Issei's right unfortunately, as long as Riser's side has more players she's not ahead." Tsubaki added.

"Right now, they can't afford to be careless." Sona notes.

* * *

Shirone and Kiba soon make it to the athletic field's storage room.

"So, what should we do now? The plan with Akeno's out the window unless we hear something about Riser's queen retiring soon." Shirone asked.

"Not sure, there's still Riser and seven others to worry about." Kiba wondered, soon both got a message from Rias.

"_I have an idea, I'm taking Valerie for a sneak attack, try to draw as many of the enemy away as you can. Based on what I'm seeing, I think all the remaining pieces he has are congregated in the same spot."_ Rias stated, knowing she had a risky gamble here.

"You sure, that's gotta be risky." Kiba asked.

"_Your right, it is a risk. However, we can't take the chance that Yubelluna might defeat Akeno. So, we need to strike out his forces, and then we'll break that Devil's black heart together."_ Rias replied.

"Well we don't have any other plans, guess we've gotta try something." Shirone stated, and Kiba nods.

"Alright then, guess we're facing the gates of Hell together then." Kiba replied as the two bumped fists. The two headed out onto the field, and soon Shirone noticed it.

"Kiba, Rias was right. I sense them all here." Shirone said, and Kiba focused as the two saw a woman in armor and wearing a bandage wrapped around her head appeared from dust that suddenly formed across the field.

"I am Karlamine, a Knight in the service of Lord Riser! To be perfectly honest, to walk into the open makes me question your sanity. Although... far be it from me to refuse an idiot's reckoning!"

"I am Kiba Yuuto, a Knight in the service of Lady Rias. I've been looking forward to facing another Knight." Kiba said, drawing his sword.

"En-garde!" Karlamine shouted!

Kiba and Karlamine both rush at one another, clashing and colliding their blades so fast, Shirone was sure she'd be unable to see them or who was who if she hadn't been a Nekomata. Suddenly...

"Kiba, behind you!" Shirone shouted, making Kiba turn as Riser's other Knight Siris jumps from up high and swings her large broadsword at him, he had to duck and flip out of the way. Soon the two see two Nekomata twins, a woman in a kimono, a woman in a masquerade mask and Riser's younger sister take the fray.

"Oh, that Karlamine, her head's filled with nothing but swords, swords, swords! Freaking ridiculous, and this boy's a sword freak too." Ravel said, soon looking at Shirone. "Oh, and what am I even looking at. Some abandoned cat?"

Shirone's head has an angry vein form on it.

"Well, at least I'm not a fried chicken like you are little yakitori." Shirone replied, making Ravel also gain a vein and an angry smile.

"What did you say to me!?" Ravel shouted.

* * *

Issei blinks at the sight as Shirone and Ravel argue.

"Am I missing something here?" Issei asked, seriously confused. Vali just sighs.

"Shirone's a cat, Ravel's a bird. They automatically don't get along." Vali answered, not believing what she was seeing.

"I agree, I don't like her either and I've only seen her through the screen." Kuroka said, also showing an angry look for that comment Ravel gave her sister.

"Uh... I'm gonna go over here." Yuuma said, inching away slowly.

"Now to see if Rias' gamble paid off, she was right about the pieces but..." Sona began.

"Is she right about Riser too?" Tsubaki finished.

* * *

Shirone and Kiba backed up into each other, the two panting tiredly as they looked at their opposition, Shirone had managed to take out Riser's Rook Isabella with a well-timed sneak attack using her tails, and Kiba had limited the blades from Karlamine. However, fighting five at once was too much for the two.

"Kiba, magic blast at 3 O'clock!" Shirone called out, the two jumping away as they dodged a spell from Riser's second Bishop Mihae. Once the two landed, they heard an explosion to see Rias and Valerie on the rooftop with Riser on the opposing side.

"Riser? Why's here there?" Shirone asked surprised.

"Oh no, he must have anticipated our move." Kiba replied, worried they may have trapped themselves. Rias and Valerie landed on the roof.

"So, you expected my plan, nice to see you as vulgar as ever." Rias said, charging a sphere of Destruction and tossing it as Riser, he's hit but simply regenerates slowly. Valeria behind her for the ready. Ravel smirks at Shirone and Kiba.

"Princess of Ruin, Priestess of Thunder, Sephiroth Graal and the Sword Birth. Such grand sounding names when together..." Ravel said mockingly. "However, we are phoenixes, immortal birds!"

"Apparently that's not helping you smell good if you smell worse than ashes." Shirone said, making Ravel angry again.

"Shut up! Ni, Li, how about you two show her Nekomata that know what they're doing!" Ravel ordered, the cat twins jumping at her. Shirone tried her best to dodge, but the two were older than her and therefore much faster at reacting.

"Kiba, I have an idea, but I need you buy me a minute!" Shirone called out.

"Right!" Kiba shouted, soon changing his sword into one of fire. "Hope this works!"

Kiba strikes the ground, creating a wall of flame to cover the two. Shirone uses her left hand to form Youjutsu symbols while creating a Senjutsu circle on the ground, soon overlaying both powers as circles on the ground.

"Now Kiba!" Shirone said, jumping into the air. Kiba soon raised his sword over the spot in question, right as the flames died down.

"**Sword... BIRTH!**" Kiba yelled, shouting as his sword slammed down. The two magic circles Shirone formed soon caused Kiba's sword birth to spread out faster, and the swords to extend longer and sharper.

Ravel screamed as narrowly missed, however the rest of Riser's pieces all got hit, eliminating them one by one.

"I don't understand, how could we lose!" Karlamine whimpered before she faded away as well.

_"Two of Lord Riser's pawns, two of his knights, and one of his Bishops. Retired."_ Grayfia announced, Kiba and Shirone took a moment to catch their breaths.

* * *

Asia and Yuuma cheer at the sight, Riser's pieces now at three while Rias' pieces still hadn't changed.

"They did it! Asia cheered again.

"Yeah, now they're in the lead!" Yuuma claimed, however Vali and Sona's looks didn't agree, even Issei felt unsure. The others were just indifferent.

"What, why are you guys all looking like that?" Yuuma asked worriedly.

"Rias doesn't have the advantage, sure her side has more pieces, but look at all of them." Sona answered, and that's when Yuuma and Asia realized that Valerie was the only one who was fresh.

Rias was a bit tired trying to hurt Riser with little success as he regenerated, Akeno was nearing her limit against Yubelluna, and they had just seen Shirone and Kiba's conditions. Compared to Riser's side, only Yubelluna was at her limit, and Ravel hadn't actually even fought yet while Riser was barely fighting and mostly unscathed.

"...I have a bad feeling about where Akeno is to, but I can't put my finger on it." Vali wondered, Yubelluna's movements seemed to... set to her. "I hope I'm wrong or things will go against Rias' favor. If they do, I've got no choice but to go with our Plan B."

'Plan B? That's the first I've heard of that, what's Vali up to?' Issei thought.

* * *

Soon Yubelluna falls to the ground, crashing heavily as she was hit by Akeno using ice magic with some holy energy in it to hit her hard while her guard was down.

"I didn't expect the Priestess of Thunder to be this strong!" Yubelluna panted. "Your magic must be almost depleted though."

"Never fear, all I need is some rest and I'll recover just fine." Akeno said with a smile, only to drop it once she noticed Yubelluna laughing. "What, what's so funny?"

"Oh, just you walked into a trap."

Akeno was confused, unaware of a magic circle behind the spot on the fence she was near. Suddenly an explosion goes off, catching Shirone and Kiba's attention before they saw Akeno disappear.

"_Lady Rias, one Queen retired._" Grayfia announced.

"No... they got Akeno." Rias gasped, seeing her disappear. While the two were distracted, Shirone and Kiba were targeted next, Shirone noticed and jumped away in time however.

"Kiba, get away from there quick!" Shirone shouted, but it was too late. She saw Kiba scream as the explosion hit and took him out too.

"_Lady Rias, one Knight retired_." Grayfia announced.

Despite the shock, she quickly ran towards Riser's base to avoid being caught in Yubelluna's blasts. Ravel laughs as she runs away.

"So, you're a scaredy cat, aren't you?" Ravel mocks.

"Now Kiba too!?" Rias said, half her team already gone in a moment was starting to affect her.

"Might as well resign darling, you've lost." Riser said, tossing a flame at her and Valerie. Rias simply retaliates with a ton of Power of Destruction spheres, but Riser heals from all of them. "Honestly, you're only making yourself look pathetic right now!"

Shirone soon makes it to the roof, joining Rias and Valerie.

"Valerie, we don't have a choice. Use some of my blood." Shirone pants weakly, Valerie nods and prepares to lick some blood off a spot Shirone was bleeding, however Yubelluna floats into view and the two see a magic circle form below them. "I've got you!"

Shirone tries to get both of them away, but only managed to move Valerie out of the way, causing her to scream as the blast envelops her. She falls towards the ground before vanishing.

"_Lady Rias, one Rook retired._" Grayfia announced, Valerie failed to get any blood and Rias couldn't risk Valerie taking any or she'd be left wide open. If Rias was defeated, then they'd lost by default. However, Riser had a better idea than that, and soon using his flames separated the two as he neared Valerie.

"Yubelluna, leave this to Riser. I'm going to be as persuasive as possible here." Riser said, in moments Rias could only stare in horror as Riser began attacking Valerie brutally with his flames, making her scream as they burned her faster than she could use the Sephiroth Graal's healing on herself.

"Time to end this, I hope this attack isn't too extreme. If she dies from it then it'll only be labeled an accident!" Riser said, making sure Rias heard him. Rias' face soon went into a panicked look.

"VALERIE!" Rias screamed as Riser began to move the fireball down at her body, preparing to end it when... "Stop it! I resign, just let her go!"

Riser smirked, and Valerie could only look in horror. Not at what just happened... but Rias' face, full of tears at what had made her lose. It was the most horrible thing anyone watching could see... and that would be Riser's final mistake.

"_Lady Rias' resignation is recognized, Lord Riser Phenex wins._" Grayfia announced.

* * *

Back with everyone in the student council room... the reactions were heavily varied. Kuroka had to be held down by Bikou and Arthur, the Nekomata wanting to rip all of Riser's limbs off him and gouge his eyes for what he did to Shirone. Asia was horrified by what Riser had tried, Yuuma had fainted, causing Le Fay to catch her.

Sona was not happy, but kept a professional face, Tsubaki as well, but her eyes were closed in comparison.

"That... that asshole! I can't believe it, forcing her to resign by threatening to kill her?" Issei growled, he couldn't accept this result. Riser had crossed a line like breaking the law wasn't actually illegal to him. "I thought he was just a jerk but that's it! I don't know how, but I'm not letting Rias be forced to marry him!"

"Worse is that Riser would have lost had Rias not resigned, he was breaking a rule with that claim. However, Rias didn't know this, and he used that against her." Sona replied, it was the main reason she couldn't fully accept the outcome that had transpired.

At that moment, everyone noticed Vali was sitting still and hadn't reacted at all, her eyes closed. Yuuma who recovered from fainting looked at her.

"...Vali?" Yuuma asked, soon she stepped back as Vali opened her eyes with a powerful chill entering everyone as Vali's anger made itself known. She... was... pissed. She stood up before turning to her peerage.

"Everyone, follow me." Vali said, confusing them all. "Recall how I mentioned a Plan B? Well... we're doing it now, I just hope you all don't mind the risk."

"Rias is our friend, if we can stop this engagement then we'll do anything!" Issei said determined, the others all agreed. Even the normally shy Asia and timid Yuuma agreed. Sona watched as Vali took out a flier with a familiar symbol.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

Right before Vali could leave with everyone to the student council room, Grayfia turns to her.

"May I have a word with you for a moment?" Grayfia said, getting Vali's attention as she turned around.

"What is it?" Vali asked.

"You're the one known as Vali Lucifer, correct?"

Vali's eyes widened at that, how had she known that? After a moment she suddenly realized something, her silver hair and a familiar face she remembered seeing with her grandfather.

"...No way, you're a member of the Lucifuge clan?" Vali breathed. "Yeah, that's me. So, what do you want to talk about."

Vali sees Grayfia hand her a flier that held the symbol of her clan, but this one was one owned by Sirzechs instead of the ones she made for her clients in Kuoh.

"If Rias were to lose, Sirzechs wants you to use this." Grayfia answered. "It's the last resort he has to stop this without risking turning the people against him."

Vali looks at it, then realizes what she meant before she nods and follows the others.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

'Time for that last resort, and for us to make a miracle!' Vali said, using it to transport the entire group. Sona and Tsubaki watch as they disappear.

"...Vali, please save Rias." Sona quietly says to herself.

* * *

Around two hours later, a bunch of Devils were at a fancy party, the one where Riser would announce Rias as his bride. Out of his peerage, only Ravel was present due to everyone else being too injured to come.

"As if my brother would have lost to a Rating Game virgin like her." Ravel giggles to some guests she was talking with. From afar, all the members of Rias' peerage were all present in dress outfits, already healed due to Valerie's Sephiroth Graal healing them fast enough.

"...I'm sorry I couldn't do more guys, if I had only gotten Shirone's blood in time." Valerie sighed, she only helped heal Rias, so she felt she was a bit at fault.

"Don't give up yet Valerie, we're not gonna let this even be close to over." Akeno stated, getting Valerie's attention.

"Yeah, we'll find a way to get another shot at them. Somehow." Kiba adds.

"Yeah, screw those d-bags." Shirone said, glaring at Ravel from where she was, hoping she'd pierce her with them somehow. At that moment, everyone sees Riser appear in a blaze of fire, wearing a fancy white suit.

"Greetings renowned Devils of Hell. On behalf of the House of Phenex, Riser would like to thank each and every one of you for coming today." Riser greeted, his sister smiling with her eyes close in a smug manner as he spoke. "This is a historic day for the world of Devils. Two great dynasties are about to become one."

Rias' whole peerage glares at Riser, honestly wishing he'd shut up, Valerie especially after what he pulled on Rias with her.

"And now, I present to you my bride! Rias Gremory!" Riser declares, with Rias in a wedding dress appearing from a magic circle, right at that moment however...

"Sorry, but I'll have to object!"

Everyone looks at the door which suddenly broke apart as Vali kicks a guard through it, appearing alone. Rias gasps as she notices her.

"Is this girl mental!?" Ravel declares, not believing what she had just seen.

"SEIZE HER!" Riser declared, more guards appeared, however at that moment, Arthur's sword cuts open to reveal everyone hiding within a dimensional pocket. Everyone minus Asia attacked the guards, Issei knocking a few back as everyone saw his Boosted Gear form.

"Sorry Riser Phenex, but Rias isn't giving you anything she doesn't wanna give. Not while I'm here to stop it!" Vali declared. Riser glares prepared to call more guards, but suddenly another figure's presence stops this.

"Is there something going on here?" The man asks, everyone turns to look and sees what was best described as an older looking male version of Rias.

"Big brother?" Rias asked, surprised he was here.

"So that's Rias' brother?" Issei asked, the power he felt was amazing.

**"[I can clearly sense his power, his title as Hell's current ruler isn't just for show.]"** Ddraig comments, impressed by him by a Devil standard at least. Sirzechs soon looks at Vali.

"It seems you've caused quite the ruckus. Tell me, what is your name young Devil?" Sirzechs asked, Vali breathed deeply. There was no turning back... her secret was going to shatter for Rias' sake.

"My name is Vali Lucifer, the current heir to the House of Lucifer!" Vali declared loudly, revealing all eight of her wings. Every Devil including Riser, but excluding Sirzechs, Rias and Grayfia all gasped at the sight, but also shocked a Lucifer actually had been willing to reveal themselves as such with their reputation.

"I'm here to stop this engagement, after seeing the Rating Game's result I cannot and will not accept it."

"How dare you, it's the final result that counts!" Riser said.

"In the past, but the games don't mean what they used to." Sirzechs replied to that, catching Riser off guard.

"The fact a Devil of the Lucifer Clan is here to speak against you despite knowing what she'd be seen as is proof enough. I watched the game too, and I was honestly underwhelmed. Against your larger forces she nearly had you beat, in fact had your queen's traps not worked... I'm honestly sure my little sister would have been the winner."

Riser gritted his teeth, the current ruler of Devils dared to claim that about him.

"So then, Vali Lucifer, since you seem to be so against the result, what is it that you expect to do? I'm curious to ask." Sirzechs replied, knowing what Vali was about to do. Vali nodded in response.

"In the Human World, Rias is my friend and a fellow ally. Our clubs share a building, so in a way I consider myself part of her group by extension, and as a result what I declare is this. Riser Phenex..." Vali states, pointing at the Devil.

"...I CHALLENGE YOU TO A RATING GAME!"

* * *

**Oh yeah! That's right, you heard Vali right! The surprise twist was that instead of Issei challenging Riser to free Rias, we're going to have a second Rating Game where Riser and Vali's peerages face off to win Rias' freedom! This is the big moment I've had set up for this fanfic's first season, and the perfect chance for Vali's group to have their own Rating Game match. Her gutsy move has to pay off though, one of these reasons won't be mentioned until the next chapter, but the second is all of Hell's aware who she is.**

**Essentially, winning will improve her clan's rep because she's fighting to save someone who due to her relation to Sirzechs is basically of the Old Satan Faction, and most Devils still hold the entirety of clans like Vali's as guilty for it. While that is kinda true due to the Lucifer clan not having that many people (counting Lilith, Rizevim's wife and Vali's mom, the clan's has only ever had seven members as a whole), Vali wasn't even born back then and being a Lucifer right now is like being blamed by just having the blood of a criminal.**

**As you noticed, I didn't use the Phoenix Tears in the match and went for Yubelluna using a magic circle that acted as a mine to take out Akeno. I honestly feel the Phoenix Tears were forced to make Rias lose ONLY because Rias had a handicap for training, therefore it felt completely unfair that Riser was even allowed to use any, or at least without giving Rias her own to use. *breathes* Sorry for the rant, but that was the only thing I hated about the Riser arc, everything else was fine in my opinion.**

**The Rating Game Field for their match is a castle similar to the one Diodora's peerage fought Rias' on, but where that one had a rockier theme, this one will be something else. Not saying what till the chapter's out though, so just wait and see.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay (x1), Asia (x1)  
Knights - Arthur (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou (x1), Kuroka (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (x1, became Mutation Piece, sealed), Valerie (x1, Mutation Piece, sealed)  
Knights - Kiba (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Shirone (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo (x1), Reya (x1)  
Knights - Tomoe (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali  
Gasper/Valerie**


	9. Chapter 9

**I hope you guys were all excited with the first Rating Game, because now Vali's team is gonna rip Riser another one and they aren't gonna be holding anything back! They may only have half as many as Riser, but they've got twice as many reasons to win, so let's see how Riser does when faced with not one but two angry Dragons.**

**This chapter will also have the Rating Game include a lot of special guests in the Devil World, you'll see some faces that you recognize, some you don't expect and even a few that are completely new and story original. Considering that this is the first time a Lucifer has ever been in a Rating Game in-universe it's something the entirety of Hell's coming to witness, just like this is the moment all of us have been waiting for in this first season, or I've at least indirectly hyped to from the cliffhanger of Vali's words in the previous chapter.**

**Now here's something important I'll share before we begin, do any of you recall Chapter 5 when Vali mentioned to Issei she was working on a new Ice magic technique? Well you're about to see it, and be introduced to a new story exclusive form of magic, Vali doesn't create the type of magic, but you'll see just how amazing the magic technique she casts will be. It will literally be a turning point for both the story and the Rating Game itself.**

**Now... ignore my rambling, you wanna see this Rating Game, right? Well then let's kick things off!**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally]**

* * *

** -Evil Piece Swap- **

**When a Devil reincarnates someone using an Evil Piece, that Evil Piece acts as part of their heart which keeps them alive, leaving them normally unable to be changed. However, if a Servant runs away and ends up a Stray, or if their master dies, the piece becomes void leaving only the power to keep them alive intact. While some Strays become monsters that get hunted, some Strays that follow proper protocol can instead find themselves a new master.**

**This method isn't able to be done freely however, with only Ajuka Beelzebub and some highly trained Evil Piece specialists he's trained able to perform the procedure. By altering the properties of the voided Evil Piece, the allow a new one to overlay with the old, or simply register the servant to their new master in the form of a trade that absorbs Evil pieces of an equal amount, Mutation Piece servants however require the same kind of Mutation Piece to be traded.**

**The best-known example of a Servant who's undergone an Evil Piece swap is Kuroka, who became a member of Vali's peerage after being pardoned over the incident of killing her master. As shown with Kuroka, if a servant is moved to a new peerage but their piece gets changed, their current strength matters for piece consumption. Kuroka was originally worth six pieces through two bishops, but since grew to require ten pieces, requiring a Mutation Rook to join Vali's peerage.**

* * *

"What I declare is this. Riser Phenex..." Vali states, pointing at the Devil. "...I challenge you to a Rating Game!"

Aside from Sirzechs, everyone including Vali's own peerage was shocked to silence by that declaration. The heir to Lucifer had just chosen to issue a challenge Riser to another Rating Game after he just finished one.

"And why would I agree to such insanity? I've already claimed what I won, so why would I risk it when I can just keep it?" Riser asked, clearly appalled by Vali's challenge since he knew what condition she'd ask for it.

Luckily for Vali, while she was one of the rare exceptions, there was something that was part of the Devil race as an average she knew she could use since Riser was a prime example of one who had it. Greed. Strays often left their masters to gain power, and the most sought out servants of high ranking Devils were usually strong ones.

"Because I think I have an offer even you'd be stupid to refuse, not without making yourself looking like an idiot to everyone here." Vali smirked, making Riser grit his teeth.

"My Queen as you've seen here is the current Sekiryuutei, holder of the Longinus known as the Boost Gear. I also have the Twilight Healing user, one of the few forms of healing that works on Devils and equals to Phoenix Tears. Not to mention, I'm one of the few Lucifer's that still has my clan's Primal Abyss ability."

This got Riser's slight attention, Vali realized he was taking the bait, now to hook him and make him agree to the game.

"By having Rias as your bride, you already technically have the Sephirot Graal allied with the House of Phenex. So, here's my deal, alongside with the original conditions with Rias' Rating Game I'll add my own." Vali added, it was now or never... it had to work!

"If you beat me Riser, then me and my entire peerage will forever under your service and not even another Rating Game or anything similar can undo this."

Everyone who listened gasped, while Vali's peerage did show some surprise they held it in, knowing Vali did tell them she had to gamble big if they even wanted Riser to accept a chance to free Rias. After a bit... Riser smiled, knowing how much greater his house would be if he succeeded.

"So, you offer such a risk at the thought you can beat me? Fine then, if you're that confident then I accept your challenge Vali Lucifer!" Riser declared, making Vali smile as she succeeded with the hardest part. Rias and her peerage showing shock that Riser managed to give in to her bribe.

"Very well then, the Rating Game between you two shall happen after a one-day break. Riser's peerage still needs time to recover and we need to set a different field." Sirzechs replied, accepting the agreements. "However first I must ask, what is it that you wish if you win? Am I to guess you want clan's name cleared?"

"...No, what I ask is you clear the names of the other households that have been shamed for those who fought for the Old Satan faction alone." Vali declared, even surprising Sirzechs slightly.

"Rias is my friend and that's the reason I'm here to help her, I won't use this game to benefit myself. If I'm to clear the Lucifer's name, I'll do it by my own actions. I'm not going to let some game alone earn that right."

Sirzechs smiled a bit at that, it was rare to see a Devil act as noble as an Angel would.

"Very well, I accept your conditions. Since we're all already here it would be a shame to just end this party. Let us instead use it to celebrate the eventual game that shall happen between these two." Sirzechs replied, and at that moment the guards were dismissed as Vali sighed in relief. Looking at Issei with a scared face.

"That was so scary..." Vali whispered, shaking like a leaf. She was surprised how she had managed to build up the courage to do what she just had. Issei holds her close and rubs her back, smiling at her.

"We're all proud of you, that was really brave of you." Issei stated, making Vali calm down slightly and smiled at him. Soon the others saw Rias and her peerage come up to them, Rias still seemed worried but the others all looked relieved.

"That was totally badass, guess you'll be using that second chance we hoped for." Akeno giggled.

"Yeah, take those d-bags down for us." Shirone said, soon being hugged tightly by her big sister who went into overprotective mode. "Kuroka, stop. I swear I'm fine."

"Not unless I say you are, if I could I'd eat that chicken whole." Kuroka said, still angry for what happened to Shirone during the game. Shirone sighed as she realized she was trapped in this situation.

"Vali..." Rias said quietly, the Lucifer hair looked at her.

"Is there another room in this place where we can talk privately?" Vali asked.

* * *

Both sets of peerages were soon in a room Grayfia provided them for the sake of privacy, and once they were inside...

"Vali, you don't need to do this for me. Don't sacrifice your freedom for my sake!" Rias cried out, as much as she felt thankful for what Vali did, she couldn't bear having Vali lose everything just to give her what she wanted.

"Rias, I'm not doing this because I feel I have to. I'm doing this because I want to." Vali answered, surprising Rias a bit. "A long time ago someone found me after I had run away from home... he saved me, I didn't even know I needed him, but I did."

"Vali, is that..." Asia began.

"Yeah, it was my father Asia. He adopted me and before I knew it my life suddenly changed." Vali replied, and soon looking at her peerage and Rias', then at Issei who nodded.

"Now that I'm putting everything on the line here... I think it's time I told you my story, the full one. Something I've only trusted Issei with before now. I've already exposed I'm a Lucifer so if I can't move forward, how will I ever call myself a good King to my peerage, or my friends?"

Everyone looked in shock as Vali stood up, ready to begin.

"First thing's first, you should know who my father is. I think most of you already know him by name at least... Azazel, the leader of the Fallen Angels." Vali stated, gaining gasps from Rias' peerage.

"Azazel's your father?" Akeno gasped, and it suddenly made sense that his alias Austin Azel had sounded so familiar to her now. Vali nodded to her, though she was unaware of Akeno's own history with Fallen Angels to know why it shocked her so much.

"Yeah. How I met him is a story within a story, I used to live with my mother and father for some time, but my Grandpa who was also around a lot... was horrible, abusive, cruel. He made my father be the same by making him simply fear me." Vali began, Issei holding her shoulders to give her some support.

"I was forced to fight people, treat anything like an enemy and nothing like a friend. I was only a child and he trained me to become a weapon. It all failed because... one day I told him I wouldn't do it."

Vali looked up as she saw the others awaiting her next words.

"...He responded by murdering my parents in front of me." Vali answered, making everyone but Issei and Kuroka gasp, as the latter two had already known. "After that I ran, and I only got away because I was lucky. I spent so long alone, until I found myself crying in a small forest."

Vali recalled her crying in a small patch of grass, the surrounding trees standing tall as only a bit of light phased through to the circular area she was sitting in. The rain kept going until she heard some steps, she looked up scared and expecting her grandpa... only for Azazel to walk into view with an umbrella.

"I saw him for the first time, Azazel. Despite the few things I had heard, he was kind." Vali said, smiling slightly. "After listening to how I had run away from home, knowing that I needed someone... he took my hand and told me he'd be my father. Then he took me home and I met Issei. That was 11 years ago."

Rias' peerage all felt empathy towards Vali after hearing that. Akeno recalled how Rias had met her when she was being hunted by her own clan just because she had existed, while Kiba recalled when he was in a snowy field about to die from either the cold or coughing up blood, Rias saved his life. Shirone recalled when she worked to give her happiness after Devil kind had tried to kill her, while Valerie recalled how Rias saved Gasper from death and gave them a place in the world.

Likewise, Vali's original peerage members compared who she had been now when she had first met them and later made them part of her peerage. Bikou had been pushed under expectations of succeeding his ancestor Sun Wukong and Vali helped him convince the old man to let him walk his own path. Arthur ran from home to protect the woman he loved, and Le Fay went with them because she wanted to help her brother, Vali had Elaine taken to Grigori for safety and watched over the two of them like an older sister. Finally, Kuroka recalled how Vali fought to prove her innocent for killing her master and allowed her to reunite with Shirone.

"Issei was the reason I became more cheerful, his friendship helped wash away my pain. He promised that he would protect me... and eventually I realized I wanted to do the same. That's when I left on a training journey across the world when I was only 10." Vali continued, recalling her travels.

"Mount Meru, the Youkai Realm of Kyoto, Asgard, Hell and more. I visited and trained there with only my father's most trusted cadre and eventually Le Fay, Arthur and Bikou. After seven years I finally decided to come back home and met Issei again, and then shortly after all of you."

"I'll always be grateful for that." Asia smiled, making Vali blush lightly in response. She did kinda become a sister figure for Asia after all.

"If you don't mind me asking, who is this grandpa of yours?" Kiba asked, it made sense as while Vali knew the Lucifer clan's overall number was only seven, most Devils didn't know this and assumed the stronger clans of Devils were much larger in number.

Especially to those who mixed up the Lucifuge's numbers as they served the Lucifer's, Grayfia being an exception for reasons Vali didn't know yet. Taking a deep breath, she finally decided to answer Kiba's curiosity.

"...The disowned son of Satan himself, Rizevim Lucifer." Vali stated, only Rias and Akeno due to Kuroka having already learned of this showed any reaction to this. Akeno only knowing due to her time living with Rias when younger.

"That extremist is your grandfather? Dear god... no wonder why you ran away from him." Rias said, making Vali nod in response. The heiress of Gremory recalling her the stories young high-class Devils were about the 'Worst Devil' in history so they'd hopefully never end up like him.

"What was it that made him use you like that though? You make it sound like your parents were just there to him." Akeno asked, trying to remove her shock.

"Simple, my Sacred Gear is why. For what it is..." Vali began, though decided not to reveal it through her words. "...you'll see me take Riser down in the Rating Game with it. Let's just say Riser doesn't realize there's something else in his offer that he knows nothing about to predict."

Issei puts his hand on top of Vali's.

"We're with you all the way, Riser's going down and he's going down hardcore!" Issei smirked confidently. The rest of the MHC did the same, one by one, until all eight hands were on top of each other.

"Y-you can count on me!" Yuuma declared.

"My sword is at your side." Arthur said.

"Yeah, we've got your back." Le Fay smiled.

"I'll be praying for our- Ah! V-victory no matter what." Asia said, ignoring how she hurt herself via prayer again.

"That bastard hurt my sister, now let's return the favor." Kuroka smirked.

"It's fighting time!" Bikou replied.

All of them raised their hands, and Rias and her peerage all smiled, silently wishing them luck in victory.

* * *

After two days passed, Vali and her team were currently waiting inside her home in the Human World as they readied themselves.

Vali was wearing a copy of her usual casual outfit reinforced for battle, cracking her knuckles before breathing in and out. Issei loosening up his left arm, wearing a similar battle made outfit Azazel had set out for him. Yuuma tied most of her hair into a ponytail, and formed a light spear to psyche away as much timidity as she could. Asia was wearing her nun outfit, holding her cross tightly as if to wish herself for good luck.

Kuroka had put on gloves like Shirone's wanting to honor her through their usage, and wanting to bring Shirone's strength to the match with her in a sense. Bikou was shining his Ruyi Jingu Bang replica and his armor making it shine as he moved the cleaning cloth away to inspect his work. Arthur sheathed Caliburn after looking at it, and finally Le Fay who was by his side was adjusting her hat and cape before grabbing her magic wand.

"So, the big game's here now, isn't it?" Azazel said, he was worried for his daughter but knew her reasonings. He walked by Vali and placed a hand on her. "Just be safe, but most importantly... kick that Phenex's ass so he doesn't have a chance in Hell!"

"We'll already be in Hell, so we can literally do that." Issei said, chuckling at his joke before everyone noticed a magic circle. Grayfia appeared from it and looked at everyone.

"The game will begin shortly, you'll use this field to go to a special Rating Game field we prepared especially for this match." Grayfia stated, getting everyone's attention. "Azazel, while normally we wouldn't allow this, as you are part of Lady Vali's family, you'll be coming with me to a special area to watch the Rating Game."

"So, I get a front row seat? Good, I was worried I'd have to miss my little girl's first victory." Azazel smirked, making Grayfia sigh at his usual attitude. Vali turned to the others to give her inspirational speech.

"Everyone, listen up. Riser's shown no respect for Rias and will show none for us, and Hell itself is against us due to how the people see me right now for my name alone... " Vali began, soon breathing and giving a proud face.

"But we are the Mythological History Club! More than that, you're all proud members of the Lucifer household, so let's show that cocky bird that not even the immortal firebird can stand against the Devil among Devils!"

"YEAH!" Everyone cheered.

Soon they all walked onto the magic circle, and were transported. Azazel giving them a thumb's up as they vanished. Soon everyone found themselves at some castle located in the skies of hell, everyone looked around amazed.

"This is nothing like the last battlefield, where are we?" Issei wondered.

"...I know this place, this whole area is where my Great Grandmother Lilith was imprisoned." Vali breathed, making the others look.

"Y-you mean..." Yuuma stuttered.

"I get it, this is why we're fighting here, this is where my Great Grandfather changed from the Angel Lucifer and became the first, Devil Satan Lucifer." Vali replied. "This is the place that gave birth to the Devils!"

"So, we're fighting on the grounds of her heritage, I guess it makes for a Lucifer to prove herself on the same field Devil kind began." Kuroka noted, looking excited for the match now. Soon a tower like building structure suddenly forms behind them, meant to be their home base area.

"_Welcome everyone!_" The announcer began, making the MHC focus as they looked up. Various magical screen appearing across the area. "_Welcome to this exciting Rating Game competition, my name's Naud Gamigin of Hell's Media department and I'll be the referee for this match._"

Soon on the various screens, the audience comprising a majority of Hell with its Devils in various locations, some of the big-name heirs and current lords of households among other beings all watching closely.

"_This Rating Game is between Lord Riser of the house of Phenex, and Lady Vali of the shamed house of Lucifer._" Naud Gamigin announced, soon bringing up images of the bases on the location.

"_Today's Rating Game location is the Prison Castle of Damnation, former prison of Lilith Lucifer and the initial caster of Satan Lucifer during the first Devil dynasty before the relocation to the city of Agreas. Lady Vali's base is the lower field of the castle, while Lord Riser's is on the upper field._"

"The upper field, doesn't that give him the advantage though?" Le Fay asked. Luckily, she saw Vali shake her head.

"The opposite, this is a Rating Game field with flying restrictions because it's a sacred area. Being higher or lower doesn't do anything but change if you're looking up or down on your opponent's most of the time." Vali answered.

She could still remember hearing her great grandmother Lilith's stories about the place she met Satan when she had been training in Hell, despite she had been a prisoner here, it was her most beloved place due to meeting her true love. As such the Devils made special rules once it became a Rating Game field.

"_Before we begin, we have some very special guests who are watching. Allow me to introduce to you the current Satan and the Five Great Devils!_" Naud announced, showing a screen with Sirzechs and five other Devils, each wearing their usual job outfits to even Riser and Vali's teams.

The first was a beautiful girl with long, black hair tied into twin tails and violet eyes, making her quite similar to Sona. She had a child-like body, albeit with large breasts, and was dressed in magical girl's clothing that Issei recalled seeing from a show a client made him watch together called Magical Girl Milky Spiral Seven. She was Serafall Leviathan.

The second was a handsome young man with light blue eyes and green hair that is slicked back. He has a mysterious aura around him which seemed to make him seem devilish even by a Devil's standards. His name was Ajuka Beelzebub. The third was a tall man whose head is completely bald and has a goatee on his chin, and his name was Falbium Asmodeus.

The fourth was a beautiful young woman with long, wavy, cherry-blossom colored hair, with two strands by her forehead styled like two horns curving around the sides and back of her head. Her name was Roygun Belphegor.

Finally, the fifth and last of the group was a beautiful young girl similar to Serafall in body with long messy pink hair, with the side locks dyed with white streaks, as were a few of the side strands of her hair. She was known as Alanira Mammon.

"Whoa... those five and Rias' brother run all of Hell?" Asia asked, surprised at some of them. It made sense considering Serafall seemed more like a teenager while the others were either adults or at least young adults.

"_And now here's our featured guests! She's the one who chose this battlefield herself, our retired Queen of Hell... Lilith Lucifer herself!_" Naud announced, surprising Vali as she heard her own Great Grandmother was watching the Rating Game.

Soon everyone sees the screen changed to show a single special chair where a woman with long black hair that had most of it tied in a ponytail with the rest flowing down behind it with ruby red eyes was seen sitting on it.

She was wearing a very revealing black outfit that had many dark colored chains attached to it, almost as if these were the chains that God imprisoned her to once, and she never completely removed after Satan had freed her. Issei noted her figure and bust size surpassed even Vali's, both of which she probably inherited from her, to the point it was like seeing a Human being whose body was the literal physical manifestation of the Deadly Sin of Lust.

"T-That's the Mother of all Devils? Whoa... I'm only seeing her and, yet I feel like I'd die if I ever tried to fight her." Yuuma said, her body shaking at the sight of the beautiful yet powerful Devil before her.

"_Now before we begin, Lilith has a word she'd like to say._" Naud announced, shifting the speakers over to Lilith.

"_To all Devils here today, as you are likely aware this is my Great Granddaughter fighting right now. Despite that I shall watch and judge this as she were any other Devil._" Lilith replied quietly with a voice that seemed to soft and sweet for a Devil, yet possessed a tone that etched the full meaning of her words to everyone without any doubts.

"_However, I have this to tell her directly. Vali... right now I only see your worth as a Human, so prove that you've truly become worthy to join the World of Devils. Do that and I will promise the entirety of Hell will have no means to claim you are not their ally strength._"

"...I will." Vali softly told herself, knowing Lilith had secretly encouraged her and hid it via what appeared to be a strict test of character.

Soon the sound announcing the Rating Game had begun sounded off, and everyone got ready as Issei and Vali look at each other. Both taking each other's hands in a handshake as they nodded.

"I'll protect you Issei, like I promised." Vali started.

"And I'll protect you in return, like I promised." Issei finished, both smile at each other before turning and looking forward. "Now let's win this game!"

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

Issei and Vali were on the rooftop of her house on the night before the day of the Rating Game, looking at the clear and starry night sky. A sight they hadn't seen for a long time together and finally got to share again.

"Tomorrow, we'll be fighting to free Rias. We don't get a second chance at this." Vali stated, knowing that they would win. "...Issei?"

"Hmm? What is it Vali?" Issei asked as she turned to look at her, Vali looked at him in return.

"You still remember the promise we've shared since we were 10, right?" Vali asked, and Issei nods. "No matter what happens in the Rating Game... will you be there to protect me?"

Issei smiles, putting his hand over hers and holding it tightly.

"Yeah, just like I know you'll be there to protect me as well. That was our promise, wasn't it?" Issei said, before asking Vali the same question. Vali smiles and giggles.

"Yeah, it was." Vali smiled.

At that moment, the two unknowingly had their faces get close, but after a few seconds they both realize how close they had gotten and blush heavily before they both move away and turn their heads. Soon both chuckling oddly at what happened.

Soon both of them took magic circles back to their room, and when they did...

"Hey Ddraig?"  
"Albion, can we talk?"

**"[What is it partner?]"**   
**"(Yes, what do you need?)"**

"I want you to make a deal with me, alright?" Both unknowingly asked at the same time.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

Vali's mind came back into focus as she shows everyone the field's map.

"Alright everyone, here's the plan. Riser's not gonna make the same mistakes with us, and we can't risk any of us fighting alone." Vali began, pointing at the stairway area that connected the main paths between the two bases on the giant castle.

"Issei, I want you and Raynare to take the flight of main stairs towards Riser's base. Bikou and Le Fay, branch off at the left flight section. Kuroka and Arthur, you'll take the right. Asia, you and I will stay here. I've got a plan set for anyone who comes here."

"Got it!" Everyone nodded.

"Alright everyone, let's do this! Execute operation Phoenix beneath Ashes! This one's for Rias!" Vali shouted, everyone soon headed off towards their respective paths. Le Fay and Bikou soon found themselves at the top of the stair flight they went up towards, and found Siris, Marion, Burent and Isabella all waiting.

"So, you'll be our first opponents. My congrats for having the courage to challenge us..." Isabella said, soon getting into a battle stance. "But now for the sake of honorable Lord Riser we must defeat you."

Siris drew her sword while Marion and Burent brought out daggers and took a battle stance.

"Bikou, I'll take the swords woman. Can you handle the other three till I give the signal?" Le Fay asked, having formed a plan with Bikou on the way up.

"Sure thing, plus I'm excited to fight multiple opponents and see how they resist." Bikou said as he swung Ruyi Jingu Bang overhead, soon stopping as he was readied and jumped into the air. "Flying Nimbus!"

A golden cloud formed underneath Bikou and he flew at the Rook and two Pawns, meanwhile Le Fay formed a broomstick and flew at Siris.

"Really? A magician against me, forgive me when I crush your hopes and dreams then!" Siris said, jumping high and swinging her sword, but to her surprise, Le Fay tosses her wand at the right spot, parrying the blow successfully. "That was just pure luck!"

Siris swung sideways, but gasped as Le Fay parried her successfully again. Siris swung each way she could, picking up the speed each time, even thrusting forward. However, by moving her wand a certain way and even spinning it once, she managed to block each swing.

"You're a good swordsman, I'll give you that. However, my brother is too, and I've seen him train most of my life. I'd dishonor the Pendragon name if I couldn't at least defend myself from a sword!" Le Fay giggled, making Siris angry as Le Fay jumped overhead and landed behind Siris as her broom followed.

"Now time for a magic attack!"

Siris turned and gasps as the sight of magic circles for Norse magic appear around Le Fay, she holds up her sword to block the magical bullets as they blasted her like machine gun fire. Meanwhile Marion and Burent flew at Bikou as he flew around on the Flying Nimbus and dodged them.

"Too slow, I hope your restaurant doesn't get bad service with your attendance speed." Bikou joked, soon noticing Isabella flying at him.

"Never turn away during a fight!" Isabella shouted throwing a punch, Bikou using his staff to block as Marion and Burent raise their daggers and toss them at the Monkey Youkai who only smirks.

"Extend! Ruyi Jingu Bang!" Bikou yelled out, soon spinning his staff as it extended, the sudden stretching of the staff struck the Pawns while Isabella was knocked back. As she skidded, Bikou rose the staff by its tip and slammed it down on her, knocking her back. "Not a worry when I don't need my eyes to sense your presence."

* * *

Riser watches from his base at the top half of the castle, despite how things were going with his pieces against Bikou and Le Fay, he was still confident since they were handling themselves and his other pieces' movements.

"She's no less of a Rating Game virgin as Rias was, Riser doesn't think he'll have to do much this time." Riser smirked.

He watches as his sister and Ni and Li all quickly head towards Vali's base, Issei and Yuuma unaware that they had passed them by as they kept going up.

* * *

"Those idiots completely walked by us, taking the base and promoting will be easy!" Ravel laughed as she few with her fiery wings, the Nekomata twins ran underneath her. Vali and Asia noticed them coming, and the former simply smirked as she tapped her ear com and whistled.

"Let's get them Li!" Ni said, Li nodded. "Right!"

* * *

Suddenly with Le Fay and Bikou, the whistle reaches their ears and the two nodded as they both flew closer to their respective opponents.

"They're charging right at us, an amateur mistake." Burent smirked as she and Marion prepared to strike Bikou as he neared, Isabella behind them. Siris prepared her sword at Le Fay when...

"...Psyche!" Le Fay giggled.

Suddenly a magic spell Le Fay set on the paths they were flying at made Bikou and Le Fay switch places, surprising their opponents as they were now faced with the pieces they hadn't been fighting.

"Now, time for Hell's version of a heavenly force!" Bikou shouted, counting the Ruyi Jingu Bang with Touki and Senjutsu as it extends at Siris. The Knight rose her sword to defend, but the strong impact of the enhanced staff smashes through the sword and shatters it, soon striking into her chest as she screams and vanishes.

"_Lord Riser, one Knight retired!_" Naud announced.

"And now, time for a Fairy's touch." Le Fay smiled, a magic circle appearing under the two Pawns and Rook before a pink tornado shoots upward, sending them all flying into they crashed into the roof above them hard, the wind kept cutting into them until they vanished.

"_Two of Lord Riser's Pawns and one of his Rooks, retired!_" Naud announced.

Le Fay and Bikou land by each other, Bikou give a thumb's up at the magician while she returns it with a peace sign.

* * *

Riser stared in shock at what happened, he lost four of his pieces and didn't even know that neither Le Fay or Bikou had barely tried until they last moment where they pulled their bait and switch strategy.

"What the hell, what is this!? Riser doesn't like what's happening right now!" Riser seethed, angry at the mockery before him.

"_What the, what is this!?"_ Ravel called out in surprise.

Riser turns and notices his sister's voice.

"Ravel? Ravel what's going on, tell me!?" Riser demanded, losing his cool.

"T-there's..." Ravel began.

* * *

Ravel and the Nekomata twins were about to reach the base and have the twins promote to Queen, but suddenly a giant wall of fire had burst out and hidden them form view, high enough that even flight couldn't get them to the base due to the field's special rules.

"...a giant barrier of flames! We can't reach her base, we've been blocked off!" Ravel finished. "That's not possible, the one who uses fire magic should have already passed us."

"Oh really, are you sure it was us?"

Ravel and the Nekomata twins all turn at that before they dodge a flurry of light spheres that fly at them, a small opening in the fire wall shows Issei and Yuuma inside of it. Issei now with the Boosted Gear equipped.

"No way, but they were behind us!" Ni shouted, but then felt something off.

"Wait, something's not right." Li replied.

Ravel and the twins turned to see the Yuuma and Issei on the stairs had a magic circle form below them, only to have them disappear along with it. The trio gasped as they realized what had happened.

"You tricked us with illusions." Ravel muttered, soon Vali smiled from behind the fire defending her and Asia.

"That was your brother's mistake Ravel Phenex, he thought that my numbers would make me play more careful. Well unfortunately for you..." Vali replied, hoping Riser heard her. "I'm playing to win, and that means I'm willing to take any risk to do so!"

Yuuma jumped up and tossed a ton of light daggers across the field, Ni and Li were forced to dodge, needing all their speed to evade and having no chance to attack as Yuuma didn't let herself slow down for even a second.

Meanwhile Issei suddenly rushed towards Ravel, the Phenex Devil tried to get away, but...

**[BOOST!]**

Issei focused the boost towards his feet and sprinted at her fast enough to get in front of her.

"Sorry, but this is a Rating Game. You can't expect to only run away and escape danger!" Issei smirked, soon blasting a bit of lightning magic at Ravel, knocking back a bit. Her regeneration begins to work itself.

"Dang it... you'll pay for that!" Ravel said, finally snapping as she unleashed a tempest of flames at Issei. Issei held up his arms as the flames burned him, but just like the Phenex clan he was immune to fire.

**"[Let's show her a real fire partner!]"** Ddraig declared.

"Right!"

Issei unleashes a burst of flame that knocks Ravel back, and soon strikes the ground, making a magic circle that discharged lightning through the ground at Ravel. Ravel was shocked greatly by it, and soon had to grab something from her pocket and use it, healing up and moving away before the lightning's power forced her to retire, allowing her to heal.

"What was that?" Issei asked, wondering what she just used.

"Our family's hidden treasure, phoenix tears. We couldn't use them in our last game due to Lady Rias' handicap, but they heal any injury in an instant compared to your Twilight Healing Bishop, and before you say it's unfair we have a limit to two per game." Ravel said, hoping to mock him.

Unaware to her, Issei whispered what she heard to Vali, who nodded and passed a message to another member of their peerage. Vali had been aware they may use phoenix tears, and now that she knew she had a strategy for whoever had the second vial of them.

"Hey, I'm trying to make fun of you! Listen to me!" Ravel complained.

"Yuuma, do it now!" Issei screamed, Yuuma nods and forms a bunch of light swords before sending them flying. Ni and Li all dodge them to avoid being hit, but get scratched by a few while Ravel's arm got blown off and had to regenerate. Issei takes the chance to run up the stairs.

"Hey, get back here!" Ravel shouted, before the three could follow, Yuuma threw light spheres at them.

"Sorry, but I'm your opponent." Yuuma declared. She prepared a light spear, and rushed at the three, but the Nekomata twins grab her spear.

"Here, let this help you think!" Both shouted as they kicked her up, Ravel smirked as she hit Yuuma directly with fire.

"You can do it guys, I believe in you... fight, and win!" Yuuma whimpered before vanishing.

"_Lady Vali, one Pawn retired!_" Naud announced.

Ni and Li seeing the flames begin to dispel begin rushing at Vali and her base, however a few Senjutsu blasts cut them off however.

"Oh, come on!" The twins shouted, right as Bikou dropped from the Flying Nimbus into view.

"Sorry, but you're not nearing my King." Bikou shouted as he spun his staff, forming a new barrier to block the base using Senjutsu and reinforcing it with Touki.

* * *

Meanwhile in the room where Lilith, Sirzechs and the Five Great Devils were all watching. They saw Vali finally lose her first piece and began talking about how they assumed the match was going right now.

"I like the gutsy and bold choices that Vali's shown us so far, most rookies don't bother taking risks." Alanira commented, she had seen too many rookies lose over being careful in the past.

"Riser has more experience for sure, but I think at least Vali isn't hesitating." Ajuka added, Falbium silently nodding. "I doubt Riser expected her first two big moves."

"Hmm... Lilith, what are your thoughts?" Roygun turned, wondering how the great grandmother was reacting to her descendant's battle. Lilith sighed as looked at her.

"I'm not disappointed in her, but I'm not impressed either." Lilith said bluntly, she had yet to really see Vali was serious about her strategy in the way she spoke of. "Let's see if she can make me proud of appalled of her actions."

* * *

Kuroka and Arthur soon encounter the remaining Pawns, Ile and Nel, Shuriya, and Mira, all gathered together.

"So, you're that kitten's older sister, I can't wait to get revenge for our defeat." Mira said, readying her repaired staff, Ile and Nel smirk as they ready their chainsaws.

"You think you'll beat me when I'm the stronger of the two. I'd like to see you try." Kuroka smirked, preparing a mix of sage and demon magic and preparing to fire it when...

"Now Shuriya!" Mira shouted, thrusting her staff to create a wind tunnel, Shuriya smirks and rushes into its path, beginning a dance as her ribbons glow, suddenly spreading the wind out and blinding Kuroka and Arthur. When it ended, Kuroka was trapped with Shuriya and Arthur the rest as a razor wind barrier blocked them with their respective opponents.

"What is this?" Kuroka gasped, worrying about the particular Pawn before her.

"The blondie knight never got to see it because of his sword skills, but my ribbons dispel magic and mystic attacks. Trying that flashing light tricks you Youkai know so well are useless against me.

'No way! Then that means all I have are my rook traits, and Shirone's better at close combat than me.' Kuroka thought. 'Well Vali did take risks, so I better step up and try instead of whining.'

Meanwhile with Arthur, he dodged Mira's constant staff thrusts while dealing with the twins' chainsaws. While his sword couldn't be broken, a chainsaw was still a bad match-up since the constant strikes might disarm him if he couldn't hold on tightly.

"Yeah, we're gonna slice you down!" Ile and Nel shouted together.

"I will admit, your strategy was a surprise and well thought out. Though I won't fall so easily." Arthur declared, knocking the twins back while rushing at all three. At the same time, Shuriya moved quickly and gracefully as she fought Kuroka while dancing around her. Kuroka managed to hold herself while getting a few good strikes in.

"Get ready little dancer, this cat's got more than just 9 lives and she's ready to use all of them!" Kuroka claimed, rushing at her. The two rushed at their opponents, all four of them smirking before the sight of a large explosion suddenly goes off, one of Yubelluna's magic circle mines going off and sending the two flying.

"...Arthur, did we give Bikou enough time?" Kuroka asked, Arthur contacts Vali right as he begins disappearing.

"Yes, that we did." Arthur finished, fully vanishing along with Kuroka shortly after she smiles back. The pawns all take the chance to rush towards Vali's base.

* * *

"_One of Lady Vali's Knights, and one of her Rooks. Retired!_" Naud announced, causing Vali to raise her head a bit.

"Looks like the time's coming." Vali said, looking at Bikou as he struggles to take the three on. "Bikou, just a bit longer alright!?"

Bikou turns and smirks, realizing what she meant. At that moment the other pawns make it to the field.

"Finally made it, hit this monkey back to the zoo!" Ravel ordered, and each Pawn hit Bikou with all of their attacks. Bikou screams as he's hit, and Bikou gives a thumb's up before disappearing, causing Vali to grab Asia and take to the air.

"_Lady Vali, one Rook retired!_" Naud announced.

"Ha! So, you're gonna fly away, get in there and promote everyone!" Ravel said, soon laughing as it appeared Vali was about to lose. However, at the moment the Pawns all reached the base and prepared to promote... magic circles suddenly shout out and locked the Pawns movements. "What!?"

"Sorry Ravel, but this whole chess game... I've been controlling your brother's move. Now..." Vali stated, soon giving a serious face. "Time to make my first true move!"

At that moment, Vali's Devil wings disappeared, and the sight of the Divine Dividing took replaced them, surprising everyone as they discovered Vali didn't just have the Sekiryuutei as her Queen... she herself was the Hakuryuukou!

While Asia held onto her back, she formed a magic circle with the Lucifer crest's in its ice magic color, and then began moving her hand like she was writing something, as she did... more magic circles of a smaller size with a dragon crest appear around it.

"**Frozen tundra, give me your breath! Let your freezing be more silent than death, roaring like a blizzard, and make all stop...**" Vali began chanting, a strong aura forming around her, Ravel gasping at the sight before her.

"That's a..." Ravel gasped.

* * *

Meanwhile back in the VIP corner with Sirzechs, the Five Great Devils and Lilith, the former six had been surprised to learn Vali had the White Dragon's power, but when all of them saw what Vali was trying they could only show complete shock at it. It wasn't until Serafall spoke up that any sound came back to the room.

"No way, she's using a Custom Spell... and a chained one!" Serafall gasped, surprised she was using one at all.

"I've never seen a Devil her age pull that off, I thought years were needed for it to work." Beelzebub noted, just as impressed. "It seems that perhaps we've been wrong, and Vali found what we were missing."

"Amazing... just listen to the song she's singing behind that spell's aria." Alanira said, her eyes sparkling at the sight.

Lilith stared at the sight, and soon Sirzechs looks at her and notices.

"Is something wrong Lilith?" Sirzechs questioned, soon he noticed Lilith giggle before she began laughing. However not in a crazed manner, more like she was excited and happy at the sight.

"That's grand... Vali, you've done more than prove your worth, you've completely blown me away! You've truly become one with both your Devil heritage and your humanity!" Lilith said, smiling brightly as she saw just what she wanted to.

"Now show them Vali, break the boundaries and cages! Make your great grandfather Satan wish he was proud to be here if he was still alive!"

* * *

"I've gotta get away from here before I'm caught in it too!" Ravel gasped, she tried to fly, only for a remaining Senjutsu circle Kuroka left to bind her in place. "Oh no!"

"...**I desire a world of white, and desire for a zero that freezes over even Hell! Now, come frozen prison of the Underworld...**" Vali finished, soon holding out the newly formed custom magic circle.

"**COCYTUS!**"

Soon the magic circle turns into a huge concentrated mass of ice shards and a blizzard that surged forward, soon taking the shape of Albion's head only with red eyes filled of Devil power. It roared as it neared the ground, soon striking her base. At first it seemed like the base would be destroyed... however it simply froze instantly, all six of Riser's remaining Pawns were caught in the flurry of ice and snow and trapped in frozen prisons!

The ice and snow didn't stop there, it kept spreading and freezing until it even encompassed Ravel, and it only stopped at the moment it ended up freezing the entire lower half of the castle, surprising everyone else who was on the upper half. As of now, only Vali and Asia were unfrozen as Vali lowered to the ground, soon the ice prisons of Riser's frozen pieces all shattered as the ones inside all vanish afterwards. Vali panted, the spell having taken a lot out of her.

"_Six of Lord Riser's pawns, and one of his Bishops. Retired!_" Naud announced, the entire audience stared in amazement at what Vali had managed to do. Most of all Riser who for the first time felt his plans in a Rating Game were thwarted.

"Listen well Riser... this game's only getting started, and I'm ready for war!" Vali declared loudly, flying forward as she went to take the battle to him directly.

"SO, GET READY TO FIGHT!"

* * *

**Oh yeah, now that's an epic turn around! Now Vali's identity as the White Dragon's been revealed and she used Albion's power in a Custom Spell, a powerful technique that's the result of forming one's own spell, especially if you can chain multiple magics together.**

**Also, don't worry, Vali may be the only one right now, but others who excel in magic will create custom spells similar to her Cocytus attack. I'm already working on one I'll eventually make for Issei to use in following seasons. The aria for casting them will usually be only for their first castings so I don't overload you with them.**

**I hope people like the way I made Lilith in this story, I wanted at least one person in Vali's biological family that's both kind and nice, and also still alive. That and since Lilith was originally the planned wife of Adam, I figured she'd the most human Devil of all, making her the one who understands Vali being half-human, half-devil.**

**She does want Vali to work hard and earn stuff on her own, but that's because she wants her to be prepared in case Rizevim comes back one day, and Vali understands this because she and her met when Vali trained in Hell, I might showcase that in the future when I get the chance. She's also the main reason that Vali can even accept clients, or how she got her Evil Pieces.**

**I hope this first half was worth the wait for all of you, the second half is where Season 1 of this story will meet its end and this epic Rating Game will finally come to a conclusion. Hope to see you there, so stay awesome everyone ^^**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay (x1), Asia (x1)  
Knights - Arthur (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou (x1), Kuroka (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (x1, became Mutation Piece, sealed), Valerie (x1, Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Shirone (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo (x1), Reya (x1)  
Knights - Tomoe (x1), unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa (x1), unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali  
Gasper/Valerie**


	10. Chapter 10

**I'm honestly still surprised with myself, this story has barely been up for around an entire week at this point, and yet we've already gotten ourselves this far, to the end of the story's first season. I honestly thought it would take much longer, but I guess not. Well I guess I better start preparing Season 2 then, and like I mentioned earlier in the story, we'll be on a temporary hiatus, so I can properly plan things that will show up in Season 2.**

**For one, the Demons will finally be making their appearance alongside with the Angels finally becoming more prominent, and both Rias and Vali will be getting new additions to their peerages, especially the former who's technically gained no new members since the story began as Valerie was already with her despite she hasn't been active for most of this season. Most of all, this is the season where events will lead to some original story lines that will be around the place alongside the canon volumes' stories.**

**I'm glad everyone has been along for the ride we have so far, and while it may be a while before the cart going uphill dives back down again, though it will. So just try to be patient as I get things ready, in the meantime while you wait, if you happen to be a fan of DAL, want to see a story that while follows canon in the direction it takes yet is loaded with original content and twists that make it just as different, or just want to see something from me till this story resumes updates for Season 2, check out the story I'll be starting and during while in this one's hiatus: "Date a Re:Live".**

**Oh, and to those feeling Vali's Team was under-powered, three things I'd like you to note. 1) They're not as powerful as in canon due to circumstances, Vali especially. 2) I had to make Riser still be a threat and not have Vali's team wipe her and just ended the chapter in only a few paragraphs. 3) Except Yuuma, everyone who I had eliminated was thrown into a situation where they were overwhelmed, or their opponent was a good counter to them, so I at least gave justified scenarios for their defeats, plus Vali herself admitted she's gambling some risks compared to Rias.**

**Most of you will probably notice from this point the Chapters are being renamed to add "S1" into them, that was planned but I wanted to wait for the Season 1 finale before I began using it, so people knew the first season hadn't ended yet.**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally]**

* * *

**Before the Concept Talk of this chapter, I feel the need to bring up something important or I might forget it later, and then possibly remember at a bad time where it'll have already caused some confusion, it's Lilith's position in Hell and the Devil's current society. Naud stated that she was retired in the previous chapter, however the accuracy of that claim? It's false, as like most Devils he doesn't know about the death of Satan.**

**Truth is Lilith has become Hell's true leader since her husband's passing, but the thing is that succession is something Satan only intended to happen if here were to die... aka, if she admitted she was now Hell's leader, it would reveal the truth about Satan's fate to the world. By saying Satan's retired, people will simply think that he chose Sirzechs as his successor, so that lets him act as Lilith's figurehead, Sirzechs is honestly just the sixth member of the Five Great Devils.**

**This is why Lilith had the influence to decide that the location for Vali's Rating Game would be, as well as how she was able to get Vali an Evil Piece set without exposing that Vali was a Lucifer at the time. As for how much influence she has? Well... I'd say enough that Zekram's claim about the Bael Clan being the real leaders of Hell is false in this story, but not enough to remove the King Piece issue.**

* * *

**Now today we've got a special entry for this chapter's and Season 1's final Concept Talk, it's the very thing that Vali used to create her "Cocytus" spell, so here it is!**

** -Custom Magic- **

**One of the most difficult forms of magic there is, the act of creating magic rather than using an existing form of magic or spell. Due to the nature of magic circles usually acting as the commands or words for a spell, Custom Spells require a special chant of words called an "aria", a name chosen due to the song like nature the words are spoken when cast and due to how creating the spell is like making a work of art.**

**Some forms of Custom Magic are a single spell harnessed into a magic circle with its unique rune words, however there are also some Custom spells that chain multiple forms of magic and sometimes require overlaying multiple magic circles. While his Kankara Formula is similar, Ajuka Beelzebub claims that they don't work the same because it relies on his calculations while Custom Magic is more like making a machine, but the parts are all pure magic.**

**The skill to cast a Custom Spell of any kind is incredibly hard, enough that was originally believed that it takes a long time to be made and utilized. The creation of Vali Lucifer's Cocytus spell was the instance this belief shattered and was proven that enough hard work and efforts can make it possible, marking the belief that the current generation of the supernatural world will lead to a great change to everyone's benefit.**

* * *

Issei was running up the main flight of stairs as he began reaching the platform between the next flight of stairs, meanwhile far behind him, Vali was flying across the field's ground as fast as possible with Asia hanging on tightly. Le Fay's current location was unknown aside from she was somewhere on the upper field of the castle. As Issei made it, he noticed a bomb magic circle below him as he notices Yubelluna before him.

"Take!" Yubelluna shouted, trying to set off the circle in time, only for Issei to jump into the air and dodge it. "Tch. Lucky bastard, you won't be so lucky with the next one."

**[BOOST!]**

"I think we'll see about that, let's see who really brings the boom." Issei declared. As Yubelluna prepared another bombing attack, Issei suddenly ran forward, surprising the Bomb Queen with his speed, she tried to aim where he'd be, but Issei kept dodging. "That all you got?"

Issei jumped into the air and created a red magic circle, a large fireball hit Yubelluna and knocked her back a bit before Issei punched her across the field. She tumbled a bit before collided into the wall and leaving an indent in it.

"I didn't expect the Red Dragon to already be this strong, but that won't matter against my magic." Yubelluna said as her staff glows, and Issei looked around but saw no magic circles. Yubelluna smirks as she locked Issei's movements.

**"[She thinks this can stop us? HAH! Issei, if we can't see them, then don't try to find them. Let's set them off ourselves, hiding them doesn't matter if we're not on them!]"** Ddraig shouted, and Issei nods realizing his idea.

"Right, here goes!" Issei replied as he yelled, striking the Boosted Gear into the ground as it set on fire.

**[TRANSFER!]**

Suddenly the fire dispersed across the lines between the rocky ground, and after it went through them all, every magic circle Yubelluna had laid out suddenly appeared as they set off, surprising the Bomb Queen as the smoke blinded her entire view.

"Impossible!" Yubelluna screamed, suddenly she noticed a red glow before Issei slammed her body with an entire blaze of fire he breathed out from a magic circle. She was hit hard and crashed onto the ground. "Heh, I didn't think I'd have to, but I guess I'll need to use this."

"_Issei, give Le Fay the signal!_" Vali called out. Issei nodded, he held up the Boosted Gear and it glowed brightly as energy swarmed across his aura.

**[EXPLOSION!]**

The aura flared out more, and from afar a certain magician noticed it right as the moment the Bomb Queen pulls out a Phoenix Tear.

"So, you've got one too." Issei noted, trying to keep up the act.

"And now you're in my trap." Yubelluna smirked, preparing to use it right as a magic circle appears beside Issei and brings Le Fay out from it. Right as Yubelluna began to use it...

"Here goes! REVERSE!" Le Fay shouted, feeling a back surge of magic energy hit her as she cast a spell around Yubelluna, the phoenix tear drops on her... only for the Phenex Queen to take damage rather than be healed by the tear.

"Ah! What's this, why did you do!?" Yubelluna cried out, the tear's strong healing made the change into a power to harm her all the more potent. Le Fay's spell stops as she collapses into Issei's arms.

"Reverse... a powerful spell that causes a power or ability to have the opposite effect. Holy power becomes a Dark power, and the power of healing becomes a force of harm." Le Fay breathed, the magic's backlash finally reaching her.

Unfortunately, according to Azazel, the Reversal Magic spell had a severe backlash and shouldn't be used often, and if it was then it shouldn't be used for longer than a brief moment or it would start doing more permanent damage. Le Fay was lucky that a moment was all they had needed.

"Issei... I think I'm all out, and I should probably get checked out." Le Fay breathed, regretting she was finished from the Game so soon. "Promise you'll give Riser one for me, will you?"

"I will, that's a promise." Issei said, smiling at her before she smiles back.

"I resign." Le Fay said, causing her to vanish.

"_Lady Vali's Bishop, resignation accepted!_" Naud announced, and Issei looked towards the weakened Yubelluna. The Queen grunted and prepared a strong magic circle.

"I won't let you go on, if I have to take us both out then I will!" Yubelluna declared, making the entire floor a giant magic circle. Issei however side and in an instant, rushed in front of her while she was wide open, making her gasp.

"This is a message from Akeno, Kiba and Shirone!" Issei screamed, throwing her fist into her hard as the Boosted Gear's energy smashed right into here. "You really pissed them all off for you and Riser's cheap tricks!"

Yubelluna was shot up across the flight of stairs, soon causing her body to vanish.

"_Lord Riser, one Queen retired!_" Naud announced.

* * *

Back with where Rias' peerage had been watching the game, they all cheered at that.

"Great job Issei, you took her down!" Akeno cheered.

"I can't believe how easily they pulled that off, Vali's not afraid to pull any punches." Kiba added, impressed by Issei's attack and proud Le Fay was humble enough to accept her limitations.

"Great job, Issei-senpai." Shirone smiles lightly.

"Rias, do you think they can do it... can they win?" Valerie asked, looking at the Gremory heiress. Rias was watching intensely, she wanted to believe they would win, and seeing the ace Vali hid with her Divine Dividing...

"Issei, Vali, everyone... do it. Please win." Rias stated simply.

* * *

Issei soon slumps onto the ground a bit, slightly tired from what he just pulled off.

**"[Doing alright, partner?]"** Ddraig asked.

"Yeah, just a little drained. I think Asia can help fix that up." Issei replied. "We're at the final leg, let's hope Vali can give me enough time for our ice in the hole."

Ddraig gives a 'hmm' of approval, and Vali flies right into the area by Issei, soon stopping and dropping to the ground for a moment.

"Nice work Issei, I'll take the next step. Heal him as much as you can while he charges up Asia." Vali smiled, and Asia nodded before climbing off and using her Twilight Healing on him. "Alright, here we go!"

Vali flies up the stairs towards Riser and his last lines of defense.

"Alright Ddraig, give me all you can." Issei stated, closing his eyes as Asia kept healing him.

**[BOOST!]**

Vali continued to fly up the stairs as Issei boosted multiple times, a serious look on her face as she neared the top and Riser's base.

* * *

Meanwhile in another section of Hell, various big-name figures that weren't Lilith, Sirzechs or the Five Great Devils were watching the Rating Game taking place.

The first was a gigantic purple western Dragon with sharp yellow bull like horns that stood on two feet that wore black armored pauldrons that extend down to his arms and a loincloth decorated with metallic accessories.

He was an Ultimate-Class Devil and one of the former Dragon Kings, Blaze Meteor Tannin, he had become a Devil due to a breed of Dragon that needed a special apple that only Hell could grow. As a result, he had become Lilith's Queen and worked his way to earn a region for the apples and his kind to live on.

Beside him was a middle-aged man with gelled hair, which is a mixture of red and blue. He had a blue left eye, while his right eye was red. He also gave out a mysterious atmosphere similar to that of Ajuka Beelzebub's. He was Mephisto Pheles, a former aide to Satan before becoming the chairman to the Grauzauberer organization of magicians.

The next person in line was a man who appeared in his twenties and looked to come from Northern Europe, being the most human looking of the group. His name was Rudiger Rosenkreutz, a reincarnated Devil known for being legendary as the furthest former human to rank in the Rating Games becoming one of the Top 10.

Not only that, he had been the founder of the Magician organization Rosenkreutzer that was named after him, and was known for his reason for fighting being to prevent the deaths of children due to the sacred gears they were born with.

The last of the four present was probably one of the best-known Devils of all time, a man with a graceful face who has grey hair and grey eyes who had a fierce look yet was kind and honorable. This man was Diehauser Belial, the most powerful Devil in the Rating Games. As they all watched the battle near it's end they began giving their opinions.

"She's done quite good for a first timer, and I don't think it's just her bloodline since she's not even a pure Devil." Mephisto stated, his mouth becoming a smirk as Vali impressed him with her tactics and courage.

"Her team has a strong bond with her, and it seems like they've trusted every move she makes, not letting anything that might go wrong affect them." Rudiger added in, not turning his eyes away. "That Custom Spell she pulled off almost feels like any losses she suffered were all just one big move."

"They were." Diehauser suddenly replied, catching the two's attention. "I can see it, just as she baited Riser into this match without even revealing her own Longinus, she's been controlling his moves from the start. Riser thinks he's had the match under his finger, but she proved that wrong with just one move."

"That's not the only surprise she has, I can sense something from the two." Tannin claimed, having noticed that there was something different about the two. Something that felt more like Ddraig and Albion, yet not overtaking the two's auras entirely.

"Ddraig, Albion, just what did the two of them offer you?"

* * *

Vali soon flew up into view of Riser's base and landed on the ground before him, his rook Xuelan, his knight Kalawarner and his Bishop Mihae all around him as his personal guards. The Phenex Devil himself looking towards the Hakuryuukou with anger in his eyes.

"You, how dare you hide what you are!?" Riser screamed, he was already pissed off from the game going completely off his predictions, but for Vali to have hidden her Longinus the entire time had seriously pissed him off. "Do you know how much you've disrespected Devil kind with that fact?"

"Funny, pot meet kettle." Vali replied, making Riser raise his eyebrow at that. "By all means Devil kind doesn't respect my clan name right now, why would they have cared before now. Besides, I think most know how you threatened Rias with what was clearly a rule violation makes you no better!"

"How dare you! Xuelan, Karlamine, Mihae... take her down!" Riser roared, the three all rushing at the Lucifer heiress.

"Bring it." Vali said, waving her hand in a challenging manner.

Karlamine drew her sword and set it aflame, Vali rose up her hands to create an ice barrier before dodging the fast flurry of kicks Xuelan sent her way. Mihae held up a staff and unleashed magical bolts towards her, Vali dodged them by back flipping away from the blasts.

"Take this!" Vali said, forming a magic circle that sent small glacier chunks towards the trio. Xuelan punched through it and got in front of Vali... only to see a purple magic circle to her shock, showing it was a different power. "It's not just ice I have... so here's a bit of venom beyond my words!"

Xuelan was hit by a poison cloud of gas Vali breathed out, making her cough as she felt weakened.

"Xuelan! Damn it, we've gotta take her out now!" Karlamine shouted as she drew her dagger and began duel wielding her blades as she zoomed and slashed at the silver haired Lucifer. Vali jumped away from the slashes.

"Albion, lend me your strength." Vali asked, the Dragon's will responded as her sacred gear glowed.

**"(I shall be your ears Vali.)"** Albion replied.

Vali closed her eyes, and as Karlamine swung at her again, Vali managed to shift her body and properly move away each time.

"No way, but how!?" Karlamine shouted before swinging both at once, Vali grabbing each blade as she coated her hands in ice and reopened her eyes. The hot and cold temperatures caused Karlamine's blades to shatter. "My swords!"

"I've got it!" Mihae replied, firing spheres of magic towards Vali. The Hakuryuukou turned at them and forming a magic circle on her hand, she moved it at each individual blast and blocked them. Mihae gasped as her attacks were countered so easily. "What?"

Vali swung and send the last one flying back at her, knocking her to her feet.

"Time to tip the scales!" Vali claimed, soon moving towards the Knight and Bishop before touching both of them.

**(DIVIDE!)**

Both Karlamine and Mihae gasped in shock as Vali constantly divided them of their strength and took it as her own, recovering the power she lost from using her Cocytus spell earlier on. Xuelan noticing this prepares to jump kick her while her guard was down, Vali however dropped them and backflipped, catching the Chinese fighter off guard as she caught her foot with her legs and tossed her down.

"I'll admit it, you're strong for a Rook, but I'm playing to win this." Vali complimented before grabbing her by the throat.

**(DIVIDE!)**

Xuelan soon felt all of her power be taken out as Vali divided everything out of her too, making Riser growl before Vali dropped her. Soon Vali jumped up high into the air.

"Now... Blizzard!" Vali screamed, unleashing a strong storm of ice, making Riser move away before ice shards hit his last three pieces, all of them screaming before they vanish.

"_One of Lord Riser's Knights, one of his Rooks, and one of his Bishops. Retired!_" Naud announced.

Riser growls heavily at the sight before him, he was Riser Phenex, a Devil nobleman who had the power of the immortal fire bird's flames living within him. The girl before him was just a half-blood from the disgraced descendants of their progenitor's family. He would NOT lose to her, he couldn't lose!

"You won't beat me you damn rookie! It's no use!" Riser said, finally pissed off and rushing at the wielder of the White Dragon. "You are nothing!"

"You're right, I'm nothing... at least not like the others!" Vali claimed. "I don't have any talent with weapons or a sword like Kiba, and I don't have Akeno's variety in magic, I'm not as strong or good at combat as Shirone and I don't have the power to heal like Valerie."

Vali and Riser collide, their ice and flames striking before a strong steam forms and they're pushed away from one another.

"I might not be like any of them, but I have something that Issei and I both share! Heart! So, I assure you... we will save Rias from you!" Vali screamed with pride, soon jumping into the air. "Albion, do it now!"

**"(Right.)"** Albion replied.

"Time for... OVERBOOSTER!" Vali shouted, making Issei who heard it from where he was still healing gasp.

**"(VANISHING DRAGON, OVERBOOSTER!)"**

Suddenly a white aura surrounds Vali's body as she closed her eyes, a set of white armor began to form. Soon in seconds, Vali was covered by a White Dragon Armor with blue jewels leaving only her head uncovered, she opened her eyes and stared fiercely at Riser.

"This is the Vanishing Dragon's power, the true form of the White Dragon Emperor!" Vali stated, as a white helmet with glowing yellow eyes appears around his head. "Divine Dividing... SCALE MAIL!"

"What!?" Riser gasped in surprise.

Vali's wings flare up with blue light as she rushes at the Phenex Devil, recalling how she got this power.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

"I want you to make a deal with me, alright?" Vali asked, soon her mind within a realm of icy mist with Albion who stared at her in shock before relaxing his gaze.

"**I can, but know this Vali... if will require a sacrifice, and you'll only have until the count of 10 before you'll lose it.**" Albion replied, moving his head closer to his partner. "**So, what do you intend to sacrifice, and what do you wish to gain for it?**"

"I want a temporary access to my Balance Breaker, and in exchange... what I'll give you is my heart!" Vali declared, for once the normally stoic Albion showed shock at the claim his wielder told him. "An arm or a leg is one thing, but... it's what's in me that counts, my resolve. I'm a Human and a Lucifer, but I'm also the White Dragon."

Vali breathes and soon looks at Albion.

"And it's what's both inside of me and out that makes me who I am, we're partners Albion, let's truly show that bond!"

Albion stared, and soon closed his eyes before nodded as he reopened them.

"**Very well, I shall show you my determination as well.**" Albion answered, his eyes glowing.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

**(10!)**

Vali took to the sky and charged a large white orb of power, throwing it at Riser who narrowly dodged. Vali's wings soon expanded a bit.

**(DIVIDE!)**

**(9!)**

Riser screamed as he felt weakened, yet Riser hadn't even been touched like before. He gasped as he realized that now she didn't need to touch her to use her ability in this form. Vali rushed by and tried to strike, but missed and crashed into the wall, but came out unscathed.

"I've never seen power and speed like this before, but..." Riser states, setting himself ablaze. "The hell fire of my clan will still scorch you and your ice to dust!"

Riser rushed at Vali who collided with him in midair.

**(8!)**

"You think I'm scared of you Riser? Well touch, cause I'm not!" Vali said, pushing ahead and striking him back. "I'll make you sorry you ever messed with us!"

Soon the burst of attacks sends a recoil that knocks them both to the ground. Riser takes the chance and shoots his hellfire at her, after a bit Vali shakes it off without seeming damaged at all.

"Your hell fire's no joke, but to my dragon armor it's gonna take a lot more than that!" Vali shouted.

**(6!)**

Vali flew up at Riser who dived down at her, the two threw a punch at each other and it ended in a cross counter, the end result... Riser coughed up blood as the strike hits him hard, his face contorts in shock and pain.

"How, why does this hurt so much!" Riser cried out in anger.

Vali lands on the ground on her feet.

"You're fighting a Dragon, that's just how hard a Dragon hits!" Vali smirked, though the armor hid that fact.

"Impossible, even that Dragon armor shouldn't be enough! Having that Dragon in you shouldn't be enough to make you like one!" Riser called out, blasting out some fire. "Hellfire Incineration!"

Vali holds out her hand as a black stream of darkness flies out.

"Primal Abyss!"

The streams devour the flames and make it to Riser, the Phenex Devil screams as the dark power devours the flames he was emitting, but on Vali's requests didn't swallow the Devil into the endless void with them.

**(4!)**

"How... how is this-" Riser gasps, suddenly realizing how Vali had all this power as she was right now. "Wait... you offered that Dragon something didn't you! What is it!?"

Vali smirks and chuckles, telling him to figure it out himself.

"Why, what's so..." Riser gasps as he realizes it. "Impossible, you gave the Dragon your heart!"

"Damn right I did!" Vali said, confirming his guess.

**(3!)**

Everyone watching gasped at that, Issei only stared while ignoring Asia's shock at the reveal. Vali began walking slowly towards Riser.

"Have you lost your mind!? You could have been trapped as a Dragon forever, you'd never have been the same again!" Riser screamed out, thinking Vali had been insane for pulling that off.

**(2!)**

"You think I care!?" Vali declared, still walking towards him.

**[BOOST!]**

Meanwhile back at the lower area on the flight of steps, Asia finished healing Issei who had boosted all he could. He got up and looked towards Asia.

"I'm going now Asia, you have what I asked for?" Issei questioned, and Asia nodded as she placed them in her hands. "Wish me luck, it's time we save Rias."

Asia watched Issei head up the stairs, and began to cry as she wished them both luck.

'They both gave up something to do this, they'll win... I know it!' Asia thought, keeping a strong face despite her tears. 'They'll defeat Riser, and bring Rias back home to us!'

Meanwhile, Vali rushes at Riser with all her speed for a big attack.

**(1!)**

"It doesn't matter what happens to me! For my sake, for my friends' sake, for Rias' sake... and Issei's sake!" Vali said, preparing her last attack. "I'll take any risk, because as long as I protect them, as long as I save them... then it's worth it!"

**(...Time Over!)**

Vali gasped as her scale mail fades, and she tumbles across the ground before stopping.

"Dang it, I wasn't fast enough!" Vali panted, Riser grabbed her by the shirt and held her up with a fire held in his hand.

"That's too bad, looks like someone's lost their armor." Riser smirked, thinking he had finally won. "Riser believes it's finally time to end this charade, Checkmate!"

Riser soon sees Vali smirking at him, surprising him since it was clear she couldn't do anything more to stop him.

"Why are you smiling half breed!?" Riser demanded.

"You're right, it is Checkmate Riser." Vali answered, smirking at him. "But it's not King takes out King... it's Queen takes out King!"

Before Riser could reply, a sudden fist hits him from the side and knocks him back, Vali lands in Issei's arms as he catches her. The Phenex Devil gets up and growls as he sees Issei before she lays Vali down, the silver haired Lucifer sitting on her legs from exhaustion.

"Thanks for giving me the chance I needed Vali, now I'll finish this for you." Issei smiled, making Vali nod and smile back.

"Go get him Issei." Vali replied.

"So, what if you're here? You can't honestly believe you can do anymore when your King wasn't even enough!" Riser declared, smirking pridefully.

"I disagree." Issei calmly replied, confusing Riser.

Issei walks towards him, holding the Boosted Gear tightly.

"Recall how you asked Vali if she lost her mind for what she did, well..." Issei began, his sacred gear glowing a similar way. Riser and Vali both gasp as they realized what was about to happen. "I guess we're both just as insane! NOW DDRAIG!"

**"[HELL YEAH! Let's show him he doesn't have a chance in 'Hell'!]"** Ddraig screamed.

Issei screamed as a strong red aura covers his whole body.

**"[WELSH DRAGON, OVERBOOSTER!]"**

Issei closes his eyes, and a set of red armor began to form around him. In mere moments, Issei was covered by a Red Dragon Armor with green jewels leaving only her head uncovered, she opened her eyes and stared fiercely at Riser.

"My name is Issei Hyoudou... and I'm the Red Dragon Emperor!" Issei said, a red helmet with glowing green eyes forms around his head. "Boosted Gear... SCALE MAIL!"

Riser's eyes shake in surprise, now seeing a second Scale Mail standing before him. Vali gasped in surprise... Issei had done the same risk, he had given his heart to Ddraig, the only thing she didn't expect during this Rating Game.

'Issei...' Vali thought, slightly tearing up happily. 'I can't believe you'd make that risk for the sake of our promise, you're amazing.'

"T-that's not enough!" Riser screamed. "You'll run out of time the same was as her!"

"I'm not done, see mine has a special twist..." Issei chuckled, showing a cross and Holy Water in his Dragon arm, surprising everyone watching. He opened up the holy water and soon rushed at Riser.

"TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE ASSHOLE!"

**[10!]**

Issei tossed the water towards Riser.

**[TRANSFER!]**

All the holy water splashing out glowed rainbow and flew at Riser even faster, the Devil screamed in the loudest agony he ever had as it burned him. He tried to regenerate, but unfortunately it failed, the Holy Water had negated his regeneration!

* * *

Lilith, Sirzechs and the Great Devils all watched and soon the latter six all showed shock at the surprising twist.

"He used the power of the cross and the Holy Water to overwhelm Riser through attacking his mental strength, his regeneration can't work now with the attack on his mind as fierce as it was." Ajuka stated, slightly sweating in shock.

"I see that, but... but how is he able to hold a cross right now?" Serafall questioned, completely flabbergasted at what she was seeing.

"It's the Boosted Gear being Ddraig's left arm." Lilith stated with a smirk as the others turned to look. "They both gave up their hearts, but Ddraig lives in his hand. Right now, that's the only part of his body that is immune to Holy powers rather than simply resistant to them now. Meaning it's possible to hold a cross."

"I think it's clear this match has ended, the victor is obvious. Now we just need to see the last blow to make it official." Sirzechs replied, amazed at the result he was witnessing, it was a miracle for all Devils.

* * *

Issei smirks as Riser holds his face.

**[7!]**

"How's that feel Riser!? Asia told me that Devils are weak to crosses and holy water, and Yuuma told me using holy energy in tandem means not even a Devil like you has a chance!" Issei shouted.

**[6!]**

Riser screamed in rage and fury, tossing a huge fireball at him, but Issei used the Knight's speed to dodge.

**[4!]**

"Arthur taught me to widen my field of vision!" Issei said before stopping, charging the remaining holy water and cross' power into his Boosted Gear.

**[3!]**

**[TRANSFER!]**

"Le Fay showed me how to channel magic into a single point, and Kuroka showed me how to amplify my attacks at a single point through my mental focus!" Issei said, making Riser show fear at the power within Issei's hand.

"And Bikou told me to focus my most powerful strikes right at the heart of my enemy!" Issei's helmet coming off so Riser saw how serious his face was.

**[1!]**

"No... stop it! This engagement's important to the future of all Devils!" Riser begged, hoping to make him somehow stand down in vain. "You fools, a mere half breed and her servants have no business getting involved with the business of your betters!"

"Sorry, but we don't give a damn!" Issei said, Vali standing beside him with her hand on his. Both nod as they charge their remaining power together. "All we care about is you made Rias cry! So, the fact you'd force her to be with you, when she wants nothing to do with you..."

**[TIME OVER!]  
[TRANSFER!]**

Issei's scale mail fades, but all of its power transfers to the Boosted Gear's gem, making Riser whimper in fear.

"That's reason enough for us to take you down!" Issei and Vali declare together, Issei's hand opening up. "SUCK ON THIS!"

A powerful burst of fire and ice imbued with holy power fire out at Riser, the Phenex Devil was hit hard and soon knocked back across the field he stood for a moment before...

"You... bastards!" Riser gasped out, soon collapsing.

"DON'T HURT HIM!" Riser shouted, teleporting back to the field to defend him. Thinking they might make another move, but Issei simply stops her face near hers.

"If I were you I'd move aside, I'd rather not hurt you if I have a choice." Issei said, causing Ravel to blush at the claim. Naud stared in shock before realizing he had to call the match's result.

"_T-the winner is... the winner is... Lord Riser has been knocked unconscious!_" Naud announced loudly. "_The winner of this Rating Game is... Lady Vali Lucifer!_"

There was silence, and soon some clapping was heard before everyone watching cheered and clapped as well, the thrills of the game and the shocking loss of Lord Riser was something no one expected, and yet everyone seemed pleased that it happened. From her stand in the VIP room, Lilith closed her eyes and smiled.

'This could change everything, a new future for Devils.' Lilith said, smiling at the two wielders of the Heavenly Dragons. 'Treat her right Issei Hyoudou, you're the only boy I'll ever trust her heart to.'

Soon at that moment, Ravel grabbed Riser to get him healed, while Asia and the rest of the Mythological History Club and the Occult Research Club all teleported to congratulate the two.

"Vali, Issei... you did it. You really did it!" Rias cried, happier than she had ever been. "Thank you so much."

The two smiled, but soon Vali looked at the screen and said something, Naud notice this.

"_Oh wait, it seems Vali Lucifer has something she'd like us to hear her say._" Naud stated, moving the sound over to her side again. Vali soon looked directly into Issei's eyes, the two smiling at each other.

"Issei, might be odd for me to say this to you since I did the same but... to think you'd give up your heart just for me." Vali said softly. "Why Issei? Why would you go this far, just to help me win this game?"

Issei shook his head.

"That's not why I did it, I told you I'd protect you like I always would. Not just that though. I had another reason, and I'm gonna say it here for everyone to hear or I never will!" Issei said, holding Vali's shoulders and making her look at him. "I've been thinking about this since you came back and now I finally now something..."

Everyone, and literally everyone watching, stared as they wondered what this announcement would be.

"Vali Lucifer... I love you."

Vali gasps lightly, her hair blowing in the wind as if to represent the force of the words, her cheeks blushing slightly. The rest of both Vali and Rias' peerages also gasped and wondered what would happen.

Vali for the last few days had realized Issei had been close to her heart long ago, but as she came back she realized more and more how close he had been to it. It wasn't until the Training Camp she realized it, she was in love with Issei, and now... he had just revealed how he felt to her.

"I understand if you don't feel the same, I just hope that we'll still always be-"

Suddenly, with everyone able to see it, Vali closed her eyes and kissed Issei on the lips as his eyes widen in shock. The two sharing each other's first kiss together. The audience cheered again, happy for the two Dragons who were now together.

* * *

Lilith smiles at the sight before her, her eyes closed as if seeing a prediction come to pass, Azazel by her side.

"Beautiful isn't it, a grand victory that's let the entirety of Hell find common ground with Vali, a maiden free from a curse we nearly forced on her, and two close hearts finally became one." Lilith stated, smiling at the sight.

"Yeah, so what do you think about it?" Azazel asked, making Lilith giggle like he asked an obvious question.

"It's truly a miracle, I never thought the great red and white Dragons would come to our side." Lilith answered honestly, and smiled as she looked at the sky, almost as if seeing Satan's smiling face for a brief moment.

"It seems like a new era, a time of great change, will be upon us soon... and the two of them and this generation will lead it together."

* * *

Soon Vali and Issei's kiss ended, and both blushed as Vali smiled and Issei showed a bit of surprise before smiling.

"That was my first kiss you know, a bit of a monumental moment for a young woman." Vali giggled.

"Oh man, hope I didn't screw it up! That was my first too!" Issei said, hoping he did it right.

"Well, since it's my first then I have no way of knowing. I liked it though." Vali smiled, blushing brightly and making Issei's heart fluttered. "Oh, and Issei? I've decided I'm gonna move into your place."

"W-what!?" Issei said, the others gave the same reaction to it.

"Unless you don't want to that is?" Vali teased, making Issei stuttered and unable to give an answer. "I'm taking that as a yes, and no take backs."

Issei chuckled and sweat dropped, realizing he just walked right into that trap. Soon Rias began laughing and the others all just smiled and began giggling with her. For this one moment right now, they were all together, and they were happy.

* * *

In a building in another realm with a strange building infused with some magic lines in it, a female figure's lower half was seen sitting in a throne of sorts.

"Issei Hyoudou, and Vali Lucifer... the two of you are amazing." She said, smiling like seeing a satisfying conclusion to a beloved series. "I'd like to make your acquaintance soon enough my dear Sekiryuutei."

The figure stands up, and walks off somewhere to prepare something.

* * *

Meanwhile up in the realm of Heaven, a beautiful woman with blonde hair clasped her hands at what she saw.

"I think Michael would love to hear this news, this seems like a good sign." The woman smiled before heading off to find her brother, unaware of one of the Angels nearby suddenly getting a worrisome report.

"What? They stole the... dear god!" The Angel said before heading the direction the female angel before her did.

* * *

Soon, everyone had headed back to the Human realm, and when they did, Azazel was seen crying outside the screen door as Vali was talking with Issei's shocked parents about her moving into their house. Issei expected them to say no... until she dropped a special little gem.

"In addition to living here, I can learn to be a good wife for Issei one day."

"YOU CAN LEARN WHAT!?" Issei and Azazel both shout in shock and surprise, Issei's parents' reaction however? They began holding hands and tearing up.

"All these years I worried this big lug would never get interested in a girl and give us some grandchildren!" Seiji cried happily.

"It truly was a miracle when Austin and her daughter moved in all those years ago! Vali, we'd be glad to let you stay here with us!" Hana smiled warmly, making Azazel faint. Issei just sweat dropped a bit.

"Uh... wait, just cause we're talking about marriage doesn't mean we're doing it now, right?" Issei wondered out loud, I mean he did wanna marry Vali, but he wanted to at least graduate first.

* * *

After a hectic experience, and dealing with "overprotective crying dad mode" Azazel and Issei described it, Vali had moved into the room right next to Issei's that they hadn't been using until now.

"After that Rating Game and everything else, I feel like I could sleep for days at this point." Issei said to himself. "What about you Ddraig?"

He heard no response.

"...Ddraig?"

Issei soon heard snoring and realized Ddraig took his advice already, making him chuckle a bit, before he could do the same however he saw Vali walk in.

"Vali, what is it?" Issei asked, wondering why she came in so late. Vali didn't answer and instead to his surprise climbed on top of him over the bed, making him blush a bit as she stood overhead of him, looking at his face directly. "V-Vali!?"

"Issei... I want you to do it?" Vali said, blushing heavily. Issei blinked and wondered what he meant... until he realized she had come into his room, the room of a teenage guy, on top of his bed.

"E-Eh!?" Issei said, blushing heavily at the sudden claim. She wanted her first time here and now?

"Please Issei, just for this one time at least. I don't just want to be your first kiss. So please... will you do this for me?" Vali asked, making Issei state and blink at her. She seemed so unsure and without doubt about it.

'Should I though, I mean... we're dating now but am I really allowed to?' Issei thought, Vali soon began taking off her shirt, making Issei blush as her humongous breasts held by her barely fitting white bra.

Issei could only stare as the two fleshy orbs swinging before him, teasing him by reminding him that while may have held his perversions in his mind, he still knew that he... had a thing for... large, soft looking breasts and... soon the sight of the rest of her shapely body came into view as soon only her pearl white panties were left. At that moment, Issei finally made a decision.

'Oh, what the hell! I'm a man damn it! I can be selfish at least, once can't I?' Issei thought, making his girlfriend gasp as she felt Issei put his hands on her shoulder.

"Alright Vali, if it's really what you want." Issei replied, making Vali smile a bit in joy.

Soon Issei began to kiss her, soon the two started making out fiercely before Issei pulled her back and both were laying on the bed.

'From this moment on...' Issei thought.

'And until the end of time...' Vali thought.

** _'...I'll always be here for you.'_ **

The sounds of their kissing continued as outside, the sight of something flying overhead across the moon passed by. The warning to what would be coming next.

A DRAGON'S HEAVENLY BONDS - SEASON 1, END

* * *

**IT'S OFFICIAL! Issei and Vali are now boyfriend and girlfriend, the moment that we all knew would be happening since this fanfic began... has finally happened! What a way no less, gotta give props to Issei for confessing while he knew everyone was watching, it wasn't just a gutsy move, but one that made the entire moment even more romantic. Congrats for them, and their win against Riser!**

**Even better, while Vali still has a long way to fully clear things for her family name, she at least now has the respect of Hell and the Devils, and her Rating Game performance was enough to impress a lot of big names. I think Lilith's claim isn't too far off, especially once the reveals of Season 2 begin to show themselves. Kokabiel's already arrived in Kuoh as you by that last scene, and soon more is to follow.**

**Also, while I didn't fully reveal her because I'm still finishing things up, the Demon Queen has made her appearance, while the Angels are starting to get an interest in the two Heavenly Dragons of this generation. As I said before, to plan Season 2, aka the Excalibur and Summit arcs, we'll be on a temporary hiatus, so I can plan and avoid any plot holes or using unfinished information. When we come back though, it'll be worth it.**

**Until next time on Season 2, where the Excalibur arc finally begins and Issei meets a face from his past he never expected!**

**Also, if any of you are interested in my other full story series that'll start today during this story's hiatus, Date A Re:Live, be excited because... I'll be submitted the entire Tohka Arc all at once as a way to celebrate the story finally beginning!**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**  
Gasper/Valerie  
Kiba/Tosca


	11. Chapter 11

**FINALLY! After a much-needed hiatus to prepare the 2nd Season, that hiatus... IS OVER! Season 2 begins now, and the Excalibur arc is ready to draw its sword into the story. *blinks* And I just punned us again... though I think that this was a little good this time, so I'll let it go. Anyways let's get these starts notes done so we can begin.**

**First thing to let you all know, this arc and the summit arc are the last two I've gotta get out of the way before original stories can finally breach into the story line, but luckily this season will give hints towards these possible stories. I won't reveal everything that'll come, but some differences you can expect in what they're connected to include Ophis, Irina and Xenovia, the terrorist attack (cause Vali's not there anymore) and even a small cameo from someone who shouldn't appear just yet.**

**Now with this all out of the way, I've only got this left to say... let's begin Season 2 everybody!**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally}**

* * *

**Here's some exciting news to start things off everyone, the Concept Talk has evolved for Season 2, now I'll be talking about characters and relationships between them and such and even more. Small story short, as long as it's not a spoiler, you'll see me talk about some story stuff here I may not say otherwise or anywhere else.**

**So, let's start the story of a character that'll be important during this season's events.**

** -Lilith- **

**Lilith Lucifer is the Mother and Queen of all Devils and widow to Hell's former King, Satan Lucifer. Lilith was originally born from the dirt by God alongside Adam, originally meant to be his wife before Eve. However, to the surprise of God, Lilith did not agree to the forced arrangement and chose to refuse herself to Adam, but God did not appreciate this fact and punished her by using the darkest black chains he could create to trap her in a prison beyond the world below Humanity's eventual ground.**

**She'd stay there for un unknown amount of time until the day Lucifer forced herself to fall from Heaven, the Angel quickly realized who she was, and Lilith told him what God had truly done, leading his hate for him to grow even further by the fact God himself lied to his own people. Lilith found the fact Lucifer actually cared for wanting to have a choice truly heartwarming, and told him that she'll stand against God if he chose to. The result cemented Lucifer's hate for the Lord of the Angels, and Lucifer created the dark power that allowed him and Lilith to become the first Devils.**

**After the creation of all Devil kind, and Lucifer giving himself the new first name of Satan, Lilith and him quickly married having fallen in move for their mutual desire to be free of God's shackles and make their own choices. They eventually gave birth to their only child, Rizevim Livan Lucifer, but after years and dangerous signs she alongside her husband grew to find their child's actions of believing Devils had to be evil by nature despicable and no different from the God they shattered their chains from and disowned him.**

**During the Great War, Lilith commanded the forces of Hell from any invasions from the opposing three factions, often wiping out entire forces if they truly pushed Hell's defenses seriously enough. When the war came to an end, she discovered to her great despair that her husband had been killed, and along the other faction leaders she chose to withhold this information from the public. She became Hell's official leader, but had to hide under a figurehead to prevent the exposure of Satan's demise by her succession.**

**Lilith fought alongside the Old Satan Faction during the Devil Civil War, being one of the strongest reasons behind their side's victory, and when choosing the new Six Great Devils, asked Sirzechs to appear as her figurehead, revealing what truly happened to Satan to him and the other Great Devils. Many years, nearly an eternity later, she learned of her great grandchild Vali Lucifer, who had suffered under her disowned child's hands, and became a mother figure to her due to the understanding of living as both a Human and Devil.**

**Hoping Vali might help change all of Hell, she inspires her to work hard to restore the Lucifer and other unfairly slandered Devil clan names. This convinces Vali to do so under the pretext she must rebuild things from scratch rather than inherit anything from her directly, with the hidden goal of preparing her descendant for the day that her son may return to cause trouble. Lilith is currently the ONLY being left in the world that Rizevim is afraid of, and neither her or Rizevim will explain why she terrifies him to.**

* * *

**Oh yeah, before I begin, here's a few things I'd like to mention here due to some things I mentioned, and people mentioned to me when I talked to them through PMs. They seem important, so I felt it was best to say all of this now before I ended up forgetting about it. Some of you may be wondering why I've have this whole "Season" format for my main story.**

**Well I don't know if everyone has seen me mention this before, but it's because I once had a "crash" with another fanfic. I honestly don't remember it fully, it was a fanfic about a series I was really into at the time, and it became a long one too. I planned things as I went and only as I went, let the writing I made in the present decide the future. This ended up being a problem however... and that fanfic met its demise because I made myself unable to finish it.**

**Long story short, simply because I didn't properly plan that fanfic, I ended up allowing it to eventually die from my negligence. So, in order to amend this issue, once I decided to begin making stories again, I decided I'd use this seasonal format to plan a whole section at a time, in doing so I'm making sure I avoid any plot holes and properly connecting ideas. That way, even if I do end up in that same "crash" again, the worst is I'll just need to restart the season I was currently on from scratch. If I mention any future ideas, they float around waiting for possible implementation if I can use them.**

**Now in regards to actual parts of the story itself, one user was curious on my other story, Date A Re:Live, if I'd be properly showing world due to my changes that I introduced at the beginning. The answer? I will, BUT I may not be doing so via the main story itself, it depends. That doesn't mean I'll be leaving you all hanging though, for one some of you might be interested in things like the Demon's past, or what happened to Vali during her training journey.**

**Both Date A Re:Live and A Dragon's Heavenly Bonds have planned side stories showing events before, in-between and to the side for their stories that will help expand and build the worlds I've been making for them. The first stories, or the main stories, for both of them will focus on the main story lines since I feel trying to put everything together will cause a bit of a mess. So, expect more than what you see here, because there'll be plenty.**

**So, with all of that cleared up, I'm pretty sure you wanna ready instead of here me talk anymore. Now with everything else out of the way, I've only got this left to say... let's begin Season 2 everybody!**

* * *

** _ Season 2, Excalibur Arc: Chapter 1 - Sins of a Holy Blade _ **

The scene opens to the Hyoudou household as the morning sun arrived, inside Issei's room, the Sekiryuutei slowly began to open his eyes without his phone alarm going off like usual to wake him and without the same strain he took since becoming a Devil, which was likely because he gave his heart to Ddraig and Dragons didn't have the same problem. He yawns and soon turns to his right... only to see two giant breasts in his face, making him gasp.

'Boobs!' Issei thought, shaking his head as he thought he might just be dreaming. However, once he realized he could still see them... "I'm awake, why am I still seeing breasts? I can't remember."

He got his answer when Vali's usual cuddling in sleep tendencies had her hug his face into her cleavage, making him realize she had been sleeping with him.

"Vali!?" Issei said muffled between her bosom, and suddenly realizes that he was shirtless. Looking a bit at the part of their bodies hidden under the covers, then the discarded articles of clothing scattered across the floor next to the bed, Issei finally remembered what they had done during the night and his face goes red.

"Oh my god, I just forgot I had my first time! I so better not let Motohama and Matsuda know about this."

Issei blinks a bit as her recalls a specific odd detail.

'And who knew Vali was as grabby with butts as I am with boobs?' Issei thought, that side of her had honestly surprised him. It seems like a lot of things between them seemed opposite, if only because they had Ddraig and Albion who were exactly that.

Issei flinched slightly as Vali's breasts bounced as she woke up, she was only half awake due to how her eyes were open, but she was aware enough to see Issei and smile at him, having already remembered everything the moment she woke up.

"Good morning Issei." Vali smiled, hugging herself close to him. "Thank you so much for last night, you don't know how happy you made me when you said yes."

"Uh... sure thing Vali, but we might wanna wait a while before we ever do it again. I mean for one I don't know if my-" Issei suddenly paled as he heard a knock on the door.

"Issei, are you already awake? If you are then I could use some help." Hana stated, and Issei gasped as he realized what would happen if his mom opened the door... the 'unlocked' door. Vali being on top of him wouldn't help much either, though she realized the problem too by her reaction.

"Uh, yeah, just don't open the-" Issei tried to tell her not to open the door, but failed. Suddenly Hana saw them and while she didn't see the bottom half of either of them, the clothing on the floor said enough. "U-Uh, it's not what it... er..."

"Oh... never mind Issei, I'll just be going." Hana said closing the door, and soon once it was shut... Issei just fainted at what he heard next. "HONEY! Our first grandchild's coming soon!"

Vali looked at Issei's unconscious form and sweat dropped before she chuckled a bit.

"Uh... oops?" Vali said softly.

* * *

The sight of a light shining in an unknown rocky landscape was seen.

**(*slow jingle begins*)**

**(Together, we'll rise up once again and fight through the doubts! Because, we wish to prevent even a single life... from being extinguished!)** Issei is seen one side of the landscape starting to stand up as the light begins a raging red fire, meanwhile on the opposite side there was Vali who slowly turned as the light on her side becomes a calming white mist.  
**(*heavy drumming*)** The logo appears in a flash of sudden sparkles.  
**(I've awakened yet again from my endless night, with the dawn light's revisiting outside. I want to make a reality of that dream I had with you!)** Rias is seen by the window which she opens, the wind flowing as she continued staring outside.

**(*weak guitar playing*)** The seven forms of Excalibur are shown embedded into the ground of Kuoh Academy while all of the Student Council appear on a blue background.

**(There's an afterimage floating before my eyes, progresses nowhere I want to go. I become powerless as my life fades away from you!)** An image of Irina with Excalibur Mimic passes by, then another of Xenovia who held Excalibur Destruction, finally an image of Jeanne holding Excalibur Blessing before it moves and shows her in a new outfit with a holy rapier.  
**(*guitar wail*)** Kokabiel appears and makes a vicious face as his wings unfold with the full moon behind him.  
**(What are the most precious things in life... and where can we find them? Please tell me! I will never forget you, as I believe in tomorrow!)** An Angel appears creating a holy burst of energy, before a Fallen Angel follows kicking out holding a dark-light spear, a Demon spins around with the shadow force cackling in their hand and finally a Devil rushes forward with a serious look and unleashes dark energy.

**(*rapid guitar wail*)** Rias is seen standing in a snowy area while a younger Vali meets with a smiling Lilith.

**(Now it is time, now more than ever, for us to keep move forward with our lives on the line! The more powerful our emotions are, then the stronger we'll become.)** Vali is seen fighting against Kokabiel in the dark of a blue night sky, while Issei fights a female Devil in the dark of a red night sky. Both have their Longinus glow as they activate their scale mails.  
**(*short guitar wail*)** A half black and white sword with red runes diagonally divides a bunch of kids in church cloaks and then Kiba with a crying face.  
**(If a changing half-hearted ideal is soon to disappear, I will stand up to challenge the fate of this world with my will! Because I hold the soul of the DxD...)** Soon the sight of a shattering barrier around Kuoh Academy is seen before the sight of Gaspar popping out of his box, alongside Irina, Xenovia and Jeanne all in Kuoh Academy uniforms is seen before ending with the leaders of the four factions of the Christian Pantheon standing side by side.  
**(Let's form an exchange and eternal unbreakable vow, from the bottom of my heart... I will never give up on you! So, don't give on me too!)** Vali looks up to see an afterimage of Ophis, while Issei looks the opposing way to see the human form of Great Red in the same manner. Finally, a black colored energy envelops the screen as a pair of six dark red eyes with six slit pupils' stares at you.

**(*consecutive guitar wails before an echoing finish*)**

Issei and Vali stand alongside their peerages and every over living character from the first season and to appear in this one.

* * *

Issei's Father, Seiji Hyoudou, takes a sip from his bowl as he, Issei's mother Hana, and Issei himself all try Vali's cooking.

"So good!" Seiji said as his taste buds did the tango. "I remember Issei telling us the bentos you make him for lunch were good, but he never said your cooking was outright Heavenly!"

"Aw, thank you Mr. Hyoudou." Vali smiled, appreciating the compliment before she giggled at her next though. 'And yet I'm a Devil, so heavenly is the least likely word to use'

"Told ya." Issei replied.

"Oh! Ms. Hyoudou, would it be a problem if my club and Rias' to come over for our meeting today?" Vali asked, surprising Issei.

"Oh sure, it's fine." Hana answered.

"Why's that, why not at the old school building?" Issei asked confused.

"Rias texted me that today's the annual school cleaning. So, all the clubs can't use their usual buildings for the day." Vali replied, and Issei mouths 'oh' in understanding. The two soon finish their breakfast and head out to school, but not before Vali stops by her house where her peerage was still staying. "Hey everyone, we'll be heading off to school now."

Ignoring Azazel's sudden crying from hearing his daughter's voice, still sore over her moving out, the two head over to school. Once they do, Issei sits down in class before he sees Matsuda and Motohama appear by her desk, surprising him by how quickly they appeared.

"Whoa! Don't do that you two, what's going on?" Issei asked, noticing the two staring at him.

"First off..." Motohama began, adjusting his glasses before getting close. "Tell us the truth, everyone noticed you and Vali holding hands when you came to class today. Did everyone's guesses that you two would start dating actually happen!?"

"Wait, everyone guessed that? Did everyone thing we'd end up together!?" Issei said shocked, making the two nod. Aside from him and Vali, before their first kiss happened, everyone was able to tell the two had feelings for each other. "...Well I guess everyone was right, happened last night."

Both of the perverted duo had their eyes widen, while most of the class (mainly jealous guys) all gasped. The girls all looked at Vali, smiling and nodding to confirm it.

"YOU BASTARD!" The guys all growled, swarming near Issei until Vali's calm anger aura neared them.

"Excuse me boys, but is there a problem?" Vali asked, a smile on her face the entire time despite the wave of chilling anger she admitted, all of the guys soon sat back down.

"Damn it, please tutor us oh great teacher! We need to know your secrets!" Matsuda cried.

"Please, only you have the power to do this!" Motohama cried as well, making Issei sweat drop a bit. Though admittedly maybe this was a good chance to help them curb their perverted tendencies a bit and maybe actually get a chance with some girls. Though after a bit. "Though that's not the only thing, you've heard about the recent rumors?"

"Rumors? What rumors?" Issei asked, the training camp and both Rating Games had taken up everyone's focus so they all likely missed something.

"For real? Dude, there's been a bunch of crazy sightings, the kind of shit you see in monster and horror movies!" Matsuda gasped, surprised Issei didn't know. "In fact, last night someone got a picture of some giant multi-winged creature flying by the moon!"

This caught Issei and Vali's attention.

"You serious?" Issei asked, the two nod. "You got that picture by chance?"

"They don't, but I did." Said a girl with braids and glasses, she was Aika Kiryuu. She was a bit perverted too, but seemed to be between Issei and the perverted duo's odds being part perverted publicly and part privately perverted. "Though seriously Vali, there are so many nice boys. Why choose him as a boyfriend?"

"Hey, I can date who I want!" Vali pouted, making Aika chuckle a bit.

"Fine, fine. Well here's the picture." Aika pulls it into view, Issei and Vali looked at it closely. It looked like... some kind of bird? It was too hard to make out except Vali was sure the wings were feathery wings.

"That's... uh, what is it?" Issei wondered, he wasn't sure of any supernatural creature like that... unless it was a stray like Vizor was. That chick had mutated in a Centaur form that was clearly too unnatural to be a real one.

"Mind if we borrow this, the MHC would have a field day over this." Vali asked.

"Sure thing, just keep the making out in the closet." Aika joked, making Issei and Vali blush as she walked off. Vali grabbing the picture as it lay on the table.

'She's a bigger pervert than Issei's friends are!' Vali thought.

* * *

Soon both the MHC and ORC were gathered in the living room area of Issei's house, Vali showing the picture to everyone. Rias thinks as she looks at it.

"Hmm... if it's a stray Devil then the Archduke hasn't sent us any notices just yet. So, it's probably something else." Rias stated, even she couldn't make out the black silhouette.

"Hopefully it's not something that'll cause us trouble. For now, let's begin our regular meeting with this month's contract numbers. Akeno had 11, Koneko had 10, Kiba had 8, and Valerie had 5."

"Glad I'm not holding you all back since I came out of the room." Valerie said, blushing a bit.

"Let's see, on my end..." Vali said, checking her own results. "Issei had 9, Arthur and Kuroka had 8, Le Fay had 6, Bikou 5, Asia had 3."

"Really? No way, that's great Asia." Kiba replied, making Asia blush.

"Not bad for a former sister turned Devil, you're already working well in earning contracts." Shirone added, and soon Vali noticed something.

"...Yuuma, why haven't you reported how many you have?" Vali wondered, raising her eyebrow as the timid former Fallen sweated. "Come on Yuuma, it can't be that bad."

"I..." Yuuma began, before hanging down her head. "...had only 1."

"Well it's not zero Yuuma, don't be too down." Issei said as he rubbed her back, making her blush a bit. Soon Issei's mother walks in with some snacks.

"Sorry to intrude. Now, this gathering is for the Insult Research Club and Mystical History Club, right?" Hana asked, and Vali sweat dropped at the names she ended up using.

'So close and yet so very wrong.' Issei thought, mentally chuckling. "Uh... yeah, that's us."

"Well, I brought something that might inspire everyone." Hana replied before revealing she had all the family albums on hand, making Issei go red as he realized what red flag just got raised.

"MOM!"

Soon enough, everyone forgot about the club meetings and began looking at the albums to Issei's horror. Vali rubs her back.

"Wow, he's completely naked! So small and so adorable!" Akeno said, looking at one picture of him. "So small and adorable."

"Takes all kinds as they say, applies to pictures too." Shirone said, giggling to herself.

"So itty bitty and cute!" Asia smiled.

"I know, it's like I just wanna hug him." Le Fay gushed over one picture.

"Thank you for embarrassing me mom." Issei sighed.

"She seems like a great mother to me." Kiba replied, soon looking down. "...It must be nice to have a family."

"Huh?" Vali wondered once she heard Kiba say that. Soon Kiba notices a certain picture in the book he was holding, and his down looking smile was replaced with a blank state.

"Hey Issei, this picture..."

Issei looked at the one he was pointing to, and saw him and Irina back when her family still owned Azazel and Vali's home.

"Oh man, it's been so long. That's me and my childhood friend." Issei answered, smiling at the memory.

"Huh? Wait, I thought Vali was your childhood friend?" Yuuma asked as she looked at it.

"Huh? Ooh, sorry that was a bad word choice." Issei said, rubbing his head. "That's my _first_ Childhood friend, Vali being my second. We played together all the time until his parents had to move to England due to his dad's job. Believe it or not, Vali moved in his house a week after he left."

"Oh yeah, you didn't have that many friends when you were younger. So, who is he?" Bikou asked, making Issei think a bit.

"Hmm... actually, I can't remember his name. He always asked me to call him by a nickname, "Rin", so I didn't get the chance to know his real one." Issei answered honestly, still unaware that Irina was a girl even now. "It's been a while, I wonder how he's doing?"

However, Kiba ignored this, and Arthur noticed what he was looking at.

"I guess anything's possible, isn't it?" Kiba breathed, quiet enough he wasn't heard. Though Arthur seemed to get an idea by looking at him. "Never expected to see it here... Excalibur."

* * *

Issei had soon headed over to a client via a magic circle, and noticed when he arrived his client wasn't anywhere to be found to his surprise.

"Uh... hello?" Issei called out, he didn't notice his danger sense warn him, so he figured his client had to be around somewhere. Soon he heard the yawn of a young female woman as she got up from behind the couch she was resting on. She had messy long blue hair tied up in a loose ponytail with piercing purple-pink eyes.

"Oh, sorry about that. Wasn't expecting anyone until later. Make yourself comfortable while I get some refreshments." The young woman said, standing up in her dark teal robe as she went to the kitchen. Issei decided to sit down and look around.

"Whoa... she seems pretty loaded, these all seem like they're worth a fortune." Issei noted before the woman came back, handing him some juice while she poured herself a glass of champagne. "So, what do you need?"

"Just someone to talk and drink with, that bad?" The woman asked.

"No, the contract will be formed when I fulfill the request and get a fitting compensation." Issei said, though he was kinda underwhelmed that's all he was being asked for. His other usual clients tended to not ask for much, but still a bit more.

After a bit, the woman got the chance to let lose as she complains about her job happily.

"-and don't get me started on the secretary's sanitation methods! Which are basically non!" She laughs, hitting her leg as she laughs her lungs off. "Hilarious! Now if only she could get fired already, do your job right or don't do it period! Really!"

"Yeah, right..." Issei said, his eye twitching as he smiled. 'I have no idea how to join the conversation anymore.'

"Ah, that was fun. So, what do you want as compensation?" The woman suddenly asked, surprising Issei. "You're a devil, so I guess my soul?"

"Uh... no, we don't take souls anymore. " Issei said, waving his hands as he sweat dropped.

"Really? Hmm... I don't know what's fitting for just having a talk and drink." The woman said, thinking as she put a hand to her chin. "Would giving you a bag of cashews be fitting?"

"Yeah, that works." Issei nodded, soon being tossed a bag of them. After making the contract, Issei heads back home and the woman waits until she can tell the circle's energy faded. Once she did, she stretched a bit and unfolded her wings.

These wings weren't like a Devils or a Fallen Angels, and not of an Angel's either. These wings were pale in color and looked like those of a reptile's mixed with a bat's, having a bunch of tears and holes within them, and they all seemed natural rather than actual damage... the wings of a Demon, and this woman was their leader: Demon Queen Cassiel.

"Thank you for the talk Sekiryuutei, it was quite the pleasure to make your acquaintance." Cassiel smiled.

* * *

Once Issei got back, he saw Vali with a somber look on her face.

"Vali, what's wrong?" Issei said, getting Vali's attention once she saw he was finally back. She sighs afterwards. "Did something happen?"

"...It's Kiba." Vali said simply.

"Kiba? What's going on, did something happen to him?" Issei asked, and Vali nodded.

"While you were out with that client, we had a Stray Devil to deal with." Vali explained, recalling how the fight had Kiba so distracted which had nearly gotten Shirone and Bikou hurt. "Kiba couldn't focus at all, and it nearly got us in trouble. Rias is worried and now we all are... especially after Arthur said he had an idea of what was wrong."

Vali turns to Issei with a series look.

"Excalibur."

"Excalibur, the sword that the Lady of the Lake gave to King Arthur?" Issei asked.

"The actual story is a bit different but you're not technically wrong. Along with Caliburn, it was a treasure held by the Pendragon family." Vali began, moving from the bed to a chair to sit.

"However later on during the Great War, the Pendragon family gave the sword to the Angels. See both it and Caliburn are Holy Swords. Think of Freed's blade of light but more genuine and complete. Holy Swords are the worst thing to a Devil, just touching one can hurt you, and a single swing can purge and annihilate a Devi. The biggest weakness they have is very few can wield them."

"OK, I'm following so far. Why's that an issue with Kiba though?" Issei asked.

"I can't know until I ask Rias myself, but... I think Kiba may have been involved with the Holy Sword project." Vali answered, making Issei blink.

"Holy sword project?" Issei repeated.

"Yeah, a church project that by its name I'm sure was to amend the issue of limited wielders. That's all I know unfortunately." Vali replied, she had heard of it but at the time she was in America during her training journey, so getting any news about it was difficult and not fully accurate at times.

"If it is... I worry what's about to come next."

* * *

Soon at the abandoned church, a trio of people dressed in white robes walked into the area, recognizing the damage that wasn't done by the hands of Fallen Angels. One had a sword on their back, the other had two on each sides of her waist, and the third had a string tied around her arm.

"I'd say utter ruin describes this place." The first figure, using a low and deep female voice, speaks up. Removing her hood to reveal short blue hair with a streak of it dyed green.

"Rumor has it that there was a disturbance here recently between the Devils of this town and some rogue Fallen Angels." The second figure, having a raspier and male-like, but still female voice. She removes her hood, revealing a girl with shoulder length blonde hair tied in a braid **(A/N: Think Yuzuru Yamai from Date A Live)** and blue eyes, her face lacking any sin to it.

"You're sure this is the place Irina, that we're supposed to be meeting him here?"

"Really Jeanne? Like I would be wrong!" The third figure said, an airy and cheerful girl's voice coming from her, she removes her hood revealing an orange haired girl with twin tails and vivid purple eyes. "On top of that I used to live in the city with my parents as a kid."

As proof, she shows Jeanne and their ally exorcist a picture, the same one showing her and Issei that Kiba freaked out over.

"Right now, let's get settled in. We need to be ready when we finally go after the Fallen Angels." The blue haired girl replied, making the other two nod.

"Your right Xenovia, we'll need to get some-" Jeanne suddenly pauses right there... "Change of plans, I feel something off. I think I know why he's not here yet and if we don't hurry it might be too late."

* * *

Kiba was walking home as it began to rain, and as he did... he recalled what had happened during the Stray Devil fight.

_"Kiba, aren't we your friends?" Arthur stated, staring at Kiba intensely. "Or are Rias and her peerage a mere convenience you're using to your own ends? Be it intentional or unintentional, that's what it seems like."_

'I'm sorry Arthur, but it wouldn't be right for me to have friends, I don't deserve them...'

The sight of many on the ground of a building, choking and dying, including the sight of a white-haired girl with twin tails, and Kiba running away flashed through the Devil swordsman's head.

'...not now.'

Suddenly a scream reaches into Kiba's ears, ringing heavily. Suddenly a priest runs towards him.

"Please, help me!" The priest screams before a sword slashes him, splattering his blood in front of Kiba's eyes as he stared. A familiar cackle enters his ears. That cackle was revealed to be none other than... Freed Sellzen!

"Yoo-hoo! Fiddle Liddle!" Freed cackles, his tongue hanging out crazily as he stared at Kiba. "It's been a while you damn Devil, how have you been!? Did you miss me? Nice to see the playboy of Hell's scum came for a visit."

"Freed... so you've been in town this whole time since back then?" Kiba said, rage in his voice.

"Such a wonderful reunion isn't it? It's bringing a tear to _mine_ eye!" Freed mocked, using a wrong word in his sentence intentionally to insult Kiba further.

"Unfortunately for you, I'm in a really bad mood today." Kiba said, forming the Holy Eraser with his Sacred Gear.

"Ooh, that's perfect! I need some fun! All these sissified priests are all getting SO boring!" Freed yelled, swinging his sword, which glows with a holy aura. Kiba's eyes widen by it.

"No... that light, that aura! It can't be!" Kiba gasped, that sword... it couldn't be.

"Oh, it can, nice timing. As penance for your prior actions towards me, let's see which is stronger." Freed chuckles, soon holding the blade out. "So, tell me what you think? Your sacred gear's filthy cursed devilish sword be the victory, or will it be the amazing holy sword known as Excalibur Rapidly!?"

_"RUN AWAY!" A boy choked out._

_"Hurry, save yourself!" A girl cried out as she held a man's leg, coughing up blood._

_"Isaiah... please go." A white-haired girl with twin tails barely breathes out._

"...I will never forgive Excalibur for what it did to me, or what it did to my comrades." Kiba said, his face pure with rage now. "I'll destroy that sword for the sake of my fallen comrades!"

In moments, the two swordsmen rush forward and cross blades.

"TIME TO DIE!" Freed screams as he slashes at Kiba, after a bit of swinging at Kiba, he suddenly vanishes and Kiba tries to chase him using the Knight's speed, but it did nothing. "This is why some call Excalibur Rapidly the sword of Heavenly Flashes! I just like to call it the super-fast sword!"

"HOLY... ERASER!" Kiba screamed, the swords' darkness stretched out as shadowy tendrils, but Excalibur Rapidly burned them off. Kiba's Sword Birth couldn't make a Cursed Sword that was strong enough to destroy it by consuming its light. "Damn it!"

"Really kid? If Excalibur was that fragile, then it wouldn't be such a legendary sword." Freed cackles giddily. "You win some, you lose some!"

"Shut up Freed!" Kiba yelled.

"Wow, never thought I'd hear that tone of voice from you." Freed commented, giggling a bit. Soon he rushed at Kiba again, and after seeing an opening from Kiba's anger, cuts Kiba's shoulder a bit. Kiba screams as it burns him. "Ha hah! Now that's what I call a show!"

"Sword... BIRTH!" Kiba shouted, and Freed suddenly held up Excalibur Rapidly as a bunch of swords flew towards him.

"Hey, that's cheating!" Freed complained.

"That's what we Devils do..." Kiba said, rushing at him to cut the insane stray priest down. "...we cheat!"

Freed manages to dodge, and soon a magic circle appears by his ear.

"Nice moves kiddo, but I've gotta go. Someone more important's calling!" Freed smirked, Kiba tried to rush at him before he escaped. Taking this chance, Freed takes out a flash bomb and throws it onto the ground, blinding Kiba with the resulting flash. "It's been fun, but that's all folks!"

Kiba stares at the ground where Freed was, an annoyed look on his face before he grips his sword tightly.

"...Guess that picture wasn't a reminder, it was a premonition." Kiba said to himself, his anger growing. "And now... I have to destroy all of the Excaliburs myself, that is my sole purpose for living."

Kiba soon leaves the area, unable to stomach staying her any longer. The deceased priest's bleeding body stayed where it had been until the church trio from before found it, and the ugly sight before them.

"...We were too late, he's dead." Jeanne said, kneeling close to the priest's body and putting her hand out to sense it. "No doubt, this was an Excalibur's work."

"Then the reports weren't an exaggeration, we may only have a 30% chance of returning home." Xenovia stated grimly, this was a mission they may likely fail. Even if they had what this priest didn't, the odds barely changed.

"For now, we'll need to talk with the Devils of this town, otherwise there's nothing we'll be able to do to stop this." Irina replied, and the two nodded as they took the priest's body for a proper funeral, Jeanne using some magic to clean up the blood before they left.

* * *

Soon, the following morning, Issei was in bed and woke up before his phone alarm woke him up. He tried to reach out to turn it off and found something heavy on his arm... he opened his eyes and saw Vali sleeping with him in her PJs.

"This is gonna be a thing, isn't it?" Issei chuckles, Vali finally got annoyed by the alarm and woke up as well.

"Issei... turn that thing off already." Vali groaned, cuddling closer to try dampening or blocking out the sound entirely. "How do you deal with this daily?"

"I would, but your kinda weighing me down." Issei said, making Vali groan as she shifted a bit so Issei could move his arm and turn it off. "Well, guess we're awake now."

**"[And lucky for us, at a good time no less.]"** Ddraig replied.

"Ddraig? It's been a while, you were asleep for all of yesterday." Issei replied, recalling how Ddraig had been snoring after the Rating Game ended. Vali had told him Albion had dealt with the same thing. "So, what is it? Something wrong?"

**"[Yes, there is... I've felt a strong spiritual presence around the town since last night.]"** Ddraig replied, catching Issei and Vali's attention.

**"(It's been making us quite nervous. Be careful, you never know if 'they' might appear.)"** Albion followed up.

"They?" Issei replied.

"Issei... Ddraig and Albion are some of the most powerful beings, but there are some who are even stronger." Vali answered, surprising him. "Not to mention while we have their power, as we are now, we can't use our Dragons full power yet."

"So, there's a threat possibly looming? Then that picture might be related." Issei noted.

**"[Just remember what we've told you.]"** Ddraig asked.

"Right, keep an eye out. Got it." Issei nodded.

* * *

Meanwhile as they all headed to school, the Student Council was gathered when... Sona suddenly stops and closes her book.

"Sona?" Saji asked, worried why she suddenly stopped.

"Saji, see that over there?" Tsubaki suddenly spoke, making Saji notice the church trio... and then the chilling feeling their swords gave off to him.

"Are those..." Saji breathed, Sona nodded.

"_Holy Swords..._"

* * *

**Well, looks like things are starting to get series for everyone. Ddraig and Albion both smell trouble but aren't sure what it is just yet, Kiba's past is starting to catch up to him, a trio including Issei's childhood friend Irina's in town for some reason and are allied to the church, Freed's returned holding one of the Excaliburs and most of all... the Demon Queen Cassiel has suddenly taken an interest in Issei.**

**Now let's talk about Cassiel a bit. She's taking the place of Azazel for this arc, and some of the Summit arc, and is the leader of the group of Angels that decided to mimic Lucifer to forgo their Holy energy before the time of the Great War in the same vain that Azazel caused the Fallen Angels to fall, making him their leader by default. I hope you like the wings I gave Demons, and that damage is natural, it's how their wings changed from the mutations, in fact a Demon's sign of strength is determined by HOW damaged their wings look.**

**Most of you are probably familiar with Jeanne if you've at least reached Volume 9, she was a member of the Khaos Brigade's Hero Faction, the reason why she's not this time? Because I honestly hated how they chose to make her character and then have her be part of the Khaos Brigade. See, it's mentioned she inherited the spirit of her ancestor, the Maiden of Orleans, why's that bad? Well... because Joan of Arc was a saint, meaning that making her part of the bad guys felt as forced as the Phoenix Tears in the Rias Vs Riser Rating Game.**

**If they had made her a good guy, or just said she was a descendant that didn't inherit her ancestor's spirit, I'd have been OK with it right there and then, but since they did both it just felt wrong. So, for this story, she's not evil and is already with the church, and with it I've given us a way to have Excalibur Blessing show, but as you can see she's got another sword. That's her real sword, kinda like how Xenovia's is really Durandal, but you'll see her use it much sooner. Like next chapter sooner... it'll make sense when it finally shows up, trust me on that.**

**Now, in case some of you don't know this particular part of the novel, or somehow missed the brief description of her appearance, some of you may notice I'm specifically referring to a white-haired girl with twin tails in Kiba's flashbacks. That girl is Tosca, the girl who appeared in Vol 19 where it was revealed she also survived the project, but due to a sacred gear that put her in suspended animation and she couldn't turn off for years. She'll be more important, and will appear much sooner, in this season even.**

**So, see you all next time, when Issei discovers the truth about Irina and things start going to Hell in the wrong way as the story of the Excaliburs and Kiba finally reaches the MHC's knowledge.**

* * *

**Oh, and I probably should bring this up just in case, but here's what year everyone in the ORC and MHC are students in, some changes from canon included so I'll be listing all of them. When anyone new enrolls into Kuoh, I'll make sure to mention it too, this won't be here like everything else I have placed here at the end notes, so expect this to disappear in the next chapter.**

**1st Years - Shirone, Gasper, Le Fay, Asia, Ruruko**

**2nd Years - Issei, Vali, Kiba, Yuuma, Saji, Momo, Reya, Tomoe, Tsubasa**

**3rd Years - Rias, Akeno, Valerie, Kuroka, Arthur, Bikou, Sona, Tsubaki**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali  
Gasper/Valerie**


	12. Chapter 12

**Alright, here we are everyone, next chapter. Before we start I'll be saying this about the church trio.**

**For Jeanne, she's got a bit of a duel nature, she's usually to be bubbly and a bit naive, but when in battle she's probably the most mature and serious member of the trio. Xenovia is the same, but due to some of her scenes later on she'll be a bit gullible. Irina will mainly be the same, but she'll be more accepting that Issei and Asia are Devils and more kind to the fact they became Devils, though she'll also often argue with Vali over their childhood friend status about everything ^^;**

**As you may have noticed with the change of the character specific formatting, Vritra's gonna be talking soon enough, probably this or the next chapter depending on the cutoff point. The one thing my script doesn't do is decide where a chapter ends or starts, and I usually end chapters when I feel I've found the right scene to do so.**

**That's all I really have to say, so let's continue on everyone, cause I'm excited to keep writing too *v***

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally}**

* * *

** -Aura Burst- **

**The clan power of the Gremory family, this ability allows a Devil to manifest all their magical power into the form of an aura, making their bodies temporarily become a pure magical aura. Out of the current generation of the Gremory household, the former heir Sirzechs Lucifer has inherited this ability alongside the Power of Destruction, but Rias has not.**

**It is only due to Rias inheriting the Power of Destruction that she's not looked down on by other Devils, as the Aura Break is considered one of the more inferior abilities among Devil kind in terms power, representing how the Gremory clan is the 56th pillar of the Ars Goetia caste of Devils. Sirzechs' special ability, Aura of Destruction, is a combination of the Aura Burst and Power of Destruction.**

**The most gifted Gremory to have this clan ability in the present day is Sirzechs' son, Millicas Gremory, who has been stated by his grandfather Zeoticus Gremory to have a very strong affinity to his magic aura despite having little practice in actually using the power of currently.**

* * *

** _Season 2, Excalibur Arc: Chapter 2 - Three Swords and a Kiba_ **

"Whoa!" Issei stared in awe at the shiny clean hallways of the old school building. "This is... I mean... just whoa!"

"Wow, they did a really good job." Vali giggled, soon she and Issei walked by and noticed the Forbidden Room, the door into it was only place that was still kinda dirty. "I wonder if we'll ever meet Gasper, my talks with Valerie have implied he's a really good person."

"Yeah, I'd like to meet him too. Plus, it'd be nice to have another guy here." Issei replied.

Soon the two were about to head to the MHC room, when Rias noticed them and knocked on the side of her wall to get their attention.

"If you two don't mind, I need to talk to you about something briefly." Rias sighed, and Vali quickly knew what it was about. The two walked into the ORC clubroom, and soon enough noticed that Yuuma and Arthur were also present, only Shirone was present out of Rias' peerage.

"So, what's the problem?" Issei asked.

"Kiba decided to take the entire day off, after yesterday we know something's wrong." Shirone answered, looking slightly worried as her tails twitched a bit.

Vali looked at Rias, and had a good feeling of what she should ask.

"Rias... is Kiba someone who got involved with the Holy Sword Project by chance?"

"...He was." Rias sighed, soon looking at the two. "I'm assuming neither of you know anything deep about the project aside from its purpose, right?"

Both of them nod.

"Kiba... was a survivor of the project." Rias revealed, making them gasp.

"He was one of multiple children that were involved, at the time he was a namely orphan the Church called him Isaiah for the project. They were all being raised to wield Excalibur. Long ago during the Great War, the Holy Sword we know as Excalibur was shattered into pieces, leaving seven of them to be reformed from the fragmented shard by the Church's alchemists. Arthur here has told me his family was entrusted with one of them."

"Yes, Excalibur Ruler is not a blade that can be allowed to be out in the open. Only Caliburn can open the path to it." Arthur added, motioning his hand to his sword. "Only the Pendragon family can reach it as a result. Even now I keep that blade in the realm it's held in."

"Whoa... so does that mean Kiba can wield Excalibur?" Yuuma asked, but Rias shook her head. "No?"

"The project failed entirely, what's worse? Kiba's not a survivor because he was the only one who was strong enough... he was just able to run away. The ones in church or the project murdered all the children still alive afterwards."

Aside from Arthur who held his reaction within, and Shirone who had been aware due to joining Rias' peerage before Kiba, everyone in the room showed horror at the revelation. Vali showed the worse as she nearly collapsed, struggling not to puke.

"Vali!?" Issei kneeled down worried.

"I'm alright Issei, just got a bit queasy over hearing it." Vali breathed, slowly regaining her composure. "Continue Rias."

"I had gotten wind of the project going into that dark turn, but as I was a Devil I either risked causing a war... or being killed. I could only hope anyone who escaped I could save." Rias said somberly, recalling how only Kiba managed to do so.

"Kiba was able to escape because everyone else gave him the chance, but he was already on the verge of death. The only reason he held on long enough was because he wished for revenge. Such a motivation I felt could be turned into something meaningful and made him my knight. I was sure over time I had quell those feelings in his heart, but... I never could. Seeing a holy sword is already hard, to have seen an Excalibur in one of Issei's pictures... he's going back down a dangerous road."

"Oh man... I'm sorry that happened." Issei apologized.

"Don't be sorry Issei, you couldn't have known it was Excalibur in that photo. You didn't know Vali was a Devil for a decade, didn't you?" Rias replied, making Issei chuckle and sweat drop in embarrassment. Soon Akeno opened the door and came in.

"Sorry for being late, I brought some guests over." Akeno said as she moved to show Sona and Tsubaki.

"Sona? What's wrong, why are you here?" Vali asked, a bit worried.

"It's urgent. Rias, Vali, will both of you be able to come to my house?" Sona asked. "This isn't something I can discuss in front of a lot of people, we have a... complicated situation."

Rias sweated as well.

"Alright, I'll come over."

"Me too, in a sense me and Rias both watch over Kuoh so it's only right I keep in touch with any issues that come." Vali replied.

* * *

Issei and Shirone were soon walking home together, Asia having joined them along the way as she learned of what was going on.

"I've never seen Sona so freaked out. Shirone, what do you think about it?" Issei asked, making the Nekoshou think on it a bit.

"Don't know, besides... I think I'm more worried about Kiba right now." Shirone replied, and she had every reason to worry about Kiba. She was like a big brother to him.

"Actually, I think I'm the same. I feel I should help him out somehow." Issei nodded, looking a bit worried. "Though I wonder how I can?"

Shirone nodded, and soon noticed the light turning change.

"See you guys tomorrow." Shirone said, waving goodbye as she headed back home to meet up with her sister. As Issei watched her walk off...

"I wonder why they chose this?"

"Huh?" Asia wondered.

"I mean why did Valerie and Akeno become Devils like the rest of us? I know Shirone and Kiba's reasons, but not theirs. I guess Kiba's story made me think about it more... after all, compared to them we just died." Issei said, making Asia chuckle embarrassingly.

* * *

Vali, Rias, Sona, Akeno and Tsubaki were all in a sauna connected to Sona's stronghold within her house. Where Sona begins her talk about what had happened earlier this morning with her and her peerage.

"So, what's the secret?" Rias asked.

"...I was contacted this morning, a trio from the church." Sona revealed, catching everyone but Tsubaki's attention. "They want to speak with you, and that it's urgent."

"Why would the church want to contact Devils though aside from stirring up trouble?" Vali asked.

"I don't know, but I told them where to find you, so they can talk with you about it tomorrow. I felt I had good reason to." Sona answered.

"Not only were these three members of the church, but each of them was carrying a Holy Sword." Tsubaki added.

"All of them?" Akeno gasped.

"Still... why would come to this town. Are members of the church from this area?" Rias thought, and that that moment Vali suddenly paled. "Vali?"

Vali recalled when she and Azazel had first moved into Kuoh, Azazel mentioned something she didn't pay much attention to before now.

_"Huh, I didn't even notice this at first. It seems like this house used to be owned by a Church related family. For a Fallen Angel and a Devil to be living here now, that's irony for you." Azazel chuckled._

"...No." Vali said, soon standing up. "Sorry everyone, but I need to get back home right now. Issei and some of my peerage might be in danger."

Vali quickly headed out, not even giving the others a chance to reply to that.

* * *

As Issei and Asia headed back to their respective homes, both suddenly felt their danger sense go off. Asia however hadn't felt it go off before today and was surprised by it.

"Issei... I suddenly got a chill, is that normal?" Asia asked worriedly.

"...That's our Devil instincts warning us of danger, something's in this area." Issei began, and after a bit... "Wait, this feels like it's coming from my-"

Issei gasped as he recalled his mom was still home.

"Oh no, my mom!" Issei shouted as he rushed back home, making Asia gasp and follow her. He opens the door and rushes in. "MOM!"

However, he simply hears his mom talking to someone with the light in one of the rooms on. He blinks before sighing in relief, it seems his danger sense had only just gone off in general, no actual trouble... hopefully.

He and Asia walked in and saw Hana saw with Irina, Jeanne who was stuffing her face with some bread she had on hand, and Xenovia who stayed stern the whole time. All three on the couch opposite to one of the chairs Hana sat on. She turned to see Issei and Asia.

"Oh, there he is, welcome home Issei, and welcome Asia." Hana smiled, and soon Irina gasped happily.

"Issei, it's been a while!" Irina replied, but Issei only blinked as he didn't realize who she was. Issei tilted his head a bit. "Oh, come on, how could you forget this face? It's me!"

"Uh... right?" Issei said, still unsure. Realizing the landmine her son was about to walk into, Hana held out the family album picture.

"Irina Shidou, remember this photo?" Hana answered, making Issei gasp as he saw the picture of him and 'Rin'. He looked back and forth as he saw his first childhood friend... his childhood friend that was actually a girl!

"Y-you're Rin!?" Issei stuttered in disbelief and surprise.

"I know right? She looks so different, you'd mistake her for a boy if you didn't know any better. Look at her now, she's positively gorgeous, isn't she?" Hana replied, soon noticing her son still staring in shock like his brain just shutdown. "Issei? What's wrong?"

At that moment, Irina blinks before suddenly blushing as she realized something she had forgotten about.

"Uh oh, Issei actually didn't know any better. He thought I actually was a boy." Irina sweat dropped, surprising everyone, even Xenovia shifted slightly to react. "I did kinda act like a boy back then, and only gave you a nickname to call me."

"Yeah! If I had known your real name was Irina, I'd have figured it out you were a girl then instead of now." Issei said, already feeling stupid himself for never asking her what he name was before she moved away. "This is so awkward now."

Suddenly Jeanne starts laughing a bit.

"I can't believe you made your childhood friend think you were a dude! That's embarrassing isn't it, huh 'Rin', huh?" Jeanne giggled, playfully elbowing the blushing Irina.

"Jeanne, that's not funny! You can't use that nickname either!" Irina pouted.

"Oh wait. 'Ooh, I love reunions, you never know what's gonna happen.' You were so right, who knew this would happen?" Jeanne giggled again, Irina blushing red from the playful teasing while Xenovia just sweat dropped at her friends' antics. She did give a glare to Issei and Asia right after, and at that moment Vali had rushed in and hugged the two.

"Issei! Asia! Oh, thank goodness your safe, I should have paid more attention to both of you!" Vali said loudly, breathing in relief. "I'm glad I worried for nothing."

Soon Irina and Vali's eyes meet with each other.

"Issei, who is that girl?" The both asked in perfect unison, making the Sekiryuutei panic a bit.

"Uh..." Issei mutters as their gaze focused at him. "Vali, meet Irina Shido, my first childhood friend. Irina, meet Valiana Lucilee, or Vali as we all call her, my second childhood friend and... my girlfriend."

...And with that, Issei regretted his answer for the rest of his days as Irina suddenly stood in front of Vali.

"You!? I'm his real childhood friend, I was friends with him before anyone! You were just a replacement after I left!" Irina shouted, and Vali suddenly had a vein form on her head in irritation.

"Oh yeah? Well you left after only knowing him for months, I've been living here since you left and have known him for years!" Vali replied back, and soon Irina had a vein form on her head.

"So, what? First is more important, cause I'm number one in that area!" Irina spat back.

"Oh really? I think me being his girlfriend proves 'firs this the worst, second is the best', so I'm the better one!" Vali spat back.

Everyone stared at the situation oddly, even the normally serious Xenovia made a face no different than all of the others as she saw a side of Irina that she had never witnessed before.

"Is that your best excuse sister? By all means you were just his rebound friend after I left, and Issei's mom mentioned you disappeared for a long time too!" Irina spat out again.

"Well I'll happen to let you know we were each other's first kiss!" Vali spat out in return.

"Hah, I bet that's the only first you are in the slightest! Kisses are so common it means little anyways!" Irina replied, smirking smugly as if she was sure she had won the war.

"W-why you! I'll have you know I'm also the first girl he slept with, and I was his first time too!" Vali screamed in response, making Issei's face go blank at that last part. Irina suddenly goes red, while Jeanne and Xenovia's eyes widen, while Hana and Asia just blinked.

"W-w-w-w-what... Issei is a... he's..." Irina mumbled before sways a bit before falling backwards into Jeanne's lap.

'That's it, my life is officially over.' Issei thought, imagining his spirit leaving him by flying out via his mouth. 'Kill me now, take me outside and shoot me in the freaking face!'

"Uh... forgive us Ms. Hyoudou, but I believe we need to be heading back home now anyways." Jeanne said, trying to avoid showing how awkward things had gotten on her face. "Come on Xenovia."

"Right."

The walked out the door as Xenovia carries the partially KOd Irina over her shoulders, Jeanne waving goodbye with a smile on her face, while Issei noticed Xenovia continuing to make the same stare she had already been making prior. After Asia went back to Vali's house, he and Vali went to his room.

"So, what were you talking about with Rias and Sona?" Issei asked.

"You just saw them walk outside, apparently those three are here for some reason and want to meet with us tomorrow." Vali answered, surprising Issei. "Though I have no clue why they were in there talking to your mother... and that Irina, what was her problem!?"

"Uh..." Issei mumbled, he had planned to reply to that, but after what happened earlier he did not trust where any reply he made would lead towards.

* * *

Soon Issei was out with Cassiel again as they fished by a lake, she had become the third of his regular clients alongside Morisawa and a muscular cross-dresser named Mil-tan. They were waiting for fish when the Demon Queen heard Issei sigh.

"What is it? Rare to see a Devil looking so worried, must be a bit serious." Cassiel asked.

"Well I met my old childhood friend and... turns out she's part of the church so that's probably not gonna go well for either of us. Not to mention the argument she had with my girlfriend" Issei moaned, suddenly Cassiel began laughing to his surprise. "Eh?"

"Guess Devils aren't that different from normal people. Word of advice, things usually go the way you want, stress about tomorrow's not necessary." Cassiel smiled, patting his head. "Just wait it out and things should improve. Oh, and you got a bite."

Issei turns and quickly pulls his line in to grab the fish, getting a small one on his line.

"Oh, come on!" Issei shouted.

* * *

Everyone from the ORC and MHC, with Kiba being the exception, were gathered in the first-floor club room belonging to the Occult Research Club, and the church trio sat on the opposite couch to the one Rias was sitting on.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with us today. My name is Xenovia Quarta."

"My name's Irina Shidou."

"And I'm Jeanne."

"The pleasure's all mine, but it's fascinating to me why followers of God would want to meet with a Devil." Rias inquired, asking the question everyone had wanted to ask themselves.

"True, it does seem random, but here's the thing... you know how six of the Excaliburs are accounted for under the Church correct?" Irina asked, even though she was sure they already knew it was fair to anyone in either peerage that didn't. "Three of them were stolen by Fallen Angels."

That caught everyone's attention.

"No way, another rogue faction in Grigori? Was my older sister not enough!?" Yuuma shouted, clearly upset. Kuroka put a hand on her shoulder to calm her.

"These are the ones we have left. Mine is the Holy Sword of Destruction, Excalibur Destruction." Xenovia said, revealing the bandaged and heavy axe sword she was carrying on her.

"The one I have is the Holy Sword of Blessed Miracles, or Excalibur Blessing for short." Jeanne added, unsheathing it into view happily.

"And then there's the one I have here." Irina replied, pointing to the string on her arm. "It's the Holy Sword of Mimicry, or Excalibur Mimic."

"Well then, what is it you would like for us to do for you today?" Rias asked.

"Simple, we'd just like you to be aware of what we're doing in your territory while also staying completely out of it. After all, this is between us and the Fallen Angels." Jeanne answered.

"That sounds like an accusation. Are you implying we'll side with them to prevent you from obtaining the Holy Swords?" Rias claimed, her aura flaring a bit to show her anger.

"On no, we're not trying to imply that at all! It's just that... uh..." Irina began, Rias kinda scaring her now.

"What Irina's trying to explain is we honestly don't believe the little sister of the Devil King and the grandchild of Satan would be so stupid." Xenovia answered.

"However, the thoughts of headquarters are different. After all, Vali Lucifer's relation as the adoptive daughter of Azazel was recently revealed, many would have a reason to think that it would make more sense to ally with them, it doesn't help that to Devils that a Holy Sword is a detestable thing. I believe you'd like to remove those doubts for everyone?"

"Fine then. I, Rias Gremory, will never besmirch the house of Gremory like an act such as that." Rias answered.

"I, Vali Lucifer, also will not side with Fallen committing such an act. Nothing but trouble can result from this and I have no intents to fight a battle that I have no need to fight." Vali answered.

"That's good, then we're in agreement?" Xenovia asked, both nodded. "Thank you. I trust that we will prevail if you do not intervene, we won't take any more of your time."

The church trio got up to leave, but before they did, Xenovia suddenly took a look at Asia to the former sister's slight discomfort.

"I was wondering if visiting this town would lead us to you." Xenovia stated, Jeanne turned to look confused while Irina suddenly begin to sweat slightly. "Aren't you Asia Argento?"

"Uh... yes?"

"...It makes sense I'd run into a witch in a place like this." Xenovia stated, making Asia's eyes widen and Vali's fist tighten briefly. Irina went pale white at that.

'Xenovia, you didn't!' Irina thought, suddenly feeling like they were gonna die.

"Oh my goodness, it is you! That former saint who became a witch!" Jeanne said surprised, soon smiling as she naively continued. "I heard you got banished for one healing a Devil, you must be pretty strong. Who knew you'd become a Devil yourself?"

Asia begins trembling a bit.

"You OK?" Yuuma asked, seeing Asia tremble like a leaf.

"Of course not, she went from a saint to a Devil. As far as one can fall-"

"Shut up! You said you were leaving right, then take that crap and get out of here!" Issei shouted, gritting his teeth. 'As much as I'd like to punch her in the face for that, even I know it's a dick move to start a fight here.'

"Do you still believe in god Asia?" Xenovia questioned.

"Xenovia, don't be silly. If she's a Devil, then she's over us." Jeanne waved, neither her or Xenovia noticing Irina increasingly worried sweat.

"That doesn't prove a thing Jeanne. There are those whose hearts continue to remain faith in the midst of their own selfish betrayal." Xenovia replied, catching Jeanne's attention. "I'm pretty sure she's one of them."

"Really Asia, you still believe in God?" Jeanne asked curiously.

"Yes... I've never been able to let go." Asia cried, tears falling to the ground and her voice getting hoarse. "I've believed in God this whole time."

"Then I should execute you this instant." Xenovia stated, making Asia's eyes widen as she grabs her sword.

""Stop Xenovia, don't do it! Irina shouted.

At that moment she swung, only for Vali to suddenly appear in between her and Asia and catch the blade with her own hand. An act that shocked everyone as while giving Albion her heart gave her some resistance to Holy Weapons, no part of her was immune to them like Issei's left hand and it was clear her hand was burning from the touch.

"You have no right to call Asia a witch." Vali calmly replied, but it was clear to everyone by the chill she emitted that she had completely flipped out from what Xenovia just tried to do.

"You were the ones who chose to call her a Saint, it was never her choice. Just like it wasn't her choice to be abandoned by her birth parents. She was happier... without any of this! Saint or not, Devil or Angel, Asia's one of the kindest souls you'll ever know. If you can't see that just because of what she is, then I feel sorry for you for being so absorbed into your beliefs that you let them blind you!"

Xenovia sweat slightly, barely holding her composure Jeanne was surprised while Irina seemed to tear up happily at the kind words while the others of both Rias and her peerage smile.

"...And just who are you to Asia Argento?" Xenovia asked.

"Her family! We all are, so let me assure you this right now Xenovia Quarta... if you, the Church or even Heaven herself choose to raise a hand against her, then I WILL spend every waking moment I have making you regret that choice!" Vali declared, the seriousness in her face enough that it could make even a Dragon flinch.

Xenovia didn't get what it was, but where she had been sure of what she was about to do moments before, now she felt she was attempting to open Pandora's Box with her next move.

"This is perfect, I'll take all of you on."

Everyone turned to see Kiba waiting at the door.

"Who are you?" Xenovia asked.

"You're superior, I'm a survivor of the Holy Sword project." Kiba answered, getting the church trio's attention.

* * *

Outside of the old school building, Issei, Kiba and Arthur were face to face with Irina, Xenovia and Jeanne respectively.

"Alright then, let's begin." Xenovia declared as the trio each removed their cloaks, revealing black body suits that seemed a bit... well Issei was pretty sure that some areas and how they were designed were not meant for stealth or to aid in movement without hindrance.

"Are you sure this is OK Vali?" Kuroka asked.

"It's just an informal bout, so we're in the clear as long as no one says anything." Vali answered, soon paling. "Otherwise... all of us would be dead."

Irina removes her string and changes Excalibur Mimic into a katana, Jeanne draws Excalibur Blessing before a holy aura glows around her, and the bandages wrapping Excalibur Destruction come undone.

"Consider it a drill, no killing." Xenovia claimed, soon noticing Kiba chuckling. "Why are you laughing?"

"Because... the one thing I've always to destroy has finally appeared before me." Kiba smiled as he forms his Holy Eraser. Meanwhile on Irina and Issei's side.

"Issei! Tell me the truth, why are you a Devil!?" Irina cried, making Issei drop his guard a bit. "Please... I don't want to be your enemy, so at least tell me that this wasn't you willingly selling your soul to evil!"

"Uh... no, we're good there. I just died is all." Issei replied, sweat dropping a bit. That didn't really help much though as Irina gasped.

"Oh Issei, if only I was there you wouldn't have had to bear the sin of being turned into a Devil!" Irina cried more, tears flowing down her face. "Dear lord, I ask you let me bear his sin of being a Devil as punishment for not being there for him."

'...And this just got weird.' Issei thought.

Meanwhile with Arthur and Jeanne, each had their usual expressions on their faces.

"I hope you realize I will not hold anything back." Arthur commented.

"Of course, I don't want you to, besides..." Jeanne said, soon motioning Excalibur Blessing as she closed her eyes... before she opened them as she gave a serious looking face, a shocking switch from the bubbly and happy looking one from moments earlier. "That's disrespectful of the way of the sword."

'She changed the moment she began accepting the battle had begun, that takes years of experience. It seems this is a side of her she only shows in battle.' Arthur thought, soon drawing Caliburn out towards her.

"Prepare yourself to face the wrath of my Excalibur!" Jeanne declared.

Arthur rushes forward, swinging Caliburn at Jeanne, the holy swordsman however to the surprise of those watching simply shifted her breathing and leg movements and was able to match and counter the speed of Arthur's attacks. Although Arthur realized that wasn't all that was happening.

"Even controlling your breath and leg movement isn't enough against the speed of a peerage's knight. It's your Excalibur aiding you, isn't it?" Arthur inquired.

"Correct, Excalibur Blessing gives its user a blessing of strength. In this case, the power to match a Devil's Knight as a Holy Knight." Jeanne answered, shifting her movement and creating an opening to strike Arthur's shoulder with. However, Arthur blocked with Caliburn, and Jeanne noticed the blade failed to receive any scratch.

"No scratches? Hmm... forgive me for my rudeness, but is that Caliburn? The Pendragon family's treasured blade?"

"It is, not even the Gods can scratch it. Now then, let us resume-" Arthur was suddenly stopped as Jeanne sheathes her sword, catching all but Irina and Xenovia off guard. "Why are you sheathing your blade, are you admitting defeat?"

"No." Jeanne answered simply, reaching for the blade on her other sheath. "I was unaware of your lineage, so I should only fight you with my full strength instead of a mockery. Hear this Arthur Pendragon. This is the Holy Rapier, Hauteclere!"

Jeanne unsheathes the blade, and suddenly her outfit glows until it changes into a blue suit with a white skirt and some yellow trims and a light blue cape behind it, wearing light silver armor on her shoulders to her hands, and her feet. Her braided hair soon curling to become a braided bun. **(A/N: Think Yuki Nonoka's hero outfit from Testament of a New Sister Devil, with the hairstyle of Kaguya Yamai from Date A Live.)**

"Allow me to reintroduce myself. My name is Jeanne D'Arc, descendant of the Maiden of Orleans and the successor of her saintly pure spirit, Joan of Arc!" Jeanne said, revealing her true self to her opponent.

"Interesting, so now I'm facing a true holy sword like my own." Arthur noted, soon smiling slightly as he re positioned himself. "I thank you for honoring me with this side of you, I shall make sure to properly show my gratitude through this battle."

The two rushed at one another and their swords collided with equal force, Arthur soon shifts back and puts up a barrier using Caliburn. Jeanne positions herself and strikes it multiple times with Hauteclere, and then with a mighty thrust she shatters the barrier.

"What?" Arthur gasped, surprised his barrier was broken.

"The Holy Sword Hauteclere, a blade that purifies those that it cuts. Even barriers of Devil origin can be struck down by enough strikes of this purifying rapier." Jeanne revealed, smiling as she took her battle stance again.

"It's been a long time since I've been properly challenged, I thank you for this chance Jeanne D'Arc." Arthur replied, and the two clashed blades again. Soon the sight of Kiba and Xenovia's battle was seen, Kiba swinging his Holy Eraser at the Excalibur before him before Xenovia's swing shatters it.

"Then try this one!" Kiba swung the sword's handle as one made of ice appears, and he sees it to slash icy slashes before forming another sword that burned with a dark fire.

"I see, so Sword Birth. Your sacred gear is the dark counterpart to the Blade Blacksmith." Xenovia noted, and soon as Kiba yelled, rushing at her with a flurry of slashes with both blades, only for her to slash them both apart.

"How naive!" Xenovia shouted, soon she spun her sword before it began to shake a bit violently, and slammed it into the ground. Suddenly everyone slightly felt the tremors where Kiba was knocked back on his feet as a crater formed where she slammed down.

"This sword is called Excalibur _Destruction_ for a reason, I assure you the name's not just for show!"

"So, it's still this strong as seven pieces? Well... then I guess there's going to be a lot of carnage for me to take them all down." Kiba said, scaring Rias slightly with his words. The shock from Xenovia's attack finally got Irina to pay attention.

"Oh right, unfortunately we still have a battle to finish. Issei... this hurts me much worse than it hurts you!" Irina shouted as she swung her sword, and it stretches out like a whip. Issei summons the Boosted Gear and defends against it. "The Boosted Gear?"

**[BOOST!]**

"Surprised? Thought you might be, and if that's not all I'm not harmed by holy attacks that hit it." Issei smirks.

**[BOOST!]**

"Then I guess I don't have to worry as badly about accidentally killing you. Let's finish this!" Irina said, readying her sword. Issei soon holds up his sacred gear.

**[EXPLOSION!]**

Green energy surges around Issei as he spreads out his Devil wings.

"Here we go!" Issei shouted, he rushed forward at Irina and jumps at her, and due to her panic, she ducks from his charge... and Issei flies by her, Asia and Shirone see him scream as he flies between the two of them and crashing into a tree hard. Vali panics as she sees this, while Irina gets close and pokes him with a stick.

"You alright?" Irina asked, soon seeing Issei groan to prove he was still living. "Guess we should continue the duel now, that sound good?"

"...Nope."

"Hmm?" Irina asked confused.

"I'd rather not right you, let's just call it a draw." Issei said, he honestly didn't want to fight, and would take any excuse to get out of it.

"...Yeah, me too. Let's go with that." Irina said, everyone watching them sweat dropped at the sight.

"Why'd we even make those two fight again?" Valerie asked.

"I think it was Vali's idea." Rias replied, the Hakuryuukou did not change her expression as a way to imply to the others she actually hadn't. Jeanne and Arthur's duel continued as they both used their speed to rush around the forest area before returning into view. Arthur dodged a slash by Jeanne, but...

"You did good, but... not good enough." Jeanne said smiling as she sheathed her sword, Arthur suddenly felt his arm burn a bit as he saw she had managed to strike him. Vali noticed this.

"Very well Jeanne, I accept your victory over Arthur." Vali stated, not wanting to risk Arthur pushing himself and suffering a worse injury. The Pendragon swordsman sighed and nodded as he agreed with Vali's decision. At the same time, Kiba shouted a bit as he used Sword Birth to make a sword similar to Excalibur Destruction.

"Let's see which of our destructive swords is more destructive! Your Holy Blade or my Cursed Blade!" Kiba screamed, he rushed forward at Xenovia, but the sword's weight removed his speed. Xenovia sighed and rushed at him, only slamming the sword's hilt into his stomach and making him cough up blood.

"Your only weapons are a bunch of swords and your speed, not only do you not have the strength wield a large heavy sword, but you seal away your speed in doing so." Xenovia bluntly stated, clearly wanting to let Kiba know how dumb his final move had been. "Please tell me you didn't realize that fact."

Kiba reached out as Xenovia walked away, it had been clear who the victor was.

"Looks like the end, so I assume your satisfied now Rias Gremory? Vali Lucifer?" Xenovia asked, picking up her robe.

"Yes, I'm glad you didn't leave a serious blow to Kiba either." Rias answered.

"Same with me, but to make it clear I won't be if you try anything with Asia again. Understood?" Vali answered, giving a glare at the last part.

"Very well, if it means that we can search for the stolen Excaliburs without being impeded I will respect your servant's stance." Xenovia replied, Jeanne back in her original outfit and personality before putting her robe on, followed by Irina.

"Just out of curiosity, do you know which Fallen Angel was guilty of this?" Yuuma asked, making Xenovia stare at her and get her a little panicked. "I-It's just that I used to work in Grigori and there were rumors about some acting out of orders. M-my sister was even in a group who went rogue so..."

"What Yuuma's trying to say is it's better if I tell Azazel about this, if you did somehow fail then we shouldn't let the culprit's identity stay hidden." Vali finished.

"Valid point, very well then." Xenovia answered. "It was one of the cadre, Kokabiel."

Vali's eyes widen at that.

"Kokabiel!?" Vali breathed, that was bad news on so many levels that not even Azazel would joke about it. "Are you planning to die? There's no way you can take him down, if the church said you had any chance then they're wrong. By all means I can tell you that you'll be doomed to failure."

"We do what we must to get back the swords. We understand the danger, there's already been a casualty." Jeanne answered. "A priest who came to check things out in advanced was killed last night."

"...I know who did it, I saw him murdered." Kiba said, getting everyone's attention. "It was Freed Sellzen, and he definitely had an Excalibur."

"That psycho's here!?" Issei shouted surprised, that psychopathic priest had been a fair share of problems during Raynare's little crusade to take Asia's Twilight Healing.

"So, a stray priest, at least we know what we're up against." Xenovia noted, soon the trio began to head off. "Don't involve yourself further in our affairs."

"See you Issei, if I get the chance I'll come visit you anytime." Irina giggled before following, making Vali glare lightly at her.

"Please don't..." Vali said under her breath. Kiba breathes heavily before getting up, starting to walk away.

"Where are you going Kiba?" Rias called out, trying to stop him. "You do realize I'll never permit me you to leave me. Remember, you are a Knight of the House of Gremory."

"...I know, and I'm sorry." Kiba said, using his speed to run off to Rias' horror.

"...Kiba." Rias breathed.

"Um, how bad is it he just left like that?" Asia wondered.

"Quite bad Asia." Vali answered, grimacing as she recalled Vizor's fate. "If something doesn't change soon... Kiba will be marked as a Stray Devil, and marked for death."

Issei, Yuuma and Asia all gasped at that.

* * *

Meanwhile at a hospital in the Vatican Church, the sight of a comatose girl resting in a hospital, a breathing mask and a few IVs attached to help watch and monitor her vitals as she continued her usual routine as she had for the past few years. Suddenly some of the nurses suddenly saw her twitch and make a stressed face.

"No... please don't, please..." She breathed.

"She's reacting to something, keep her steady!" A nurse called out as another went to get a doctor, the girl sweating a bit as she breathed faster. Her readings go a bit crazy, and soon she gasps as her eyes open up.

"Isaiah!"

* * *

***falls on the ground laughing* Oh man, that argument between Irina and Vali was golden! I've never laughed this hard in a long time! *breathes* OK, you just saw the first instance of a planned running gag where Vali and Irina always end up arguing about their Childhood Friend status. Not to say they won't get along, it's just the moment Issei's involved in something... that will happen ^^;**

**I hope you like Jeanne's serious side, and her unique battle outfit, that outfit comes from the result of channeling her ancestor's spirit physically into her body. This is why she's different when in battle, her bubbly self is her, and her serious self is Joan of Arc's spirit manifesting through her. I also gave her Hauteclere in a rapier form because of a few reasons.**

**1) The blade's name kinda sounds a bit French to me, and that's where Joan comes from.  
2) It's a purifying blade and she's considered a saint... well, seemed perfect to me.  
3) It has to do with a later plan I have for her.**

**And that twist at the end, I think most of you realize that's Tosca waking up, a slight change from canon is her Sacred Gear's barrier was dispelled easier, but she was still left comatose due to what killed everyone else. Now she's going to find Kiba before he falls to the darkness of his wish for revenge, so let's pray she makes it in time.**

**Oh yeah, I'd like to hear something from all of you. I need to give Tosca a surname since she lacks one, and I'm wondering if since Kiba's name in the project was quickly abandoned due to it being given only for the sake of labeling him as a test subject, if I should also give her a different first name for this story. You can even throw in some suggestions if you'd like.**

**I just ask no one recommend me to make her related to Kiba, and you'll see why down below. Now with that all finished, see you next time when the Dragons start their efforts to try and stop Kiba, while the Gremory Swordsman learns a shocking truth as Tosca leaves the hospital in an attempt to find Kiba.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**  
Gasper/Valerie  
Kiba/Tosca


	13. Chapter 13

**I'm really happy with how the last chapter went, so many of you loved the argument Vali and Irina had, so the running gag between them arguing often will work out well for future instances of it. At the same time, Jeanne's character in this fanfic was well received too, and that's also good because she's got as much of a focus on parts of the Excalibur arc as Kiba which this chapter will begin to explain.**

**Something I'll note real quick, Jeanne is the official leader out of the trio, but as she's usually only being serious when in battle that makes Xenovia need to step up when she's acting as her bubbly naive self... which this chapter will start explaining more about. Also, since some of you brought this up, the reason Xenovia wasn't so cocky when Vali stopped her was because she doesn't want to make Vali use her Primal Abyss on her.**

**Now in regards to Tosca? For a while she has to somehow make it to Japan, and all I can say is she'll make it before the Excalibur arc ends. How she effects things when she arrives will be answered the moment she makes it to Kuoh. I think some of you will be happy to see what'll lead to her starting her journey, because it's in this chapter. Oh, and Tosca wasn't in suspended animation as long as in canon, so she's slightly older here.**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally, or Ddraig and Vritra telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally, or Albion and Vritra telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally, or Ddraig and Albion telepathically}**

* * *

**Today's Concept Talk will be about Tosca's sacred gear, one that hasn't been elaborated on very well if at all in canon. Do note that aside from its effects that protected her from dying from the poison gas, most of this is what I gave the Sacred Gear so there's no confusion.**

** -Adamant Will- **

**A high-level barrier type Sacred Gear currently under the possession of Tosca, one of the Holy Sword Project survivors. It has the ability to focus one's will and desire to defend their loved ones and create shields and barriers that can last for years if left alone, those within the barrier are left in a suspended animation state that prevents them from ageing and don't require food or drinks as sustenance to live.**

**It can also neutralize certain conditions or substances that are within its barriers when created if they are present, as seen by how Tosca was saved from exposure to inhaling poison gas due to creating a barrier around herself. However even if it neutralizes the effects, certain conditions already applied when the barrier forms can still affect the body as Tosca was left comatose from the effects of the poison before they were expelled.**

**When exposed to physical force, the Adamant Will's shields and barriers are said to be able to withstand enough stress that even the force of Gods will need to strike it with multiple blows before they can be shattered. The one weakness of the Sacred Gear is that Tosca herself states she can't make both shields and barriers at the same time, only one or the other.**

* * *

** _Season 2, Excalibur Arc: Chapter 3 - Regrets of Arc_ **

Tosca was running through the forest nearby the church, having escaped the Hospital the moment she woke up in an attempt to try and find Isaiah in the forest where the Holy Sword Project had taken place, still unaware to the fact that she had been comatose for years. The only sign being her atrophy weakened muscles which she could only even walk on due to magic that had been healing her during this time.

"ISAIAH!" Tosca called out, panting as she kept running. She nearly tripped a few times due to her weakened muscles and then eventually... she fell to the ground, looking up she found the same building the nightmare she had lived in began and gasped, but it was in pieces and abandoned. "...What's going on?"

"So, this is where you ran off to."

Tosca turned briefly to see an 87-year old man with white hair and wrinkles on his face. While that fit the usual appearance of someone elderly, the rest of his body was that of an extremely muscular man, including a thick neck, chest, arms, and legs that had about the same girth as Issei's own.

"W-who are you?" Tosca asked, a bit frightened at the old man as he neared her... and simply picked her up.

"The name's Vasco Strada, pleasure to meet you little lady." Vasco introduced, surprising the young teenage girl. Vasco was a legend and inspiration to many Holy Sword project participants as he was the previous wielder of the Holy Sword Durandal.

"And I see you've noticed this place is in ruins, this nightmare was abandoned ever since we learned what that bastard did to you children. You're only one of three survivors. That was years ago."

"Y-years!?" Tosca suddenly shouted, finally looking at herself and noticing she had become slightly older in appearance than she last remembered. "No way... wait, what about Isaiah? Did he make it out, we all saw him run, did he get away! please, I need to-"

"Breathe little one, your friend got away. Though I believe he's known as Kiba Yuuto nowadays." Vasco answered, and Tosca calmed down a bit as she heard that. "Though that was only because a kind Devil found him and brought him back to life. I don't think he's even aware you or the other girl are alive."

"Isaiah..." Tosca breathed, tearing up a bit before giving a serious look. "Please, I need to see him! Where is he?"

"He isn't in this country anymore unfortunately." Vasco answered, and Tosca looked like she was about to look disheartened and start crying. Vasco however wagged his finger. "Don't give in just yet, I think I can help get you there if you'd like."

"R-really!?" Tosca gasped in surprise.

"Yeah, my honor as a member of the church. The only question is... are you ready to face anything to see him?" Vasco asked, and Tosca stared at him. After a bit of thought...

"Yes, I need to see him again... so he knows he's not alone anymore!"

* * *

Meanwhile back in Japan, it was already night as the church trio was back in the church, Irina was splashing herself with water as she and Jeanne attempted to bathe themselves the best they could in the water limited "bath" they were in.

"Aw man... we can't even take a bath comfortably." Irina groaned, she knew they had to be resourceful but... this was taking it kinda far. Jeanne sighs in response as she dipped her head under briefly.

"No doubt about it, this is a trial from God we need to face!" Jeanne said, holding up her fist for emphasis. Irina just stared at her blankly as Xenovia walked into view. "...What?

"Do you really believe that? After all, you were the one who spent all our money on that picture!" Xenovia declared, pointing to a very weird picture that was obvious to most people was a phony.

"The exhibitionist said that was a picture of an honest to goodness holy picture and you know it! Why would he lie!?" Jeanne replied angrily.

"I get that, but why did you need to actually BUY the picture?" Xenovia groaned, and Irina nearly face faulted at that. She didn't have the heart to tell either of them it was a fake picture. "What are we gonna use it for? To impress our enemies to giving the swords back?"

"That's a church treasure and it belongs back with the church!" Jeanne answered back, soon Irina and Xenovia slump to the ground and sit down.

The priest who came to the town the following day was murdered by Freed Sellzen, their talk with the Devils nearly had them piss off the heiress of the Lucifer Clan in Xenovia's attempt to execute Asia and "purify" her soul, and now Jeanne had gotten them all broke.

"Jeanne, remind me again why you're our leader?" Xenovia groaned as she facepalmed, Irina just sighing.

"Wow... you get REALLY depressed when you get depressed." Jeanne replied, and soon the trio heard their stomachs growl as they blush.

"Well I guess now all we can do is try finding a way to get something to eat. We're not getting the Excaliburs like this, and I'm not taking money unless by a generous donation. I guess our best bet is going out on main street and hoping people are kind enough to aid us."

Jeanne soon noticed the two staring at her.

"What?"

"I thought you only acted serious when you were fighting, is it a bit more open than that." Irina asked, making Jeanne flinch slightly with only the night hiding it from the two. Soon they suddenly saw Jeanne giggling in her bubbly persona.

"You think that was me in my serious mode? Of course not, I mean I don't even know how we'll be asking for donations!" Jeanne replied, soon faking her coughing a bit. "Well if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go dry off now."

The two looked at each other and then Jeanne walking off, confused on what they just saw happen. One Jeanne was out of sight, she gave a somber face while she began drying herself with a towel and sighing at how she exposed her true self.

"I can't believe I let the real me slip out there..."

Jeanne flashed to the moment the trio had seen Kiba at the door, and how her face contorted in shock at the sight of him as she quickly realized who he really was. Someone she never expected to meet again, or realized was still alive.

At that same moment, an image of her, Kiba and Tosca during the time of the Holy Sword project flashed through her head, as the day she was taken away after it was learned she inherited Joan of Arc's spirit without either of them learning she had left before the fatal moment things took a dark turn.

"...Then again, I never thought you'd be there. So, you really did get away alive Isaiah." Jeanne said to herself, gripping part of her towel tightly. Tears slide down her face as she cries silently. "I'm sorry I wasn't there when I should have been... I'm so sorry big brother!"

Jeanne's eyes keep shedding their silent tears before she breathes and begins a forced laugh.

"Oh, what am I saying? I'm just a naive happy go lucky idiot, these are the kind of mistakes I make constantly. I'm no leader... I'm just Jeanne, the silly strange church exorcist." Jeanne said, the tears still streaming down her face as she keeps her quiet giggle going.

* * *

The following morning at Kuoh Academy, Aika and the Perverted Duo were in the hall with Asia and a distracted Issei as the glasses wearing girl announced something.

"Congrats, we're gonna karaoke with you all!" Aika declared, pointing at Issei and Asia. Motohama and Matsuda soon stuck their faces into view as they showed anticipation from a certain blonde hopefully coming.

"You're coming along too, right Asia?" Motohama asked.

"Yeah, I'm planning on it." Asia answered, making the two give victory poses.

"Oh, hell yes, that's a win for us!" Matsuda shouted excitedly, Asia soon noticed Issei staring out at the field as he watched Vali help out a teacher during a first-year class' gym class. Before Asia knew it, Saji had walked into the area and neared her.

"Hey Asia, be careful not to let all their loser rub off on you."

Asia blushed once he saw how close he was.

"Oh, how are you doing Saji?" Asia asked.

"Better now that I've laid eyes on you, are you sure you're not an Angel because I'm sure you fell from Heaven." Saji replied, the Perverted Duo all growl at him. Issei turned towards him at that moment. "See? That's what I'm talking about, such aggression."

'That's weird, I feel something different from Saji.' Issei thought.

**[So, you've finally noticed his essence?]** Ddraig telepathically answered, catching Issei's attention. **[You and Vali aren't the only ones with Dragons.]**

'A Dragon... hey, wait a second. That gives me an idea.' Issei thought, Vali turned from where she was and stared as she suddenly got a similar idea to her boyfriend's.

* * *

Issei was seen having a small orange juice at cafe called "Cafe de Chaton" as he waited for someone, he was sipping his drink and didn't notice his guest had even walked up to the table right at that moment.

"Hey, Hyoudou."

Issei opened his eyes and saw Saji had finally showed up.

"Oh! Hey, sorry for calling you out here." Issei stated, hoping Saji wasn't too busy with anything.

"No worries mean, so what's up?" Saji asked, after taking a seat down at the table, Issei began whispering everything to him through his ear. Needless to say, Saji's eyes widening at what he heard was both an appropriate reaction and with good reason.

"Hell no! Are you even serious!?" Saji asked, trying to make sure he heard everything right.

"As serious as a heart attack dude!" Issei answered.

"YOU'RE INSANE!" Saji screamed as he stood, getting the nearby guests attention before sitting back down embarrassed.

"You realize both our Presidents and Rias will punish us for getting involved with the swords, and you still wanna go out and destroy them? We're gonna get murdered for sure! I mean you've got Vali, and she's not that strict and only really scolds you. Then there's Rias, she's strict but also reasonable... but Sona's draconian with her punishments! No way man, you're on your own!"

Saji attempts to leave, only to suddenly be grabbed by Vali who was sitting at the table had walked towards. Both he and Issei turned to see her and gasped.

"Sorry Saji, but you're staying put." Vali replied, soon forcing him onto a chair of her table. "Issei, please sit over here."

Issei gulps and moves over, expecting said scolding Saji mentioned until...

"So, you and I had the same idea?" Vali replied, surprising the other two Devils with her reply. "To cooperate with the church to help Kiba, but as Dragons instead of Devils."

"Wait... huh?" Saji replied, now suddenly lost why he was even here.

"So, you really don't know Saji? I asked Sona about your Absorption Line when I was curious about what let you take up half her pawns." Vali explained, getting Saji's attention. "It's part of a set of four Sacred Gears, all of which contain the soul of the only Evil Dragon among the Five Dragon Kings, Prison Dragon Vritra."

"What? I have a Dragon!?" Saji said in surprise, looking at the hand where his sacred gear appeared when in use. "Whoa... then it's more bad ass then I thought."

"If you help us out on this, I think I can get Sona to punish you less by telling her we'll let Issei summon Tiamat to train you. She'll probably think it's worse when it's a more opinionated idea." Vali continued, soon sliding a paper to him.

"Also, my father happens to have the other three pieces of Vritra. I can convince them to give them to you and expand your arsenal. I think Sona would prefer one of her peerage members being more versatile when the time for a Rating Game comes."

Saji sweated as he thought about this, the upside? Tiamat's training would be rough but more beneficial than just getting his rear end spanked 1000 times, and three added Sacred Gears was also a plus. The downside? Well... he could die, Sona might still punish him, and the plan seemed crazy already.

"Tell you what? Let's go find those three first, depending how things go you can drop out or join us. That sound good?" Vali asked, and Saji sweated before sighing.

"Fine... you'll probably just drag me along anyways." Saji sighed, he knew both of them were stronger than him. Soon Vali paid for their drinks and the three began walking to find the church trio, Saji looking down as they walked around.

"Now the question is, where are they? We aren't just gonna walk into a trio of white robes on main street." Issei wondered, and at that moment...

"Please have mercy, we're pitiful compared to you!"

Irina's voice entered his ears and the three turned, they saw the trio holding a donation box and they all sweat dropped at the sight as everyone walked by them with odd stares.

"...I don't wanna know." Vali muttered to herself, soon taking out her wallet in advance. It wasn't long before the six were in a restaurant with the trio scarfing down food like they were digging for buried treasure.

"So delicious!" Xenovia commented.

"This is heavenly!" Jeanne agreed.

"It's like food for the soul!" Irina smiled.

The three Devils all stared at them oddly, it was a bit uncomfortable to see them scarf all of this food down.

"It's like they were fasting." Saji commented to himself, and after a bit the last plate was emptied. The church trio soon all gave dark looks at this fact. "Uh... are you all OK?"

"What just happened? Even if this will build our faith..." Xenovia started, shaking a bit.

"...We just let ourselves go like a bunch of pigs! We've committed the sin of gluttony, the horror!" Jeanne finished, crying a bit.

"We've practically sold ourselves to the Devils, how will we ever be forgiven." Irina replied, making a praying motion.

"That's our thanks for buying you food!?" Issei blurted out, almost as if he heard something crazy. "Well... guess pigging out is a bit bad sometimes."

Irina wipes her mouth real quick.

"Oh lord, have mercy on these kind souls. Even if they are devils." Irina asked, making a cross motion. Soon she suddenly heard the three screaming, all holding their heads as the prayer hurt them, making her gasp. "Oh, I'm sorry! That's kinda a habit!"

"It's fine! Just turn it off, please!" Vali screamed, getting the worst of it due to her heritage.

After it stopped and Xenovia took a sip of her water, she placed it back down and gave them a serious look.

"Alright, what's the deal? What is it you'd like to talk about?" Xenovia asked.

"We want to help you destroy Excalibur. Not as Devils, but as Dragons." Vali answered, catching the three by surprise.

"There's no way you'll be able to beat Kokabiel as you are, and I think you've realized this, you need help and if it came be from Devils then we're the next best thing. Not to mention we have something at stake... Kiba won't listen to you asking him to back off. Wouldn't it be better if we could at least get him to cooperate? If he at least destroys one sword, that might just be enough."

The three looked at each other and began to think, soon Jeanne spoke up.

"Alright, I guess we don't mind one sword." Jeanne answered, admittedly mostly due to Kiba being involved. Irina and Xenovia showed surprise to the fast reply while Saji looked like he wished they had refused.

"Well... if she doesn't mind, neither do I." Irina replied. Xenovia thought over it for a bit longer, then made her decision.

"Kokabiel is too dangerous, I'll admit that. I doubt we'd even get one of the swords away despite we were prepared to sacrifice ourselves for this cause." Xenovia answered, sighing a bit. "I guess we can accept you claiming to aid us as Dragons rather than Devils."

Vali sighed in relief at that, now there was only one thing left to do.

* * *

After using her Familiar to search him out, the group managed to find by the park's fountain and met up with him.

"What do you want?" Kiba said, his mood having not improved a bit since yesterday. Jeanne could only slightly look away to hide her saddened face from everyone.

"I thought you might want to know we've managed to convince these three to a small truce of sorts." Issei answered, getting the knight's attention. "They'll let you destroy one Excalibur if you do it on their terms."

"...I get it, but I'm quite disappointed someone who can wield an Excalibur would approve of its destruction." Kiba replied.

"Speaking of disappointing, didn't you leave your place in Rias Gremory's households?" Xenovia asked, making Kiba react slightly as she reached to hold her sword's handle tightly. "Time is the only reason you're not a stray. By all means we have the right to cut you down this instant."

Kiba grabbed his sword, a fight looking it may start until both saw a stream of darkness inches away from them. Vali giving off her chilling anger as her Primal Abyss stayed in place as a warning sign until both stood down. Taking this chance, Jeanne speaks up.

"Kiba, I know you resent the Holy Sword project and what it did to you. Know we understand. When the church found out, the entire research behind it was destroyed." Jeanne quickly said, getting Kiba's attention. "The man in charge was also expelled for such a waste of life as well."

"His name's Valper Galilei, is that familiar to you? You might also know his name as the Genocide Archbishop." Irina added, making Kiba gasp.

"Yeah, I know him. He was responsible... all of it was him." Kiba growled, tightening his fist. "And you're saying he may be involved?"

Xenovia shook her head.

"Not may, we're positive he is. Freed Sellzen's possession of an Excalibur is all but complete proof of this fact." Xenovia replied, while she wasn't definitely sure, Freed based on what she remembered wasn't able to use an Excalibur when with the church.

"After hearing that, then there's no reason not to cooperate with you." Kiba sighed, turning to the group. "I'll accept your conditions."

Jeanne sighed in relief, glad that Kiba didn't do something he'd regret.

"We'll make sure to properly thank you for the food in the future. Hakuryuukou Vali Lucifer." Xenovia said with a light smile, the church trio soon left afterwards. As they did, Jeanne took a look behind them.

"...I wonder if we should have told Kiba about the other survivors?" Jeanne wondered aloud, getting Irina's attention.

"You seem to be oddly focused on that all of a sudden." Irina commented, and Jeanne sighed.

"Because I saw the bodies, and had to help move them for the funerals. You'd understand if you had seen the same horror scene I did." Jeanne replied, shaking her head. "Let me tell you exactly what I recall hearing and the result."

Meanwhile back at the fountain with the others, Issei sighed.

"This is good news, isn't it?" Issei stated, patting Saji on the back. However, Saji's reaction?

"THIS IS NOT GOOD NEWS!" Saji screamed, making Issei and Vali cover their ears. "We nearly started another war with the church! Especially you Vali, shouldn't the Lucifer heiress be smarter than this!"

Vali cleaned her one ear as Saji breathed, his frustrations finally out.

"Issei. Vali." Kiba stated, getting their attention. "Stay out of this."

The three were surprised.

"This is my revenge, I can't allow you to get involved-"

"I don't wanna hear it!" Issei yelled, catching Kiba by surprise. "How can you expect us to just let you go and possibly become a stray? Have you thought about the others, have you thought about Rias!?"

"...President Rias, of course. I'd be dead if she hadn't found me that day. Yet even she doesn't know the true depths of that living nightmare." Kiba muttered.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

Many kids were seen gathered in a single dark church room, Kiba, Tosca and Jeanne all present. Every child had a sad look on their face as they were sitting in this room. Strangely enough, Kiba's eyes were blue in comparison to his currently gray eyes, while Tosca had brown hair.

**"We were just kids being experimented on. Day, after day, after day... our freedom was taken, and we weren't even treated as humans. Yet we believed we were all chosen by God. We held to those beliefs, hoping eventually we'd become special."**

Soon the kids constantly came back with no results, many collapsing, having some kind of physical change in their genes that altered their hair or eye color, or some even getting incredibly ill. Jeanne caught Tosca and Kiba as they came back from an experiment, both of them weak and now Tosca's hair completely white while Kiba had his usual gray eyes now.

**"But none of us became able to wield a Holy Sword. The experiment failed, and then... to cover up what had happened, they decided to kill us rather than just letting us go."**

Soon Jeanne was seen being taken by someone into another room, right as the doors were kicked down and masked men began firing off poison gas into the room, the children all gave looks of horror before they either teared up, began coughing and choking, some even vomiting blood.

**"In moments we were vomiting blood, and writing on the floor in pain. We looked to God to save, but when nothing did, there was only one thing anyone could do..."**

Seeing the open door, everyone who couldn't move their legs grabbed the men and held them down. Kiba was the only child who was left able to move soon after and stared in horror.

"RUN AWAY!" A boy choked out.

"Hurry, save yourself!" A girl cried out as she held a man's leg, coughing up blood.

"Isaiah... please go." Tosca barely breathed out.

Knowing he couldn't let their efforts be in vain, Kiba ran out while crying and trying to get out of the snowy landscape of the forest. He managed to avoid the people chasing him, but suddenly the bit of poison gas he inhaled began attacking his body and he fell, coughing out blood. His eyes slowly becoming lifeless.

"No... I have to make things right! I have to avenge my comrades, my friends, my... sister." Kiba whispered, grabbing the snow. "I can't die yet... I have to... live..."

Kiba's body soon collapsed, finally succumbing to death. At that moment the sight of flowing red hair was seen as Rias in a white winter coat was seen.

"Not today." Rias replied, walking closer. "I shall not let you die, so from now on... live for me."

Rias' smiling face stared at him as her hair was blown by the wind.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

The same image of Rias' face appeared to Kiba via the fountain's waters, soon disappearing as he continued his story to the three already horrified Devils.

"I thank Rias from the bottom of my heart for taking me in, but..." Kiba finished, facing them once again.

"The only reason I met her was because my friends and my younger sister allowed me to run away. They're the real reason I'm still here. That's why I had to destroy Excalibur, my swords... contain my friends' pain. As the only survivor, I have no choice."

Saji began wailing suddenly.

"Oh Kiba! I had no idea you had such a tragically messed up past!" Saji cried out, soon grabbing Issei's hands. "Hyoudou! Put me in, I don't care about any possible punishments anymore! I can't walk away from this now!"

"Thanks man, that's cool." Issei said, sweating a bit. Kiba stares before sighing and smiling.

"I guess if even you're helping out on this, then I've lost." Kiba replied, soon turning to them. "Plus, we all know who the real enemy is, I'll accept your help."

"You mean it? Yes!" Issei shouted.

"Now the hard part, I've gotta tell Rias about this." Vali sighed, making Saji and Issei flinch slightly. "Wish me luck."

* * *

Meanwhile in Sona's sauna, Sona and Rias were washing up with Vali appearing via a hologram in a small a magic circle before them.

"-And that's what we'll be doing." Vali explained, clearly struggling to not show her nervousness or worry. "If anything happens Rias, you can shove all the blame on me and Issei. As for you Sona, if you have to punish Saji I think Tiamat can give him something worse than what you could."

The two looked at each other, and soon Rias sighed.

"If I know you, your mind's already made up. Be careful." Rias replied, Sona looked for a bit before closing her eyes and cleaning her glasses.

"I'll allow Saji to help, but you will make it clear he has to suffer under whatever Tiamat requests of him. Understood?" Sona stated, making Vali nod.

"Understand, I thank you for your understanding." Vali nodded, the magic circle disappearing.

After it did, Sona noticed the look on Rias' face.

"Is something wrong?"

"...Do you think a made a mistake with Kiba?" Rias asked.

"He is still part of your household, isn't he? I believe it's true his feelings got the better of him, but from what we just saw right now, I'm sure he'll always be a member of your house." Sona answered, making Rias look at her. "Kiba will come back to you Rias, they'll make sure of it."

Rias smiles at that, a huge weight shifted from her shoulders.

"Thank you Sona." Rias replied.

* * *

Meanwhile in Issei's room, the Sekiryuutei checked the time before he decided to pick up the phone. Calling Cassiel's number.

"Hello?"

"_If it ain't my favorite Devil, what's up with the sudden call?_" Cassiel replied from her end.

"Yeah... I know this is sudden, but I won't be able to make it to today's summoning." Issei answered, sighing a bit. "Something came up, Devil specific problems."

"_Oh? Alright, that's fine, I'll just wait until some other time then._" Cassiel nodded, understanding the situation. "_Later._"

The phone hangs up, and soon Vali walks in.

"Ready to go Issei? Saji's already waiting for us with Kiba and the trio at the church." Vali asked.

"Yeah, let's do this." Issei said, the two heading out and meeting up with the others on foot.

* * *

Meanwhile at the docks, Cassiel put her phone away and sighs.

"Of course, only a Devil has the kind of problems to cancel on me at the last moment. What kind of problem's brewing for you Sekiryuutei?" Cassiel wondered to herself, soon noticing a certain aura land near her and make her smirk. "Hey, you came to keep me company?"

"You get lonely? Didn't think the Demon Queen would say that, it's funny." The figure stated.

The one standing before Cassiel was a cute young girl with long black hair down to her hips and gray eyes. Her ears differed from a normal human's as they had pointed tips, although her long black hair hid this from most people. Her attire consisted of a white Gothic Lolita fashion with the exception of her black pants.

"Really? Huh, well guess you taught me something new Ophis."

* * *

Inside the church, the Devils all began putting on priest's clothing. Vali had to struggle a bit to get hers on due to her... assets getting in the way. Once they were all done, they put on the priest hats.

"A devil wearing a priest's outfit, never thought I'd see the day." Saji commented.

"Nothing will stand in the way of me and my goal." Kiba claimed, his face looking as serious as could be.

"I think we'll be more efficient in two groups. Let's split up, you take the East while we'll take the West part of town. Call the cell if anything comes up." Xenovia replied, making the others know. Right before they did...

"Oh wait, Kiba." Jeanne called out, making the Devil swordsman turn.

"What is it?" Kiba asked.

"This is something we probably should have told you when you agreed to our terms earlier, so let me amend that issue now." Jeanne said, walking closer to Kiba. "You should know that you're not the only survivor of the Holy Sword project. There were two others who lived through it."

Kiba gasped in shock.

"What? Who are they, who was it that survived?" Kiba asked, unable to believe what he had just heard. Two of his comrades had made it out like he did for all these years. "Not to mention how?"

"The first is a girl named Tosca, she awakened her sacred gear and it saved her. Unfortunately, she's comatose at the moment and under a church hospital's care." Jeanne answered, and while she wanted to tell her brother the truth... she just couldn't reveal herself to him.

"The second we're not completely sure about, he or she was one of the others not in the main room at the time. When they saw the gas they instantly fled and ran off. Their status and who it was is still not fully known. I'm sorry I can't tell you more, but when Tosca awakens we can at least guarantee we'll have you reunite. She'll likely want to see you when she does."

"...Thank you, it doesn't help give me full closure, but I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who survived that horror." Kiba replied, Jeanne smiled lightly. Trying to hide her eyes showing her actual sad look.

After that, everyone began heading towards their respective areas, before that though, Vali stopped Saji in place and held out three small purple orbs in her hands towards him.

"What are these?" Saji asked.

"The other Vritra gears like I promised, my dad morphed them into this state, so it would be easier for you to absorb them into you." Vali explained, dropping them into his hands. Suddenly he grunts as they sink in. "It might hurt a bit, and for a while I'd only use your Absorption Line to be safe. As for the last bonus?"

Once the spheres sunk in, Saji's hand lights up purple for a moment.

**{...Ugh}** A voice groaned out, before roaring to everyone's annoyance. **{What the hell's going on? I was having such a nice nap, who woke me up!?}**

**[Good to see you again Vritra, glad you finally rejoined the land of the living!]** Ddraig chuckled, catching Vritra's attention.

**{Ddraig? I see, so I've finally come to another possessor's awakening.}** Vritra realized, soon noticing Saji. **{So, you're my partner then? Nice to finally meet you, looking forward to seeing how you'll grow.}**

"Uh... thanks I guess, nice to meet you." Saji replied, not used to having Vritra speak to him yet. "So where should we go next?"

"I think I know where to go, I'm sure of it." Kiba answered, almost as if part of him knew where to start looking. The group soon follows him until they end up at the same building they had faced Vizor at.

"I remember this place, it's where we took on that Stray Devil." Issei commented, realizing the place. "Definitely seems like it draws trouble."

Suddenly everyone's danger sense went off. Kiba suddenly drew his sword as none other than Freed jumped down, slashing his sword as he cackled heavily before being thrown off.

"Ooh, a whole group of priests! This should be fun!" Freed cackled.

"Sorry to disappoint you then!" Vali called out.

Everyone ripped off their priest outfits, summoning their Sacred Gears as they did. Freed chuckles at this.

"Ah, if it isn't the little Devil bastards!" Freed laughs as he drew Excalibur Rapidly, the sword glowing in response. "I was looking forward to priests, but I think I'll be having fun with you instead!"

"So is that..." Saji wondered, and Kiba nods.

"That's an Excalibur alright, better let me take the lead guys." Kiba answered before shouting at charging at Freed, and everyone soon noticed their speed was even.

"Their speed is even." Vali noticed, soon opening her cell phone and sending a message. "This Excalibur must give someone speed like that of Knight piece, Kiba's main advantage is gone."

**[BOOST!]**

"I could Boost Kiba and you could Divide Freed, but the problem is we can't do that while that psycho priest is moving." Issei grunted.

"So, wait, you just need to hold him down, right? Allow me then. LINE UP!" Saji called out, the Absorption Line's eyes make an angry face before its mouth opens and tongues extend out to grab Freed by the leg.

**{Nice shot kid! Now, time for me to show you what I can really do!}** Vritra replied, impressed with Saji's aim. Soon the tongue glows as it begins draining away Freed's power. The priest begins trying to cut the tongue but fails as Vritra sucks away his strength.

"Damn it! This must be one of those Dragon sorts, stop sapping me dry!" Freed growled, quickly getting annoyed as the tongue wouldn't snap. Vali picked up Issei right afterwards.

"Go for it Issei!" Vali shouted as she tossed him towards Kiba, the Sekiryuutei screamed in midair before he flipped and neared Kiba.

"Here Kiba!" Issei shouted as he high-fived Kiba in midair.

**[TRANSFER!]**

Kiba feels his power multiple, and smiles in response.

"This power is a gift... I'll use it wisely!" Kiba smirked, soon swinging his Holy Eraser. "SWORD... BIRTH!"

Freed saw a bunch of swords near him and slashed into them, trying to not be overwhelmed by them.

"Sword Birth huh?"

The sudden voice surprised everyone as a fat looking old man walked into view, he had a white archbishop outfit and wore glasses. His scruffy gray hair and mustache may have made him look gentle outside... but that was far from the truth.

"Oh look, old man Valper!" Freed called out, making Kiba's eyes widen in response.

"So that's the guy Xenovia mentioned?" Saji asked.

"VALPER GALILEI!" Kiba screamed, his hidden anger rushing to the surface of his being as he saw the man that took the lives of so many he knew. Including that of his own sister's. The man turned at Kiba with a smug look.

"The one and only. Freed, channel the holy elements into the sword's blade. That'll cut that tongue off." Valper replied, and Freed blinked before making a savage grin and shouting. His body glowed as she slashed the tongue off.

**{GAH!}** Vritra cried out, feeling slight pain from the attack. **{The bastard!}**

"Oh yeah, I like this game!" Freed smirked before rushing at Kiba, however before he could reach him...

"**BLADE BLACKSMITH!**"

Suddenly a bunch of swords formed in the air and flew at him, forcing him to parry them. Kiba saw Jeanne drop in front of him, Excalibur Blessing in hand.

"Jeanne?" Kiba said surprised.

"Yoo-hoo!"

The others turned to see Irina and Xenovia run onto the scene, their swords in hand.

"Nice timing you guys." Vali smirked.

"You're both traitors! Here me Freed Sellzen, and Valper Galilei! Jeanne began, an angry look on her face. "I condemn your souls in the name of god!"

Freed growls and jumps back.

"We're done here, let's go." Valper said, Freed grabbing flash bombs. Realizing what he was about to do, Kiba and Jeanne tried to slash at them but were too late.

"Damn it, he got away! I won't let him!" Jeanne yelled, rushing after them with Kiba following.

"Wait, don't run off on..." Irina began, but sighed when they got too far away. "...and there she goes, without even a plan ready."

"So... what do we do now?" Saji asked.

"We can't do anything until we find them again, I guess for now it's best you all head back until we find Kiba and Jeanne. I don't think we can do anymore for tonight." Xenovia replied, and Vali nodded.

"Come on Issei, Saji. It's best we both head back. Hopefully we'll learn something by tomorrow." Vali ordered, and the two both sighed as they began following her back home. Xenovia and Irina running off to try and find Jeanne.

* * *

Deep within the forest, a sudden light spear caused Jeanne to tumble across the ground as Excalibur Blessing flew from her hands. A laughing Freed grabbed it and took it in his hands.

"Ooh, now you're all alone and without your sword! Who's gonna save you girly?" Freed cackled, making Jeanne grunt at him. She screamed and drew out Hauteclere as her battle formed around her. She shouted and rushed forward at Freed, thrusting at him quickly, only for him to dodge.

"I won't give in to you!" Jeanne shouted, trying in vain to strike him as hears flood her eyes. "I won't, I'll never give in! I can't!"

"Oh, are you whining over those priests I killed stealing the swords? Who were they again?" Freed thought, soon cackling. "Who cares? When I ate them, they were finger licking good!"

Jeanne stared at him disgusted, but then suddenly paled as Freed suddenly had his back spasm as he turned into some kind of horrific monster. More specifically, he had transformed into a chimera.

"And I got this bodacious body upgrade from it, now let's see how you handle the mutated monster Freed!" Freed shouted, his voice now deeper and distorted as he rushed at her with the same speed. Jeanne felt herself get cut from all sides, and soon knocked back a bit, barely keeping her ground.

"No, I have to... I..." Jeanne breathed out, soon Freed prepared to finish her. She soon swiped at the air, making a small swirl of flower petals using magic. "...Balance Breaker, Stake Victim Dragon!"

Suddenly Freed felt his eyes burn as a bright flash went off, a bunch of holy swords formed into a Dragon and Jeanne fell onto it, the dragon swiped Freed away with its tail as it quickly retreated with the weakened swords woman on its back.

"Damn it, she got away." Freed growled, a shadowy figure flew near him.

"Don't worry, I believe we can use this to bait the others for what we have planned next." The figure said, his smile giving a cold warning to what was about to come next.

* * *

Issei began heading to the MHC clubroom, for some reason when he woke up, Vali hadn't been there, and his mom said she went out early. Whatever she left for had also made her absent from classes for the day, so Issei couldn't help but get a bad feeling. Once he walked in, Rias and Akeno noticed him while the rest of both clubs were littered about the room.

"Issei, glad you finally made it. I think you've been wondering where Vali went?" Rias asked.

"Wow, am I that obvious?" Issei asked, though he guessed it wasn't that hard to figure out since they lived together. "Yeah, I'd like to know that."

"She's out with our familiars looking for Kiba and the others, there was some signs of trouble last night." Akeno answered, showing one of the rare instances of her serious face. "We might be getting word any moment now."

Soon a magic circle appears by Rias showing a location, she gets up as her face gets a stern look.

"Come on everyone, Vali's found something.

Using a magic circle, they teleported themselves to a road out in the forest area. They all looked as they saw Vali with the injured Jeanne in hand, her head resting on Vali's lap as the silver haired Lucifer noticed them.

"Asia, Valerie! She needs your help quick!" Vali stated, the two healers nodded and got close as they restored Jeanne's injured form. It was only enough to recover her condition, her stamina was still drained. Luckily at that moment, Jeanne regained consciousness and saw everyone.

"Everyone..." Jeanne breathed.

"What happened to you Jeanne? Where are Xenovia, Irina and Kiba?" Issei asked, Jeanne shook her head. "You don't know?"

"Freed attacked me... I lost my Excalibur, I barely got away. I was too weak to do anything!" Jeanne cried, tears flooding down her face. "I'm... sorry Kiba."

At that moment, Jeanne blacked out again.

"Hey, stay with us!" Yuuma panicked, and soon Vali checked her pulse. Yuuma looked worried as she did. "She's not gonna die, is she?"

Vali smiles and shakes her head.

"She's alright, she's just a bit weak. She has Asia and Valerie's healing magic to thank for that." Vali replied, the two smiled as she said that. "Strange she apologized to just Kiba though... that's not important though. Kuroka, take her back to my house until she can regain her strength."

"Understood." Kuroka nodded, taking her in hand before transporting herself via her Senjutsu circle. Sona and Saji soon appeared as well.

"We heard what happened, what's going on?" Sona asked.

"Not sure, we just got here." Issei sighed, worried as everyone else. However, at that very moment, everyone's danger sense went off. "This is... who's there!?"

Suddenly the sky went purple as a being with ten black crow wings flew into view. He had the appearance of a young man with black hair, unlike other Fallen Angels, Kokabiel has pointy ears and his eyes possessed red sclera. Both Yuuma and Vali recognized him instantly.

"Kokabiel!" Vali screamed loudly.

This got everyone's attention, shocking them over the fact a leader class Fallen Angel appeared before them.

"Well if it isn't Vali, how have you been since you associated with the Devil scum you actually are?" Kokabiel grinned, making Vali scowl at him. "I think you should know what I'm planning to do here, don't you?"

"I don't think I'm gonna like this answer..." Issei muttered, and Vali sweated a bit.

"Your eyes... I can't believe it, you know what the Demons who lent that technology to Grigori said it'd do to living beings." Vali growled, her fist tightening.

"Stealing Holy Swords owned by the Angels, using dangerous Demon Magi-Tech, and coming to Kuoh which is a Devil territory while you yourself are a fallen... there's no doubt. The rumors about you were true weren't they!?"

"What do you mean by that Vali?" Sona asked, suddenly feeling a bit unnerved.

"...Kokabiel, he's trying to restart the Great War." Vali breathed out, shocking both Rias and Sona, while scaring the others. "There's only one reason I'd say that makes sense. The one who started the original Great War? I think we're staring at him, it was you wasn't it?"

"Yes. YES! After with how the first war ended, there was nothing to do!" Kokabiel cackled quietly, his eyes glowing fiercely. "Azazel's been so passive on when the next one would start."

"This guy... he's insane!" Saji replied. "He's a war maniac!"

"Angels, Devils, Demons and Fallen Angels... the four of us are all barely in a state of equilibrium. Which means I can start the war at any time with my own two hands! The opportunity is perfect, with Lucifer and Leviathan's little sisters, I'll make your school and this town the perfect war zone!" Kokabiel smirked.

"Nice day for a war, isn't it!?"

Suddenly a bunch of light spears go off at the group, and everyone had to dodge them while Vali and Rias used their clan powers to counter and destroy them. Soon he vanished from view and the sky reverted to normal.

"Where'd he go!?" Le Fay wondered in fear.

"I saw him go towards the Academy, he's serious about destroying this town." Shirone said, sweating as she looked from a tree. Suddenly a magic square appears around Kuoh Academy, and from a distance both Irina and Xenovia notice the light.

"Oh no..." Irina muttered.

Meanwhile from the ORC club room, Kiba stares as the sight of the square's pillar of light shines into the air.

"...Valper."

* * *

**Oh boy, things just got serious for everyone, Kokabiel's made his move and has been revealed to have been the unknown person who began the Great War long ago and intends to do it again. I went with that because it honestly seemed like to me that Kokabiel honestly could have started it, it just fits his character too much since he's obsessed with fighting in wars.**

**Also, surprise twist! You read that right... Jeanne is actually Kiba's younger sister! She only survived the project because it was found out she had inherited Joan of Arc's spirit moments before everyone got gassed. This however has led to her forming a defense mechanism in her mind. That naive bubble persona we've seen from her? Truth is that it's a fake.**

**The serious her we saw when she fought Arthur is the real her, but she feels so guilty she wasn't there for her brother that she acts all naive and happy, so she can ignore everything, including that guilt. To start acting like her real self to her mind means that she has to admit to what happened long ago, and she can't because of the guilt she feels.**

**She's a good leader, but her guilt makes her unable to believe it, hence why Xenovia's forced to take that role for her most of the time. This is why she can't even tell Kiba that she's his long-lost sister, she feels she has no right to for 'abandoning' him.**

**Also, Vasco makes an appearance! I decided that Tosca will have an important part soon enough, and since Vasco helped Tosca get to Kiba in the actual novels, it would make sense for him to do it again here in the story. Get ready everyone, because the Excalibur arc's entering its climax, and now everyone must fight to save their town and stop the world from entering another Great War!**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**  
Gasper/Valerie  
Kiba/Tosca


	14. Chapter 14

**Alright everyone, time for the Excalibur arc's main event... Kokabiel, Valper and Freed VS Everyone!**

**Before we officially begin, here's something I feel the need to share with you all. For a while the thought of getting a Beta Reader had been on my mind as recently I found someone who would be willing to do the job. However, I did a bit of thinking and realized something... that I only considered it because people kept telling me I should through all my stories.**

**That's when I recalled how this story's lack of a true harem was because of the result of fans wanting it, but there was a difference. I wasn't asked, people kept mentioning that they hoped this would be the case. Since the harem was a possibility and not definite, I decided not to do it because most people wanted Issei/Vali only, and after a while even I felt that was a better choice overall. That's when I realized the Beta Reader debacle better.**

**So, I talked with the user I asked to possibly Beta Read my work and I found there's something he and I had in common. While he does need to actually have his work as accurate as possible because he's a professional and needs to do it for a living, he told me what was most important is if he and others enjoy what he wrote. If people didn't then it was fine, because as long as he achieves what he set out to do, nothing else matters.**

**As a result of his words and advice... I've decided I will NOT be getting a Beta Reader, but not because I feel overly confident or prideful. It's because I feel I have a flow that works now, and keeps me happy when I'm writing, and such a big change like a Beta Reader?**

**I just have a strong gut feeling that if I go down that path, I'll stop enjoying myself when I write. My mood can affect my writing, such as stress makes me write slower. If I become miserable... I may not be able to continue writing this story and all of my other stories both current and planned, and I don't think you guys want this story to meet its end.**

**That's why I'm not going to get a Beta Reader, so I can keep writing and be in the mood that guarantees this story will keep going! Most of all, I feel I'll grow as a writer a lot more this way. While I know that the occasional spelling and grammar may bother a small minority of my readers, I want all of you to know I will work to limit it, and that I made this choice for the sake of guaranteeing that my stories will continue.**

**I thank all my readers for taking the time to read and understand my choice here.**

**Also, as three more things before we start this chapter. First, I wanna thank AzureStoryTeller for giving me my first story recommendation. In Ch 15 of his fanfic "The Will to Endure and Protect", he encouraged people to read this story. So, if your reading this Azure, thank you once again ^^**

**Second, I wanna thank ulttoanova for telling me in a PM that I did a great job on "A Dragon's Heavenly Night" and that I one of the best writers he/she's seen on the site. While I feel that might be a bit of an exaggeration... *blushes slightly* it was still really sweet to hear that.**

**And finally, last but not least, a while ago one review made me realize I probably should have brought this up by now, so I'm gonna finally do so before I forget. This story's protagonist is Vali, and Issei is the deuteragonist. Originally, I didn't really plan a big focus on Vali, but that's evolved since I began the story, and was the strongest reason for the Rating Game in the latter half of Season 1 of the story.**

**Issei will have some occasions to shine, but by all means, this story is a bit more about Vali than Issei because while Issei's not that different from canon, the Vali of this story is unique and nothing like her canon self. I hope this is an interesting twist for people, and one that you helped me create by liking how I made this story's version of Vali.**

**Now let's get this chapter started!**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally, or Ddraig and Vritra telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally, or Albion and Vritra telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally, or Ddraig and Albion telepathically}**

* * *

** -Eternal Coffin- **

**The clan ability of the Leviathan household, based on the deadly sin of Envy, and one of the strongest contributing factors in the creation of the icy prison known as Cocytus. This ability manifests as the form of a dark purple ice that doesn't melt from heat or fire like normal ice, those unfortunate to be fully encased in the ice risk being trapped forever without outside aid or the right strength to break free.**

**When the remaining members of the Leviathan clan faced possibly expulsion or destruction due to the actions of Katerea Leviathan and those of her household that aided them, Lilith Lucifer quelled the chaos by requesting the current clan head of the time to give this power to Serafall Sitri who was to be named the new Great Devil Leviathan. As a result, Serafall is currently the only Devil that's not of the Leviathan household to possess this ability.**

* * *

** _Season 2, Excalibur Arc: Chapter 4 - Requiem of the Swordsman_ **

Everyone stared at the magic square that had formed. Kokabiel's plans had begun, and most of the group could already tell what Kokabiel might be planning.

"No way... so they're gonna destroy the entire school with that?" Asia whimpered.

"No... that's just where it'll begin." Le Fay said, shaking slightly as she stared. "That magic square could destroy the entire town!"

"And it would be fairly easy for a man of Kokabiel's caliber to take us all out." Bikou sweated, gripping his staff tightly.

"Rias, Sona, contact your brother and sister right now. This is bigger than us. We need to get any aid we can." Vali replied quickly, soon looking at Issei. "Issei, try summoning Tiamat ASAP. I'll contact my father and grandma and see if we can get their aid."

The three nodded, and Rias and Vali turn to their peerages.

"Come on everyone, let's make our way to the school." Rias ordered, everyone nodded as the group headed over.

* * *

Meanwhile from a town near Kuoh, Tosca and Vasco saw the pillar of light from the magic square, making the former gasp in worry.

"Vasco... what is that?" Tosca asked, shaking with fear as she looks at the sight. Vasco focused his stare and quickly realized what the energy source was from... Excalibur. His fist tightened a bit.

"Trouble, and it's located where your friend is too." Vasco answered, making Tosca gasp. "I won't be able to get you there in time at this rate. So, let me give you this."

Vasco puts a finger to Tosca's forehead, and suddenly she feels herself feeling a bit lighter as a magic circle appears on the old man's finger for a brief moment. She looks at herself before suddenly taking a step back and nearly falling.

"This is a small speed to increase your speed, just keep running straight and you could make it there in time. This is all I can do for your now, it's up to you to make it." Vasco explained, giving her a nod of encouragement.

"O-OK, thank you for everything Mr. Strada!" Tosca replied, soon beginning a sprint towards Kuoh, nearly tripping slightly before regaining her footing and rushing over.

'Please, please hear me dear lord. I need to make it... I need to give Isaiah my strength somehow! I beg you, please give me a way!'

As Tosca ran, a bright cross of light appeared before her, she suddenly stopped as the sight of a figure with golden wings appeared within the cross to her awe.

"Are you... God?" Tosca breathed, not believing in what she was seeing right now.

The being smiles and holds out his hand, causing a blue crystal to float over into her hands, Tosca grabbed it and held it close as a familiar feeling ebbed into her. Almost like... something was calling her.

"Go young one, your friend is waiting for you." Michael replied, soon vanishing in the same cross of light he appeared from. Tosca reached out as it did and then just stared at the crystal in her hands.

"...Isaiah, I'm coming!" Tosca shouted, continuing her run as she pushed everything she had to try and make it to Kiba in time.

* * *

Meanwhile at the school, a bunch of Fallen Angels from Azazel's faction were seen as they gathered their magic to create a barrier around its vicinity. Out of these Fallen Angels, Yuuma noticed both Kalawarner and Mittelt pitching in.

"This barrier should be able to contain the damage from spreading to the town, but only if conditions remain the same as we think they will." Kalawarner explained to Vali, the Hakuryuukou nodding as she did.

"Unfortunately, Azazel and the other cadre won't be able to come. With the proof that Kokabiel's been rogue, his entire faction is under watch and to leave now would risk them escaping to cause more trouble."

"Sorry that all he could send you was us, we wish we could do more than just this too." Mittelt added.

"I understand, I guess it was too much to expect we could get the bigger names of Grigori when one of their own is the mastermind behind all of this." Vali sighed, she at least hoped one of the cadre could have been sent, but perhaps Raynare was a sign that anyone in the organization could be Kokabiel's allies. "Issei, did you contact Tiamat?"

"I did, but she can't come. She says that the Familiar Forest is under attack by some kinda Golem." Issei replied, and Vali grit her teeth again. Looking at Le Fay for confirmation if they were what she thought.

"Yeah Vali, it's a Gogmagog. I'm not sure how they were recovered though, but the timing couldn't have been more perfect for it to not be Kokabiel's work." Le Fay answered, worry on her face.

"We had a bit more luck, my brother and Serafall are on their way now. The only problem is they'll need an hour before they and their forces can arrive, time we may not have." Rias answered, looking towards the magic square.

"I guess it's better than not having their aid in a time like this, my Grandma says she'll be gathering some forces to send over as well." Vali replied, glad that they weren't all going in by themselves. "You're right though... an hour might be too late."

"As much as I hate to say it, we might be the only ones who can stop this." Sona said, a slight worried tone in her voice. "But will it be enough?"

Right at that moment, Kuroka made an appearance through her magic circle.

"Good news, Jeanne's already away. Based on her chi flow, it should be about 15 minutes before she can be in fighting condition again and come aid us." Kuroka replied, looking at the barrier. "So, are we ready for this?"

Vali turns at the barrier.

"Who knows, but let's still give Kokabiel Hell anyways." Vali said, punching her left fist into her right hand.

"Alright, time to enter enemy territory everyone!"

Rias, Sona and Vali's peerages all walk into the barrier and start heading through the school towards the battlefield.

"Promotion, Queen!" Yuuma, Saji and Ruruko all call out as their Pawn pieces gain the powers of a Queen. Soon they made it onto the battlefield and saw the pillar of light forming from the Magic Square up close.

"What is that exactly?" Issei asked, and soon everyone heard Kokabiel laughing.

"That's the four Excaliburs being made into one, it's just so Valper." Kokabiel chuckles, looking at the group. "Glad you all made it. Now is Sirzechs on his way, or is it Serafall instead?"

"Right now it's just us, you should have prepared an invitation instead of throwing a party last minute." Rias smirked, and the Fallen Angel cadre soon formed a light spear and tossed it at the gym. Making it explode.

**"[That's definitely a man who survived a war with God and Satan, that spear was from another dimension.]"** Ddraig noted.

"Think we can still beat him?" Issei asked.

**"[Even if I have to somehow reform my body using your own, we will take this bastard down.]"** Ddraig smirk, making Issei chuckle. **"[Now let's kick his sorry ass!]"**

"Since you came all this way, how about I let you play with my favorite pets!" Kokabiel snaps and suddenly a hole forms on the ground, releasing a fire that caused a three-headed dog, a two-headed dog with a skeletal body, and a one headed dog with a purple flame on its body all appeared in succession.

"T-that's a Cerberus, Orthrus and a Barghest! The watchdogs of the Underworld!" Yuuma said as her body was shaking in fear, a member from each of species of the guardian beasts of the Fallen Angels' homeland were standing right before her. "Bringing them out of our realm's forbidden!"

"Then let's send them back!" Sona replied, everyone readied themselves. Akeno formed her Miko outfit, while everyone with Sacred Gears and weapons called them out immediately.

"Issei, stay back with Asia and Valerie while you build up your boosts to empower us! We're gonna need them!" Vali ordered, making Issei nod as the trio gathered together. Each peerage rushed out towards one of the legendary canines before them.

**-Vali's Peerage vs Cerberus-**

"**Cocytus!**" Vali shouted, using her custom spell to freeze the three-headed mutt as the icy dragon collides with it, but to her surprise it breaks out easily and forces her to put up a barrier as the ice shards fly out. "Damn it, this mutt's resilient! Get it to hold still guys, we gotta let Arthur have an opening to slash it!"

"Right!" Everyone shouted, Yuuma formed light spears at it and tossed them. The Cerberus rushed around and breathed fire at her. She screamed as the flames nearly hit her, but Le Fay threw up a magic barrier to shield her.

"Thanks, I owe you one Le Fay!" Yuuma said, her eyes shedding a few tears of relief.

"No problem, now let's get this doggy to sit." Le Fay smiled, soon holding out her wand to form magic chains. She swings her wand and the Cerberus' rear left leg gets caught by the magical bindings. "Kuroka, Bikou! Help me out here!"

"Ruyi Jingu Bang!"

"Taste my Demon Arts!" Kuroka called out, writing the demonic letters to trap the Cerberus' front legs under the collapsing ground while Bikou's staff hits its remaining rear leg. The beast toppled to the ground as its legs could no longer support it.

"Now big brother!" Le Fay yelled, making Arthur nod.

"Right." Arthur draws Caliburn and rushes forward, swinging Caliburn to cut the Cerberus down the middle and cause the creature to be purged by the holy power in the blade. "And that takes care of this beast."

**-Sona's Peerage Vs Orthrus-**

"Here it comes!" Tomoe yelled out, drawing her sword as the Orthrus rushes at the group. The skeletal dog tries to bite down on Tomoe as she holds up her sword to block its jaws, as its other head prepares to chomp down on her...

"Applause Wall!" Momo shouted.

It crashed its head into a barrier, causing some of its head to shatter, the fractured bones began floating back and repairing itself as it backs off and stares at the group. Soon it opens its mouth to breath out gray colored flames.

"You know what they say about playing with Fire! Mirror Alice!" Tsubaki called out, forming a magical mirror that the flames hit before being sent back as it shattered. The Orthrus howled at the flames hit it with twice the power, and soon noticed Ruruko run by it.

"Hey bad doggy!" Ruruko shouted, the canine looks at her before she pulls down an eyelid and blows a raspberry. It growls and tries to bite her, but fails as she uses her sacred gear, Procellarum, to move so fast that afterimages of herself appear, confusing both heads as it fails to notice a shield spinning around it like a yo-yo.

"Twinkle Aegis, Firebolt Strike!" Tsubasa shouted, pulling the magic string towards her.

The Orthrus felt one of its heads get shattered, and as the bones reform, it was suddenly hit by a water dragon Sona created that bit down on it.

"Saji, finish this up." Sona requested, making Saji nod.

"LINE UP!"

The Absorption Line's eyes glow before its tongues stretch out and start sapping the twin headed mutt's powers, the water dragon begins to bite harder before the Orthrus howls loudly as its frontal half shattered. Even then it simply begins to reform.

"This is gonna get annoying." Reya muttered, at this rate they'd need Vali's Primal Abyss to stop it for good.

**-Rias' Peerage Vs Barghest-**

Shirone jumped up and tossed a few Senjutsu fireballs at the Barghest, the burning hound simply running past them before Shirone gives it a drop kick to the face. It slides across the ground as Akeno appeared behind it.

"I think it wants more!" Akeno shouted, unleashing a bunch of lightning at the beast. Rias screams as her Power of Destruction smashes into the burning canine, though it roars as it shakes it off.

"Dang it, this thing's annoying. This is why I hate dogs." Shirone comments to herself, already disliking dogs due to the simple fact she was a Cat youkai. Meanwhile with Issei and the healers, they stared as Issei's sacred gear kept charging.

**[BOOST!]**

"That's 37, not yet." Issei breathed, he couldn't transfer his power to anyone just yet. With Kokabiel a threat, he needed to save every boost he could until they were necessary. He was too distracted by this until Valerie and Asia scream, making him see the Barghest coming after them.

"Look out!" Shirone screamed.

Right as the beast was about to chomp them, a sudden metal whip slashes right through the beast, making it roar as the holy power burned into its skin. Everyone looks to see Irina flip into view and land in front of them.

"Sorry we're late!" Irina smiled, giving a peace sign as she did. The Barghest prepared to rush at her until Xenovia screams as she slashes the beast down the center of its torso. The canine stops moving before it's cut in two and gets purged by the holy power.

"Need a little help?" Xenovia smirked.

"Only one strike? So that's the power a Holy Sword has on evil, wicked!" Issei replied, smirking at how easily the beast had been destroyed.

"Rias, Vali! Let's finish this last one together!" Sona called out, making the two nod.

"Issei, lend us a boost!" Vali called out, and Issei nodded as he ran towards them.

"The Dragon's awake, and so is his power!" Issei called out before jumping up as the three Devils floated in place.

**[TRANSFER!]**

All three felt the energy overload them briefly before it settled, making them glow green.

"We're ready now!" Rias smirked, soon using her power of Destruction as Sona created another water dragon. The two forces overwhelmed the Orthrus as it shattered apart, as it began to reform, Vali flew close to it and shadows began to stream from her hands.

**(DIVIDE!)**

The Orthrus felt its power weaken, and shortly afterwards its pieces all fell as they struggled to piece back together.

"**PRIMAL ABYSS!**" Vali screamed, the darkness swirling and sucking in all of the skeletal dog's shards. "And that makes three!"

Suddenly from behind, parts of one of the Orthrus' two heads recombine and reform, Vali turned as the beast was about to bite her.

"Sword Birth!"

Swords shot up and skewered into the Orthrus before Vali blasted it with one last Primal Abyss, ending the beast's threat for good. She turned to see Kiba land inside the barrier by Issei.

"Kiba, you made it!" Rias stated happily, Kiba smirking at everyone.

* * *

Jeanne finally felt her body fully recover and got up, walking out of Azazel and Vali's house, she prepared to sprint towards the battlefield at Kuoh Academy when she heard the sound of someone collapsing nearby.

"Huh?" Jeanne turned to see Tosca on the ground. "Wait a second, isn't that... No way!"

Jeanne ran near Tosca, and the white-haired girl looked up at her.

"Who are... wait a second, Erza?" Tosca gasped out, recognizing Jeanne despite how much older she had become. Jeanne flinched at her old name, but soon nodded with a smile.

"I can't believe it Tosca, you finally woke up. How'd you even get here though? Jeanne asked, noticing Tosca was still panting a bit. Then she saw the crystal in her hands.

"Tosca, what is that?"

"W-where's Isaiah at? I got this from someone in Heaven, I need it take it to him!" Tosca panted, she was too exhausted to keep running. Jeanne looked near it and felt something form it that made her gasp.

"...Big brother, I'm coming and so is Tosca. I won't lie to you anymore." Jeanne declared, picking up Tosca and soon moving her onto her back for a piggyback. "I'm heading for him now. Don't worry, we'll make it to Kiba soon!"

Jeanne drew out Hauteclere as her battle outfit formed, soon sprinting towards Kuoh Academy at top speed.

* * *

"Take this!" Vali screamed, firing her Primal Abyss at Kokabiel. The cadre level Fallen simply smirked as it hit him, only form him to simply shrug it off and send it flying towards the Tennis court to her surprise. That was the first time she had ever seen someone shrug off her ability.

"It is complete, finally it's done!" Valper suddenly stated, catching everyone's attention as the Four Excaliburs were now a single blade. The magic square expanding as it was completed.

"Oh no!" Kiba suddenly gasped.

"Then this is what will make the town disappear!?" Issei questioned.

"I'd leave now if I were you, this area will be destroyed in 20 minutes!" Valper chuckled, that scared most of the group since Sirzechs and Serafall needed another 45 minutes to get to them in time. They wouldn't be able to make it now.

"You bastard!" Vali shouted, soon forming a magic circle. A blizzard flies at Kokabiel as Rias and Sona add their own attacks. Kokabiel catches all three and melds them together. "Oh shit!"

The three try to dodge, but while Vali was able to fly away fast enough, but Rias and Sona weren't as lucky, with Sona taking the worse due to being in front of the two. Seeing them fall, Issei rushed at the two of them.

"I've got you!" Issei shouted as he dove forward and caught them, the two looked at him as he did. "Yes, made it! Sit tight ladies, cause I'm gonna unleash a can of kick ass for what he pulled!"

Issei ran towards Vali to support her against Kokabiel, while Kiba walked towards Valper.

"Valper Galilei, I'm one of the survivors of the Holy Sword Project, a survivor from the people you chose to murder!" Kiba declared, getting Valper's attention. "I was able to live because I was reborn as a Devil, and now... I live here today to avenge the death of my comrades!"

Kiba ran at Valper, but Rias noticed Kokabiel about to toss a light sphere.

"LOOK OUT!"

Kiba suddenly noticed it coming, and managed to shift to avoid a direct hit, but the recoil still struck him and knocked him down.

"Freed, it's time! Use the Excalibur!" Kokabiel cackled, the mutant stray priest dropped into view. Everyone looked at the horror of the monster now stranding before them, Shirone even went a bit green.

"OK, I think I might actually puke." Shirone noted, her voice muffled as she held her nose.

"Oh yeah, who wants the point end of this bad boy first!?" Freed shouted before rushing at everyone, Irina and Xenovia jumping at him and attempting to swing... only for Freed to vanish.

"Nice try, you can't beat the power of Rapidly!" Freed said, slashing at Xenovia... who simply flipped onto her hands before swinging her legs and kicking Freed in the eye. "You bitch! Try Blessing's might!"

Freed roared as the holy energy empowered him, increasing his size due to his new body.

"He's using all the combined swords' abilities, watch out Irina!" Xenovia noticed, and soon Freed got closer before stopping.

"Now... let's try a Nightmare!" Freed cackled, and illusions of Freed form before they jump at the two holy sword wielders. Irina slashes out Excalibur Mimic, causing some of the illusions to be hit.

"That won't work on us!" Irina smirked, only for Freed to cackle.

"Transparency!" Freed called, hiding the illusions. Both Irina and Xenovia were forced into parrying their unseen foe as he laughed insanely at them. "You can't stop the invincible mutated monster freed now!"

Meanwhile Kiba was slowly getting up as Valper stood near him.

"I'm grateful to you and the others, you taught me what I needed to complete the project!" Valper chuckled, making Kiba's eyes widen.

"Complete it?" Kiba breathed out.

"Each subject didn't have enough of certain genes required to wield to use Holy Swords. Once I realized that fact, all I did was take out the genes from those who had any of what would bond with the Excaliburs!" Valper declared, giving a creepy face as he did. Kiba's eyes widen as he heard this.

"Then I found a way to combine and crystallize their genes, creating a way to give people the power to wield Excalibur!"

Freed cackles excitedly.

"And you're looking at living proof of its success, hell I was able to take it three of those crystals! Most died halfway from taking in the genes of just one!" Freed laughed. "In a way, I'm one of a kind!"

"My god... Xenovia, then those crystals we saw the church dispose were..." Irina breathed.

"Yes, those crystals must have been the result of Valper's work." Xenovia grunted, now she was beginning to understand why Kiba's hatred for the project became so strong. "There's no way the church would allow the use of something that requires a loss of life like that."

"Of course, we're talking about Michael here. He wouldn't take the time to steal genes from his subjects or kill them." Valper continued, his face twisting into an even more insane look.

"There was no need to kill us either! How could you... how could you!?" Kiba replied, shaking in anger.

"Research always requires sacrifices, those who can't accept that won't get anywhere." Valper smirked.

Kiba's eyes began to tear up.

"Sacrifices? You sacrificed nothing, you committed murder!" Kiba screamed, his face showing anger as he shed tears. "We believed what we were doing was for God, and we bore everything because of that faith. Only for you... to throw us away like trash!"

Some of the more sensitive members of the group like Asia and Valerie began shedding tears, while the others showed disgust and anger. Vali especially as she knew first hand of that very experience.

'This man... is no different than Rizevim!' Vali thought, gritting her teeth with rage so hard she nearly shattered her own teeth.

_"RUN AWAY!" A boy choked out._

_"Hurry, save yourself!" A girl cried out as she held a man's leg, coughing up blood._

"How many... how many lives did your research cost! How many deaths did it take to satisfy you!?" Kiba demanded, Valper only staring at him without a care.

"Too many!" Jeanne shouted out.

Kiba turned to see Jeanne as she rushed into the area, Tosca on her back. Kiba's eyes shook as he saw her.

"Tosca..." Kiba shakily responded, making the white-haired girl look at him.

"Isaiah!" Tosca said, getting off and struggling to stand. Soon tossing the crystal over to him. "This is... this crystal! It's a gift from Heaven, please use it!"

Suddenly the crystal began glowing, and everyone stared as silhouettes of people began to form.

"...I prayed, and wondered, why was it me that made it out? It wasn't fair. There were kids who had bigger dreams than me, wanted to live more than me!" Kiba muttered, soon crying a bit. "It was a mistake, someone better than me should have taken my place escaping that nightmare!"

"Big brother..." Jeanne breathed.

Suddenly a hand grabbed Kiba, and he turned to see the spirit of one of her friends smiling. Then noticed all of them were present, and everyone gasped as the sight was all of the souls of Kiba's friends.

"No way, are those..." Valerie gasped.

"That crystal, it must contain the souls of Kiba's friends, it's all that's left of them in this world." Akeno answered, surprised at the sight. Soon their souls floated and begin to swirl around Kiba, before they began to speak.

_"It's OK."_

_"Let's all gather together"_

_"Take us in... it's time!"_

_"You don't have to be scared, even if there is no god!"_

_"Though god may not be watching over us..."_

_"...Our hearts will forever be one."_

Kiba's tears began to flow out, and for the first time in years... he felt closure as he heard the voices of his fallen friends.

"Everyone..." Kiba cried, smiling as he felt them enter his body. Jeanne and Tosca cried the same way, as did everyone else watching minus Kokabiel who looked bored, Valper who was just shocked, and Freed who was... well Freed.

"Aw! That's sweet." Vali stated.

"I can't stop crying... damn it Kiba! You're breaking my heart!" Issei called out.

Soon Kiba's body glowed blue briefly before it faded.

"I finally understand... my friends, they never wanted me to seek revenge. They wanted me free, but me, Tosca and that other survivor... we won't be until I destroy the evil in front of me." Kiba stated, soon forming his Holy Eraser. "That way no one else has to suffer, no one but you!"

"Help me, Freed!" Valper called, making the mutant appear to defend him.

"Kiba! Kick their ass and wreck those Excaliburs, don't you dare let their feelings go to waste!" Issei shouted, getting Kiba's attention.

"That's right Kiba, fight like a Knight of the House of Gremory." Rias added, smiling at him. "You'd never lose to such a pathetic foe!"

"Kiba!" Everyone else cheered.

"Everyone... thank you." Kiba smiled, soon holding his sword out as rings of light begin to come out.

"What the? What is that?" Issei asked.

"No way, that light... he's done it!" Vali gasped, getting everyone's attention.

"Dear comrades whose souls have merged with mine, we'll overcome this together. All our dreams that were stifled can now come true!" Kiba declared, his eyes widened as he shouted.

"**BALANCE BREAKER!**"

Suddenly Kiba's sword emitted both holy and dark powers together to everyone's surprise before they combined together.

"This is the Sword of Betrayer, a Cursed Sword and Holy Sword and one! Try and stop it!" Kiba declared as he held out a white and black sword with gold trims, its middle had red runes form before they glowed.

"Angel and Devil powers fused together, I can't believe it." Sona commented, the shock was too great for her to believe despite she saw it.

"A cursed holy sword? That's impossible, not even the Demons and Fallen Angels can wield both powers, that thing's an aberration!" Valper screamed, this went against all he knew. Xenovia stared before handing Excalibur Destruction to Irina.

"Xenovia?" Irina asked in surprise, walking alongside Kiba.

"Talk to me Knight of Gremory, are we still fighting on the same side? If so let's take out that Excalibur together." Xenovia stated.

"You sure?" Kiba asked.

"That may be a Holy Sword by name, but there's nothing holy about it anymore." Xenovia answered, soon standing in place. "So, it's only fair a true Holy Sword stops it."

Xenovia held out her hand.

"_Oh Peter, oh Basileus, and Dionysus, and the blessed Virgin Mary... I ask you to please head my prayers!_"

Soon a portal opens and Xenovia stuck her hand inside of it, soon opening her eyes.

"In the name of the Saint living within this blade... I hereby set you free!" She pulls out a chained sword, the chains shatter to revealing a giant and sharp looking blue and golden sword.

"This is... Durandal!" Xenovia declared.

"That's Durandal!?" Kiba breathed.

"That's impossible, my research never went into that blade. No one should be able to wield that blade!" Valper gasped in horror, only for Xenovia to smirk. "Why are you smiling!?"

"Your research didn't need to. You see there's something special about me, Jeanne and Irina. Unlike those your experiments gifted, we're all some of the rarely born naturals!" Xenovia declared.

"Impossible!" Valper screamed.

"I don't believe you!" Freed rushed and tried to clash with Xenovia, but she swings Durandal and knocks him back. "What!?"

Xenovia jumps at him and prepares to swing down.

"What you have is simply a broken sword! It's no match for my Durandal!"

"Kiss my ass!" Freed screamed as he dodges her slash, and prepared to swing at her. "I've decided I despise you!"

"The feeling's mutual!" Kiba screamed, Freed quickly being overwhelmed as Kiba slashed at him numerous times. "But it wasn't enough to destroy out hope!"

Kiba swings down and shatters the Fused Excaliburs and cut into Freed.

"My Sword broke!" Freed cried out, soon noticing his body begin to glow with holy and dark power. "No... how could I be taken down by lame Devil scum!?"

Freed screamed before he exploded and dissolved away, ending the psychotic monster's life.

"Yes, do you see Valper? Our powers overcame Excalibur!" Kiba declared, walking towards the ruined man as he stared in horror.

"How is this possible, in theory the fusion of holy and dark powers is-" Valper never finished as Kiba swung down, ending the mad man's life. Kiba breathed as his chains were finally lifted.

"Oh, poor Valper, you were quite talented, but also a fool." Kokabiel claimed as he lowered himself towards the ground, soon looking at Issei. "Hey, Sekiryuutei, transfer all your power to someone. I'd actually like a challenge!"

'We're gonna run out of time at this rate, we have no choice.' Vali thought, grabbing Issei by the hand. "Issei, transfer it to me. We need to finish this now."

"...Right, send it all to her Ddraig!" Issei shouted, channeling every boost he had at once.

**[BURST!]**

Vali soon feels all the energy seep into her, making her yelp a bit before she opens her eyes with a serious look. Her power began to flood out like a violent earthquake, but more concentrated.

"HOLY SHIT!" Jeanne called out in surprise.

"I can feel the power, even from over here." Irina breathed, barely able to keep herself from falling over.

Vali crossed her arms as a large number of dark streams begin to swirl around her.

"SINK INTO THE ENDLESS ABYSS!" Vali screamed, launching her hands out. "**PRIMAL ABYSS!**"

Kokabiel grunted a bit as it hit him, but soon cackled as he still managed to resist it to Vali's surprise.

"This is more like it! So much better, it's almost as if I'm fighting Sirzechs!" Kokabiel cackled in joy, but soon began ripping through Vali's power. "Too bad it's only for this brief moment!"

Vali felt the boost begin to fade as she quickly drained its power through her clan ability.

"No, not now!" Vali yelled.

"Take this!" Rias shouted, firing off her Power of Destruction.

"Now bring out thunder!" Akeno screamed, blasting her lightning magic at him. Kokabiel soon noticed something about Akeno's attack.

"Ah, is this Baraqiel's power I sense!?" Kokabiel asked, getting Vali's attention briefly. Akeno's eyes warped into one of pure rage.

"Don't speak his name... I AM NOTHING LIKE THAT CREATURE!" Akeno screamed at the top of her lungs, soon burning out all of her power as Kokabiel shattered her, Vali and Rias' attacks and sent all three of them flying.

"Dang it... Stake Victim Dragon!" Jeanne shouted, forming a Dragon made of holy swords. The dragon jumped towards Kokabiel as Jeanne rode it, preparing to stab the cadre level fallen as she ran up its back. Kokabiel laughs and swipes his wings, cutting through her Dragon and soon knocking her to the ground by Kiba.

"Jeanne!" Kiba shouted, Jeanne weakly looked up as Hauteclere landed by her side.

"No, we're not giving up! Come one everyone!" Issei shouted, soon making Kokabiel cackle. "What? Why are you laughing?"

Kokabiel laughs more.

"I just find it funny, why you'd fight so hard when you've lost you masters?" Kokabiel chuckled, getting everyone's attention. Vali however had her eyes widen.

"Don't you dare! You know speaking of that is forbidden!" Vali panicked, Issei looked at her and saw how freaked she was. What did she know that everyone else didn't? Kokabiel only laughed.

"I don't have to listen to you, I am trying to start a war, aren't I?" Kokabiel replied, soon giving a violent stare of glee at everyone. "In the Great War, God and Satan were actually killed! You've already lost your Lord and Devil King!"

Everyone showed an extremely shocked reaction and Vali just closes her eyes and looked away, the secret was out.

"No way... God is dead?" Irina asked.

"He's what? Satan has been dead? How is that possible? If he died then Hell's leader should be..." Rias breathed, looking at Vali. "It's not true, tell us it's not true!"

"...It's true, I saw my grandfather's grave myself. My grandma showed me firsthand." Vali quietly answered, and at that, Rias only stared blankly in horror.

"Back then, all four sides nearly lost everyone except their leaders. Haven't you even considered why Angels and Devils can't just be created?" Kokabiel continued, smirking as he did.

"Angels, Fallen Angels, Devils and Demons. All sides were ruined to the point they had to rely on Humans to survive. The leaders of the four factions all agreed to seal away this information, that way the Humans would keep fearing them and prevent any outside sources from using that info against them."

Xenovia collapsed onto her knees.

"Your lying, it's not true." Xenovia gasped, soon Tosca, Irina and Asia collapsed to the ground. Jeanne nearly fell as well.

"Asia!?" Issei asked worried.

"It's a natural reaction... to hear the lord is dead, I don't think Xenovia can even think right now. Heck, I'm surprised I can still think at all." Jeanne stated, shaking a bit. "But who's answering our prayers if God hasn't?"

"You can thank Michael for that, he's become the successor to God. Unfortunately, the system's nothing like it used to be, Michael doesn't have the power to grant all prayers. Doesn't help the number of God's believers has dropped." Kokabiel answered, making Jeanne gasp.

"Michael... of course, that's who Tosca must have seen!" Jeanne gasped. "Then Kiba's Cursed Holy sword is..."

"That's right, there's no balance of Good and Evil anymore." Vali answered, looking sad that she couldn't prevent Kokabiel from revealing this.

"Not just that either... Balance Breakers, Asia's healing powers, the Longinus and more are all because the balance is gone, and God isn't here to manage the Sacred Gear's system. It's one giant mess, the war's true damage hidden from the public."

"And what I hate most about it? When God and Satan died... it was decided to stop the war!" Kokabiel screamed loudly, completely enraged.

"Why did Azazel do that in the middle of winning? How dare they stop from crushing my enemies just as it was getting fun!? We would have won too... that bastard Azazel even declared the Fallen would never start another war!"

"Kokabiel... you're not even a Fallen Angel, your just pure evil!" Vali growled, unable to believe how such a horrible being had even been born through God.

"Like you're one to talk." Kokabiel replied, making Vali raise an eye to that. "Look at yourself and you'll see what I mean, you're a complete joke and failure for what you were meant to be!"

Vali's eyes widened at that.

"You're the Hakuryuukou, you possess the power of one of the strongest of the Dragons, and you possess the blood of Satan within you as well! Yet grew up as someone innocent and pacifistic, one who doesn't want to use their power. You're no different than your other half, just a lowly human. You're not even an impressive student in high school, and you refuse to use your clan ability unless necessary out of nothing but pure morals."

"Stop it..." Vali replied, holding her hands against her head as she pants. Nearly suffering a panic attack as certain memories begin to resurface.

"It's so disappointing it's outright funny! You're as far apart from your powers as the sky and the earth, perhaps even further! If only you had tried harder than this, maybe you'd be worth something. Maybe if you had, you could have at least saved your mother, get it... you let Rizevim murder her!" Kokabiel continued, laughing madly.

"You're just a pathetic weak little girl who needed her daddy Azazel and the Sekiryuutei to keep you safe! That's all you'll ever be, a damsel in distress that makes others save her when they don't need to!"

Vali just stood in place, her whole body frozen as that last line entered her ears.

"How dare you!?" Issei screamed, now completely pissed off at what Kokabiel had just told her. "Get down here and face me! I'm gonna destroy your ass for-"

"Shut up." Vali suddenly stated, making Issei stop. Vali looked up at Kokabiel, and for the first time in her life, Vali didn't show a rage still able to be felt under a calm face... it was a face clearly distorted with anger.

"You want a fight? Then it's time you get a fight to the death, because you've pissed me off that for once I will kill someone of my own free will!"

Suddenly Vali's Divine Dividing began glowing brightly as it released the same rings of light as Kiba did, though so much more intense that everyone felt the waves of Vali's magic flare out.

"That light... that's the same light as Kiba's!" Issei gasped.

"It's her Balance Breaker!" Rias answered in surprise.

"THIS IS YOUR END KOKABIEL!" Vali screamed, all her Devil Wings flaring out.

**"(VANISHING DRAGON... BALANCE BREAKER!)"** Albion shouted, forgoing his usual stoic level of volume for once.

Vali screamed as Vali's white armor from her Rating Game makes its reappearance, but in a new form as its complete state. The true power of the Hakuryuukou.

"Balance Breaker! Divine Dividing, Scale Mail!" Vali declared, making a challenge motion. "Get ready Kokabiel, because you're about to see why you just made a Deal with the Devil and now have to pay the price!"

"Hah! This is what I've wanted, come get me White Dragon Emperor!" Kokabiel cackled, forming multiple light spears and shooting them at Vali.

**(REFLECT!)**

Suddenly everyone light spear that hit Vali was suddenly shot back, surprising Kokabiel who suddenly screamed and coughed out blood as they were sent back at him. He hadn't expected that at all.

"What!? What kinda power is that!?" Kokabiel demanded.

"This is one of Albion's additional abilities unlocked by the Balance Breaker! I can reflect the power of most attacks right back at the source! Also, I can now do this without touching you... in overdrive!" Vali answered.

**(DIVIDE!)**

Kokabiel felt his power get sapped by a blue aura and go into Vali.

**(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

"All that power you're so proud of will be reduced to a mere human's! This is the battle you wanted, now man up or shut up!" Vali shouted, her armor shining in the moonlight.

"...Is it wrong I think she's really hot while she's like this?" Issei commented, making Jeanne face fault.

"Really?" Rias asked, questioning why he said that now of all times. Vali rushed at Kokabiel, punching him in the face and grabbing him before he flew away, soon ripping off a pair of his wings.

"Guah!" Kokabiel cried out in pain, staring at Vali with rage. "I won't let you insult me like this, I am a Fallen Angel! I won't lose to a damn Devil half-breed!"

"Well too bad, because you're gonna!" Vali shouted as she prepared to rush at him and land the final blow.

"Vali, I'm gonna ask you to stand down."

Vali suddenly gasped and stopped, recognizing that voice.

"No way... it can't be."

Everyone was confused until suddenly a powerful beam from outside the barrier shatters it, blowing away the Fallen Angels maintaining it, Kokabiel screamed as it struck him and knocked him into the ground before something black and white flew at him and struck him hard!

His body soon vanished from a purge, leaving a small female figure holding an orb in her hands. Right at that moment, everyone who had fainted after learning of God's death regained consciousness, causing them to see the same figure before them like everyone else.

"Oh? I wasn't intending to kill him just yet, but I've got what Azazel asked for, so it doesn't matter now."

Everyone looked, Vali especially, as the girl that had been with Cassiel the prior night looked at them.

"...Ophis." Vali gasped out.

"Ophis? Who is that, and... why does my body feel like it's screaming for me to run away?" Issei asked, his whole body shaking without control.

**"[Remember what I told you? How there are beings more powerful than me and Albion? This girl before you, she's one of them. Ophis, the Infinite Dragon God, one of the two strongest Dragons and one of the three strongest beings in existence.]"** Ddraig answered, making Issei gasp.

**"[She has another title she goes by, one that reflects she's what Albion would have been as a God. That title is...]"**

Ddraig breathes before continuing.

**"[True White Dragon God Emperor!]"**

"Holy... shit." Issei replied, this girl was a Dragon that powerful? "How does Vali know her though?"

"Vali, it's been a while." Ophis replied, getting the shocked Hakuryuukou's attention.

"...Yeah, can't believe you actually bothered to help out on this." Vali answered, remembering Ophis didn't like to do much except try kicking Great Red out of the Dimensional Gap permanently.

"Just owed Azazel a favor, and now I have no reason to stay. Till next time." Ophis stated before vanishing instantly, making Vali dispel her scale mail armor. She sighed in relief, partially relieved that Ophis stole the kill in her place.

"It's over, finally." Vali said simply, smiling a she did.

Kiba stared at his new sword, and soon Jeanne and Tosca both walked up to him.

"Isaiah..." Tosca said, smiling.

"Tosca..." Kiba smiled back, soon the two hugged as Tosca let out her tears. "You don't know how glad I am, that you made it out of that nightmare."

"I... I can't believe this is real, I have you, and... I have Erza too!" Tosca sniffled, making Kiba look at her.

"Erza, what do you mean?" Kiba asked, making Tosca confused. Jeanne's lip quivered before she bit it, and soon gripped her fist. She still couldn't forgive her guilt... but she was done running.

"...It's been a while big brother, hasn't it?" Jeanne suddenly stated, catching everyone off guard. Kiba especially as he suddenly pieced together the image as Jeanne undid part of her hair bindings. "Right Isaiah?"

"W-what!?" Issei and Vali both yelled in unison. Jeanne soon began to cry, causing all of her years of unshed tears to finally pour out in this one instant.

"I... I can't expect you to forgive me for abandoning you. If I had been stronger I could have..." Suddenly Jeanne felt Kiba hug her. "Kiba?"

"Stop talking like that, please..." Kiba sniffled, hugging her closer. "I don't know why you hid it from me for so long, but... I'm so happy you back. I missed you so much Erza."

Jeanne hugged Kiba back and her sobs finally became heard, Irina tearing up happily while Xenovia staring relieved and happy for her friend.

"Kiba." Rias suddenly said, getting his attention. "Thank you for coming back to us, and you don't how proud I am you awakened your Balance Breaker. As your master, I've never been happier for you than I am now."

"Rias..." Kiba simply said, soon kneeling on the ground. "I can't make up for what I've done, I betrayed the club and the person who saved my life so long ago. So... let me make my vow to you once more!"

Kiba looks at her.

"I... Kiba Yuuto, promise to protect you and your companions as a Knight of the House of Gremory for the rest of my life!"

Rias smiled and hugged Kiba close.

"Welcome home Kiba." Rias replied, making everyone smile at her. Soon she lets go and has a magic circle form on her hand. "Now time for your punishment... here's 1000 spankings!"

"One thousand!?" Kiba shouted in shock.

"Ooh... good luck taking that pretty boy!" Saji chuckled.

"S-Shut up Saji!"

Everyone but Kiba laughed at that, it was truly over... at least for this incident, no one knew what would be coming next.

* * *

Soon the following day, the ORC had invited the MHC into the room for something, only Vali seemed to have any clue since everyone giving a cat like smirk towards everyone intentionally.

"Seriously Vali, what are you hiding." Issei wondered.

"I'm not telling, wait for it." Vali said, giggling right after. Issei blinked until everyone heard the door open.

"Hey there Issei!"

Issei turned to see... Tosca and the church trio, all in Kuoh Academy Uniforms!

"Glad you all found us." Rias smiled, and looking at Issei. "Everyone, meet the newest members of the Houses of Gremory and Lucifer."

"Wait, what!?" Y-you're joking, there's no way they're-" Issei and some of the others all gasp as they showed their Devil wings. "Holy shit!"

"That's right. Irina's my second knight, while Xenovia's is Rias." Vali giggled, seeing Issei's surprised reaction.

"And Jeanne and Tosca, or I guess I should be calling her 'Yumi Shirotsuki' now, are five and three of my Pawns respectively." Rias said, giving her own smile.

"Now we can be together every day Issei, just like we used to!" Irina cheered as she hugged Issei, making Vali suddenly react.

"I said you could be in my peerage, not hug him!" Vali spat, and the two suddenly stared at each other angrily with sparks flying between their eyes. Rias giggles at the sight.

"Uh... wait, I get why Jeanne and T-err... Yumi may have joined Rias, but why Xenovia and Irina?" Issei asked, and soon the two briefly froze before giving a sad look.

"Truth is... the three of us were all excommunicated." Jeanne answered, surprising everyone but Rias and Vali. She looked out the window. "Learning God was dead, they don't allow anyone to know that, so we were kicked out."

Xenovia turns to look at Asia.

"Asia, I owe you an apology. If there is no longer a God, then there's no hope of salvation or love. The things I said to you were wrong and hurtful." Xenovia said as she bowed, her usual stern look gone.

"To be cast out just for learning the truth, it's changed how I look at everything. I can't get their treatment out of my hand, and I bet I made you feel the same way."

Irina and Jeanne give a similar down expression to that, Yumi looks at them worried.

"Xenovia, don't feel bad." Asia answered, making Xenovia look at her. "I may technically be a Devil now... I've never felt more blessed. I've met so many people who mean so much to me. I've never been this happy before in my whole life."

"...I see." Xenovia smiled, making Irina cry happy tears while making Jeanne sigh in relief. Everyone else smiles at the scene.

"Looks like this is a new beginning, not an end." Jeanne added in, Irina nodded.

"Yeah, I'm glad as long as I'm with Issei." Irina smiled, making Vali form a vein on her forehead in response.

"Dear lord, thank you- Ah!"

All three of them feel pain in their head from praying, and Vali gives a smirk as she thanked karma for hitting Irina.

"Anyone else getting Deja Vu?" Shirone chuckled.

"Now come on everyone, time to get our clubs back open for business!" Rias stated.

"Yes ma'am!" Everyone replied with a smile.

* * *

**WOO! And the Excalibur arc's finally over, did it all in one go since I usually see most people do this with the Kokabiel fight in other fanfics. Also, I didn't forget the scenes after this with the karaoke, swimsuit picking and the Azazel meeting. Those will just be what start the next chapter since I don't wanna overload you guys too much ^^;**

**Tosca's name is like Kiba's, it reflects part of her skills, something I won't reveal until next chapter's Concept Talk. You'll just have to wait for it ^^ *giggles* and Irina's a Devil this time, and she and Vali won't be getting along when Issei's involved. Vali's finally achieved her Balance Breaker too, Kokabiel's breaking speech backfired pretty bad there.**

**And yep, Ophis is even more of Great Red's opposite now by having a title like his True Red Dragon title in white, this is why I swapped her outfit's colors in the prior chapter. I wanted to give her a focus on white, but not change her entire appearance, even though I could have since she was a shapeshifter. How that changes things with her, you'll just have to wait and see.**

**Oh, if anyone asks why Jeanne is a natural born Holy Sword user yet Valper didn't get any results from her in the project? That's because she's only one via Joan of Arc's spirit, and only after she managed to awaken the connection did it become possible for her because her ancestor was a True Holy Sword user.**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter, see you all next time when the Summit Arc commences! Stay awesome everyone**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, Irina  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi/Tosca (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Kuoh Academy Student Update- **

**1st Years: Yumi, Jeanne**

**2nd Years: Irina, Xenovia**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**  
Gasper/Valerie  
Kiba/Yumi


	15. Chapter 15

**Alright, the Summit Arc is finally beginning, and this is the last leg of the story before I can finally add in some original story lines. I'll even emotion now Season 3 will have one because since Shirone's story got its resolution back in Season 1, a lot of Volume 5 now has an empty spot for me to fill in. So, I think you'll be happy to know that we'll be having the story show the Demon's homeland, it's time everyone got to see the Demon race in full.**

**Something I'll mention here since I may forget later, while Irina is a Devil in this story, you'll see her use some Angel abilities like in canon for the same reasons reincarnated can use their original species' abilities. Irina in this story is half Angel on her mom's side, I felt it was a unique idea to fit in since we've never seen her mom first hand and I'd like to keep some of her Angel aspects yet also give a few new ones as a Devil. Some of which will be how she acts towards Shido sometimes from Vol 19+**

**To add a reminder to that, I mentioned in an earlier author's note that in this story, Angels can't fall the same way as in canon. God was the reason behind that, and as he's not here, the Fallen can only increase their numbers by using an equivalent to the Brave Saints. With that, I don't really have any more to say, but... *smiles* I think you'll like to know a certain character is going to make a cameo at the end of the chapter in Vali's place :3**

**Oh, and since this is my story with the biggest audience, I should announce I'm in the process of going back to correct some of the bigger and more glaring errors in all my stories. As of this chapter's submittal, only Date A Re:Live and this story's chapters haven't gone through this due to how large their chapters are in comparison. I will begin working on them after I finish here, so it shouldn't be much longer.**

**With that done, let's get started!**

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally, or Ddraig and Vritra telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally, or Albion and Vritra telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally, or Ddraig and Albion telepathically}**

* * *

**Alright, remember how I said Yumi's name had meaning to it? Let me explain. Kiba's name means "sharp", referring to him being a swordsman, this is the same with his gender-swapped form's name which I gave to Tosca, which means "bow".**

**So why did I give her a name meaning bow then? Simple, in the light novels, Kiba had two Sacred Gears and shared one with Jeanne, that role will be Yumi's in the story and her second Sacred Gear is...**

** -Lumen Shekhinah- **

**A high-level bow type sacred gear under the possession of Yumi Shirotsuki, one of the Holy Sword Project survivors. It takes the form of a majestic bow that looks like it's from the future, and its ability is to create arrows of light through one's magical ability and will power. The arrows can also be guided slightly to turn and not simply fly in a straight path, but that doesn't guarantee they'll hit their target.**

**The Lumen Shekhinah can also enhance one's visual senses when aiming the arrow for the shot, and he power of the arrows is said to be enough that they can pierce diamond if the wielder masters it fully. It is currently unknown what it's Balance Breaker could achieve as this Sacred Gear has not had a possessor in its time that has managed to achieve it.**

**(A/N: You might recognize the name choice from an SAO weapon, this was the only name I could think of for this Sacred Gear ^^;)**

* * *

** _Season 2, Summit Arc: Chapter 1 - Pools and Parenting_ **

Some of the girls were visiting the swim suit store, trying to figure out what swimsuit each of them should buy. Vali was looking at a black one piece and a blue two piece, trying to pick between them.

"I wonder which one Issei would like more?" Vali noted, looking at Yuuma. "Hey Yuuma, which one do you think should I go with?"

"Hmm..." Yuuma began, taking a moment to think by imagining herself in both. Soon going red as she imagined herself in the two piece.

"...I'd go with the one piece."

Vali blinks before she shrugs at Yuuma's reaction, thinking it was just her usual timidity, and puts the two piece back as she heads to the changing room. Once Irina saw Vali wasn't looking, she grabbed the two piece to go try on herself. Kuroka giggles to herself a bit.

"Ooh, how naughty of that girl. To think she hid that side of herself while at the church."

Soon Vali looked at the mirror as she saw herself in the swimsuit.

"I think I'll send a selfie." Vali said to herself as she took her phone out of her outfit, unaware Irina heard her. Irina, now wearing the two-piece bikini, grabs her phone as well.

'I'm not losing to you sister.' Irina thought with a grin.

* * *

Meanwhile inside a studio at the karaoke shop, Issei and Asia, who were joined by Shirone and Kiba, were hanging out with Aiko and the Perverted Duo. Kiba was out in the hallway while everyone was else was in the room, and the said duo at the singing stage.

"Now it is time, now more than ever, for us to keep move forward with our lives on the line! The more powerful our emotions are, then the stronger we'll become!" Matsuda and Motohama sing alongside Issei as he was on the couch, the three barely in sync. Issei stopped and moved the mic by Asia who was shaking some maracas.

"Hey Asia, sing along with us." Issei requested, getting Asia's attention as his phone gave its text alert sound. "Oh, excuse me."

Issei saw the selfies Vali and Irina sent, soon going red in the face as he gasped and closed the phone quickly.

"Is everything OK?" Asia asked, looking worried by his reaction.

"E-everything's fine!" Issei replied, his face still beat red.

"Douse yourself with some water, you look like a tomato." Shirone joked, giving a cat-like smile.

"Ooh, you're thinking something naught there?" Aika chuckled, her cheeks all flushed.

"Says the girl who looks like she got drunk!" Issei replied, soon his phone's call alert rang and began walking out of the room. "Excuse me for a second."

Kiba, who had been sitting out in the hall by the juice machine notices Issei walk by.

"-no, it's fine. I'll just go now, I'll see you in a bit." Issei answered, soon hanging up.

"Got a client?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah, it's that same rich lady who's been a regular for me lately." Issei answered, getting a drink. "It may be my day off, but I did have to cancel our last meeting due to Kokabiel's mess."

As Issei sipped his drink and prepared to head out, Kiba looked at him.

"Hey Issei?" Kiba suddenly said, getting Issei's attention. "I wanted to thank you, but I didn't get the chance to yet. So thanks."

Issei smirks at that.

"No biggie, you don't need to thank me. All of us including Rias have already forgiven you." Issei replied, soon getting an idea. "I know, let's do a kick ass duet before I gotta leave."

Kiba chuckles at that.

"Alright." Kiba said, the two heading back into the karaoke studio.

* * *

Issei and Cassiel were seen playing a fighting game together, and Issei cheers as she beat Cassiel in their latest match.

"Oh yeah! I'm kicking ass and taking names, six victories in a row!" Issei declared, raising his arms into the air. Cassiel chuckles at the result in a playful manner. "So wanna go another round or change games?"

"It's been a while since you've been able to visit, whatever you want is fine." Cassiel replied.

"Sweet! Alright, let's try this one next." Issei said, picking up one. Cassiel soon stands up.

"Interesting choice Devil boy, or should I say... Sekiryuutei?" Cassiel suddenly said, getting Issei's attention as he looks at her in shock. She smirks as she pulls off her robe, revealing her actual outfit as her wings come out.

"I guess I should properly introduce myself, I haven't even told you my name. I am Cassiel, otherwise known as the Queen of the Demon race. It's nice to properly meet you Issei Hyoudou."

Issei dropped the game box and jumped back a bit, summoning the Boosted Gear. Cassiel chuckled.

"Oh please, you think that'll work? The only ones I'd say are strong enough to face me are the supreme leaders of each factions." Cassiel chuckled, soon giving a serious face with a smile. "Facing Kokabiel doesn't make you even close to being ready for me."

"W-what do you want!?" Issei said shaking, right now he was worried any choice he made could end up backfiring.

"Nothing, I just became interested in you after the Rating Game your group had with Riser's. The Hakuryuukou is interesting, but I'm more of the underdog fan. After all you were only human before becoming a Devil." Cassiel giggled, catching Issei off guard.

"Although if I had come to talk with you normally, the Gremory heiress would have popped a blood vessel. So I came under the guise of a human and you did not disappoint my expectations. Grow enough and you'll probably give me a challenge one day."

Cassiel giggled, making Issei blink at how... different she was from what he expected. She was kinda like Azazel, but where he was lax and preferred things to be peaceful, she was more in the moment and a bit mischievous.

"Well, I guess you'll be leaving now that I've revealed myself. Gotta alert your master after all." Cassiel said, sitting down on her chair as she folded her wings up. Issei thinking he should leave prepared to do so until... "Oh yeah, I think you'll wanna give the Lucifer and Gremory heiresses this message."

"Huh?" Issei asked surprised.

"Do to what Kokabiel pulled, the supreme leaders of the other factions including myself are gonna be holding a Summit. So with that, tootles." Cassiel replied, making Issei gasp in shock as he went into the magic circle. The Demon Queen giggles as he disappears.

* * *

The next day, Vali and Issei were heading to school alongside Asia, the two girls noticed Issei seemed a bit distracted though.

"Uh... Issei, are you alright?" Asia asked, making Issei blink.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. I just..." Issei began, soon scratching his head and making them look at him oddly. "...I'll tell you when we're are the club room, it's probably better I don't say it in public anyways."

"O... K?" Vali stated oddly, now feeling a bit worried about what's being hidden. After a bit, they stop by the apartment Irina and Xenovia were sharing as the two walked outside. "Oh, morning you two."

"Hi, how are you doing." Asia said, waving high.

"Hey you two, have you settled in alright?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, the place Rias gave us is quite comfy. We adjusted pretty quickly." Irina giggled, she grabbed Issei's left arm, and Vali suddenly growled a bit and grabbed her other arm. "Hey, I was here first!"

"No way, he's my boyfriend!" Vali replied angrily, and the two stared at one another intensely. Soon pulling on Issei back and forth as Asia and Xenovia watched.

"Wait, guys I think you're gonna-"

At that moment, a *POP* was heard as Issei's arms were dislocated from their sockets and he screamed in pain.

* * *

Issei was sitting down, grunting in pain as Kiba and Bikou popped his arms back in place and then Asia heals him. Vali and Irina bowed down slightly, giving Issei an apologetic look over what happened.

"We're sorry!" Both said at the same time.

"It's fine..." Issei said hoarsely, the pain still slightly lingering. "But next time don't involve my body into it, I don't think I'll be able to survive it."

"Right..." Vali nodded.

"OK..." Irina agreed.

Rias sighed as she shook her head, feeling a migraine coming.

"OK, Vali and Irina's little... incident harming Issei aside, you said Issei wanted to tell us something Vali?" Rias asked, the silver haired Lucifer nodded and soon everyone looked at Issei. Issei breathes and sits up a bit.

"You know that regular client of mine? Well..." Issei answered, making the two Kings raise their eyes while everyone else pays attention. "...Turns out she was the Queen of the Demons, Cassiel was her name I think."

Suddenly the room went quiet, meanwhile as a few students walked nearby the area...

"**WHAT DID YOU SAY!?**"

Those students suddenly all reacted in various forms of shock, some dropping their stuff, others falling, or some just jumping in response, and turned towards the old school building with scared looks. Within the building, Rias's aura was seen flaring a bit.

"I. Am absolutely. Livid!" Rias declared furiously, everyone watching at the now destroyed table's smoking remains. "The queen of Demons infiltrated my territory and interfered with my business? She deserves to die a thousand deaths!"

"Wow... she was right about you popping a blood vessel." Issei stared, surprised how angry Rias ended up getting. "Oh yeah, that's not all she said. She mentioned something about each faction having a summit."

"Is that true Vali?" Yumi asked.

"Yeah, my grandma notified me earlier. What Kokabiel did was big, not to mention the reveal he gave us, I don't think things will be the same." Vali grimaced, showing worry about what may happen. "It doesn't help Cassiel had been present the whole time and didn't bother aiding us, I don't like what that implies."

"Do you think... war could break out again?" Jeanne gulped, her tea cup shaking in her hand.

"OK, _that_ might be a stretch. Though it may do more bad then good I bet." Vali answered, soon walking closer to everyone. "Everyone, be ready for the next few days, because as we were at the fight, we'll probably need to be present at this summit."

Everyone nodded.

"Now that we've cleared that up, it's time for our clubs' shared activity for the day." Rias said with a smile. Soon, the entire group found themselves at academy's outdoor pool, it was all green, dirty, filled with leaves and other crap. In other words... it looked disgusting.

"Gross, it's like the water threw up." Bikou commented, Yuuma getting a bit green in the face at that reply.

"Uh... why are we cleaning this?" Yumi asked, she was pretty sure this wasn't something their clubs were supposed to do. "Shouldn't this be a student council job?"

"It actually is, but we're taking it over to thank them for the help in the fight with Kokabiel." Rias explained, making Yumi go 'oh' in response. "And the best part, once we're finished cleaning it, it'll be ours for private use. At least for a little while."

Issei gasps, suddenly realizing the swimsuit selfies.

"Yeah! Let's clean this pool, raise your hand if you can't wait!" Issei shouted, raising both his hands up. Kuroka saw this and smirked.

"Raise two hands if you just wanna see your girlfriend in her swimsuit." Kuroka bluntly answered with a cat like smile, and Issei's jaw drops as he realized he had two hands up. Some of the others laugh as he puts them down.

'That was a low blow Kuroka!' Issei thought, sweating a little.

Soon everyone went into the changing rooms and start changing into the gym uniforms to do the cleaning in. As Irina and Xenovia were changing...

"Hey Irina, did you finish the homework for 5th hour?" Xenovia asked.

"I did, how do you think you did?" Irina replied, asking her own question in return.

"I don't know, I couldn't identify most of the phrases. Then again I'm better with numbers." Xenovia sighed, soon giving a determined look. "I'll just stay up and study everything like my life depends on it."

"I know you'll manage it." Irina smiled, she and Xenovia get into a praying motion.

"Amen!" Suddenly both feel pain in their heads again.

"It really is a habit." Le Fay giggled.

Soon everyone was out cleaning at the pool, but Vali suddenly notices Irina wasn't with them... and neither was Issei.

"...Irina" Vali mumbled, soon walking to the storage room and opening the door, seeing Irina leaning at Issei who was barely bending to avoid Irina trying to kiss him. "Irina, how would you like to explain this to me?"

"Oh come on! Why lord, why didn't you give me another few- AH!" Irina cried out, falling over as her prayer causes her pain again. "Ow... that's smarts."

"Oh good, we have a way to make you behave." Vali said, smirking as she kneeled over her face. Irina blows a raspberry at her face which makes Vali gain a small vein on her forehead. Issei groans aloud.

"My god, can you two stop and behave at least when we're doing work?" Issei screamed.

* * *

After the cleaning was finished a while later, Le Fay stood before the pool in her swimsuit and raised her hand, making a magic circle.

"Water!" Le Fay announced, causing a bunch of water to pour out of the circle, filling up the pool in seconds. "Alright everyone, the pool's open so come on in!"

"Hey Issei, how do I look?" Vali asked, her boyfriend looked and his face heated up, his nose bleeding a bit.

"It's the most epic suit ever!" Issei replied, making Vali smile. Irina gives a cat smile from behind the Hakuryuukou, making the white dragon notice her swimsuit.

"Hey, that's the one I didn't choose you sneak!" Vali roared, making Irina stick her tongue out in response.

"Is just me, or does Irina seem oddly devilish for someone who used to be with the church?" Yuuma asked, looking at Bikou. The Monkey Youkai shrugged.

"Who knows, maybe this was another side she's always had in public."

"Maybe?" Yuuma chuckled, soon noticing Yumi wasn't present. "Hey, where's Yumi?"

Back in the changing room, Yumi was seen struggling to get her swimsuit on.

"Hey Issei, think you can do me a favor?" Rias asked, Issei looks at her as she motions to Shirone who was shaking as she looked at the water.

"Oh, you want me to teach her how to swim? I can do that. Anyone else need help with that?" Asia raised her hand, as did Yumi once she managed to finally get her suit on and join the others. Kuroka sweated and tried to walk away before Le Fay grabs her by her suit.

"Oh no you don't, you're gonna learn and gonna like it." Le Fay giggled, and Kuroka goes white as she panics.

Apparently Nekomata hated water just like real cats. Issei chuckled as he starts teaching everyone, beginning with Kuroka on Le Fay's insistence, Kuroka freaking out as she gets pulled into the water.

"Get me out of here!"

'This could take a while.' Issei thought, making him sweat drop a bit. After about an hour, everyone who couldn't swim had learned how, and everyone has having fun in the pool in their own manner, though Kuroka and Shirone were just sun bathing as they didn't really wanna be in the water.

"Who knew relaxing at a pool could be so much fun!?" Jeanne said, still using her naive and bubbly persona. Kiba may have forgiven her but that didn't mean she was ready to fully accept her own guilt over the past yet. She sees Xenovia staring at the sky. "Something wrong Xenovia?"

"I was just thinking about something I asked Rias about earlier." Xenovia answered, making Jeanne blink as she takes a sip of a can of orange soda she brought. "I've decided I want to have a baby."

Jeanne spits out her drink, soon coughing at that claim.

"What the hell Xenovia!?" Jeanne replied in shock, staring at Xenovia like she grew a second head. "You're not even a legal adult yet! You can't go having a baby right now!"

Kiba and Yuuma stare at the sight, looking at each other then back at the two as they both sweat drop at the sight.

"Hey Issei?" Vali asked, soon holding some sunscreen. "Mind putting some on?

"O-Oh, right!" Issei said, blushing a bit. Vali lays down while shifting her swimsuit, only for Issei to suddenly feel Irina's chest poking his back as she hugs her... while topless, Issei blushes red while Vali turns and her eyes get shadowed as they glow a dangerous shade of blue.

"IRINA!"

Everyone ducked as Vali uses her ice magic to launch icicles towards her, while Irina holds up her hands and creates a ring of light and tosses it to shatter the ice. Rias sighs and takes out some ear plugs she had on hand while she just lays down.

"Former Half-Angel or not, I will not give Issei to you!" Vali said, flinging more ice shards at the ex-church member.

'Wait, Irina was a what!?' Issei thought, wondering if he heard that right.

"Neither will I heiress of Lucifer, and I'm not going anywhere." Irina replied, preparing to throw another light ring when...

"This looks like a good time to intervene."

Both of them stop, while Vali shows shock at the voice. She turns to see none other than her great grandmother, Lilith Lucifer, sitting at the pool fence in her own incredibly revealing swimsuit. For some reason though, Issei noticed the black chains on her usual outfit were still being warn.

"Grandma!?" Vali replied in shock, getting some of the group's attention. "W-When did you get here!?"

"I've been here the last 20 minutes, gave me quite the interesting show up until now. Although I'd stop this senseless roughhousing now." Lilith said with a smile, however everyone felt a strong warning chill from her.

'And now I know who Vali got that from!' Issei thought, gulping a bit. Lilith giggles as her grandchild and Irina both go white in shock.

"It's not exactly easy to talk here, how about we go inside?" Lilith suggested.

* * *

Inside the old school building, everyone was present in the MHC's clubroom, Vali doing a seiza squat on the floor with Irina forced to do the same besides her as Lilith began to lecture her.

"Seriously Vali, you're the only heiress to the Lucifer name. You need to act like it. I don't care what your arguments are about, if you or her ever go into physical territory I will hang you inside the realm of Limbo for an entire hour." Liltih brutally stated, wagging her finger as she pointed at Vali.

"Y-yes grandma..." Vali mumbled, Irina sweating a bit at the Mother Devil's tone.

"Uh... if I may ask, who is this woman exactly?" Yumi asked, still very behind on anything Devil related. Lilith smiles and giggles a bit at that to her confusion.

"Where are my manners, I forgot your Knight or the new retainers of Rias' household still don't know me. I am Lilith Lucifer, the Mother of all Devils and current leader of the Devils since my husband's passing."

Yumi and those of the church trio all went wide eyed upon hearing that, the original first human woman and the strongest female Devil was standing right before them. All of them suddenly kneeled to the ground.

"F-Forgive me rudeness Ms. Lilith Lucifer! I didn't mean to torment your daughter so much, don't obliterate me!" Irina panicked, making the widow of Satan suddenly giggle. "Huh? What's so funny, why are you laughing?"

Lilith takes a moment to regain her composure.

"Vali told me her new Knight was quite interesting, and she was right. Irina, I request you to support the Lucifer household as part of Vali's family, is that too much?" Lilith asked, making Irina shake her head. "Good, then that's all I can ask for."

"Wait, I thought Rias' older brother was Hell's current leader?" Issei asked, feeling a bit confused. "Didn't you say that Vali?"

"I did, but I had to lie about that. Truth is Sirzechs was a figurehead for my grandma to use." Vali answered, making some of the group raise their eyes.

"Lilith was only allowed to succeed Satan as the ruler of Hell if he died by his own request. If it had been publicly known she was ruling Hell, that would be confirming Satan was dead." Rias answered.

"Exactly as Rias explained, and I think you realize why we couldn't allow that." Lilith added, clearing up any lingering confusion.

"With that out of the way, why are you here anyways?" Vali asked.

"Oh, isn't it almost time for your Open House?" Lilith giggled, making Vali pale in response. "Speaking of which, I'll need you to refer to me as your mother while in the Human Realm's public. I'll be posing as your mom."

"How'd you even learn about it!?" Vali asked in a panic, sweat dripping down her like rainfall.

"Simple, Sirzechs told me. Speaking of which Rias, he'll be coming here soon himself, and for Open House." Lilith giggled, making Rias gasp in horror.

"Dang it Grayfia, why'd you tell him!?" Rias cried, covering her head as she lowered it and kneeled to the ground.

"You can't just leave like that grandma! You're the ruler of the Devils, you have to focus on your responsibilities!" Vali exclaimed, hoping she could get her to not come.

"This is one of them as I'm checking out the summit grounds." Lilith replied, getting everyone's attention as they stared. "Oh right, I guess I should tell you we decided the summit's location is Kuoh Academy. The incident did happen here."

Vali slumped onto the ground, her entire body going white.

"You... you did that on purpose." Vali cried, knowing she had just been beaten. Rias rubbed her back, understanding her pain.

"Now I just need to find a place to stay while I'm here." Lilith thought aloud, hoping a certain male Devil would reply a certain way.

"You can spend the night at my house." Issei answered, and Lilith smirked in victory while Vali screamed again.

* * *

Back at the Hyoudou household, Lilith and Azazel were both present as guests as Azazel introduced his 'wife' to Issei's parents.

"It's been a long time in waiting, but I'd like you to meet my wife and Vali's mother." Azazel introduced, motioning to Lilith who had changed into a simple purple T-Shirt which hid her usual chains using magic by having them appear as part of the shirt design and jean shorts.

"A pleasure to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Hyoudou, I'm Luciel. Though you can call me Lucy." Lilith giggled, making Vali groan a bit. "I hope my daughter's behaved well under your roof and hasn't been a handful for you."

"Oh no, she's such a lovely girl. Clean, eats her veggies, does some cooking and helps out around the house." Hana replied.

"Yeah, she's a wonderful young lady. Especially due in part to Issei." Seiji answered, having a drink alongside Azazel. Issei sweatdropped at the fact neither of his parents knew they were hanging out with the leader of the Devils and the Fallen.

"Issei, why did you say she could stay here?" Vali asked, feeling embarrassed.

"I was trying to be polite. Besides, she did say she was your mother figure, didn't you?" Issei replied, making Vali hang her head down in defeat. A while later once the night came and Vali was about to head to Issei's room... "What!? You can't be serious, I can't sleep with Issei?"

"Sorry, but I'd like to talk with you, so I'll need you here tonight. Just one evening shouldn't hurt, should it?" Lilith answered, making Vali pout.

"Fine..."

Soon Vali got in her bed while Lilith laid on a sleeping bag on the floor, Vali stared at the door before aiming her eyes at her ancestor.

"...I'm sorry." Vali suddenly said, getting Lilith's attention.

"For what?" Lilith asked.

"That you have to sleep on the floor, and not even in a real bed. Plus... the whole embarrassment based reactions." Vali answered, making Lilith giggle to her surprise.

"I'd like to thank you actually." Lilith replied, making Vali blink.

"It would be unthinkable in Hell for me to be treated like a normal guest, and sometimes luxury gets too uncomfortable because it loses excitement. I actually feel more comfortable here than I'd have been at a hotel. As for your reactions, that just shows how far you come since back then, based on what Azazel told me when he first found you, getting anything but a silent reaction was rare."

Vali blushed at that, that stage of her life became a bit more embarrassing in the present.

"Plus, I don't think I remember seeing you have this much fun during your time staying with me in Agreas. It's all thanks to Issei." Lilith smiled, making Vali chuckle and rub her head.

"Yeah, you've always been looking out for me in my Mother's place. It honestly surprised me how accepting you were of my heritage when we first met." Vali replied honestly.

"I was a human once myself, it would have been odd to judge you for being half-human." Lilith chuckled a bit, making Vali chuckle with her.

"...Say, I never asked, but how did you and grandpa fall in love?" Vali wondered, making Lilith look at the ceiling.

"That's quite a story, guess it can only be defined if I explain from the start."

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

In the Garden of Eden, an old looking man wearing a golden rob and possessing 12 golden wings placed two forms of energy into the ground, One of Anime, and another of Animus. These energies mixed into the dirt to create a young human boy and a young human girl.

_"Using the energies of the Anima and the Animus, God created me and Adam from the dirt that made up the Garden of Eden before giving us our names. It was the beginning of Humanity's existence in this world. It wasn't long before we grew up and learned the truth." Lilith began._

Adam soon grew into a handsome young man, while Lilith became a beautiful young lady. God soon appeared to them and caught their attention.

"Adam, Lilith. The two of you are to be wed and be the propagators of mankind." God declared, surprising the both of them. After thinking on it a bit, Adam didn't mind and accepted the terms, but when he went to take Lilith's hand, she suddenly slapped it away to the surprise of Adam and God.

"No... I won't do it. I should have a say in this!" Lilith stated, hoping God would understand... He didn't.

Lilith suddenly saw black chains form from the ground, constricting her as she stared at God who gave a look of disappointment to her motioning his finger down... the chains drag Lilith into the ground which suddenly opens up and she screams as she tries to reach up and avoid being dragged in.

"Stop it, please! I just wanted to have a choice! No! Please don't do this!" Lilith cried, but God refused to head her words before the ground closed up and she was trapped within it. She blacked out to see herself trapped within some strange prison somewhere.

_"Wait, what!?" Vali exclaimed in shock, true she didn't know much about God but... for him to do that? It surprised her. "You just said no to him and he imprisoned you?"_

_"Yep, that he did. It's not he was cruel but... God always believed his choices were the right ones and nothing should question that." Lilith answered. "It's why Lucifer grew to hate him, Cassiel created the faction that led to Demons and Azazel got his faction kicked from Heaven."_

Years would pass by, and Lilith could only lifelessly stare at the walls of the prison she was in, and by this point she believed that's all she would ever do. If he tried to escape or break the chains, they would hit her with a curse that flared pain throughout her entire body.

Silence was all that filled her prison... until one day, she actually heard something, causing the life in her eyes to come back as it reached her ears, making her look for it. Suddenly the sight of an Angel somehow falling into her prison was seen.

"W-who are you?" Lilith asked in fear, wondering if God had decided that being imprisoned was no longer a good enough punishment. The Angel got up and looked at her, his eyes showing confusion at seeing a Human in such a place.

"A human?" The Angel wondered, soon getting up. "I am the Angel known as Lucifer, the Angel who despises our Holy father. His will... it's cruel and uncaring and he thinks it's for the greater good. That excuse sickens me!"

He soon looks at her, seeing the shock on her face for declaring he hated god.

"Oh... I'm being rude, who are you and why are you here?"

"I'm... my name is Lilith." Lilith answered, making Lucifer gasp. Most Angels knew that name... she was the original first human before God had her replaced with Eve. It was said Lilith denied Adam and the right to begin Humanity.

"God... that man locked me down here, I just wanted to have my own choice. I didn't want to have Adam forced on me. Why didn't he understand that!?" Lilith cried, and Lucifer could only stare. Lilith... the stories about her weren't what God claimed.

Now he outright loathed his father, enough he ripped his holy essence from his body before he found himself here. This woman was like him... he wanted God to allow the freedom of choice but he denied either that right. He walked up to the chains and grabbed them.

"No don't! If you try to break them you'll-" Lilith soon saw Lucifer shatter a sect of the chains easily, surprising her. "You're not hurt, but how?"

"These chains are born of God, so there's no way they'd work..." Lucifer began, making Lilith see the rage in his eyes.

"...On someone he doesn't believe in that God!

Lucifer soon broke the remaining sects of the chains, and Lilith suddenly fell into his arms as he caught her. Lilith stared at herself, while parts of the chains were still wrapped around her wrists, feet and neck... first time in who knows how long it had been, she was free.

"The choices he gave to Humanity, the way he reacted to Adam and Eve eating the fruit and what he did to Samael... that man is a fool I will not follow." Lucifer declared, looking at Lilith sympathetically. "We have a right to be free, follow what we desire, not what he desires for us."

"...You're like me." Lilith cried, some anger showing on her face. "We're the same, we just wanted to be free and it was treated as a crime!"

"If we both stand against him, then let us forge our own path in this world. If God will not give freedom, we shall create it ourselves!" Lucifer shouted, making Lilith gasp lightly before she teared up and nodded.

* * *

Within the newly created realm of Hell, Lucifer and Lilith, now known as Satan Lucifer and Lilith Lucifer, both stood on the castle that they had created from what had been Lilith's former prison. Satan looked at the girl he had freed so long ago.

"Lilith, from this moment on... you are truly free. Nothing in this world can control you, any choice you make is yours and nothing can hold you back, not as long as you don't let it." Satan declared, smiling a bit. "So, what will you do now?"

"I was a slave to the wish to have freedom, and you gave me real freedom. So now you have a responsibility..." Lilith answered, soon hugging him close. "No matter what, I will stay by your side. You were the only one who understood me, and for that reason I know what my heart is telling me, I love you Satan."

"Lilith..." Satan breathed, soon hugging back. "Will you be my Devil Queen?"

"Yes, from now until the day we die." Lilith smiled, the two stared at each other before sharing a kiss.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

Vali stared at Lilith who smiled fondly at the memory, touching the remains of the black chains that even after an eternity she refused to remove. Now Vali understood why she wore them, they weren't just to show no chains could ever bind her again... it was the chain that bound her and Satan together.

"Wow... it sounds just like a Fairy Tale." Vali smiled, wiping her eyes as they got a bit misty.

"To me it was, even if he's gone now I never feel alone. To the end, he lived how he wanted and I'll always have the proof he was real with me." Lilith smiled, soon turning to Vali and giving a serious face but still smiling. "Vali, never let go of Issei. If he one day disappears you should never deny the people important to you."

"...I will, I promise." Vali nodded, and Lilith smiled before laying down.

"You should get some sleep now, the next few days will be important so we should be well rested." Lilith stated, making Vali nod as she laid down on her bed.

"Mind if I ask you one last question before that?" Vali inquired, making Lilith nod. "With the way you defined God... was he a good person or was that just a lie? To imprison you for just refusing Adam, I'm just not sure."

"Vali, it may seem like he wasn't the saint he claimed to be, but I'll say this..." Lilith answered, breathing as she looked at her.

"God wasn't perfect, he just did what he believed was right for his people, his children. He just didn't realize that his way wasn't the only way. However, right before he died I think he realized that. Based on what I saw and how Satan called him father one last time, I'm sure of it."

Vali stared, recalling everything Riser said. Perhaps it wasn't that different.

"Who knows, maybe that relates to why we're here now. The Fallen and the Demons never had a God, and the Angels and Devils have lost their own. We're no longer bound by a higher force, so now it may finally be time for something I believe Azazel, Michael and likely even Cassiel wishes for now." Lilith continued, catching Vali's attention.

"What is it?" Vali asked, making Lilith smile a bit.

"Four the Four Factions to make peace, and finally stop the fighting. To be one like long ago, but this time with our free choice to make it." Lilith answered, soon closes her eyes. "Goodnight."

Vali stared in shock.

'The Four Factions uniting? Is it... is it really possible?' Vali thought, soon closing her eyes. 'If it is... then I want to believe in it. To make it a reality.'

* * *

The following morning, Issei saw Vali and Lilith as they were talking outside. Vali looked and noticed him.

"Issei, mind heading to school without me today? I'll be showing my grandma around town and I'll be a little late for class." Vali replied.

"Alright, see you soon." Issei answered, heading off while Vali and Lilith began heading the other direction. As Issei got near the school, he suddenly felt his left arm tense up in pain. "What happened?"

**[...Trouble]** Ddraig replied.

Issei looked near the school gates and saw a handsome young man with short black hair. He wore a combination of a Japanese school uniform, more specifically, the gakuran worn by Japanese schoolboys in the fall, and ancient Chinese attire. The man aimed his focus towards Issei, soon walking closer.

"Ah, so it's you." The man said, putting Issei on guard. "So, your Issei Hyoudou, the current Sekiryuutei. Nice to finally meet another fellow Longinus wielder."

"What?" Issei gasped, he had a good feeling the next words he heard weren't gonna be good ones.

"My name is Cao Cao, and I'm the wielder..." He began, smirking in what Issei felt was a dangerous manner.

"...Of the True Longinus!"

* * *

**That's right, the cameo was none other than Cao Cao! Why is this just a cameo? Simple, because despite his appearance here, Cao Cao isn't actually involved in the Summit since he's not allied with any of the factions within the Christian Pantheon like in canon (Unless you count the DxD Team as such). Anyways, now we've seen Cassiel reveal herself, and it looks like she's got something in mind.**

**Something I'll clear up now is that the way I'm representing God in the fanfic isn't to make him look like the bad guy, just that he made some mistakes that were bigger than he realized. It's not too different from how Ophis got herself nerfed in canon due to ended up being in the Khaos Brigade. The whole Garden of Eden story even feels like an example of him making a bad choice, it just felt a bit _too_ easy for Adam and Eve to grab those fruits in the first place.**

**I'd say my favorite part of the chapter is the interactions between Vali and Lilith, I had only been able to mention their relationship before now and this let me finally sow what it's like. I hope you like the small sneak peak of Lilith and Satan's backstory, because I'm eventually planning on making a story about it. As for why Cao Cao showed up? Well... you won't learn about it in this arc, but you won't need to wait for the story's adaption of the Kyoto arc either.**

**That's all for now, so I'll see you all in the next chapter.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, Irina  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi/Tosca (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**  
Gasper/Valerie  
Kiba/Yumi


	16. Chapter 16

**Sorry this one took longer than usual, it's not that I had Writer's block or anything, I just had trouble writing a few scenes without making the chapter feel... discombobulated? Yeah, that's it. I had figure out which families to show and how to do the scene where Rias is told to finally free Gasper, and eventually I decided I'd just have an eventual one-shot story to show the entirety of Open House for each class.**

**And just as a reminder, Cao Cao has no further involvement in the Summit Arc. He was there for a cameo, but he and his team will show up earlier before they get their canon role revealed. I can say now they do indirectly cause Vali to gain the last member of Vali's peerage beforehand. The one takes Vali's role as the final battle of the arc will be someone else.**

**Oh, speaking Cao Cao's group, they have a new member since Jeanne's not with them in this story that's based on a female hero of Japanese myth. I won't say which one until she appears so you can keep guessing on it. Alright, now with that out of the way I have one last announcement before we officially begin the story.**

**Like with Season 1, I'll be pausing the story for a bit, but this time for a different reason. I'll explain it more at the end notes, for now just enjoy the chapter ^^**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally, or Ddraig and Vritra telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally, or Albion and Vritra telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally, or Ddraig and Albion telepathically}**

* * *

** -Devouring Mimicry- **

**The clan ability of the Beelzebub household, based on the deadly sin of Gluttony, it allows the caster to devour any magic power (minus Holy) that they sense coming at them and after consuming it, temporarily allowing them the usage of an ability based on what the magic was being used to power, including other Devil clan abilities. The more magic consumed, the longer the ability can be used before it vanishes from the user's arsenal, with one hour being the maximum time limit.**

**When the remaining members of the Beelzebub clan faced possibly expulsion or destruction due to the actions of Shalba Beelzebub and those of his household that aided him, Lilith Lucifer quelled the chaos by requesting the current clan head of the time to give this power to Ajuka Astaroth who was to be named the new Great Devil Beelzebub. As a result, Ajuka is currently the only Devil that's not of the Beelzebub household to possess this ability, but he rarely tends to use it compared to the other Great Devils.**

* * *

** _Season 2, Summit Arc: Chapter 2 - Open House Embarrassment_ **

"My name is Cao Cao, and I'm the wielder of the True Longinus." Cao Cao smirked.

"True... Longinus?" Issei asked, soon feeling his left arm tense up. 'Holy shit, it's like Ddraig's telling me to get the hell out of here! Either that or he's afraid.'

Suddenly Issei gasped as a spear stopped in front of Issei's face, one that had a very unique and jagged shaped blade.

"How vulnerable you are, it wouldn't take much to defeat you with my magic." Cao cao stated, neither him or Issei moving. "Almost to-"

Suddenly Jeanne and Kiba crossed swords over Cao Cao's neck, catching his attention.

"Don't you think this joke's gone on long enough?" Kiba reasoned.

"Yeah, it wouldn't be smart if we let you start a fight with the Sekiryuutei here. I doubt you want to involve your faction when they aren't even of this meeting." Jeanne sneered, recognizing Cao Cao's mug.

"Well, if it isn't Jeanne D'Arc, or should I call you Jeanne Yuuto now?" Cao cao inquired, making Jeanne scowl at him. "You should seriously stop wasting your time with these losers and join my team."

"Forget it Cao Cao, I said no already. Besides I don't qualify now that I'm a Devil." Jeanne growled, dispelling her sword alongside Kiba. "Or is it not humans only now?"

"So, a believer in the church becomes a Devil? Oh the irony, how far you've fallen." Cao Cao chuckled, Kiba having to hold his sister back so she didn't deck him in the deck.

"Tell me Issei, how do you think your power compares to everyone else in the world? If you want my opinion, your pathetically weak. You don't even have your Balance BReaker yet like your-"

A tiny cut mark forms on Cao Cao's cheek as an ice shard flies by, Cao Cao sees a bit of blood as Vali walks into view.

"Vali?" Issei said.

"Get out of here, I don't care who your sided to, but disrespect my Issei any more than you have and I will show you why I'm the Hakuryuukou. Got it?" Vali demanded, making Cao Cao stare before he sighed and walked off.

"You're only delaying it you know." Cao Cao said, making Vali's hand twitch. "You can't change the fate you have with the White and Red Dragons' battle. It won't matter how you or your Dragons feel should 'that' come into play."

Cao Cao walked off, and once he did... everyone suddenly saw Vali collapse to the ground. Holding her mouth as she barely managed to prevent herself from vomiting.

"Vali, are you alright?" Issei asked.

"...No, I'm not. The way he speaks disgusts me to no end." Vali replied, slowly getting up. "I'm gonna go ask the nurse for an anti-acid, I'll see you in class shortly."

Everyone looked at Vali as she walked into school, making Jeanne worry.

"Is she alright?" Jeanne asked, looking at her brother.

"Yeah, that just probably reminded her of her grandfather." Kiba answered, making Jeanne sweat slightly.

"I get the feeling I don't wanna know who this man is." Jeanne gulped.

* * *

Issei headed to class, but rather than heading straight towards his classroom he went inside the bathroom and summoned the Boosted Gear, needing to use the small window of free time to ask Ddraig a question.

**"[Let me guess, this is about that Cao Cao's sacred gear, isn't it?]"** Ddraig inquired.

"Yeah, he called it the True Longinus. Not to mention it seemed like you were afraid of it." Issei replied, Ddraig sighed at that.

**"[Kid, anyone would be afraid of the spear that was used to kill Jesus Christ in a single blow.]"** Ddraig answered, making Issei's eyes widen.

"**[That's right kid, so let me tell you a story. During the Great War, when the latest duel between Albion and I ended up entering the battlefield and shifting the entire war, nothing anyone used against us worked as we violently retaliated. The only way to stop us was for God to forcibly seal me into my left claw and Albion into his wings, creating our Sacred Gears. You are aware how we're stated to have had the power to surpass God and Satan, correct?]"**

"Yeah, Vali made that clear to me." Issei nodded.

**"[Eventually, our Sacred Gears became part of a Group known as the 'Longinus', named after St. Longinus who was the man who took Jesus life.]"** Ddraig continued.

**"[All of them are strong enough to be named the Tools that Destroy God. Only one of each exists, and their power is combining multiple abilities that should not be combined. Out of them, me and Albion's powers are Mid-Class level. There are four labeled as High-Class... and they have the potential to destroy the world. The True Longinus is the strongest, strong enough to murder a god in a single strike.]"**

Issei's eyes widened.

"I think I get where you're going with this, there's a lot of dangerous people out there aside from me and Vali." Issei noted, sweating a bit. 'And that asshole Cao Cao is one of the stronger ones. Question is he an ally, or an adversary?'

Issei finally left the volume and once he walked in...

"YOU BASTARD!"

Issei quickly ducked as Motohama and Matsuda threw punches at him, soon reaching up and putting them in an arm lock to their pain.

"OK, why did you both try decking me exactly?" Issei asked.

"Somehow you got that new girl Irina Shidou to join the Occult Reserach club!" Motohama spat.

"We're tired of cool stuff happening to you, especially when you don't share!" Matsuda spat out.

Issie breathed for a moment to wipe the spit off his face.

"No, I had no involvement. At least not any direct involvement." Issei sighed, taking his seat. Soon Irina notices he walked into the class room.

"Issei, we'll be in the same class together! Isn't that great?" Irina giggled, hugging him close. The boys all looking angry at him.

"Everyone, meet my original childhood friend before Vali. Also, if my gut feeling's right, in 3... 2... 1..."

Vali slams the door open as she sees Irina with Issei, making the latter sigh as he found his gut feeling to be correct.

"For the last time Irina, Issei is my boyfriend!" Vali growled, storming over to her.

"And I told you I'm not giving you to him just because I wasn't here for a few years, being in a relationship already doesn't mean anything to me!" Irina replied, soon the two stared down each other. Everyone surprised as they glared and grit their teeth at one another, slightly shaking with anger.

"Wait, does this mean in..." Motohama wondered.

"Yes, I'm in a freaking love triangle between my two childhood friends. Yet I already chose the winner!" Issei screamed, slamming his head on his desk.

"...We take it back, guess there was some negatives." Matsuda stated, sweat dropping a bit. Aiki chuckled a bit.

"Why not just go the harem route? Then neither girl gets upset." Aika inquired, giggling more as Issei, and both girls without breaking off their stare, all hear that enter their range of hearing.

"NO WAY IN HELL!" Vali and Irina spat out, surprising Aika a bit.

"Plus polygamy isn't legal in Japan!" Issei declared. 'And I don't care that it is in Hell. I chose Vali, that's all I'm doing.'

Soon the teacher walked in and cleared his throat, getting everyone's attention, the girls give one last glare before they say down... and Issei slammed his head on his desk again when he realized Irina was sitting on the other side, meaning she was only two desks away from Vali.

'After today ends, I am so dead.' Issei mentally groaned. Soon a block of clay was placed on everyone's desks, and it was right after that when all the parents were finally allowed into the classroom.

"Irina!"

Irina blinked and saw her mother and dad in the crowd, surprised they had come from Italy just to see her in class, and then blushing over how they called her out like that while everyone could hear it.

"Mooom! Daaaaaaad!" Irina blushed, her face all red. Vali turned to smirk without her notice... until she saw Azazel with the camera catching it.

'Crap, please don't invite Irina over later!' Vali mentally sweated.

The teacher clears his throat.

"Welcome all parents for today's open house, for this occasion I've chosen a class to represent one common way of communication. Expression." The teacher began, and everyone looked at their blocks of clay.

"On each of your desks, there's a lump of clay. Today's assignment is create something original from it, all it needs is to be meaningful to you. It's a representation of how we see things different, and how our thoughts define the words we all use."

"Hmm... something meaningful to me huh?" Issei whispered to himself, soon starting on something.

Meanwhile Irina and Vali's eyes dart at each other briefly, and then both lightly tap the claw with magic before moving their hands to sculpt something.

**'(Oh boy... I don't like where this is headed)'** Albion thought.

Soon Irina finished hers, and she gave a confident look as it revealed a podium with all seven Excaliburs resting on it. Catching the class' attention.

"Holy crap, do you see that?" Katase wondered, impressed by the design. A bunch of the students who had finished went up to get a closer look. Irina's father began crying happy tears.

"That's my little girl!" Touji sniffled.

"Oh dear lord, thank you for giving me such a wonderful daughter." Irina's mother prayed.

"Mooooom! Daaaaad! Stop it already!" Irina cried out, blushing in embarrassment.

Vali's eyes shined at that moment as she finished her sculpture and gave a whistle, getting the attention of the teacher.

"Ooh, everyone, take a look at Vali's. Seems we have two sculptors in the class." The teacher stated. Issei and Irina both show shock as they see Vali had made a sculpture of Ddraig and Albion facing off against each other with tier signature elements.

"Amazing, how did she have enough clay for that?" Murayama breathed, soon another group began looking at this sculpture. Realizing what Vali tried to do, Lilith sighed as she decided to teach her some humility.

"Hey everyone, that's my daughter's work your looking at." Lilith declared loudly, making Vali go red and steam up. 'It's called karma Vali, don't want it? Don't gain it.'

"That's Vali's mom!?" Matsuda screamed out, shocking by her beauty. "She's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen!"

"Bust 123, Hips 55, Waist 92!" Motohama calculated as his nose steamed up.

"Aw, thank you." Lilith said towards Matsuda, soon giggling at Motohama. "Also that's correct, but are you sure you should have said that out loud in a girl dominated classroom?"

Motohama suddenly sweated as all the girls glared as they neared him, Xenovia blinked at the sight.

"So... Open House is a place where people yell about everything?" Xenovia asked, making Issei face fault at her question. "Oh, was I supposed to yell when I said that?"

'Please let today end right now' Issei mentally begged.

* * *

"My sculpture is better! It's got more designs!" Irina shouted.

"No way, it's mine! It's more complex plus I know Issei likes I added Ddraig into it!" Vali yelled back, the two quickly continuing the glare and grit their arguments always ending at since Lilith scolded them. The rest of the Mythological History Club stared and sighed.

"Why did Vali agree to make Irina her Knight again if they had already been arguing beforehand?" Issei sighed, honestly wondering how it happened now.

"She actually didn't." Yuuma mumbled, getting everyone's attention. "She wanted Rias to take her, but Irina kept purposely praying at her until she agreed to let her become her Knight. Irina can be kinda scary when she wants to."

"Ooh, so it was a blackmailing of sorts." Kuroka mused, smirking a bit as she put a finger to her lips. "Are we sure she wasn't a Devil beforehand?"

Soon a bunch of boy were heard screaming like lunatics as they rush over to the gym, catching everyone's attention.

"What's going on?" Irina wondered, she and Vali's stare down broken up by the result. The two hadn't noticed Akeno and Rias walk by as they looked.

"Oh, just some magic girl photo shoot." Akeno giggled, making Vali's eyes widen.

"Wait, magic girl? It can't be!" Vali gasped.

"But it is, I think now's the time you had your peerage be properly introduced to her."

"To who?" Issei wondered, Vali sighed and motioned everyone to follow her. Once they got to the gym, they saw none other than Serafall Leviathan in her signature magic girl outfit as all the guys of the Photography Club took pictures.

"Hey wait a minute, isn't that a Magical Girl Milky Spiral 7 Alternative cosplay?" Issei asked, soon getting Vali's surprise as she looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"How do you know about that show?" Vali asked.

"Remember my one client, the tank cosplayer Mil-Tan?" Issei replied, making most of Vali's peerage sweat drop as the memory invaded their heads. "He had me watch the entire show in one sitting."

Soon Saji walked onto stage.

"Knock it off! We are still on school property, and she's breaking rules as much as you. Get out of here before I have to write you up!" Saji ordered, making all the guys groan and walk away disappointed and angry. "OK, are you related to someone here?"

"Mhmm!" Serafall nodded.

"Then why didn't they tell you this isn't an appropriate attire? You should be in a work uniform, or casual wear or... something else than this." Saji inquired.

"Uh... but this is my work uniform." Serafall answered, making Saji blink. He had the strangest feeling that was familiar.

**'{Really? You know this already, it's not that hard!}"** Vritra thought. **"{Saji, she's-}"**

Sona opens up the door.

"Saji, what's going on here?"

"Sona!" Serafall exclaimed, causing the student council president's hair to frizz slightly as she saw her. Serafall jumped off stage and hugged her. "It's so good to see you, aren't you happy to be seeing your big sister again?"

"SISTER!?" Issei and Irina shouted loudly.

"Yep, this is Serafall Leviathan. Formerly Serafall Sitri and one of the current Great Devils alongside my brother." Rias answered.

"Ooh! Now I remember, Sona mentioned she's always wearing a magic girl outfit as work clothes." Saji recalled, making Vritra groan in his head. 'What?'

**{Just shut up.}** Vritra sighed.

"You should have been running into my arms telling me how much you missed me." Serafall stated, soon swaying back and forth and distracting most of the guys by her breasts bouncing everywhere.

"Then I'll say 'Oh Sona, I missed you too!', then I'll give you a big fat kiss, then you'd kiss me back, and then that'd lead to girl on girl action and wouldn't that be hot?"

Sona sweated a bit, barely holding her composure.

"...We all just heard that, right?" Bikou blinked, bopping his head to make sure he hadn't eaten something to make him trippy.

"Really, why were you a meanie and didn't tell me about this? I got so angry I nearly attacked Heaven out of frustration!" Serafall pouted, making everyone but those who were used to her go wide eyed.

'IS SHE SERIOUS!?' Vali thought, shaking slightly in fear.

"Um... hey sis, Lilith's grand daughter is over there. Go say hi." Sona shakily replied. 'Please do it, please!'

Vali regained her composure and soon straightened up before bowing.

"Uh... it's very nice to properly meet you in person! I'm Vali Lucifer, heir to Lucifer household and Lilith's great granddaughter!" Vali said as she introduced herself, soon lifting her head back up.

"I can see that, and I'm the Great Devil Serafall Leviathan." Serafall smiled, soon doing a pose. "But you can just call me Little Levia!"

Vali blinked.

"Uh... I'll just go with Serafall, it's easier." Vali replied, sweat dropping a bit. Soon she noticed Sona walking about of the room. "Hey Sona, where are you going?"

Sona flinched before she ran off.

"Wait, Sona come back!" Serafall yelled as she chased her.

"No! Stay away from me!" Sona called out, Saji soon following her as everyone else blinked.

"Uh... what just happened?" Issei asked, Vali looked at him and shrugged. "Oh good, it's not just me then."

Rias giggled at that.

"You'll wanna be ready for when you meet the other Devil Kings. All of them are pretty unique in the same way. Especially one particular member." Rias answered.

* * *

Soon everyone had headed back to the main hall, and Issei's parents, along with Lilith, Azazel and one other guest noticed the group.

"Hey Issei!" Seiji called out, getting the group's attention.

"There you are Rias, I've been looking for you." The guest greeted, he was a middle-aged looking man with long crimson red hair that was tied as a loose ponytail with a black hairband. He has bright blue eyes and either a short and red beard or stubble. His name was Zeoticus, however to Rias he was...

"Oh, hello father." Rias answered, catching Issei by surprise.

'He's your dad? But... he's so young!' Issei thought, he tended to forget that Devils lived longer and according to Vali, stayed youthful looking throughout their lives. Admittedly when he remembered, Issei was thankful since that meant he'd never see Vali's breasts end up sagging due to-

"Issei, pay attention. That's rude." Vali sighed, snapping her fingers to make him regain his focus.

"Ah, you must be Vali. I'm Rias's father. Thank you watching out for her." Zeoticus replied, making Vali blush slightly.

"Oh hey, why don't we go back to the house where there's room to sit?" Seiji asked.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea." Zeoticus agreed, surprising both their children as they walked off.

"I'll go buy the whiskey!" Azazel declared, with Lilith playfully hitting his arm.

"Oh no... I don't like where this is going." Issei sweated. Soon everyone heard laughing as Sirzechs walked down.

"Why are you laughing?" Rias asked with a flat stare.

"It seems we're having a slumber party with father tonight." Sirzechs answered with a smile, making Rias groan. "Oh right. Rias, could you and Akeno come with? I'd like to talk with you and your peerage about something important."

"Alright. Issei, Vali, I guess I'll be meeting you at your house later." Rias said before she and Akeno followed Sirzechs.

* * *

Issei and Vali were soon at home, quietly eating dinner with their eyes shadowed as their parents and Lilith were watching the recordings of their class' Open House alongside Sirzechs, fully embarrassed as they did.

"This is torture." Vali breathed embarrassed.

"Someone kill me now." Issei breathed tiredly.

"Aw, look at Vali. She got so embarrassed by me." Lilith giggled, and soon saw Issei's annoyed expression when he he got caught in it too. "I didn't know you were allowed to eat lemons in class Issei. How sour was it?"

'Now Lilith's embarrassing me, it's worse than my parents' teasing!' Isee mentally screamed, while Vali simply pulled a paper bag over her head. At that moment, an embarrassed looking Rias walked in alongside Sirzechs and Grayfia.

"Ah, glad you finally made it Rias, Sirzechs." Zeoticus greeted, Sirzechs chuckled as Rias sat by the table. Issei pushed her a plate.

"Welcome to the embarrassed high schoolers club." Issei bemoaned.

"Oh, who's this lovely lady with you?" Seiji asked, pointing to Grayfia.

"Oh, this is my wife Grayfia." Sirzechs answered, making Issei's eyes suddenly widen as he spit out his drink on Rias in surprise. Her blank stare returning as the juice dripped off her, making Issei and Vali stare in shock.

"Sorry!" Issei apologized.

'I don't know what's worse, the fact I got hit by a spit take, or the humiliation.' Rias thought, unmoving and her expression unchanging.

"Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that Issei?" Vali asked, chuckling oddly as she sweatdropped. "Uh... yeah, how about we go to my room and get a towel for Rias?"

Before anyone could answer, Vali dragged her and Issei upstairs to her room. Soon throwing a towel at Rias who used it to wipe her face clean.

'Wow, first time I've actually been in Vali's room.' Issei thought, soon noticing one of Vali's bras on the floor. He briefly glanced and noticed its current size. 'A 111 cm breast size!? Holy crap, she was only at 108 when she came back. She's still growing!?'

"Issei?" Vali asked, noticing him looking towards the door. Issei regained his focus.

"Huh? Oh, nothing I was just respecting the fact I'm in your room!" Issei said quickly, Vali raised an eyebrow but then shrugged. "Oh yeah, what did your brother want to talk to you about Rias?"

"Oh right." Rias replied, sitting down real quick. "He told me he believes I'm ready to release Gasper from his seal, now that I'm stronger and have more members in my peerage."

"Really, we're finally gonna meet Gasper?" Issei gasped, he had been wondering about Rias' other Bishop since he first met Valerie. The fact he had to be locked away made him wonder just what Gasper was like and how strong he had been to be sealed.

"Yes, though I feel the part that comes after is where I'll need help. Can I count on all of you? I plan to undo the seal once late night comes." Rias requested.

"Of course, we'll help out with anything you need." Vali answered with a smile, Issei nodded. "Get let us know when you need us."

Rias smiled.

"Thank you, both of you." Rias replied.

* * *

Soon at late night, everyone from both peerages are present.

"So this is where Rias' other Bishop is?" Irina asked surprised, having not been aware of the Forbidden Room's purpose due to how recently she joined Vali.

"Its power must have been incredibly dangerous to be locked away." Xenovia mentioned.

"We'll be OK, right?" Yumi gulped, now starting to get scared.

"Don't worry, no one's gonna die. I'd say it's dangerous in the sense of chaos than anything." Rias said, soon shattering the seal and unlocking the door. "Alright everyone, let's see how this goes."

Rias opens the door, and soon a loud scream sounds off.

"I-I don't understand, what's going on!?" Gasper cried out, frightened from the door opening so suddenly.

"The seal is now broken, you're free to come out with us now." Akeno said, opening a coffin in the room's middle. Soon revealing the person inside.

"No! I don't wanna ever leave, the outside is too scary!" Gasper cried out again, turning to reveal an androgynous-looking male around the same age as Shirone with platinum blonde hair and pinkish-violet eyes. His hair was styled in short bob cut with several small fringes over his forehead, and like Valerie he has pointed ears due to being a Dhampir.

Unfortunately, while most of the two clubs knew Gasper was a dude by this point, to the four newer members...

"Oh my goodness, she's such a cute little girl!" Jeanne said, hearts forming in her eyes. Suddenly Kiba began to giggle a bit, confusing Jeanne. "What? What's so funny, why are you laughing?"

"Because _he's_ a boy." Valerie answered, soon making Jeanne freeze up.

"...What?" Jeanne blinked.

"I realize he looks and dresses like a little girl, but he is most definitely a boy." Rias answered, making Jeanne and Yumi gasp loudly, Irina go white eyed in shock, and Xenovia just stared.

"He's not a girl!?" Irina shouted loudly, holding her head in shock. "What? Who? When? Where? Why? How... why is he wearing the girl's uniform even!?"

"Uh... that's kinda my fault." Valerie laughed a bit, making everyone who didn't know turn to her. "Gasper and I were childhood friends, and I kinda made him dress in girl's clothing a lot... and then it stuck."

Irina went fully white and fainted into Xenovia's arms.

"Hey Gasper, why don't you come with us outside now?" Valerie asked.

"I don't wanna, please don't make me!" Gasper panicked, shaking his head.

"Hey, it'll be OK. It's not that-" Yumi tried to grab Gasper's hand, and suddenly his disappeared. "Oh no, I didn't do that did I!?"

"I'm sorry!"

Everyone turned to see Gasper shaking in the corner.

"That was... the Forbidden Balor View? That's his Sacred Gear?" Vali gasped, surprised at what she saw.

"Forbidden what now?" Yuuma asked, not recognizing that Sacred Gear from her studies when still in Azazel's faction.

"Forbidden Balor View is a Sacred Gear that has the power to stop time, it's a powerful sacred gear." Vali answered, making Yuuma go wide eyed. "I've never seen it at that level if power though."

**"(Now it makes sense though, it seems that it may be evolving into a Longinus.)"** Albion replied.

"Wait, are you serious?" Issei asked the White Dragon.

**"[He is, it was minor so I didn't mention it, but there's another condition that seems to apply to the Longinus. They all have a consciousness sealed within, a powerful being like me and Albion.]"** Ddraig answered.

"That's right, when Gasper was born... it was believed Balor's soul manifested. He's the Evil God whose eye gave birth to this Sacred Gear." Valerie answered. "And unfortunately, Gasper couldn't control that power even after his Bishop mutated, so he was sealed in here."

"Not to mention, his powers seem to grow strong unconsciously. He might be close to, if he already hasn't achieved, his Balance Breaker." Akeno continued.

Soon the conversation continued in the ORC room, Gasper hiding in a box in the corner. Issei tapping it.

"Hello? Come on out, your hiding in plain sight." Issei requested.

"I'm not hiding! I'd rather be a Gasper in a box!" Gasper cried out, making Issei sigh.

"I don't think this is working." Issei mumbled.

Rias sighs worriedly.

"Rias, I believe it's about time for us to go." Akeno suddenly said, making Rias realize what time it is.

"Oh that's right, Vali and I have to get a meeting about getting ready for the summit. Kiba?" Rias asked.

"Yeah?" Kiba wondered.

"If you're free I'd like for you to join us, my brother would like to know more about your balance breaker. If your free that is." Rias answered, and Kiba nodded.

"Issei, yo'll need to go as well since you're my Queen." Vali replied, Issei groaned a bit before nodding. "Everyone, try your best in helping Gasper till we get back."

"But wait, how do we do that!?" Irina panicked as the five of them left via a magic circle, soon paling. "Uh... anyone know what we should do?"

* * *

Gasper screams as Jeanne chases after him.

"Do you call that running, go faster or you'll end Hauteclere's next victim!" Jeanne declared, Gasper still panicking while everyone else watches them run back and forth.

"Are we sure this counts as training?" Valerie sweatdropped. "It looks more we're traumatizing him by pretending to be vampire hunters."

"I have a solution." Shirone replied, whispering something to her big sister who smirked.

"I can't do this!" Gasper cried, as he and Jeanne stopped running to catch their breath. Soon Shirone walked up to him.

"Hey Gaspy, you'll feel better if you eat these." Shirone stated, holding out garlic.

"No way! You trying to kill me!" Gasper freaked.

Shirone chased after him, and every time Gasper got near a bush, Kuroka would pop out with her own garlic and make him change direction. Everyone tried to avoid laughing at the scene, especially since Valerie was looking green at the sight of the garlic as well. Soon Saji walked into view.

"Yo! Hey guys!" Saji greeted.

"Oh hey Saji, what's up?" Irina waved.

"I heard Rias finally released that dangerous Bishop of hers and I wanted to see." Saji replied, soon noticing Gasper and gasping. "Another pretty blonde!?"

"Yes, another pretty blonde... _Boy._" Irina said, giving a blank stare as suddenly Saji collapsed to the ground.

"A... a dude? Oh why, why have I been forsaken so!?" Saji cried, making everyone stare.

"Uh... technically I think you're the one who forsakes?" Yumi blinked, sweat dropping at the sight. Unaware of the blue haired lady standing right next to them.

"Well, so we're playing hide and go seek the vampire. Scare the crap out of anyone yet?" Cassiel wondered, causing everyone to freak and get on the defensive. She giggled. "Oh, do you wanna fight me? I wouldn't do that."

"Oh yeah, and why's that?" Irina said, holding out Excalibur Mimic.

"I don't think the Demon race will take kindly to you attacking their leader is why, we have a Summit coming up." Cassiel playfully replied, making everyone's eyes widen.

"That means this woman's the Demon Queen Cassiel!" Xenovia gasped, shaking slightly.

Cassiel looks around and notices Saji's sacred gear and then Gasper's.

"Huh, so the Vritra Gears and the Forbidden Balor View?" Cassiel noted, soon smiling slightly. "A pretty mischievous sacred gear for a Longinus candidate. You should have Vritra sap away all his extra power. Who knows, maybe Dragon blood might help stabilize it too. Especially the Red or White Dragon's."

Everyone stares confused.

"I'm sure you'll figure something out. So for now, tootles." Cassiel giggled, snapping as the Demon magic circle appeared and she headed off somewhere.

"...What the hell just happened!?" Bikou called out.

"The leader of the Demons, I can't understand her at all... and that's what worries me most." Jeanne sweated.

* * *

Later on, Gasper was crying inside his room again. Rias and Vali standing at the door.

"Gasper, please come out. I want you to know that I never wanted you in here." Rias asked, hoping to get Gasper to come back out. It didn't work as he only kept crying. "...What kind of King am I to him?"

"Hey, don't blame yourself Rias." Vali replied, making Rias sigh.

"Sorry, it's just knowing Gasper's background I don't know how much we can do." Rias replied, making Vali look at her confused.

"Gasper's is a Vampire, but his mother was a human. Vampires have a much higher concern about pedigree than we Devils do, so even his family discriminated against. Worse is sadly, the Human world treated him as a monster. So when it was learned he could stop time and couldn't control it..."

"He wasn't just feared... he was loathed." Vali breathed.

"I wish I couldn't do it! I wish they wouldn't stop! I hate it more than anyone else, my friends freeze in front of my face and there's nothing I can do about what I'm making happen!" Gasper cried, a tear fell on the eye of a black bunny plushie he was holding. Making it look like it was crying with him.

"...He's just like me." Vali stated, getting Rias' attention. "Rias, let me try. He needs someone to relate to, and I think I'm the one who can help him."

Rias stares before smiling.

"Alright, if you think you can do it then I'll put my faith in you." Rias nodded before teleporting via a magic circle.

Vali sat at the door and sent a text to Issei, letting him know she won't be home tonight.

"...Gasper, are you afraid?" Vali asked, making Gasper's crying stop as he was surprised by it.

"I'm a descendant of Satan but also half human, and I have a Dragon inside me. One of the strongest ones in the world. Most of all, I have an ability that devours what I want and sends it to an inescapable void where the prisoners become undying. It's scary, and using it makes me feel like part of me became something else. It's scary as Hell... but I don't let that fear stop me."

"But... don't you worry about losing what you care about most because of your power?" Gasper wondered.

"...I get what you're asking, but let me answer with my own question. Have you ever lost something, or someone, because you _didn't_ use your power?" Vali questioned, making Gasper's eyes widen as he looks at the door.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

Vali fell to the ground as a silver haired man with a small beard struck her, making her shake a bit. Another silver man only staring at her with contempt. When Vali was alone, she cried as a brown-haired woman hugged her close and wiped her tears.

_"I was half human and born with the Divine Dividing and only had my grandfather, father and mother in my life. Unfortunately, my mother was the only one who cared about me. My father abused me and my grandfather... tried to weaponize me."_

Vali was dropped off a cliff by Rizevim, her Devil wings sealed off as she fell, screaming until she barely reduced the crash into the ground by summoning her Sacred Gear.

_"The training and conditions for it were hellish, and worst of all..."_

A 5 year old Vali shook as her hands were covered in the blood of a formerly powerful Youkai leader. Rizevim cackling behind her as her eyes shook, and soon she threw up on the ground as she got sick to her stomach.

_"I was too scared, all I could do is listen to my grandfather out of fear, and see my mother to have her hold me when I was afraid. One day I had enough and I told him 'no' to what he asked of me. That was the moment I did nothing, and I paid for my inaction in the worst possible way."_

Vali was knocked down to the ground by Rizevim, holding her cheek in pain as she suddenly saw Rizevim use magic to teleport Vali's parents into the room before he had a young looking silver haired man use his magic to bind them.

Vali could only watch as her Grandfather charged a magic surge in both his hands, Vali saw her mother look at her and she tried moving her hands to cast her Primal Abyss... but then her mind was plagued by Rizevim's face and she stopped. By that point she was too late, a scream went off as blood splattered across the room, some landing on her face.

_"...Right in front of me, before my very eyes, I watched my parents get murdered. I may have hated my father, but I loved my mother, and seeing both of them killed before my eyes was the most horrible thing I had ever seen. At that point... I ran."_

Vali ran through some place she didn't know the name of, her Grandfather flying after her with every attention to likely murder her at this point. She nearly tripped a few times and soon found herself cornered at a cliff face. Rizevim prepared to end her life as he neared her at that moment when...

"PRIMAL ABYSS!"

Vali screamed loudly as she used the power she inherited from Satan, suddenly Rizevim was caught off guard and pushed back, struggling to avoid the void pulling him in. The cliff face Vali was on soon broke, and Vali soon suddenly fell towards the ground before she crashed and blacked out. When it had ended, Rizevim looked and saw her gone, believing the fall killed her he just flew off.

_"I only escaped due to luck, bad luck no less. I was broken, beaten, battered... and I lost the only thing in my life that had kept me going. I thought it was over for me... wondered why I was even alive."_

Vali's KOd form was crying on the ground she landed on.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

"...I've never been able to forget it, and I always see it flash back when I shed any tears. It's like the pain has been burned into my heart forever." Vali finished, clutching her hand near her heart. Gasper soon opened the door.

"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to make you remember that. I don't mean to be a bother." Gasper said, peaking out the door. Vali pats his head.

"Who said you're a bother? Cause I didn't." Vali replied, making Gasper look at her in surprise. "I promise if anything scares you, I'll scare it more than they could ever frighten you."

"I... I don't know, I'm already afraid of this power. Can't someone just find a way to take it away." Gasper wondered, and then Vali put her hand on his shoulder.

"You fool! You and I are bearers of Sacred Gears, and we can't escape that fact. If you don't learn to stand up... you'll be afraid for the rest of your life!" Vali exclaimed, making Gasper gasped.

"The man I fell in love with, he holds my sacred gear's rival. Everyone says we would have to fight, but neither of us want to. The two of us will challenge this fate for as long as we live. Destiny Schmestiny, I want to be with him and I'm gonna do that no matter what the universe tells me!"

Gasper stared at her, soon gasping as he smiled.

"I think you're amazing Vali! You bear a legendary power, but instead of being afraid or giving into it, you somehow stay so positive!" Gasper replied, Vali blushing as his eyes shine towards her. "Hearing you can be brave makes me feel a bit courageous too."

Vali giggled a bit.

"Then let me tell you a few stories, you might feel more courageous from those too." Vali hinted, making Gasper gasp happily as she smiles at him.

'Looks like he found just what he needed to start standing up again.'

* * *

**I don't think I've ever made such a comedy filled chapter for anything before now, I almost didn't take myself seriously when writing it. Not in the sense I didn't try to write it, but I almost didn't try to make anything make sense! XD**

**The snippets of Vali's past we got near the end of this chapter? Aside from Vali mentioning it from time to time in the future, I'm not dwelling any deeper than that, and mainly because it's not any different from canon except things this story's already changed, like Vali being a girl. I will say that was Euclid mentioned to be binding her parents, she saw him enough that she was able to eventually tell Grayfia was one back during Season 1's finale.**

**Now that that's out of the way, time for me to tell all of you what I meant about pausing the story once we reach the end of this Season. It's because I'm going to start focusing on some of my other story projects mentioned on my profile, including the one-shot about how Issei and Irina met each other in my story.**

**Once that's done the story will resume, I'll need the time to think anyways since after this arc and season, original storylines will occasionally pop up. Volume 5 being the first since we'll be moving things over into the Demon Realm rather than Hell due to me resolving most of issues Volume 5 had Issei solve already and leaving a gap I need to fill.**

**So until next time everyone, stay awesome!**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, Irina  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**  
Gasper/Valerie  
Kiba/Yumi


	17. Chapter 17

**Alright, time for the beginning of Season 2's end, because the Summit is here and so is the coming battle!**

**Since I haven't had the chance other than the Kokabiel battle, we'll see a bit more of the Student Council in this chapter other than just Saji. They'll be helping out Gasper with being able to get more comfortable with going outside his comfort zone. It'll be a while before I can get them more involved in general, there may be some arcs where I have Vali and Rias' groups on the sidelines to give them some more time in the limelight.**

**Also, I've got a twist that'll be coming up for Akeno's character arc, so expect some original content to fill in the gap that results from it. Not to mention we've got a lot of cameos for characters that don't debut until later in the series, and one of them? I had intended to have him be sent by Azazel during the Kokabiel fight, but just couldn't fit him in so... everyone, I'm excited to announce Tobio will show up AND fight during the Summit attack!**

**Get ready, because the Summit may be similar to canon, but I'm tipping over everything I can to amplify the battle so that the others will be able to partake in it, not just Azazel. So... with that out of the way, let's get this chapter started!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally, or Ddraig and Vritra telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally, or Albion and Vritra telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally, or Ddraig and Albion telepathically}**

* * *

** -Invader Sense- **

**The clan ability of the Asmodeus household, based on the deadly sin of Lust, it let's the caster invade one's mind and discover their secrets or plans, possibly their feelings if they wish. Only those with strong wills or heavy mistrust of the caster can negate this power's effects. This ability is limited to current and recent thoughts, but can detect thoughts that linger strongly in one's mind if said thoughts are truly overwhelming.**

**When the remaining members of the Asmodeus clan faced possibly expulsion or destruction due to the actions of Creuserey Asmodeus and those of his household that aided him, Lilith Lucifer quelled the chaos by requesting the current clan head of the time to give this power to Falbium Glasya-Labolas who was to be named the new Great Devil Beelzebub. As a result, Falbium is currently the only Devil that's not of the Asmodeushousehold to possess this ability.**

* * *

** _Season 2, Summit Arc: Chapter 3 - Light and Darkness_ **

Saji was walking towards a cafe with Momo and Ruruko, the three deciding to go have some lunch while finishing up some student council work for the upcoming leaders' summit. As they walked, Saji told them about Gasper.

"-The little guy's just got too much power for his own good. Even my Absorption Line couldn't get enough to keep him controlled." Saji finished.

**"{We still had the blood idea, but... Gasper freaked out saying blood was gross and that he was worried his power would just get worse. Damn, helping this brat's not gonna be easy.}"** Vritra sighed.

"So, the challenge is to help an ex-Dhampir control what may become a Longinus soon enough. I can see the difficulty there, the Longinus are already powerful, they say most wielders who have them get consumed by that power. Issei, Vali and Valerie are some of the few I know who didn't go that path." Momo replied, wondering how strong Gasper really was.

"I feel bad, I wish there was a way to help him." Ruruko said sadly. "It seems like his biggest problem is he's so afraid of everyone."

"Yeah, sounds like he's got a case of misanthropy... maybe figuring that out could help him." Saji commented, the tree soon reaching the cafe and sitting down as they put out some papers. "We know he's a Dhampir, and he seems to do best around Valerie. Dresses like a girl..."

The two girls look at him oddly, stopping their writing for a moment.

"Uh... something about Valerie making him a cross dresser." Saji replied, sweat dropping a bit. The three think for a bit.

"...Hey wait, I think I thought of something." Ruruko gasped.

"What is it?" Momo inquired.

"Remember when I first joined Sona? I wasn't good with talking with you all, it felt so different to be a Devil." Ruruko explained, making Momo remember that.

"That's right, whenever you looked at someone directly you got nervous but if you weren't-" Momo suddenly gasped, an idea hitting her. "Face to face... that's it!"

* * *

Vali was soon in Gasper's room, telling her a few funny stories about her earliest peerage members.

"Oh, and wanna know the funny part? Right after Le Fay gave him the banana, Bikou said 'that's offensive! Just cause I'm a monkey Youkai, that doesn't mean I automatically like bananas!', it was the first time I actually saw Arthur lose his usual serious look and fall to the floor laughing!" Vali laughed, soon making Gasper laugh too.

As they laughed, they heard Yumi walk into the room.

"Hey you two." Yumi greeted, soon noticing Gasper seemed less afraid now. "Gasper, you look a lot more relaxed now. Glad to see that."

"Yeah. I told him my story, once he knew he had someone to related to he didn't feel as afraid anymore." Vali smiled, and Yumi sat down with them. "I normally don't like talking about it, but if it helps someone I'll throw caution to the wind."

"I guess I can understand, I mean I was in a coma for..." Yumi begins, but soon stops as she thinks. "Uh... wait, how long was it again?"

Vali and Gasper sweat dropped at that response, and soon Vali noticed Gasper was in his box again.

"Uh... why are you back in the box?" Vali questioned.

"Oh, I'm sorry. When I talk to people I just feel better in here." Gasper explained, soon shrugging his arms. "Don't take it personally, at least I didn't close the top this time."

"So you're OK if your literally boxed in?" Vali asked a bit oddly, feeling a bit uncomfortable having said that.

Yumi thinks for a bit.

"So a lack of room is better than lots of it. Although... we can have you bring that box everywhere. For one you can't take it with you into class." Yumi added, making Gasper sigh a bit. Soon Saji, Momo and Ruruko walk in.

"Actually, I think we have a solution to this." Momo stated, soon placing some sunglasses over Gasper's eyes. "You like these?"

"Huh? Maybe, I... I feel calmer." Gasper replied, before gasping. "Hey, I think I do like it!"

"Uh... I'm confused here." Yumi replied.

"Well I recalled I wasn't good being face to face with Sona's peerage when I first joined it, and then Momo had an idea." Ruruko explained.

"I figured that if Gasper didn't have his face fully seen, or at least the eye contact wasn't direct, he'd be more comfortable." Momo added, nodding in response. "Admittedly thinking of how to cover his face was hard. Sunglasses were the only things we could think of that he could take anywhere without issue."

"We do have a paper bag and a hat he could use if the glasses don't help." Saji replied, holding them up.

"Thank you everyone, you're all the best! Hey, would wearing these give me a better reputation as a vampire?" Gasper asked, making everyone sweat drop a bit.

'Somehow I doubt that.' Everyone thought in unison, drifting their eyes a bit.

* * *

The next day, Vali was seen walking with Asia as they went to go get their lunch during lunch break. Gasper had attended class today and Asia was telling her how it went, and luckily it sounded things were at least OK for him.

"So he did pretty well?" Vali asked.

"Yeah, he did seem nervous but I think the sunglasses were enough to make it bearable for him." Asia replied, soon as the two were about to take a seat. Rias and Akeno walked back. "Oh, hey Rias, Akeno."

"Oh hey guys, glad we found you." Akeno replied, soon looking at Vali. "Vali, could you come with me somewhere after classes today?"

"Sure thing, where to?" Vali answered.

"Meet me by a shrine in the southern part of town, you'll know you've found it if you don't feel any danger." Akeno replied, making the Hakuryuukou and former Holy Maiden confused.

* * *

Vali was seen in the southern area of Kuoh Town, wearing her casual outfit as she looked for any signs of steps to a shrine, after another minute she noticed them.

"Nothing feels off here, guess this is the one." Vali said to herself, soon heading up the stairs until eventually...

"Hello Vali!" Akeno replied, Vali looked to see her appear from the forest trees on the stairs' sides. She was wearing a Miko outfit, but not the same one she assumed when she entered a battle. "Thanks for coming. I hope you forgive me for the sudden invitation."

"Oh no, don't worry. This is a nice change for all that summit prep I've had." Vali said, soon sighing after mentioning that last part. "So does this mean this shrine is yours?"

Akeno giggled slightly.

"It is, after its previous god left, Rias managed to get a hold of this place for me. There's a certain guest here who'd like to meet you." Akeno replied, getting Vali's attention.

Soon after they reached the shrine gate and walked through, Vali looked around at the shrine to see it was quite simply yet had a cozy and comfortable feel to it. At that moment, Vali suddenly covered her eyes as a bright light formed.

"So this is the Hakuryuukou, it's nice to meet you Vali Lucifer." A soft male voice replied, making Vali look up as a cross of light descending into view.

Soon the light faded to reveal a handsome looking man with long blonde hair and green eyes. He had twelve golden wings growing from his back, and possessed tareme eyes that reflected his gentle and kind nature.

"You're..." Vali gasped out.

"I am Michael, otherwise known as the Chief of the Angels." Michael answered, making Vali's mouth open up in surprise. The leader of the Angels was standing before her, and had asked Akeno to bring her here, meaning he wanted to see her.

Soon they went inside one of the rooms of Akeno's shrine, Vali stared at Michael with a slight drop of sweat running down her face as the powerful leader of the Angels stood before her. She had no idea what to say, truth is she was terrified and wanted to throw up.

'What's he doing here? Why does he want to see me, and...' Vali suddenly felt a chill. 'Why do I feel like something is making my skin crawl? I don't think he's causing it.'

Suddenly Vali gasped as a light forms in the middle of the room, soon materializing into a sword, specifically a Holy Sword. It had the appearance of a European sword with a reddish-purple grip, and a golden hilt with stylized crosses at the edges of the guard and dragon claw designs at the center that overlapped with the blade.

"Behold young heiress of Lucifer, this is Ascalon. This Holy Sword has also earned another name." Michael revealed, making Vali's eyes widen. "The Dragon Slayer, a name its previous wielders quite capably earned for it."

"So that's what was making me feel off." Vali whispered, due to giving Albion her heart, she gained a resistance to Holy magic... at the cost of gaining a weakness to the much rarer dragon killing attribute weapons like Ascalon possessed.

"Fear not Vali Lucifer, for this weapon was sent to be given to you." Michael answered, surprising Vali.

"I've heard the tales of your courage in saving the Gremory heiress from a forced marriage and how you fought against Kokabiel for the sake of preventing another war. I believe Ascalon will be kept safe from those who would abuse it in your hands."

"Oh, that's really nice of you, but... I'm a wizard-type and don't know how to use weapons." Vali replied, sweat dropping slightly. "Mind if I give it to my queen? Issei has some skill in kendo, so having a sword could benefit him."

Michael nodded.

"That's understood. In return, I must ask you of something." Michael requested, making Vali look at him.

"Hear me child, the time has come for all of us to work together... or die trying. The Great War ended large scale fighting, but we still have incidents like Kokabiel's. If this is to continue, all will be brought to ruin. Another power could attack us in the confusion."

Vali's drop of sweat trickled down her face further, during her training journey, she had learned firsthand while the mythologies don't bother with each other, some Gods and beings didn't care. Indra, Loki, Hades, the Evil Dragons, some Vampires and some particular humans? They lacked the same tolerance.

"That's why this summit will provide us with a great opportunity." Michael smiled, making Vali gasp.

"Wait... are you saying that you're hoping-" Vali began.

"Yes, we're hoping for the Four Factions to make an alliance and finally end the years of senseless fighting born from our division." Michael answered, and Vali stared in shock.

"As a descendant of Satan, you know fairly well this wouldn't be the first time. Not just our efforts to seal Ddraig and Albion to stop the destruction of their battle, but the fact that we were all once Angels. Even the Devils indirectly due to Satan originally being an Angel himself. So I beseech you Hakuryuukou, please align the goals of the Christian pantheon."

"...Alright, I accept. If I had the choice then I'd never fight again. Even if this only stops fighting between us, I will aid you." Vali replied resolutely, holding out her hands as Michael lowered Ascalon to her.

"Thank you, and now I will take my leave." Michael answered, before he could leave however...

"Wait! Before you go, is there a question I can ask you at the summit?" Vali asked, she would have asked it here but knew Michael must be busy.

"I promise, I will hear you out when next our paths cross. Farewell Vali." Michael replied, soon vanishing in the cross of light again.

* * *

In another room in the shrine, Vali and Akeno were at a table as the silver haired Lucifer was poured tea by the miko wearing Devil. Vali took a sip before breathing out, relaxed by the blend.

"Say, will Issei even be able to assimilate the sword? I mean it is a Dragon Slayer." Vali questioned, worried if the sword could really be used.

"Not to worry, Valerie can help with that." Akeno smiled.

"Huh? What do you mean, is this related to her healing power?" Vali questioned and Akeno shook her head.

"No, one of the Sephiroth Graal's abilities can let her remove the weakness of creatures as much as possible. Provided that they're not creatures weak to the holy element or weaknesses they gained from being reincarnated. Since you gained dragon traits due to giving up your heart to Albion..." Akeno explained.

"Ooh, that's useful. Explains why I don't see you using it to remove your weakness to light weapons too." Vali said, guess even the Longinus had some prominent weaknesses at times. "...Hey Akeno?"

Akeno turned to her.

"Yes, what is it?" Akeno asked, and Vali sighed. Akeno looked a bit worried as she did.

"Why did Kokabiel say he could sense Baraqiel's power in you?" Vali bluntly asked with a sad face, making Akeno gasp.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

"Ah, is this Baraqiel's power I sense!?" Kokabiel asked, getting Vali's attention briefly. Akeno's eyes warped into one of pure rage.

"Don't speak his name... I AM NOTHING LIKE THAT CREATURE!" Akeno screamed at the top of her lungs.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

Akeno lowered her face, and Vali suddenly gasped silently.

"No way, you mean..." Vali gasped.

"That's right... he's my father. I'm the half-breed daughter of Baraqiel and a human." Akeno confirmed, surprising Vali as he only knew Baraqiel had lost his wife and child. She wasn't aware that Baraqiel's wife hadn't been a Fallen Angel.

"My mother was a young Shrine Maiden of the Himejima clan, one day she found my father injured and wounded from a battle and nursed him back to health. She did her job well, and before long they fell in love, and then I was born. However, because of the scandal, my mother had to leave the clan behind. We all started a quiet life together, it was happy... but those days of peace all ended one day."

Akeno stood up and moved her miko out to show her back, revealing her Fallen Angel wings and making Vali gasp.

"When my black wings started coming in, I had no idea that people would hate them as much as they did. So I didn't try to hide them... after all, what child thinks their neighbors will try to murder them?" Akeno said sadly, making Vali look down with her own somber look. She knew that all too well, but it was her family in her case.

"One night, those very neighbors came when my father had been away. My mother tried desperately to shield me... and lost her life. I lost her forever."

That made Vali's head raise up a bit, that contradicted with something she knew.

"I only made it out alive because my father came back, but... after what I witnessed I nearly went insane. I only came to one conclusion." Akeno trailed off as she remembered.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

"You can't do this! Please stop, she's just a little girl!" Akeno's mother, Shuri, cried out. Hoping to stop the man standing before her.

Shuri held her daughter close, and a masked man soon swung her sword down.

"LEAVE MAMA ALONE!" Akeno cried.

Unfortunately, her words were not headed. Akeno soon her the sound of a slash and a splatter, soon seeing blood spill on her slightly as she saw her mother's dead body. Before that same man could cut her down, a burst of lightning suddenly struck him and fried him to death.

"MAMA!" Akeno cried, unfortunately old enough to know what had really happened and that her mother was gone.

Walking into view of the dead assassin came a middle-aged, gruff-looking man with black hair, matching beard and a muscular body. While they were unseen, he had ten black wings being a cadre class Fallen like Kokabiel. He was Akeno's father, Baraqiel. He noticed the crying Akeno and his wife's dead body on the ground.

"Akeno." Baraqiel softly called out, reaching out to her. Only for him to gasp as his daughter smacked his hand away.

"Don't touch me!" Akeno screamed, still crying. She didn't even open his eyes to look at him, much less turn to face him. "Why weren't you here!? You should have been here to protect me and mama! If you hadn't left, mama would still be alive right now!"

Baraqiel could only stare, not even trying to stop the verbal abuse being fired at him like a shot to the heart.

"Those people told me... it's call because my father's a Fallen Angel! They said all Fallen Angels are bad people! None of this is fair... I HATE STUPID BLACK WINGS! I HATE YOU!" Akeno screamed even louder, and those last three words shattered her father's hard. Akeno lowered her head and cried. "Get out of my life... never come back!"

"Akeno!" Baraqiel cried as he saw his daughter run out of the house, running away from home... and from him.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

Val stared in shock.

"You... you ran away from home!?" Vali gasped, now she understood why Baraqiel acted the way he had during the first year of her training journey. He had his heart broken twice over.

"Yes... and life suddenly changed. I spent my days running from the people who hunted me. Too long. I was only a kid, and children have their limits." Akeno replied. "However, Rias showed up and saved my life."

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

Akeno was running through a forest until she suddenly collapsed on the ground, panting as she expected the end to come. Soon she heard footsteps walking towards her and looked up to see a young Rias looking at her with her wings out, a man by her side.

"Are you alright?" Rias asked, making Akeno gasp as she saw Rias' wings.

_-End Flashback_

* * *

"After that, I soon became her Queen. Hoping that I could finally shed these awful wings... but I failed, worse is I can have one of each, mismatched plumage to match my impure lineage." Akeno continued, turning to Vali again.

"The truth is I wanted to tell you for such a long time, but then when you revealed you were a Lucifer... how could I? I've heard about the cruelty he's given and barely need to imagine what he inflicted on you. I had no right to make you remember that pain."

"...I apologize, I didn't mean to make things awkward." Vali replied, making Akeno stare at her. "But at the same time, I don't think it's fair that you judged your father over what happened! None of you could have known you'd be attacked that day! Just like I didn't know telling my grandfather know would make him kill my parents!"

Akeno's mouth trembles before she starts making an angry face.

"I don't care what could have happened! It's too late, so what gives you the right to have any say in my life!?" Akeno yelled.

"I'm your friend Akeno! Rias has as much say as I do when I'm concerned about how you act!" Vali yelled back, slamming her hands on the table. "All your doing is shifting the blame to someone who doesn't deserve it, you're just trying to justify just how you feel because you can't handle the truth!

"Shut up! You don't know anything, don't act like you do! You've never even met my father!" Akeno screamed.

"I have met your father! He was there when I went off for training for 7 years, and do you know how dead he seemed!? Azazel was worried he'd just become a machine after his heartbreak!" Vali declared, getting in Akeno's face.

"Do you know how many nights I heard him cry, and I didn't have the heart to ask him what was wrong? Penemue would only tell me he lost his wife and his daughter, his family left his life and he couldn't do anything! Just like I couldn't! No... at least he didn't doom his family with just a single word, or have his own family kill the rest of it!"

Akeno's face suddenly became more defensive, moving her face back a bit as Vali's got closer.

"And do you think I don't understand what it's like to lose your mother? I hated my father, but I loved my mother! She was the only light in my life as I suffered alone from my father and grandpa! Then that light was snuffed out by me giving a simply 'no' as a reply to my father!" Vali continued angrily.

"From what I can tell, your father loved you and your mother! My father despised me! My grandfather saw me only as a tool for whatever the hell he wanted to do with me! Your actions didn't even doom your mother to damnation, but mine did! I couldn't even act to stop it, I just watched and let it happen! If you think I don't understand... then you don't even know your own father!"

Vali pants as she finally let all her anger out, she hated herself for it... but she realized Akeno had to hear what she said. Akeno only stared before giving a somber smile.

"...Just forget I said anything, I don't want things to get weird between us." Akeno replied, making Vali stare surprised. "Based on what I told you, for all you know it was just a tactic to distract you. A mere facade to hide that I'm half Fallen Angel."

"Hey, there's no way you're convincing me that you're a bad person." Vali answered.

"Oh, but it's true, you said it yourself... I'm a terrible woman." Akeno stated, and at that moment Vali saw it in her eyes. Everything she had told her, it wasn't because she blamed her father or anything, the truth was... she hated herself.

Vali walked up to Akeno and then... slapped her across the face to her surprise.

"That's bullshit and you know it!" Vali declared, making Akeno gasp as she heard it.

"Look at me, I'm Half Devil and I met so many rotten ones just by my family. By all means people should be asking me why don't I hate Devils? Why don't I hate that I'm a half one myself? It's because there's more to someone than what they are!"

Akeno kept staring, surprised by Vali's words.

"You're one of the greatest people anyone could ever hope to meet! It doesn't if you were born a half-fallen, or that you're a reincarnated Devil now! You're still you Akeno, and you're someone I admire. You're smart, strong, refined, and beautiful enough any guy would be lucky to have you. Don't you get it Akeno, you're not just a great person, you're great at being one too!"

Akeno's opened mouth trembled, and soon Vali sees her crying.

"Uh... Akeno?" Vali said worriedly.

"...You can stop worrying, you said everything right." Akeno sniffled, and Vali saw her smiling despite shedding so many tears. "You say sweet things like that, and what's a person supposed to do except believe them?"

Vali scratches her cheek and blushed a bit from embarrassment.

"Eh... well I did kinda angry and explode at you, I'm not sure they were all really sweet things." Vali replied awkwardly. "Besides, I guess it didn't seem fair since something you said didn't match what I know."

Vali breathed, wondering how she should bring it up.

"Akeno... your mother isn't dead." Vali said, making Akeno's eyes widen. "Well she's comatose, but... my father when heard about the situation did everything he could to try and save her before she was fully lost. She hasn't woken up, but he saved her by making he a Fallen Angel. I don't know when, but you can see her again one-"

Vali suddenly felt herself knocked to the ground as Akeno hugged her and they fell over.

"A-Akeno!?" Vali blushed, feeling a bit uncomfortable in their current position. "Uh... why the sudden hug? This is starting to feel kinda weird now!"

"...Thank you, Vali." Akeno simply stated, making the heiress of Lucifer blink. "For everything, I finally feel I can come to terms with my past. I'm not ready yet... but I think when I am I can finally forgive me father."

Vali stares in shock before smiling a bit.

'Issei, I don't know why, but it seems like you and me just seem to clear away the darkness in everyone's pasts.' Vali thought, looking up at the ceiling. 'Just like you saved me.'

After a moment...

"Uh... Akeno, how long are you stay like this? I'm starting to worry I can't my legs anymore!" Vali sweated, and Akeno only giggled at that. 'What have I just walked into!?'

"Uh..."

The two suddenly go white eyed and turned to see Issei and Rias staring at them through the door. Vali sweats a lot at the sight of her boyfriend seeing her in this position and soon goes as white as her sacred gear.

"IT'S NOT HOW IT LOOKS, I SWEAR!" Vali screamed out.

* * *

Gasper's eyes glowed purple as he held up a volleyball using his powers, after a bit...

"Alright, and stop." Tsubasa said as she clapped her hands. Gasper drops it, feeling exhausted from holding it up as Valerie smiles from where she was watching.

"You're doing great Gasper, you're catching it once out of every 5 tries now." Reya replied, making Gasper smile.

"At first you couldn't even catch one. Alright, next one here we go!" Saji said as he grabbed another ball. He threw it... and Gasper just gets hit in the face, making everyone wince.

"You alright Gaspy?" Ruruko asked.

"Uh... Valerie? I think I need an ice pack." Gasper said, a bit dazed as his eyes rolled around. Valerie panicked and rushed to go get one. Meanwhile the rest of Sona's peerage minus Sona herself watched from the student council room's window.

"It looks like they're really going at it to help Gasper, been a while since I've seen everyone work so hard since Ruruko joined us." Tomoe commented, smiling at the sight. "Weren't you trying to help him Momo?"

"I was, but he said something about me making him train made him feel guilty." Momo said, scratching her head. "Maybe I look like someone he knew once? Although I will admit Saji's not freaking out over aiding in training right now."

"Why's that?" Tomoe wondered.

"Remember how Vali got Sona to agree to let Saji help them by having Tiamat train him afterwards?" Tsubaki answered.

Suddenly as if hearing her, Saji suddenly goes white and collapses on the ground.

"No, don't like the scary blue dragoness get near me again. I'll be good mommy... please don't make me." Saji whimpered, making the others look at him confused. Meanwhile from the window, Tsubaki face palmed herself while Momo and Tomoe looked with a sweat drop.

"I take it back." Tsubaki groaned.

* * *

Azazel sat on the top of a construction site, staring at the city lights before him. As he stood there he saw a shadowy portal open and a boy with short brown hair walks out, a black dog with a blade in its forehead following before laying down to rest.

"Ah, so I take it you've finished up all your work Tobio?" Azazel asked, hoping the "Slash Dog" of Grigori.

"Yeah, finished up all the work Shemhazai wanted a look at." Tobio said, resting his back against the wall of a girder. "I'll be attending that meeting with you tomorrow then. So Azazel... what are the odds things could go back in your opinion?"

"I don't know? Why do you ask, are you trying to live fast and die young?" Azazel asked, Tobio shook his head.

"Call it a premonition, my gut tells me that something feels wrong in the air. I just hope it's wrong." Tobio replied, soon getting off the girder and looking at the city. "Either way, tomorrow is a big day. Something will change regardless of what changes."

* * *

Vali crashes onto Issei's bed, waiting for him to come home.

"...Poor Akeno, you were always smiling outside but had been suffering inside all this time. Compared to you, I had it easy cause I met Issei and Azazel." Vali told herself, sighing. "Damn... I can't think about it without feeling like a jerk."

Soon Issei opens the door, and Vali looks to see him alongside Rias and Akeno.

"Huh? Rias, Akeno?" Vali blinked, surprised to see them both. "Why are you both here?"

"Our meeting ran a bit late, so Issei offered to let us sleep over for the night. Hope you don't mind?" Rias replied, and Akeno walked by her side smiling. Vali noticed this and sighed in relief.

'She's back to normal, glad to see that. They really are best friends.' Vali thought to herself.

"Also, Akeno really wanted to take a moment to apologize to you." Rias said suddenly, making Vali blink in response.

"Obviously, I am very sorry for surprising you like that. Akeno apologized, bowing a bit. "I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

Vali chuckled a bit at that.

"I also heard." Rias said, making Vali's eyes widen and panic. "No, not your little eruption at her. I meant when you told her it didn't matter to you what she was."

"U-uh... oh, that." Vali said, blushing a bit. Soon blushing more as Issei pet her.

"That's my Vali for you." Issei replied, making Vali smile as she rests her head on Issei's shoulder. "Come on, we should get some sleep now."

"Right." Vali said, Rias and Akeno heading to the guest room while Issei noticed Vali fall asleep on his lap.

* * *

The following morning, sunrise came and a figure was seen flying around in the air by Kuoh Academy. He was a young boy with messy red hair and gold colored eyes, wearing a punker outfit and frowning with a single fang showing from his mouth.

"So tonight's finally the night, the higher ups of the Christian Faction are here to discuss the most boring issues that will ever be discussed. So lame." The boy yawned, cleaning his ear. Soon he noticed something and saw someone nearby standing on an electric pole.

"I'm a bit surprised you actually bothered to come see this." Ophis replied, revealing she was the one standing on the pole.

"Oh, sister dearest?" The boy sighed tiredly.

"Brother dearest, fancy seeing you here. After all... 'there's nothing in this boring world to interest me', isn't that what you always say?" Ophis replied, soon looking at him directly. "Great Red?"

"For the last time, my name is-" Great Red tried to say.

"Oh keep your pants on dear brother. Let's just enjoy the show for now, besides..." Ophis interjected, soon shadows covering her upper face as she glared at her fellow dragon. "Later on, I intend to make sure to kick you out of the Gap for good."

"Humph! Keep dreaming you weak little shrimp, because you'll be the one I kick out of there for good." Great Red snorted.

* * *

By the time of sunset, a barrier formed around Kuoh Academy as everyone gathered for the leaders' summit. The ORC, MHC, and Student Council all got ready as they heard it and knew it was the signal for the talks to start.

"Alright everyone, looks like it's time." Vali replied, making everyone nod.

"Gasper, behave yourself while we're gone. I have Yumi here to watch over you while we're at the talks." Rias replied, making Gasper nod. "If he needs anything, the nearby closet has some snacks and games."

"Understood Rias!" Yumi smiled happily.

"Alright, let's go guys." Vali replied, making everyone nod as they head towards the meeting room and leave Gasper and Yumi to their devices.

Soon they arrive at the meeting room's door, and after knocking they walked in to see everyone present at the meeting. Penemue and Tobio were both waiting by the wall nearby Azazel's side of the table. Cassiel was seen yawning, she had a young looking demon with red hair in twin tails behind her side of the table.

On Michael's side, a young man with blonde hair, green eyes, and dressed in priest clothes was seen, a was an extremely beautiful woman with curly blonde hair and a voluptuous figure. The church trio recognized her as Michael's sister Gabriel, the strongest and most beautiful woman in Heaven. Finally, on Lilith's side, Sirzechs and Serafall (who was still in the magic girl outfit) were standing by her as Sona's peerage was by the wall of their side.

"Everyone's finally here." Lilith suddenly stated, motioning a hand towards Vali. "This is my great granddaughter Vali, Sirzechs' little sister Rias and their retainers. Alongside Serafall's sister Sona and her retainers, they were the ones who fought Kokabiel during his surprise attack."

"I thank you all again for stopping that bastard, he nearly made a mess of things." Azazel replied, soon making Cassiel giggle.

"Azazel, I'm pretty sure back in Heaven I always told you to clean up your stuff after you were done using it. Be glad they did it for you." Cassiel giggled, making Lilith and Azazel sigh at her reply.

"Try to stay on topic Cassiel." Lilith replied, soon clasping her hands together on the table. "Now that we're all here... let this summit commence!"

Outside, a bunch of Devil, Angel, Fallen Angel and Demon troops all took a battle stance and heightened their guards. Meanwhile inside, Vali, Issei and Sona all give their reports on the incident with Kokabiel.

"-All the remaining details about the incident can be found in our official reports." Sona said, finishing up their reports.

"That will be all, thank you ladies." Sirzechs replied.

"Great job Sona, you make me so proud!" Serafall smiled, making Sona blush in embarrassment. Lilith coughed once and Serafall regained her focus and turned back to the others. "Oh right, sorry!"

"So Azazel, care to share your two cents? Kokabiel was your brood after all." Cassiel asked.

"Kokabiel went rogue and acted on his own, so my thoughts on the incident are irrelevant." Azazel sighed, using his fist to hold up his chin. "In fact, he probably chose to try destroying this town just for the sake of taking me out of the equation."

"What troubles me is his motivations. Not just being dissatisfied with the status quo, but..." Gabriel replied, looking a bit worried. "...the fact he began the first Great War itself is worrisome."

"Yeah, the prick was a racist who thought Fallen were the alpha beasts. We don't have interest in war." Penemue added.

"The seeds of discontent... they're in every faction, aren't they?" The female Demon beside Cassiel mentioned.

"Yeesh, don't be a stick in the mud sweetie. You make it sound like we wanna declare a war." Cassiel sighed, turning to the Demon who blushed in response. "So let's just make peace already and be done with this stupid conflict already."

Everyone was surprised that Cassiel got to the point so fast.

"What, isn't that the point of this summit? Besides, I think we all want the same thing, don't we?"

Soon Lilith, Cassiel, Azazel and Michael all look at one another. As they did, only one thought ran through all the other participants' minds...

...What would the end result of this summit be?

* * *

**Well, we got Gasper getting more comfortable, Vali getting Ascalon to give to Issei, and... oh, did I just show this fanfic has Great Red and Ophis as siblings? *giggles* Why yes, yes I did. If anyone asks what Great Red's real name is, don't, I didn't intend to give him one and that line was Ophis showing she got the nickname stuck so everyone calls him that now.**

**That one line about Valerie's Sephiroth Graal working to remove the Dragon Slayer weakness in Issei and Vali? Yeah, that does happen, but it was off-screen because I wasn't sure how to add it without it feeling forced into the chapter. Do know this _doesn't_ effect how Samael's poisoned could hurt them since Samael's poison is just stronger on dragons, it can still be as deadly to them... and yes, that was possible foreshadowing, or was it? :3**

**So how do you like the introductions of Dulio, Tobio and Gabriel? I like their characters, and the Devils did have more members present, so... I decided to add a few more people in, and for Heaven I felt Dulio and Gabriel were a good choice as Michael's entourage. Like I said, we'll see all of them get a chance to fight, so get ready for them bringing the hammers down in the next chapter.**

**Now in regard to what I did with Akeno? Similar to Kuroka affecting Koneko's arc early, I felt Vali, due to her association to Grigori and being a fellow half-breed like Akeno, was the best choice to deal with her problem in this scenario. Issei deals with some of the others' issues too, but I decide if it's him or Vali based on who's situations fit better and Vali was this for Akeno. So now when Baraqiel appears, things are just gonna feel odd like Kuroka and Koneko's relationship in canon initially.**

**Most of all... SURPRISE! I decided to spare Shuri, it was a unique way to do it but I did. To explain what happened, there is a limit to how long one can be dead for before you can't reincarnate them anymore, and since I already established earlier than all the factions have a system to reincarnate humans and other races into their own, I figured Baraqiel would quickly try something but nearly be too late. Not to mention he wouldn't want Shuri as a servant to someone so... Azazel did something to make her a Fallen without the servitude thing, but due to how it worked, Shuri is comatose right now.**

**I just didn't have the heart to do what most stories did and have her KIAd without trying to bring her back, as for when Shuri ends up waking up? That'll depend, I will say it won't be before Loki tries to cause trouble, but not necessarily during it either.**

**Well anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, next time we begin the first part of this season finale!**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, Irina  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali**  
Gasper/Valerie  
Kiba/Yumi


	18. Chapter 18

**Sorry this took a while everyone, as you may have noticed I got to a highly anticipated arc for Date A Re:Live, and I just couldn't stop typing chapters for it, by the time I realized I had written three chapters ^^;, so I figured before I got back to the craze of the Kurumi arc, I should at least do part one of the Season 2 finale for this fanfic.**

**I pretty much said most of what I could in the previous chapter, but just as a reminder, expect all the leaders and their escorts to bring down the hammer of pain onto these Khaos Brigade terrorists. I mean really, why did they only show Azazel fighting? We already knew how Fallen and Devils fought, if anything I'd have preferred Michael fighting and then Azazel pulling out Fafnir to finish things.**

**I mean the cutting off his arm scene? I don't mind that in particular because it can be excused, while I think he could have just broken the armor on the arm off, nothing says that Katerea's little trick didn't sink through it and embed into his skin as well. I may need to re-read that scene just to be sure... ignoring that though, you'll see everyone that isn't frozen get to fight and that's mostly those of the leaders' group. So... enjoy ^^**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally, or Ddraig and Vritra telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally, or Albion and Vritra telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally, or Ddraig and Albion telepathically}**

* * *

** -Will of Creation- **

**The clan ability of the Belphegor household, based on the deadly sin of Sloth, it allows the caster to manifest objects that are based on their own personal thoughts and wishes at the time of its use, then willing them into existence based their strength which influences both how many things they create at once, and the actual power of the manifested objects.**

**When the remaining members of the Belphegor clan faced possibly expulsion or destruction due to the actions of Zentiika Belphegor and those of her household that aided her, Lilith Lucifer quelled the chaos by requesting the current clan head of the time to give this power to Roygun Agares who was to be named the new Great Devil Belphegor. As a result, Roygun is currently the only Devil that's not of the Belphegor household to possess this ability.**

* * *

** _Season 2, Summit Arc: Chapter 4 - Summit Shakedown, Part 1_ **

Inside the old school building, Gasper was playing on a handheld console, and as they did... Gasper suddenly stopped and got worried.

"I hope everyone's OK, what if the summit gets chaotic and war breaks out?" Gasper panicked, and Yumi suddenly turned in worry. "And then... everyone dies, and I can't take it-"

Yumi suddenly put the paper bag on his head, and he stops his panic to Yumi's relief.

"Oh, that's better. I feel calmer now."

Yumi went to eat a carrot stick when suddenly she felt something off, and turned near the door. Outside, a magic gate opens as robbed people riding smaller magic circles of the same one that created the gate come out. Yumi suddenly stands up and grabs Gasper's box.

"Wha? Yumi, what's wrong?" Gasper asked, still wearing the paper bag.

"Trouble, so don't move a muscle." Yumi quickly replied, holding up her hand. "Adamant Will!"

Yumi's eyes glowed as a giant light blue shield formed, blocking a few magic blasts as the doorway was suddenly blasted into smithereens! Gasper panicked and ducked into the box and closed it, while Yumi sees humans come in.

"Wait, your human?" Yumi said surprised.

"Yes, we are indeed human. However we're different because we use magic by remaking the structure of Devil magic." One of the magicians answered.

"Of course, your Magicians just like Le Fay." Yumi sweated, she was outnumbered.

"If it helps you understand, we're on the same level as what you call Mid-Class devils, now hand the Dhampir over to us! We already know he's here so don't try to hide him!" A magician demanded, Yumi shifted her body and the magicians fired. Yumi made a barrier to block it before tossing Gasper's box up.

"Give up, there's nowhere to run, and you can't beat us if your sacred gear is only meant for defense!"

"You're right, then it's a good thing I have two! Lumen Shekhinah!" Yumi declared, soon forming a bow type sacred gear. The magicians gasped as she drew the string and formed an arrow of light. "Burst!"

The arrow fired and burst into light on the ground, Yumi catches' Gasper's box and forms a barrier as she runs through the halls. As she did, she saw magicians surrounding the entire old school building and realized there was no way to escape outside, making her briefly stop and sweat.

"Yumi, what's going on out three?" Gasper asked fearfully, still hiding in the box.

"...I think we're under attack by some magician terrorists, and I think they want you." Yumi replied, swear trickling down her face as she heard more Magicians come. 'Quick, I gotta get us to the safe room!'

Yumi throws Gasper's box at the stairs before jumping at it and sliding down the railings, soon catching Gasper's box once she reached the bottom. The magicians pass by, trying to figure out where she went. Soon she found the door and entered it, causing a sealing circle to form briefly. The magicians soon see it.

"There's magic on the door." A magician stated, smirking a bit. "I thought there was something strange about room when we first infiltrated, I was right. They must be hiding in there. Luckily for us..."

The magicians all smirk, meanwhile inside the room, Yumi pants and takes a moment to sit down and rest.

"This should stall them until we get some people to come help us. It'll be alright Gaspy, we're safe now-"

Suddenly a stray shot hits Yumi and she screams loudly before she's knocked out from it, Gasper's box hits the ground and soon he falls out. Soon staring at a magician who had somehow realized what the room was and gotten in ahead of time.

"We've got you now." The magician claimed, summoning a magic sigil to trap them both on the wall and send them into another room. Gasper shook in fear as many magicians appeared in view, and the same one cast a spell. "Now time to use your power like the weapon it should be!"

Gasper suddenly screams loudly as he felt his Sacred Gear go out of control as it enters a Balance Breaker state, Yumi still unconscious throughout the entire event.

* * *

Everyone stared as the four leaders as they each gave their own looks at each other, the tension in the room so thick that a knife could cut it. Seeing no one would speak up, Cassiel sighs and shrugs and decides to continue off her last reply.

"Our perpetual four-way stalemate is just getting old and hardly doing this world any favors, not to mention we know the same man who started the war and who tied to restart are now no longer anything to worry about. The bastard's deader than dead thanks to Azazel calling Ophis in when he did." Cassiel continued, hoping for a reaction.

"I assume we're all in agreement on that?"

Luckily a reaction happened as Michael chose to speak up.

"God and Satan are gone, and most of our War Generals have been annihilated." Michael replied, and the Church Quartet all gave somber reactions as they were reminded of the Lord's death. Dulio looked at them as a result.

'I wouldn't blame them for that reaction, who would have wanted to learn that truth like you all did?' Dulio mentally replied, having sympathy for the ex-church members.

Lilith cleared her throat, getting everyone's focus.

"I think you're forgetting we do have a 5th party of sorts that's a complication. While they are technically allied with the Devils, their forces are equally as destructive and better defined as their own powers." Lilith added, motioning her eyes behind her and then at Dulio and Tobio.

"The Sekiryuutei, the Hakuryuukou, the wielder of the Holy Grail, the Zenith Tempest and the Slash Dog. All five are Longinus wielders, so I believe it's only fair we hear their thoughts first. Go ahead in any order you'd like."

The five having been put on the spot took a moment, but Issei grabbed Vali's hand and she nodded.

"Issei and I speak together for our thoughts, we only want to use our powers to help those in need. Not to fight battles just for the sake of fighting." Vali replied, making Lilith smile at their answer.

"I've seen many orphaned children around the world, and those the church has taken in are like siblings to me. I wish to share the joys of the world to them, so I want those joys to never disappear. I also favor peace." Dulio replied, making Michael and Gabriel smile.

"I saw the ugliness of humans who were put in unfair conditions. A cycle of continued conflict? It will just breed more of this ugliness, we must end that cycle. I also vote on peace." Tobio answered, making Azazel chuckle.

"I-I just want what Rias and Gasper want, so... I want peace too!" Valerie said nervously, Cassiel could barely keep herself from laughing at how she replied. The demon besides her smacked her to make her stop.

At that moment, Michael noticed this was a good opportunity to have Vali ask her question.

"Vali Lucifer, did you still have a question you wanted to ask me?" Michael asked.

"Oh right, thank you for reminding me." Vali replied, soon clearing her throat and taking a breath. "I want to know, why weren't you fair to Asia, Xenovia, Jeanne and Irina. More specifically, I want to know why you kicked them out of the church, especially Asia and Irina who have the strongest faith in God I've ever seen."

The four all suddenly showed shock at that question.

"Vali, stop-" Rias tried to interject.

"No, it's alright. She has every right to ask this." Michael replied, making Rias silently gasp before she nodded.

"After God was killed, only his system remained. The only thing we had to keep the faith was our power to administer divine protection, mercy and miracles. Even with me as the center, the church is barely functioning. Consequently... there was a need to avoid anything that could negatively affect the system."

"In other words, you didn't have a choice. Asia's Twilight Healing originally couldn't heal Devils, could it?" Vali confirmed, and Michael nodded.

"Indeed. The faith of believers is essential for those of us in Heaven exist. A threat to the system is a threat to our survival, so anything that could negatively affect it had to be removed." Michael finished, Gabriel gave a sad look.

"Of course, and why Jeanne, Irina and I were given Asia's fate. As did anyone who learned the truth or had similar powers." Xenovia answered.

"Yes, it was unfair and you were hardly heretics. We should have found another way." Gabriel answered somberly, bowing slightly. "We ask for your forgiveness."

Irina gasped at this.

'A Seraph... asking us for forgiveness?' Irina thought, soon she took a step forward. "Apology accepted Chief Michael, Lady Gabriel. It's interesting... I grew up with my faith, and being half Angel, so I will admit I do have some regrets."

Irina took a deep breath and smiled.

"But I'm happy with my current life as a Devil now." Irina finished, making Dulio and the two Seraph smile. The others give similar reactions. "I'm only sad for other believers who didn't gain this same miracle."

"I agree, this path led me to seeing my brother again and reuniting with a good friend of mine. I don't regret that choice." Jeanne added.

"As am I." Xenovia added.

"Me too, I'm so much happier with my life now. I've met people I cherish who also care about me." Asia smiled, making Vali and Issei smile as well.

"Both of you have forgiving spirits, and I'm thankful for that." Michael responded.

Cassiel smirked and put her legs on the meeting table.

"Pretty amazing how talking things out just seems to work things out so easily." Cassiel answered, but soon her face went serious as she looked behind her. Getting everyone's attention before she grabbed her fellow Demon's arm.

In that moment, a magic circle appeared overhead and time suddenly froze over the whole area, only the leaders and their aids, Holy sword users, Longinus wielders or those touching the previous three were unaffected. Jeanne was even already in her battle outfit by default of Hauteclere's protection.

"What in the hell!?" Issei asked, looking around he saw himself, Vali, Arthur and Irina unfrozen out of Vali's peerage. For Rias' it was Valerie, Kiba, Jeanne and Xenovia. No one in Sona's peerage escaped this however. "Did time just stop? Not just that, why aren't we affected?"

"Yep, time did stop Issei. The reason we're fine is because of our stronger powers, Longinus gears, holy swords... or by what Cassiel did, being in contact with one of the above." Lilith answered, giving a smirk at Cassiel.

"Hey, what's wrong with not wanting my daughter frozen in time?" Cassiel glared, making said Demon blush in response.

"Mom!" The demon replied.

"Oh hush now Mio, bigger issues here." Cassiel replied, soon turning to face everyone. "I think it's the fact time stopped that's more of concern, there's one being who should have that power here at the moment, right?"

"Oh no... Gasper!" Valerie gasped.

"Yep, seems like he got forced into Balance Breaker conditions. That means he and Yumi have fallen into enemy hands." Azazel answered. Irina suddenly blinked before looking outside and gasped, catching everyone's attention.

"Magicians... how rude! I'm a real life magic girl and they're annoying me!" Serafall shouted, making Tobio sweat drop at what she was concerned about.

Outside, the guards were slowly disappearing as their time frozen forms were all shot at by magicians.

"Teleportation magic... that can only mean someone's connected to the gate within this barrier, it doesn't seem we can transport any additional troops to us either. We've been cornered." Michael replied, worried about how things were turning out for them.

"This is no normal terrorist attack." Lilith suddenly stated, getting everyone's.

"Take a look at this situation. Gasper was suddenly kidnapped and froze time, magicians are coming in and there's a gate that's letting them in drove, and combine that with the timing... this attack was just way too perfect to be a random assault or a coincidence. Either we had information somehow slip to the enemy's hands... or we have a traitor among us."

Everyone gasped.

"It was that Cao Cao asshole, it has to be! He isn't with any of our factions but he was in this area the whole time!" Jeanne growled, only calming a bit when Kiba put a hand on her. "Kiba?"

"I don't think it's him, take a look." Kiba said, pointing as he saw new magic circles appear.

These new circles were devil magic circles, and soon Devils wearing skull like masks all formed from them, ones that Lilith recognized all too well. Shortly after came Fallen Angel magic circle showing the loyalists sided to Kokabiel's faction.

"It's the Anti-Satan faction and I'm guessing Kokabiel's dogs, the damn revolutionaries who tries to take over and continue the war after Satan's death. I should have known they'd refuse to accept their defeat. I bet it's not just them we'll be seeing, looks like everyone who doesn't agree with us is taking the stage right now." Lilith sneered.

"I recommend we take action now, if we don't remove Gasper from enemy hands then we won't be able to fight back." Sirzechs suggested, making Lilith nod. "Though the question is how will we make it over? Rias had an unused Rook she could have done castling with, but since she's also frozen in time we won't be able to."

Tobio whistles and the Canis Lykaon, otherwise known as Jin to Tobio, popped into view.

"Allow me, I can have Jin hide in the shadows and carry two people over to the old school building. We just need someone outside to cause a distraction for us." Tobio replied, petting Jin on the head. "So, who should we send over?"

Everyone thinks and then Arthur speaks up.

"I believe Issei and Valerie should go, Valerie would be able to sense Gasper best as they're fellow Dhampirs. She can also heal Issei who's already quite sturdy due to his training." Arthur reasoned.

"Smart thinking, as for who should cause the distraction? Since we've got magicians shooting... let's show them what it's like for their attacks to bounce back. Vali?" Azazel smirked, making Vali sigh at his joke.

"No more jokes dad. OK Albion, you ready?" Vali asked.

**(I'm by your side as always Vali.)** Albion replied, making Vali smirk.

"Thank you." Vali soon broke through the window and took to the air, soon getting into the center of the chaos. "Here we go! Vanishing Dragon, Balance Breaker!"

Vali's armor formed around her, and the Magicians quickly turned to fire at her. Vali held out her hand.

**(REFLECT!)**

Blue magic circles appear on Vali each time the magic blasts hit, and soon multiple magicians were struck down by their own friendly fire, but more kept coming in.

"This is gonna get tedious really fast!"

Vali began blasting out her ice magic at them. Jin soon sunk into the floor and opened up his shadow, Valerie and Issei stand on top of it.

"Before you go, take this." Azazel requested, tossing three rings to the group. "Just in case they try to freeze you, use that last one to negate Gasper's own strength so they can't abuse his power any further once you get him back."

The two nod and put them on, and soon Jin fully sinks them in before his shadow slithered out of the room. Right as they did, Lilith suddenly noticed a magic circle with a familiar crest.

"The Leviathan clan crest, it's her!" Lilith called out, and soon the sight of a tall bespectacled woman with a voluptuous figure. She had tan skin with long brown hair tied into a bun with a headset and purple eyes. She wore an extremely low-cut dress and it had a high slit which exposed a large portion of her breasts.

"Well, if it isn't the unworthy Great Devils and little Miss Mother Devil." The woman chuckled.

"Who is this?" Jeanne asked.

"The woman who ruined the Leviathan clan's name by causing the Old Satan Faction's civil war for being one of the catalyst to starting it. The former heir to the Leviathan clan, Katerea Leviathan." Lilith answered, surprising the younger Devils.

Katerea cackled.

"I'm here to bring destruction and chaos!" Katerea shouted, soon causing an explosion. Luckily it failed as a barrier of purple ice formed under Serafall's command. "Serafall... you steal my clan's name and now use our sacred gift against me? How dare you!"

"Hey pot, have you heard the kettle call you black? Sounds like how you tried dethroning me and continue the war after my husband died." Lilith replied, making Katerea grit her teeth. "What are you thinking of exactly?"

"I'm thinking the exact opposite of everyone disgusting meeting!" Katerea replied, chuckling a bit. "If God and Satan here anymore, then we should have a revolution in this world!"

Lilith glared at her, as if looking at a spoiled brat who whined for everything to go her way.

"You want world domination don't you, this is no mere Devil's coup d'état considering the magicians and whatever else you're hiding." Azazel asked.

"Ooh, you nailed it Azazel!" Katerea clapped, smirking darkly. "No one wants a world where you cover up the deaths of God and Satan, so since you've failed there. We'll take this decaying realm and reform it for ourselves!"

Lilith sighs before making a serious yet angry face as she throws her cape over to Serafall. Her and Sirzechs suddenly get really nervous as Lilith vanishes and appears in front of Katerea.

"People who say crap like that always die first or just die forgotten, you want to throw the Devils into a war when we're facing extinction. You're so blinded you don't even know your acts will doom our kind." Lilith answered coldly, soon flaring her aura.

"Katerea, listen well! As the Great Devil Queen, I _will_ stand against those who stand against the current Hell, and right now that's you! It's time you see firsthand that I'm not just some pretty face!"

Lilith holds up her hand and forms a sphere of pure Dark energy.

"Heh, you don't scare me your old hag!" Katerea mocked.

Azazel sees a device of his glow, and turns to see some additional magic circles, and soon various golems drop into view, making Vali gasp.

"Those are all Gogmagogs! Damn it, it seems someone took them all out of the Dimensional Gap or reverse engineered them. Be careful, those things are deadly! Take them out fast!" Vali called out, making Azazel crack his knuckles.

"Come on everyone, it seems we'll all need to fight these bastards." Azazel sighed, but then smiled.

Serafall dropped the barrier, and everyone soon got ready for battle as the Gogmagog army began to make their way towards them. Tobio waited nearby Penemue.

"Hope you don't mind, I need Jin to come back before I can do anything." Tobio asked.

"Not at all, shouldn't be too much longer." Penemue said, soon noticing a Fallen Angel circle get near her. "Oh great, someone else is a Kokabiel."

Soon Dohnaseek appeared before the two, and he tipped his hat off to them.

"Well hello there, glad to make your acquaintance for the final time." Dohnaseek chuckled, revealed six Fallen Angel wings. "So get ready to die."

"I was wondering where you went off to after the incident with Raynare, now it makes sense how Kokabiel was able to snoop around so easily. I think it's time I amend our mistake for the sake of my brother." Penemue stated, flaring her ten wings as the two collided.

* * *

Soon the shadow of Jin sneaks into the old school building and ejects Issei and Valerie out of the shadow, Valerie pets the dog sacred gear affectionately.

"Thanks buddy." Valerie smiled.

Soon she and Issei heard the boom Katerea caused. Jin growled outside in response. Issei puts a hand on him and nods, and soon Jin rushes back outside to assist Tobio for whatever danger had come.

"Issei, what was that?" Valerie asked.

"I'm not sure, but that's reason enough to get to Gasper. No time to waste." Issei answered, and Valerie nodded. Valerie turned into her bat form and soon screeched to make an echolocation signal.

"Issei, I found him! They're in the Forbidden Room!" Valerie announced.

Valerie flew ahead and Issei rushed after her, once they saw the seal on the door, Issei jumped forward.

"BOOSTED GEAR!"

The magicians hear the door smash apart as Issei crashed in, Valerie in her bat form flying by her ear.

"A devil, how'd they get here!?"

Gasper saw them and gasped.

"Issei, Valerie! You came! I'm so sorry about this!" Gasper cried out, Issei and Valerie saw his sacred gear active in his eyes. In a painful manner no less.

"No worries, we're gonna get you out of here. That's a promise!" Valerie called out, making Gasper tear up.

"Thank you..." Gasper cried, a pair of magicians held a blade to his and the unconscious Yumi's necks.

"Take another step forward and we'll keep them both." A Magician warned, soon glaring. "His master was a fool, she should have brainwashed a dangerous creature to be her own personal-"

"YOU SHUT UP!" Valerie screamed, catching everyone off guard.

"Gasper is not a weapon, and he's not a monster! People like you... a weapon is an object, something that isn't alive. Something that can't that care or feel because it was never born, it was just made and as a result it can't die! Gasper can cry, Gasper can laugh! Someone like you who doesn't understand life's value has no right to speak what he is!"

Issei stared at her, smirking proudly, and Gasper cried as Yumi began to stir slightly.

"And that's why Gasper's the Dhampir I love, call him a weapon and I will destroy you! Do you hear me!?"

Issei and Gasper gasp at the confession.

"Valerie!" Gasper cried, and soon Valerie landed on Issei's shoulder.

"Issei, please... lend me your strength!" Valerie bugged, and Issei nodded.

Issei soon shifted his neck and Valerie bit into it, making him grit his teeth in pain as Valerie drunk some blood from him. She nearly puked at the taste before her power suddenly flared out, causing shadows to constrict the magicians on her command as she split into multiple bats.

"Issei, lend some to Gasper!" Valerie ordered.

"You got it!" Issei shouted.

**[BLADE!]**

"Go, Ascalon!" Issei screamed as the blade came out, and Issei soon coated the blade with blood by cutting it on his hand. "Gasper! You can do this, don't be afraid! You've got us! You've got Rias and the rest of your friends, and all of us believe in you!"

Issei thrust forward, sending the blood flying at him and near to his mouth.

"Now go Gasper, show these creeps what kind of man you really are!"

Gasper soon nodded and licked the blood, soon disappearing from the gate, and landing Yumi in Issei's hands as she woke up.

"Huh?" Yumi blinked.

* * *

Tobio watched Penemue and Dohnaseek's fight as Jin barked and alerted him.

"Just in time, come here boy!" Tobio smirked, Jin jumped at him and soon coated his partner in a dark armor. His body was clad in shadow as he began a chant.

"**_I sing for the slaying of a thousand humans. I praise the murder of ten thousand cycles of ill omens. My name has been spread throughout the nether abyss, it will become that of the false god of the polar night and midnight sun! Thou, shalt become my demon blade of darkness that annihilates everything, to become something false, the creator of the paranormal!_**"

Tobio began transforming.

"**_Evolved Balance Breaker - Perfectus Tenebrae Lykaon Fortis Densus Laelaps!_**" Tobio finished, transforming into a six-tailed humanoid beast clad in darkness with a bunch of black hounds forming alongside him. Tobio howled as he rushed into the battle field.

Meanwhile Penemue and Dohnaseek continued their battle in the sky, the female cadre dodging Dohnaseek's attacks effortlessly.

"Why are you running coward, am I too powerful for you to take down now? Well... is that a shame. Girls like you are-" Dohnaseek suddenly gasped for air as Penemue stabbing her finger into his chest and locking his movements. "What... the hell?"

Penemue sighed.

"The first lesson of battle, talking too much can leave you dead." Penemue declared, soon punching him away before forming multiple light spheres that were purple in color. "Now meet your end traitor! Darklight Bomber!"

The spheres of light flash forward at Dohnaseek, and the purple light spheres strike into Dohnaseek before swallowing him and purging his existence. Penemue smirked as she wiped her hands clean, a few Gogmagog prepared to attack her while she off guard when she suddenly saw a few of the Canis Lykaon hounds bite them via the shadows.

"Sorry, but my dogs are hungry. Go ahead boys!" Tobio declared.

Soon the dogs pounced the Gogmagogs down, and the giant gargoyle status prepared to attack as they transformed their arms into machines guns. Tobio soon slammed the ground, causing blades of darkness to stab them through the shadows.

"Alright, time to... freeze!" Dulio giggled, causing a strong blizzard that froze many of the Gogmagogs and ASF Devils. As the other ASF Devils that avoided it prepared to attack. Gabriel and Michael both appeared in front of Dulio.

"Be purified..." Michael began, charging spears of light.

"...By the light!" Gabriel finished, creating rings of light.

Gabriel fired off her light rings, and Michael then fired off his light spears, cutting through the rings and multiplying them. The ASF Devils all screamed as they were purged by the holy power.

"Damn you Angel bastards! You'll-" A Devil cried before he was purged.

The holy swordsmen all began cutting through the Fallen Angels allied to Kokabiel, Jeanne slammed the ground creating her Stake Victim Dragon as it chomped through some of the Gogmagog forces. Soon she and Kiba stand back to back.

"Ready?" Kiba asked, Jeanne nodded.

"SWORD BIRTH!  
"BLADE BLACKSMITH!"

The two send out their Holy and Cursed Holy swords to strike through the sky, piercing through many Fallen Angels. Arthur soon noticed more magic circles appeared, ones for Angels and Demons.

"It seems we've got the rest of the cavalry." Arthur replied, making everyone on guard.

At that moment, a sudden blast of magical energy zig zagged through the air before becoming glowing metallic spheres that smashed and smashed through some of the Demons and rogue Angels. The Holy swordsmen turned to see Mio holding up her hand.

"I've got your backs, time to show these terrorists what it means to stand up for yourself and fight fairly!" Mio shouted, making the others smile as they all jumped and attacked the remaining forces in their way.

Meanwhile with Lilith and Katerea, Lilith blasted her dark magic at Katerea, blowing her away as she tried to counter with her Eternal Coffin ice in vain, Lilith soon smashing her into the school walls with her fist.

"Had enough!?" Lilith demanded, only to see Katerea laugh as she got back up.

"Are you as excited about your final moments as I am?" Katerea questioned, soon opening up her hands as some strange symbol with six eyes appears on it and infuses her entire body with dark power, Lilith feels her strength spike as a result of this.

"That marking..." Lilith paused, her eyes widening as she recalls it. "...I remember it, so even his sacrifice didn't quell its power entirely from this world. I guess I have to finish up his work piece by piece, starting with this fraction."

Katerea opens her hand and blasts a huge beam of power, but Lilith simply dodges it and appears behind her, as Katerea opened it again... Lilith smirked and opened up her hand.

"**PRIMAL ABYSS!**"

Suddenly streams of darkness come from Lilith's fingers and devour the attack, shocking Katerea as it swallows up all the power from the beam she just shot out. She shook as she was what was supposedly impossible happen.

"This can't be, you shouldn't have that clan ability!" Katerea spat out.

"Your right, I wasn't born with it. Though do you recall how the current Great Devil gained the powers of the Great Devil clans through a transfer I offered? We used it once before. Most Devils today think Rizevim wasn't born with the Primal Abyss, the real truth?" Lilith answered, appearing in front of Katerea who suddenly gasped.

"When he was disowned, Satan stripped the power from him as punishment and gave it to me. It was only fitting since he intended for me to succeed his leadership should he die. That's why I kept it a secret before now."

Katerea growled.

"I'll kill you!" Katerea screamed, firing off another Eternal Coffin blizzard. Though Azazel jumped into the way. "Azazel, get out of the way!"

"Mind if I finish things? I'm in the mood to test something out." Azazel requested.

"Go ahead, I think it'll be crueler if you beat her rather than me." Lilith smirked, teleporting away to aid the others.

* * *

"No, he's gone!" A magician screamed, soon Gasper in his own bat formed swarmed him alongside Valerie. The Magicians prepared to fire magic, but Gasper simply had his eyes glow and stopped time. "No!"

"It's no use, I can see every move you're making now." Gasper said, his voice echoing creepily.

Soon all of Gasper's bats have their eyes glow as they stop time around the area for just the Magicians, freezing them in place.

"Yumi! I think you owe them for knocking them out, go ahead!" Gasper declared, and Yumi nodded as she formed her Lumen Shekhinah. Surprising Issei who didn't know she had two sacred gears.

"Since when has she had that?" Issei thought aloud, and soon Yumi pulled back on the string. Light swirled as the arrow charged up.

"Lumen Shekhinah, I call to your radiant arrow to shine brightly... AND FLY THROUGH THE SKY!" Yumi shouted, firing the arrow.

Everyone covered their eyes as the arrow explodes and blinds the group briefly, soon taking out all of the Magicians. Issei sees that and shouts loudly in reply.

"Alright, nice one Yumi!" Issei praised, making Yumi giggle and give a thumb's up.

Soon Gasper and Valerie fly back down and reform into their normal forms, once they did, Issei attached the final ring on Gasper to his surprise.

"Here, this should keep your power under control." Issei explained, finally clipping it on. "Now come on, the others need our help."

"Right!" Gasper replied.

"Yeah, get in guys." Yumi requested, everyone got close as Yumi formed a barrier. "This should keep us safe while we get out of here."

The group rushed back towards the battle field.

* * *

**(REFLECT!)**

Vali reflected another wave of long ranged attacks, and soon shouts as she sends it back, after she did she began to pant.

**(Are you alright Vali, you've had to fight for a while.)** Albion asked in concern.

"No, I just want to keel over or vomit at this point. I don't think there's enough power for me to recover by dividing these magicians either." Vali said, panting heavily. Right as another group of magicians came to swarm at her...

"**Dragon Shot**!" Issei shouted.

Vali saw a bunch of Magicians suddenly knocked to the side, and soon saw Issei along with the others. She dispelled her helmet to show her smile.

"Issei, you came back just in time!" Vali declared, soon falling to the ground and making Issei catch her.

"Vali, are you OK?" Issei asked, she nodded weakly.

"Just tired, think you can take over Red Dragon?" Vali asked, smirking a bit. Issei chuckles and Lilith lands near them.

"You got it. Watch her, Yumi, Valerie and Gasper for me, alright?" Issei asked Lilith.

"Sure thing, give them hell Issei Hyoudou." Lilith smiled.

Issei nodded and ran ahead before unleashing a powerful burst of fire at some of the nearest terrorists.

"Get ready, because the Red Dragon Emperor is here!"

* * *

**Phew... this chapter felt a little bit over the place, so it may not be one of my bests, but it at least works well enough I think. Admittedly when I was at this part in the series, it didn't feel as action packed because it had to be everywhere so... maybe that's not completely my fault. It might just be a hard part of the story to write about in general.**

**OK, first thing I should probably answer is this question, is Cassiel's daughter the Mio some of you might be thinking of? Testament of a New Sister Devil's Mio Naruse? Yes, yes she is. On occasion, you should expect a few crossover characters, but they'll be so rare in appearance that this story doesn't count as a crossover.**

**Also... Surprise! Lilith can use the Primal Abyss, I had been indirectly hinting it via the Great Devil clan abilities having been transferred, truth is Rizevim had his Primal Abyss ability stolen as a punishment for being disowned as Satan and Lilith's son, and Satan gave it to his wife since he already had the power. As for that power Katerea held? You'll learn next chapter, but that symbol should give you a good idea... and no, that's not the symbol of Grima from Fire Emblem ^^;**

**Not everyone got to fight, but remember that this is a two part chapter, anyone who you didn't fight in the first half will end up showing again during the second part. Partially it's due to situation reasons, and I worry trying to fit every fighter in would make this chapter a bit messy when it's already feeling a bit like a maelstrom ^^;**

**Get ready everyone, cause next time... this Season comes to an end! The battle finishes, and we see the aftermath before we get the major line about even without God, the world keeps going. Not to mention we get to see Rias, Vali and Sona's final peerage members cameo before they all officially join next season... that's right! They'll all be joining in Season 3, even Bennia and Loup, and Vali's last member who appears in between Rossweisse and their joining volumes.**

**So I hope you can wait, cause it's an end worth waiting for. Stay awesome everyone ^^**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, Irina  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating**  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's confessed, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress


	19. Chapter 19

**When you begin a story or part of a story, like with the Season format I use for this story, the one thing that you can never expect? How soon you may end up reaching the end. After beginning in Chapter 11 Season 2 is finally reaching the climax we've all been waiting for. Get ready because in this chapter a bomb full of twists, revelations and more is about to drop!**

**Only thing I'll say right now is where Vali finished things off (well mostly, Ophis made the final blow) in the Excalibur arc, Issei's getting his turn here. For one we now have Vali completely exhausted, so she can't fight right now, even if she wanted to. A lot of this chapter is also kinda gonna work like an epilogue as we'll the four factions make their official announcement and conditions for peace, see how other mythologies react to the news, and get a view on some characters. Including Cao Cao who's gonna end up influencing something small, but important for Season 3.**

**I want to thank you all for the support up to this point, it's all because of you the story has made it as far as it did, in fact it's even the reason I was ever able to get the courage to post Chapter 1. This is something I once heard from the Fairy Tail anime that I feel was an important Aesop: "writing a story is like showing your butt to the world", you have to be brave to do it. Even if you took a story down, a single person will likely view it before you know it, and as a result it will have been seen even if for a small sliver of time.**

**So to all my fellow authors who read this story, always remember this. You write a story because it's the idea you created. That means don't be afraid of what people will see and what they'll say, and don't let people tell you what your story should have, ask that question yourself and make your own answer. What matters most is you, the writer, have satisfied yourself.**

**Whoops, went a bit longer on that then I expected. So with that done... time to finish things off for this Season everyone! ^^**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

* * *

** -Draining Robber- **

**The clan ability of the Mammon household, based on the deadly sin of Greed, it allows the user to create a hand comprised of magic that upon contact can sap away one's strength and magic. If the hand is up close to someone however, their knowledge can be taken as well. Unfortunately, this ability's major downside is there's only so much that can be stolen before overloading this power and temporarily frying its usage before it can be reused.**

**When the remaining members of the Mammon clan faced possibly expulsion or destruction due to the actions of Gavauren Mammon and those of her household that aided her, Lilith Lucifer quelled the chaos by requesting the current clan head of the time to give this power to Alanira Phenex who was to be named the new Great Devil Mammon. As a result, Alanira is currently the only Devil that's not of the Mammon household to possess this ability.**

* * *

** _Season 2, Summit Arc: Chapter 5 - Summit Shakedown, Part 2_ **

The terrorist magicians continued their rain of fire, blasting without limitation now that Vali was no longer there to deflect their attacks, Yumi notices this and whistles. Everyone who was tired or injured on the Four Factions' side turned.

"Everyone, if you're tired or need Valerie to heal you get over here now!" Yumi called out, and everyone who fit that condition quickly ran over as Yumi held up her hands. Serafall also helped move their time frozen friends over. "Adamant Will!"

A barrier forms around them and blocks the magic blasts as Valerie begins healing everyone she can. Lilith smiles, impressed with her quick thinking and barrier, giving the Pawn of Gremory a thumb's up who returned it to the Mother Devil.

"Eternal Coffin!" Serafall shouted, freezing a ton of the magicians. She gives a wink at the others as she does. Cassiel meanwhile flew through the air and blasted the same orbs as Mio at the Magicians, only for one of her wings to be shot off.

"You're done now Demon." The magician cackled, however Cassiel yawns and holds her breath as she just forces a new wing to grow. "What!?"

"You mean you didn't know? Demon Wings regenerate on their own, amputate them all you want, your just gonna end up wasting power and littering." Cassiel smirked, soon rushed forward and striking through the wizard with her Demonic power.

Sirzechs focuses his Power of Destruction, then fires it off as orbs that create grenade sized nukes in the air, striking many Magicians. However, the gate just drops more of them in right after, quickly replacing the defeated.

"There's too many of these magicians, it's like they just teleport away and recover. If only we got the gate destroyed..." Vali grunted, looking at it drop more Magicians in. Gasper looks at the gate, and soon whimpers.

"I can fight..." Gasper mumbled, getting the attention of everyone in the barrier. "EVERYONE! I can fight too, I can be a man just like Issei! I wanna be worth to be a Bishop of the House of Gremory, I wanna make you all proud of me! I will fight... I have to!"

Gasper soon grabs the ring on his arm, making Valerie gasp.

"Gasper, don't do it!" Valerie shouted worriedly, but Gasper had already ripped it off. His eyes glow.

"Watch me, I can be a man too!" Gasper shouted.

Suddenly the field is blinded by a flash, and in a moment... everyone frozen suddenly regains movement as the enemy gate shattered. Its power source now destroyed. Rias and Sona both blink as they regained their senses.

"Whoa, what was that?" Rias asked.

"What just happened?" Sona asked, just as confused. Yuuma looked at herself and patted herself. Soon blinking confused.

"Better question, I thought we were inside-" Yuuma began, soon screaming as she saw the magicians blasting at the barrier. "Are those Magicians trying to kill us!?"

Gasper wobbled before fainting into Valerie's arms.

"Amazing, he managed to control his power and break the enemy's advantage. Nice job. You do the younger generation proud today." Lilith smiled, soon turning to the others.

"I'll give you the long story latter, but the short story is terrorists had Gasper stop time and you've been frozen for a bit. So how about you help us send these party crashers back home?"

Everyone nods.

"Right!"

Yumi lets all if the fighter members of the formerly frozen peerage members out of the barrier. In moments, their attacks began thinning out the remaining terrorists, including the Magicians. As Katerea glared at the turn of events, Azazel raised his hands and formed a storm of light spears above him.

"Here... have a gift!" Azazel claimed, sending them all flying at Katerea who simply blocked them with a barrier and laughed. Azazel soon smirks and prepares to pull something out of his pocket. "Well then, why don't we start getting serious here?"

Soon Azazel pulls out a golden dagger sized spear, a purple gem resting on the bottom of it.

"What are holding?" Katerea asked confused?

"Something more interesting in war, my happy. It's an artificial sacred gear developed by yours truly. I call it... the Downfall Dragon Spear!" Azazel declared, holding it up as it glowed. Soon enveloping him. "**Balance... Break**!"

Soon Katerea saw the golden glitter form around him, while everyone with a Dragon type sacred gear felt it.

**[That aura!]** Ddraig exclaimed

**(Yes, that's definitely Fafnir's.)** Albion noted

**{Heh! Wonder what the old man's got in that little ear piercing tool?}** Vritra chuckled.

Soon the sight of a golden dragon armor with purple lights was seen being worn by Azazel, and a trident of light in his right hand.

"Armor of the Fallen Dragon! **Downfall Dragon Another Armor!**" Azazel announced, his wings vanishing one by one.

Issei stared in shock at the phenomenon he just saw.

"He created a Sacred Gear? No way, how he managed to accomplish that?" Issei breathed, frozen by his awe.

Azazel chuckled and made a challenge motion at Katerea, making the Devil growl at her.

"I'll kill you!" Katerea screamed, she prepared to attack... only for Azazel to rush forward and cut through her mysterious power, soon making her partially bleed from where she was sliced and making her hair flow free. She turned and extended her arms, making them split into more and bind his arm.

"I'm not needed for the creation of our new world, so if I must sacrifice myself for glory... I'll take you with me!"

"Big brother!" Penemue called out in worry, but Azazel just chuckled at Katerea's efforts.

"Destroy yourself with me, no offense but if you wanted to try this kind of tactic..." Azazel declared, soon simply striking the armor as her hands began to meld into it and shattering it. Katerea gasped as she fell back, Azazel's now uncovered left arm free as her hands were trapped in the armor fragments.

"Then make sure you don't try it on something breakable! For your ignorance, you die!"

Azazel threw his trident forward, and it stabbed Katerea in the forehead, and she screams as she faces a Devil purge. Azazel's armor soon breaks off as the gem flies down into his hand.

"Still a bit of room for improvement, but you did pretty well Fafnir." Azazel smiled, kissing the gem.

"Whoa, that was hardcore. I bet if he hadn't been wearing that armor he'd have been willing to lose an arm for that." Issei stated to himself as he cut some Magicians down with Ascalon, that was the power of the Fallen Angel's leader he had seen firsthand. Soon the remaining stragglers of the terrorists were all taken out.

"Looks like that's game, set and-"

Suddenly Azazel was shot by something, smashing him into the ground.

"Dad!" Vali cried out.

Azazel soon crawled out of a crater, looking at the one who shot him.

"Wow, if that actually managed to hit me then I must be losing my edge." Azazel joked, and soon everyone soon a Devil fly down into view. She had long dark magenta hair tied in a braid, a scar ever her left cheek, and wear wearing a battle dress covered with gems and gold that lined it.

"Heh, never thought I'd see the mighty Azazel call himself an old fart, guess miracles of all kinds happen." The devil said, chuckling in a sinister manner. "And that Katerea, so stupid! I knew that dumb bitch would dig her own grave and that's just what I saw."

"Who's that!?" Issei asked.

Lilith gave a dark look at the Devil as she walked near Issei.

"Her name is Gavauren Mammon, the former heir of the Mammon clan. She's just like Katerea, helped being the civil war and dragged the Mammon clan's name into the mud with her actions. Though she's much more dangerous than Katerea." Lilith explained, soon crossing her arms as she looked at her.

"After all, the Mammon clan's ability is the Draining Robber. It makes senses that Katerea and all these terrorists managed to attack us so perfectly if you somehow stole the info from one of our own!"

Gavauren cackles and claps.

"Sharp eye old hag, one of your Devil guards was so stupid and I was able to get into direct contact with him. That's all I needed to learn all we needed for this attack. Katerea was just too cocky for her own good unfortunately." Gavauren confirmed.

Cassiel sighs and flies up near Gavauren.

"You know, I gotta ask something. You know Shemhazai on Azazel's side and my trusty aid Leliel? Recently they told me something of interest that fit what we saw here." Cassiel starts, wagging a finger to annoy Gavauren with success.

"There's a dangerous faction that's been gathering the most destructive and peace hating members of not just our Four Factions, but likely other mythologies and factions unaligned to one another. I believe their name is... the Khaos Brigade?"

Gavauren gasped at that.

"So you know, I'm impressed. If you know about us then maybe you know who's leading us? Possibly our benefactor? I bet you don't." Gavauren mocked, and Cassiel giggled at the challenge.

"Has to be Shalba considering you and Katerea, not to mention he's the first former Great Devil heir who began the actions to the Devil War. For your benefactor, based on that symbol on Katerea's hand... I'd have to say Rizevim, who else would be so crazy to try gaining power from Trihexa?" Cassiel replied, suddenly looking serious at the last bit.

Everyone else gasped, and Lilith grunted as her worries were confirmed.

"No, not that monster!" Vali said, shaking heavily.

"Trihexa? What is that thing, is it some kind of chimera or something?" Issei asked, and Vali shakes her head.

"Worse... remember Ophis? There's only two beings as strong as her, and Trihexa is one of these creatures. A mindless beast who cares nothing but causing destruction that would essentially bring out the entire world's end." Vail answered, sweating a bit. "In fact, it was so strong, even God and Satan were afraid of it!"

Gavauren cackles loudly.

"I guess your clever, you're completely right. After all... we're a group who wishes to use our power for conquest. Satan was a damn fool to not prove his superiority when he escaped Heaven' clutches!" Gavauren declared as her eyes glow.

"So we'll prove that in the best way possible. Do you wanna know why it is that God and Satan died? Well I'll tell you, cause daddy's boy saw it himself. The real threat during the Great War wasn't the Heavenly Dragons... Trihexa itself invaded! Those two bastards had the arrogance to seal it away by sacrificing their lives!"

Everyone gasped at that, even Lilith.

'Those words... is that why you told me you likely weren't coming back? Did you know you might need to do this for the sake of the world?' Lilith thought, her eyes shaking. 'If it is, then Gavauren and these bastards and spitting on your sacrifice!'

Gavauren smirked as she holds out her hand, and Trihexa's symbol appears and embedded some of the beast's power.

"So amazing, just a small taste of the beast's full power and look how rampant my aura becomes! Now, let's end this resistance shall we!?" Gavauren cackled, the various guards of each side still left fly at Gavauren... and she smirks. "**DRAINING ROBBER!**"

Suddenly a hand made of magic energy flew out of Gavauren's palm, soon splitting into multiples that latch onto most of the Christian Pantheons' present fighters, the ex-Mammon heiress laughing as she swallowed up all the power. Issei barely managed to get himself and Vali out of the way.

"She took everyone's power... dang it, bad timing for me to be on fumes!" Vali gritted, knowing her power would have been helping in cutting down her little energy boost.

Gavauren cackles again.

"How ironic, for all of you to die here! I wonder, should I forget you so you'll fade and be forgotten in our new world order." Gavauren smirked, charging up her Devil's magic. "Now, who here should I kill first? Hmm... Lilith would be too predictable, how about... yes, let's start with miss Demon Queen!"

Gavauren launches a blast at Cassiel, but Issei rushes into its path and slams it away with his Boosted Gear.

"Fat chance Gava-something, I'm gonna kick your ass before that ever happens!" Issei declared, soon forming his Devil Wings and flying up at Gavauren.

"So the Sekiryuutei is here? Interesting, I've changed my mind then. I'll be killing you before anyone else. Right now, you aren't strong enough to be the threat you can become, so I better keep you from becoming it!" Gavauren shouted, blasting more magic at her.

Issei quickly flies around the attacks, soon throwing his arm forward.

**[BLADE!]**

Ascalon comes out, and Gavauren gasps as it narrowly misses her. Some of her hair was slashed off and it burned.

"A Holy Sword, I won't make the mistake of not holding a strong guard against you now." Gavauren scoffed, feeling insulted a Holy Sword was being used by a Devil to fight her. She opens her arms and unleashes a burst of stone magic, Issei turns to see it coming.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

"**Dragon... SHOT!**" Issei shouted, blasting the sphere to crash into the stone magic. The two fly close, their auras smash into each other. Gavauren smirked as she punches into Issei's gut.

"You're too weak!" Gavauren declared mockingly.

Issei's knocked to the ground, and he tumbled a bit.

"Issei, are you OK!?" Vali cried out, Issei gets up and gives her a nod.

"Don't worry, I'm not done yet!" Issei said as he got up. 'Ddraig, think we could call Tiamat for help here? I might need it'

**[If we could have earlier it would have helped, but that Devil's stolen too much power. It;s only due to my power you'll have any chance of rivaling her. If we were to summon Tiamat and have her strength drained...]**Ddraig replied.

'I get your point, that might just cost us the victory instead, guess I gotta fire on my own cylinders here.' Issei thought.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

"Issei... don't lose! You have to beat her!" Gasper called out.

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna lose while Vali's watching! As her Queen, I won't disrespect her by losing here!" Issei shouted.

**[BOOST!]**

**[Issei, have you noticed she hasn't tried to steal our strength?]** Ddraig question, getting Issei's attention. **[It may be a stretch, but I think it either she can't or she's nearing a limit with her power. If she takes too much she could lose it all. It may be a gamble, but let's try using Transfer on her!]**

'What if we just make her stronger instead? Then we'll be in trouble!' Issei mentally replied.

**[If we do nothing, by the time I've boosted us enough to compare to the power of Trihexa within her, we might be too late to save the others. Worse is your body may end up too tired to even use your power fully.]** Ddraig shamefully admitted.

Issei gritted his teeth.

'Alright, if you're sure of it then let's do it! If it fails then I'll just keep fighting. I'm not dying before I marry Vali!' Issei thought with a grin.

**[Ha! Ha! Very well, then let me show you my determination too! Get ready Gavauren, time to see the power of the Red Dragon Emperor! Are you ready Issei!?]** Ddraig asked.

"I'm ready!" Issei shouted, flying forward and then rushing behind Gavauren.

"Hmm?"

Soon Issei slammed Gavauren on the back.

**[TRANSFER!]**

"What!? Why are you transferring power to her?" Vali exclaimed, however she soon saw Gavauren screaming from the power entering her. "Wait... she's in pain? How is that possible?"

**"(I think Ddraig realized something, but it looks like they're taking a gamble.)"** Albion noted.

"It is, Draining Robber has a limit before the ability gets fried. The question is will Issei break that limit or spell his demise? We better hope it's the former." Lilith answered, sweating nervously at the possible outcome before them.

Gavauren looks at her angrily.

"Are you seriously expecting this to do anything? You'll just die from this!" Gavauren growled.

"I don't care how much I have to do, I will beat you! I've seen Kiba create Cursed Holy swords! Then I saw Gasper break the time field! I will overcome you!" Issei screamed.

**"[That's right, I've learned something from this host... even the weakest can fight against the strongest and make the impossible possible Just as long as they don't give up!]"** Ddraig replied.

"That's right!" Issei agreed with a smirk.

Gavauren scowled, soon she held the hand with Trihexa's mark and blasts slams it on Issei, a reaction blows Issei off while Gavauren pants. She checks to see she didn't have her clan ability reset her power.

"Hah! You failed, and now I've got more power. So, are you ready to die? I'm taking away your power!" Gavauren cackled, soon holding her hand out again. "**DRAINING ROBBER!**"

Issei screams as everyone sees Gavauren take her remaining power.

"That's it, and when your dead I'm sending that White Dragon lover of yours to the realm of death with you! You... have... FAILED!" Gavauren cackled, and suddenly her hand begins to wiggle a bit and she gasps. "What!?"

Issei growls, soon getting up despite the magic hand sapping her power.

"Don't you... dare..." Issei began, his eyes soon glowing green. "FUCK WITH ME!"

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

"You monster!" Issei declared.

"What!? No, stop it! Stop this right now!" Gavauren demanded.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

"You're pure evil!

Issei's body begins glowing bright red.

"I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR THIS!" Issei screamed at the top of his longs.

**"[Yes, this is it! You've finally reached your true power! Now it's time to tip the scales and make her regret facing the Red Dragon's power!]"** Ddraig exclaimed pridefully. **"[WELSH DRAGON... BALANCE BREAKER!]"**

"No, it can't be!" Gavauren shouted fearfully.

Soon Issei was covered by the complete version of his scale mail armor, now with its own wings attached to it.

"Balance Breaker! Boosted Gear, Scale Mail!" Issei shouted loudly, holding up the Boosted Gear higher. "More Ddraig, push it to the maximum limit! Show them a Dragon's anger firsthand!"

**[BOOST!] x100**

Gavauren screamed in pain as magic flooded out of her mouth and eyes, signifying her Draining Robber was finally overloaded, the magic hand shattered apart. Gavauren panted as it ended and Trihexa's mark shattered.

"My power... no!" Gavauren gasped shakily, fear overwhelming her. Issei stomped the ground, denting it.

"Try laying a finger on Vali Lucifer, I _DARE_ you!" Issei declared, fire burning off his armor. "I'll destroy you so completely that there will never be any possible way for you to be alive or revived ever again!"

Issei launched forward, and Gavauren coughs out blood as she feels Issei instantly reach and punch her in the gut.

"So fast!" Gavauren coughed out.

Issei through the air and soon flew overhead.

"Would it be just Vali? No, you'd take everyone else wouldn't you! Then I owe each of them one punch on your face! This one's for Vali!"

Gavauren was smashed in the cheek.

"For Le Fay!"

Another punch!

"For Asia, Arthur, Irina, Bikou and Kuroka!"

Another four punches, this time in the mouth as one of her teeth flies out of her jaw.

"For Yuuma! Rias! Akeno! Gasper! Valerie! Kiba! Xenovia! Shirone! Jeanne! Yumi!"

Gavauren feels these next few punches strike her in the eyes, making her scream, she stared at Issei angrily and tried to blast him.

"And this one's for the entire Christian Pantheon!" Issei declared, roaring his fist back and boosting with all his strength, striking Gavauren in the chest. The Devil heard her ribs crack as it hit. Making her crash to the ground.

"N-No... I am a descendant of the Great Devil Mammon... I won't lose to a fake reincarnated Devil like you!" Gavauren spat out, raising a hand.

"No, you're done! Here and for the rest of your life!" Issei exclaimed, soon writing and forming a magic circle. Vali gasped as she saw it.

"It's his Custom Spell, he actually finished it!" Vali breathed as Issei kept writing it.

"**Burning magma, lend me your blaze! Creating a hell fire that burns so brightly its burns pitch black, devour the life you have ignited, and flare beyond even the heat of the sun!**" Issei began, and fearing her life for the first time she can remember, Gavauren tried flying away. It failed as she felt her right wing was broken.

"No... please don't, I'll be your slave! Just don't kill me!" Gavauren begged, but Issei ignored her. She screamed as Issei's spell burned hotter.

"That heat's incredible!" Lilith remarked, shielding her eyes as she sweated a bit.

"**...I demand a world of black, and desire for a furious end that smashes the earth like a meteor! Appear, flames that burn below Hell itself...**" Issei finished, soon holding out the newly formed custom magic circle.

"**PURGATORY!**"

Issei holds the magic circle up, and a burning dragon of fire with Ddraig's eyes flies up, soon circling into a giant fireball before exploding and making dragon head shaped fireballs that flew down at the ground. Gavauren's eyes and she screams at that top of her lungs one last time, the fire smashing into her, the flares blasting out towards the rest of the group, forcing the leaders and Yumi to create a barrier.

It didn't stop there, the fires that hit the ground, soon burst around parts of the ground of fiery pillars. Soon the last fireball dragon gathered with the rest and a massive fire pillar burst up like a volcanic, the force was so great that after hitting the barrier for about seven seconds... it was completely shattered and the fire kept blazing upwards into the air before finally disappearing, leaving a scorched ground where the fireballs and fire pillars had burned the ground.

From far away, both Great Red and Ophis saw the attack.

"Hmm..." Ophis mused, smiling a bit. "Well, well, it seems the Red Dragon has proven his worth. It seems they've finally reached the same level. So brother, what do you think? Could we finally have competition for our titles."

Great Red grumbles.

"Whatevs, not like I care." Great Red replied.

Soon everyone saw Issei panting, the Purgatory spell having burned out everything she had in her. Gavauren's remains didn't even exist now. The former Mammon was by all means deader than dead.

"How do you... like that you bastard!?" Issei asked, soon collapsing forward. Vali gasped and rushed over to catch him.

"Issei, are you alright?" Vali asked, smiling as Issei suddenly cupped her face to kiss her. Irina pouts at that while everyone else smiles. Vali smiles and chuckles before shaking her head. "You're definitely OK."

"There's no doubt about it. They're equals, it's their love that makes each one strive to never be weaker to protect each other." Lilith smiles, the scene before her hitting her right in the feels.

Soon enough, all four factions' guards were working together to repair all the damages.

"A combined effort between all of us." Mio smiled, looking at Rias.

"It seems its official, we've finally achieved peace." Rias replied, Mio nodding in agreement. Lilith looks at the others.

"Then why are we standing here. We need to make this official." Lilith replied, raising her hand. "I Lilith Lucifer, Supreme leader of the Devils speak for my kind and agree to an alliance."

"I speak for all the Fallen, and we'll be joining it too." Azazel added, smirking brightly.

"We're in it too, so get ready to Dance with the Demons." Cassiel agreed, giggling at the joke she tossed in.

"I Michael, chief of the Angels, also agree to the terms of the alliance." Michael finished, and everyone smiled as that settled it. Just as it was once long ago, the Christian Pantheon was united once again. Vali walked up to Michael.

"Excuse me Chief Michael. If you don't mind... I'd like to ask for a small request." Vali asked.

"As long as it's within my power." Michael replied.

Vali smiled.

"If it's alright... I'd like Asia, Irina, Xenovia and Jeanne to be able to pray again." Vali smiled, surprising the quartet. Michael looked at them.

"Let me ask you this ladies, will you still pray? Even though you know God isn't here anymore?" Michael asked.

"Yes, I'd love to be able to pray." Asia answered.

"As would, I'd appreciate giving thanks to God and you Chief Michael." Xenovia added.

"It gives me comfort, so I'll pray as well." Jeanne agreed, soon the three looked at Xenovia.

"...I didn't know the full story, and I was so devastated when we were exiled. I nearly cursed your name. Now that I know, I'm sorry. Please forgive me, and thank you. I promise to pray as well." Irina nodded, making Vali smile.

"How cute, a friendship between Angels and Devils." Cassiel smiled, giggling playfully. Michael smiled as well.

"Then it shall be done, I doubt allowing four Devils to not receive damage when praying will be the end of the world." Michael replied, making the quartet smile happily.

"Thank you Chief Michael! Dear God- AH!" The four all tried to pray but still got hurt.

"Give it some time, I need to change the system first." Michael giggled slightly. Mio looked at Kuoh Academy and turned, soon looking at her mother.

"Hey mom, I kinda like this place. So I think I'll stay for a while." Mio replied, making Cassiel blink before she laughs. "Hey!"

Cassiel pets her head.

"Oh relax, I'm not laughing at you. I was just surprised. Live your life how you want, that's what a Demon does after all." Cassiel replied, making Mio gasp. Soon Cassiel looks at the other Demons. "Come on, let's let the Shadow Realm know of this new era!"

Cassiel and her faction all left at that moment.

'Hmm... something's special about these children, I want to see how they'll grow.' Gabriel thought, and Michael noticing her look closes his eyes knowing what choice she made. He puts a hand on her shoulder, and she sees him nod before she gasped silently and smiled.

"Hmm, hey Sirzechs. I have a favor I need to ask you." Lilith stated, making Sirzechs sweat as she gave him a certain look.

Soon everyone saw the remaining Angels, Devils and Fallen Angels all return home as well. Issei stood back on his feet, and everyone looked at the night sky as the moon shined beautifully. From a nearby rooftop, a bipedal wolf was suddenly looking at the three Devil peerages before him.

"Hmm... perhaps they'll take things somewhere interesting." The werewolf spoke, smiling slightly.

"Gasper!" Valerie called out, running towards him. He looked as she did.

"V-Valerie, about what you said in-" Gasper replied, but before he could finish... Valerie kissed him to his surprise!

Everyone gasped at that.

"Did we really just see that?" Rias exclaimed in shock.

"Oh my goodness, I love how bold you've gotten Valerie." Akeno replied, giggling a bit. Vali soon whistled a bit.

"Let's get home and rest, we do have to come back here tomorrow after all." Vali stated, soon making everyone groan. "Hey, I don't make the rules. I just follow them."

* * *

Soon across the world, various other factions learned of the news.

**-Asgard-**

A certain Valkyrie in Asgard received a message as she went through some paperwork, soon gasping once she read it.

"This is... Lord Odin! Urgent News!" The Valkyrie exclaimed, catching the Norse leader's attention.

"What is it Rossweisse?" Odin asked, soon being handed the message and raising his one eye after seeing it. "Well, by my own beard. Things are getting interesting."

* * *

**-Mount Olympus, Hades' Realm-**

A blue haired half-Grim Reaper girl was polishing her scythe when suddenly...

"How dare those damn crows, bats and lizards pull this!" Hades screamed, throwing something around and making the girl swing her scythe and deflect it. She rushed before the skeletal god and stared at him.

"Lord Hades, you nearly killed me with that stunt! Behave yourself!" The girl screamed, soon being pushed away by her father. A grim Reaper named Orcus. "Hey, that hurt dad!"

"I believe my bratty daughter is right. I don't think you want to whine, I'd rather not see Lilith do 'that' again." Orcus replied, making Hades stop moving and go silent before he slumps on his throne.

"I hate everything." Hades declared, tapping his skeletal finger on his throne.

* * *

**-Mount Meru-**

Indra suddenly received a notice from one of his subjects, and took a look at the news.

"Hmm, so they've joined forces have they? No matter." Indra said, getting up as he stared at the horizon before him. "As long as it doesn't interfere with me and Shiva, I don't honestly care. Maybe this is a good chance to draw in some fresh blood?"

* * *

**-Yokai Realm-**

Yasaka's tails waved as she saw the notice, and give a cat like smile.

"I should probably let Lady Amaterasu and the others know about this, it will be quite the sight to see." Yasaka said, clapping her hands. Her two daughters both turned in response to hearing it. "Nainen, I need you to temporarily be in charge. Kunou and I are heading to meet with the Shinto Gods. Understood?"

"Aye mama, I'll keep watch." Nainen replied, nodding her head.

"Coming mama!" Kunou replied, running over to her before Yasaka picked her up. She giggled as they headed out.

* * *

Rias and Vali both stared at what they were seeing before them in the OCR's room. A certain someone sitting in a chair as three others stood by the sides of this someone.

"As of this moment, the four of us... will be the advisers for your clubs!" Lilith said, spinning the chair around to reveal it was her in her human world outfit. Everyone looked as Gabriel, Azazel, and a sweat dropping Mio were beside him.

"You can't be serious." Rias blankly replied.

"Oh, but I am. Already got Cassiel and Michael's word. Sirzechs already doing my shifts through messages I send him and Azazel? He lives here already, he's fine." Lilith replied, making Vali groan in response as her great grandma giggled a bit.

Rias shook her head and sighed.

"And this has nothing to do about spending more time with Vali? Especially you Azazel?" Rias asked sarcastically, the Fallen Angel whistling after being asked.

"Hey, we aren't here for no cost. As long as we're here, we'll all be helping out with your training. So just call us all Sensei from here." Lilith replied, making Gabriel giggle as everyone else groaned.

"I'm... just kinda here cause my mom said, 'shut up and do it', you said you wanna stay so you need a job.', so... this is that job." Mio chuckled oddly.

Lilith soon taps her chin with her finger as she snapped.

"Oh right, there's one last thing I've set up. This is an official order from the Devil Queen Lilith. As of this moment, the members of the Occult Research Club, Mythological History Club, and the Student Council are to move in with Issei and Vali." Lilith stated, smirking playfully afterwards.

Everyone flinches in surprise to that, but for the two Heavenly Dragons...

"WHAT!?" Issei and Vali shouted, and Lilith giggles.

"Hey, you usually hang out anyways. I figure we just make it convenient for everyone." Lilith smirked playfully, sticking her tongue out afterwards.

'She's lying!' Vali paled.

* * *

Vali sighed as she saw Irina come in.

"Hey Irina, welcome to Issei's home." Vali replied, offering a handshake. Irina giggled and accepted it. As the other members of her peerage came in from Azazel's house they all blinked.

"Don't they normally begin bickering by now?" Kuroka asked, wondering why they weren't.

"Yeah, I'm curious to that myself." Le Fay wondered.

Soon enough, Issei began carrying in another box of stuff as he panted from the constant trips. Irina sees him and prepares to hug him.

"Issei, I'm here and never leaving your side!" Irina cheered, making Issei scream as she was about to collide. Vali quickly rushed between them and soon gave the usual glare she gave Irina.

"I...RI...NA! What do I keep telling you, Issei is mine!" Vali growled, and soon she and Irina had their usual stare down to her peerages' shock. Only Arthur was indifferent.

'It only happens if Issei's involved!?' They all thought in shock, soon some of the others all began walking in.

"How are we gonna have the room for this?" Saji wondered, noticing the house is small and not meant for all the people moving into it.

"I know, but Vali's grandma ordered it. So what can we do?" Issei sighed, soon Rias giggled as she came in.

"Not to worry, I have a solution. I've asked my big brother for a favor. We'll be remodeling this house and Vali's completely." Rias replied, getting everyone's attention. As that happened, Ophis stares at the house from the roof of a neighboring house.

"Looks like things are changing, aren't they? I'm interested to see where this might go." Ophis told herself, looking at the sky. "I wonder if you're watching God, Satan. You see it don't you?"

Ophis smirks, soon forming a magic circle to vanish through as she smiled and said one last line.

"Even without you, the world keeps on living."

* * *

Meanwhile in a certain mountain region, Cao Cao was seen holding the True Longinus as he and his team were standing by a bunch of defeated Youkai. He smirked and held out the True Longinus.

"This is finished now, good night." Cao Cao declared, thrusting forward.

Yasaka stood her ground as the spear neared her, holding Kunou close. Soon the spear strikes and an explosion goes off, and Kunou screamed as she was suddenly flung far away. She reached out to where her mom was in vain.

"Ma...ma!" Kunou screamed out hoarsely, soon blacking out while still flying in midair.

* * *

**And that's it! After a long road, we've finally hit the end of Season 2! The Christian Pantheon's united once more, Vali, Sona and Rias' peerages have all been moved into the same house, and... apparently, Cao Cao's group is up to something. Whatever it is, it seems that due to what they did, Kunou and her mother have been separated and wherever Kunou's going to end up is anyone's guess... anyone who's a reader at least! :3 *giggles***

**Issei just leveled up big time, the Custom Spell I all mentioned he'd use has finally been revealed, and like Vali he's named it the same way but for his more fire element based powers. He's finally achieved his Balance Breaker too, and now he and Vali are truly equal leveled I couldn't find a good place to show him using the [Penetrate] ability, so that'll be first on my Season 3 agenda to remember.**

**Anyways, this story will take a break so I can finish some other stories I've had on hold. See you all again when Season 3 begins!**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, Irina  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating**  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress


	20. Chapter 20

**And the hiatus is over everyone! Glad to be back to working on this story again, getting the Season 3 script ready took longer than I planned when it came to filling the Volume 5 half with original content to replace what I couldn't use due to ending Shirone's character arc back in the first season due to the circumstance of the early meeting with Kuroka.**

**Like I've mentioned before, this is the arc we finally dive into some of the aspects of the Demon race and their homeland, the Shadow Realm. Also, we'll be introducing some new important characters that'll be popping up from time to time. Who are they? Well since you'll be seeing them soon enough, you'll be meeting the heirs to the Great Devil clans other than Vali.**

**Now for anyone who's wondering about Kunou's status after how Season 2 ended? Well... my apologies, but this chapter isn't going to reveal that. Don't worry, I'll show you all what happened with her soon, it's just not in this chapter. For now, we'll focus on the party in the Demon's world, and then after that... well take a look at what the arc's name is if you wanna know what the surprise is.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

* * *

** -Great Devil Clans- **

**The Devils that make up Hell are defined by various names to signify what group of Devils they belong to. Such groups include the Ars Goetia or 72 pillars, the Extra Demons which includes figures like Mephisto Pheles, and the Malebranche who are criminal Devils at the closest to being considered for Cocytus imprisonment yet avoiding it.**

**However, the top names in hell are the original six clans that Satan used to create the rest of Devil kind. These are the Great Devil Clans, including Satan's family line, the Lucifer family, these other five clans are the Leviathan, Asmodeus, Beelzebub, Mammon and Belphegor clans. The strongest of Devils were always known for coming from these clans, and their clan abilities were considered the most dangerous of Hell's arsenal.**

**However during the Devil Civil war that followed after the Great War's end, the actions of these clans' heirs at the time creating the Anti-Satan faction that went against their kind's progenitor, all of the Great Devil clans were soon looked down on and discriminated, only not being outright mobbed to death due to the actions of Lilith who compromised by having the Old Satan Faction's strongest six Devils take on the names and become the new council of Hell, the heads of each clan at the time surrendering their clan powers to them.**

**After years of this discrimination, Vali Lucifer changed the fate of each clan during her Rating Game against Riser Phenex, requesting each of these clans except her own have their names cleared of the acts their traitors shamed them through, while her victory and the noble request caused the Lucifer clan to have the same as the result of this request. While the current heirs need to work hard to truly restore their clan's reputation, the clans are no longer persecuted over the acts of a single member and can actually regain the glory they've been denied since.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Calling of the Elves Arc: Chapter 1 - Dancing with Demons _ **

Vali was walking around some dark black realm, completely confused to where she was or where she was going.

"Where the heck am I? What is this place?" Vali asked herself.

"Well, well... if it isn't the half breed failure." Vali's eyes shrunk at the sound of that voice, one she recognized all too well... and one that terrified her to bone. "Well lookie at you, all grown up? A real beauty? So what, doesn't hind what a mistake you are!"

Vali suddenly turned to see a young handsome looking man appearing in his early twenties with silver hair that is tied in a braided hairstyle and wears a silver robe with detailed accessories staring at her. Her voice trembling as she saw him.

"A mistake whose death is overdo by now, so let's fix that mistake!"

Vali gasped loudly before turning, only to see nothing... and then feel herself stabbed from behind, behind her was her worst nightmare. A middle-aged man in his 40's with silver hair like Vali and a beard. He possessed a bottomless and creepy aura around his body, wore the same Maou Lucifer attire as Sirzechs, although colored in silver, and was currently brandishing a total of 12 Devil wings.

"This is the price for disobeying my, my _sweet granddaughter!_" Rizevim declared, making Vali suddenly prepare to scream.

* * *

"STOP!"

Vali suddenly raised her hand up in her sleep, blasting a chunk of ice magic through the ceiling. Vali pants heavily, the shirt and shorts she wore to sleep completely soaked in her sweat. She raised a hand to her head and then her stomach, realizing it was just a nightmare.

"...Another nightmare, damn it." Vali sighed, slumping back into the bed and covering her eyes with her hands. 'Worse is it was one with the two of them.'

Suddenly the door slammed open to Vali's surprise, and she sees a twin-tail lacking Irina rush in.

"I hear a scream, did something happen?" Irina asked.

"Oh, hey Irina... no nothing happened. I just had a nightmare." Vali replied, Irina stared closely at that response. Vali always seemed to be so confident most of the time. What nightmare did she have to put her in this kind of state that she was panting like she left a war zone?

"...Excuse me, I need to find Issei. He's the only one who can calm me down after I have nightmares like this." Vali said, making Irina see just how much sweat she was covered in. "...You gonna start our usual fights?"

"...Is Issei the only one who can quell those nightmares." Irina asked, Vali just stayed silent which gave Irina all the answer she needed. "Only when nothing's involved, I draw the line when coming to things like this. I am your Knight, only right I have some noble code or why bother being here?"

Vali blinked and smiled a bit.

"Glad to see outside the arguments we can actually consider each other friends." Vali smiled as she walked by, patting her head a bit. Irina blinked in surprise at that claim. The moment Vali did, something felt different. "Hey wait a second..."

Vali looked in her room again and the around the house, after seeing it however? Vali's reaction was summed up by only four words.

"WHAT THE LIVING HELL!?"

* * *

***DxD Season 2, 2nd opening, Gekijyouron begins playing***

**(Instrumental plays and begins building up)** Vali was seen standing backwards as the jacket tied around her casual outfit's waist begins flapping before she turned and gave a serious stare as her face soon encompassed everyone's entire view.

**(Louder Instrumental plays)** Soon the gem of Issei's Boosted Gear appears as the "A Dragon's Heavenly Bonds" logo appears over it, each individual letter flashing brightly.

**(This heavy pretense that swirls around me has its limits, and I can't take it anymore... there's no way for me to run up behind and closely follow my shared path with you.)** A young Vali stares before suddenly aging to her current appearance, soon circling as five other Devils, two females and three males, all are rotating showing the Lucifer, Leviathan, Beelzebub, Asmodeus, Belphegor and Mammon clan crests.  
**(I have a reason for my tears, but I can't even trust it to you, or anyone that's close. It's making my crazy as I grit tightly, and glare at the sun!)** Loup runs by in his werewolf form, before jumping down in his normal form and punching, shattering the screen before Bennia flew by and threw her scythe like a boomerang, as it came back, Kunou popped into view and summoned two fox fires that encompassed the screen before showing Rossweisse holding out a magic circle before twelve more surrounded her and fired magical beams.  
**(That silent boundary you crossed... deep in the darkest of nights... its suffocating and drowning me now! This system, its falling! My heart now, it's calling! It`s time for a revolution of the world`s systems.)** Mio walks to a lake, and soon it ripples to reveal the face of an Elf staring back at her surprising her as that Elf walks out of the water.  
**(Time for a revolution! Face my weakness against my pleasure and pain! We'll shatter destruction with creation!)** Cao Cao stands up with a smirk with Georg and Leo by his side, then Sieg and Hercules with similar cocky expressions, a finally woman figure. Only for a magic burst to clear the screen as a young girl similar looking to Grayfia steals their place and gives a wink at the viewer.

**(Heavy drum solo)** Rizevim and Euclid's face leer at Vali from her view high in the sky, making her scowl angrily.

**(This surge! My emotions argue with the fate of this world... I will get stronger to protect it, because I love it enough to take the risk! Stronger!)** Issei and Vali stand together in a magic circle, holding hands. Then a bunch of Elves are seen rushing through their forest, using arrows or magic to attack some unseen force hiding in the shadows.  
**(There are lies... but no matter what I encounter, I won't give up! This is the path I've chosen, so I will fight in what... I... believe!)** Asia gives a sad look as she feels the hand of someone, revealed to be Diodora's behind her. While Kunou sheds tears as she holds a picture of her mother. At the end, Vali screams as she transforms, making Issei assume his Balance Breaker to counter her.  
**(It doesn't matter how pretend, or no matter how wrong! My heart is...)** Issei and Vali both collide with one another in the air, but Issei being wrecked while Vali barely tries, as he falls his helmet breaks.  
**(Always ever so strong!)** Refusing to give up, Issei's hair glows red and his eyes green as he rushes forward and extends his hand, causing Vali to reach up and grab it, causing a flash that encompassed everything.  
**(So once again, sing with me the melody of DxD!)** The two land on the ground together, looking at each other before turning to look forward.

**(Ending chime, slowly fading as an echo)** Vali, Rias and Sona alongside their complete peerages all stood in front of Kuoh Academy's gates, soon a flash shows that image as a picture resting on a table in the remodeled Hyoudou Household.

* * *

The night everyone had gone to sleep after moving in, the house had been nothing more than a pair of normal two-story terrace homes belonging to Azazel and the Hyoudou family. Now however? Well... Issei's father defined it best as everyone was eating at the dinner table.

"Yeah, I'll say I was surprised. I came home from work last night to find a six-story palace with three basements!" Seiji commented, at the same time the house's main stairway, a small onsen area, and even a heated indoor pool were all shown. "I had no idea Rias' father was some big deal construction magnate!"

"And I can't believe we slept through the entire remodeling process, talk about convenient." Hana replied, pushing a tray carrying cups of tea in and soon placing Seiji's cup in front of his seat on the table. "The kitchen is so big now, with plenty of room to move around."

Yuuma looked around at the house a bit, sweat dropping a bit.

"Is it just me or does the house kinda feel like a castle?" Yuuma asked, making Rias sigh.

"No, when my brother sent the news to my father he actually tried to make it a castle. Only reason he didn't was because Lilith gave him a lecture and told him no. He settled for making it look like a castle." Rias answered, soon taking another bite of her breakfast.

Ruruko turned her head and bent down a bit, trying not to laugh at that.

'Dang it, I wanna laugh, but Sona might give me an earful if I do.' Ruruko thought, barely holding her giggles in.

"Guess we're not the only ones with an embarrassing parent." Mio commented as she got on her shoes, heading out to school earlier than the rest due to her job as one of the club advisers. "Meet you guys there."

Mio waved to them before heading out.

* * *

Soon the group had gone off to school, and today was a bit special. It was the last day before Summer Break! Irina and Xenovia were walking with the kendo club captains Murayama and Katase.

"So dish! I bet you've got lots of cool things planned over Summer Break!" Murayama asked.

"I only recently moved back here, so I kinda feel a bit unprepared. I think my club's got my back there." Irina answered.

"Me too, I don't know what I'll be doing either." Xenovia replied.

"Oh, that's right, this is your first Summer off ever isn't it?" Katase inquired.

Meanwhile on the boys' half of the room.

"Last day of school boys, and you know what that means?" Matsuda declared excitedly.

"Sexy Summertime! Babes and bikinis at the beaches and pools! My sniper sense is tingling with anticipation!" Motohama replied, his glasses shining upon answering. "Hey Issei, you joining us?"

"Can't, I already got one babe I'm focused on by a man's honor." Issei replied, making Vali blush as she heard it. "Plus I still don't know the MHC's plans anyways. Even if that wasn't an issue, that's summer activities for you."

The two groaned a bit, while Aika chuckled a bit from nearby.

"So, is the Perverted Duo keeping their Summer schedule open?" Aika asked, making the two glare at her.

"Hey, shut up!" Motohama replied.

"Are we sure Aika doesn't make them a Perverted Trio at this point? She's more of one than the two of them and that's saying a lot." Vali whispered to Issei.

"Thought that before you even returned from your training journey." Issei whispered, nodding in reply.

"Yeah! Step off, we've already got Motohama we only need a creep with glasses and that's Motohama. His glasses can accurately measure a girl's BWH sizes faster than I can finish a short sentence!" Matsuda replied.

Vali suddenly paled, sensing the red flag. Motohama smirks as he looks at Vali.

"Ah, it seems you've gone up from a respectable 108 cm to 112 cm since my scouting." Motohama stated, making Vali blush heavily and faint into Issei's arms.

"Oh? Sorry, but you're not the only one with that technique!" Aika chuckled, scaring the three guys before her as she scouted Issei. "Well, what do we have here? Ah, Issei it seems your length, width and peak performance is..."

Aika whispers it, and soon Issei goes white before fainting, the KOd Vali falling on top of him.

"The gloves are off now!" Motohama roared.

"Heh! Go ahead if you want, but I doubt your smuggling the same kielbasa as Issei." Aika smirked, causing Irina to blush at that comment as she tried to shake it out of her head. Xenovia's reply on the other hand?

"Kielbasa smuggling, sounds like an issue that should be relegated to the authorities." Xenovia commented. At that moment, all of the remaining girls in the class suddenly began laughing at her to the bluenette's confusion, while Irina face palmed. "What? What did I say?"

* * *

In the MHC's club room, everyone noticed Irina putting a wet cloth on Issei and Vali's foreheads.

"Well... that was completely mortifying. Now I know how all the girls he does that on feel." Issei groaned, he had to literally beg Ddraig to rip the memory of Aika's numbers out of his mind by how shocking it was.

"Be glad you didn't hear what she said next, although Xenovia's reply was kinda funny." Irina sweat dropped.

"So Vali, we got anything special planned for the break?" Bikou asked, the heiress of Lucifer fanned herself as she looked up.

"I don't know, my grandma told me she and my father were working on something for us. Better wait for them." Vali replied.

Literally speaking of the Devil, Lilith formed into the room right at that moment, she stretched as all 12 of her wings popped out and flapped before retreating back in. Azazel appearing right after her.

"I guess we were right on cue then." Lilith replied, soon walking downstairs. "Everyone, Mio has something she'd like to share with us."

Everyone soon follows Lilith as Rias' peerage and Mio notices them, the Student Council walking in right after.

"Perfect, everyone's finally here. I've got a gift for everyone." Mio smiled, soon throwing out invitation cards to everyone. The message [_You've been invited to the Shadow Realm's congratulatory feast! Come and celebrate the reunion of the Christian Pantheon who've ended their ceasefire conflict and become one again._] written on them.

"A party in the Demon's homeland? Wow, that sounds exciting!" Le Fay smiled.

"Uh... what's the Shadow Realm exactly?" Issei asked.

"Oh right, most of you might not know that. The Shadow Realm is where the Demon's live. It's also called the 'Dark Heaven' because it's a realm that exists as Heaven's Shadow." Mio explained, soon handing Gabriel something. "It's where my mother and the Angels who chose to abandon Heaven went and founded the Demon race."

"So, we're basically going to the opposite of Heaven yet not Hell?" Jeanne asked, soon chuckling. "For a former Church member turned Devil, that's pretty ironic to me. Then again so is the fact I can still pray."

Gabriel giggled a bit.

"If it helps, it'll be my first time as well. Normal Angels can't go into the Shadow Realm without one of these." Gabriel said, holding up some strange black colored scarf. "So how are we going there?"

"Guess I should ask this first to give you an answer. No one here gets motion sick on trains, do they?" Mio inquired.

* * *

A blue colored train was soon traveling through some dimensional tunnel of green energy, everyone was inside doing their own things to pass the time. Yuuma was hunched near a trash can, her face all green and her cheeks puffed up.

"Sorry about that Yuuma." Mio sweat dropped, walking by real quick.

"I'm still surprised that each of the Christian Factions uses a train to get to their realms through official channels." Vali commented.

"Well that makes sense, you've heard of the Demons' Magi-Tech before, right? This is one example of what she shared during the ceasefire period." Mio answered, soon giving placing some nausea medicine by Yuuma. "Here you go."

Yuuma nods and drinks it.

**[We will soon arrive at the Chaos Faction terminal.]**

"Chaos Faction?" Irina asked.

"The Demon race has three types of lifestyles we live under." Mio explained.

"There's the Chaos faction, which me and my mom are part of, that believes life goes at its own course and they must live it while accepting how the world reacts, sans the Khaos Brigade which is just too forceful. The night faction which prefers and honors things attributed to the night. Finally, there's the Requiem faction which focuses on improving the Demon races' living conditions by means other than Magi-Tech. It's mostly just how everyone chooses to live, kinda like how each Fallen fell for a different sin."

"Wow, sounds like the Demons are pretty diverse." Kuroka noted.

"That's a good way to define us. We also have clans, but only for connecting powers to family names. I'd say the Demons are mainly an artistic race overall. You'll see what I mean once we actually arrive." Mio smiled. "Oh, speaking of which look outside."

Everyone did, and soon the Shadow Realm finally came into view. Everyone looked in surprise to see it had the appearance of a high-tech kingdom with various artistic designs and a green colored sky, similar to the pink-red sky that Hell possessed. **(A/N: Think the Demon Realm in Testament of a New Sister Devil for a reference)** It was quite different from what most expected.

"Whoa! When you mentioned you guys were all artsy, you weren't kidding!" Tomoe noted.

"Wow, I thought Demons would have more similarities to Devils. They've got their own uniqueness like we Fallen have to Angels." Yuuma replied, her eyes sparkling.

"It's like I once told Lilith, they're the Devilish Angels to our Angelic Devils." Azazel answered, making Vali and Yuuma look at him oddly while Lilith snickered a bit.

At that moment, everyone suddenly got jumbled around a bit as the train suddenly stopped.

**[Pardon the sudden stop, the Emergency Break has been activated as a security precaution. We will be continuing monorail operations momentarily.]**

"Ow... that hurt a bit, why'd we have a scheduled stop?" Gabriel asked, rubbing her head as she failed to notice her breasts had crashed onto Saji's face.

"It's probably because we have a few guests from Asgard who'll decide to join the alliance against the Khaos Brigade." Mio replied, getting the others' attention.

"What's an Asgard?" Yumi asked, being slightly unaware of other mythologies due to her time comatose.

"It's the home of the Viking Gods, the forces behind Norse mythology. There's a lot more than just us in the Christian Pantheon." Kiba answered.

"Some more notable ones are Mount Olympus of the Greek Pantheon, the Hindu and Buddhist pantheons of Mount Meru in Asia, and back home the Shinto deities are also another large group."

"Not to forget about the Celtic Pantheon, that's where Balor came from and by extension Gasper's Sacred Gear." Valerie added.

"And I bet we have to worry if anyone's sided with the Khaos Brigade, they did come at us with those magicians after all." Issei nodded.

Soon the train resumed its movement, continuing its trip until it arrives at the terminal.

* * *

A short young boy yawned and cleaned his ear with his finger, not really showing any expression on his face as he stood before a field of defeated Youkai.

"Another victory too quick for your liking Leo?"

The boy turned to see a young man with black hair and spectacles wearing a combination of a Japanese school uniform (specifically, the gakuran worn by Japanese schoolboys in Autumn) and a mage-style robe.

"Of course, they were nothing like that fox lady. So boring." Leo replied.

Soon the two noticed a woman drop into view beside them. She had short black hair with three long strands tried into a bind like a lose rat tail wearing light blue armor with only some black cloth acting like a tank top and underwear, a white belt, and brown boots to keep it from being the only clothing she wore. She had a pair of three pronged daggers attached to the belt with a bow and a quiver carrying arrows.

"Jingu, did you have any luck?" The spectacle wearing man asked.

"I'm afraid not Georg, can't find any trace of the brat we launched out during that fight. We don't find her and we risk eventually being found out." Jingu sighed.

"Great, we slip up there. Maybe if we're lucky she'll die before that happens. Doubt the brat didn't get out unscathed." Leo yawned.

"For now, let's report back to Cao Cao." Georg replied, and a strange fog covers the three before hey vanish.

* * *

Soon they appear at the castle that Mio lived at, it wasn't too big but still something you'd see rarely even among the common wealthy.

"Haven't been gone for that long, but I guess it's still good to be back." Mio replied, soon knocking on the door.

The door opens to reveal a girl with long silver hair and purple eyes who was noticeable younger than most of the group. She wore a black dress with white trimming, black stockings and boots with a heart symbol on the top of them, and she wore what looked like hair rounded hair clips with a spiky point on the upper back, but upon closer look they were actually her horns.

"Mio!" The girl exclaimed, hugging her. "Glad your back home for a while!"

"Glad to see you Maria. Everyone, this is Maria, she's my retainer and also my best friend." Mio replied, soon introducing her.

"So some Demons do have horns, hers are pretty cool even." Bikou noted, making Maria blush as she giggled.

"Come on guys, you are the guests here after all." Maria replied, leading everyone inside. "Oh yeah, your mom's not home right now Mio. Has to be part of the party committee."

Mio giggled at that.

"Well if I know my mom well enough..." Mio began.

"She totally hates being there!" Mio and Maria replied, both of them laughing right after.

After walking for a bit, the group soon saw a muscular demon man with red hair walk into view, Mio suddenly stops and bows alongside Maria as he does.

"Hello father, it's been a while." Mio replied, surprising the others.

"That's Mio's dad? He looks like a tank!" Yumi gasped.

"Glad to see you doing well, before that though..." Mio's father replied, soon chopping her on the head lightly. She rubbed it as she looked up at him. "...I thought you said you were gonna call every once in a while. A father worries you now."

Maria sweat drops as Mio chuckles awkwardly.

"Right, sorry dad." Mio replied, turning to the others. "This is my father, the Demon King Wilbert. Don't let this sight fool you. He's just a bit over protective of me."

"You must all be the friends that she's told me about, glad to see you've all been treating her well. Our home is yours while you're hear." Wilbert greeted.

"Thank you for your kindness King Wilbert." Lilith bowed, right after Wilbert left to resume his duties, Lilith turned to everyone. "Better get ready everyone, we have a party we'll be attending soon so get dressed. That includes you Vali."

Vali groaned, she hated the outfits formal events made her wear.

'Please kill me right now!' Vali thought.

* * *

Soon within a large ball room area, various Devils, Demons, Angels and Fallen Angels were all in formal wear and chatting with one another. Other than every big name among the Demons, some of the Great Devils, Seraphs and even Cadre of the Fallen Angels were present among the guests.

The ORC and MHC soon walked in, each of the girls wearing some kind of dress or gown, while all the guys in various tuxedos.

"Wow, not even the Peace Summit had this many of us all in one place." Kiba noted.

"Yeah, it is pretty incredible." Xenovia added.

Soon enough, Irina noticed one of their own wasn't present and sighed, walking near the door.

"Vali, come on. Stop hiding." Irina sighed again.

"No, I'm not going in there!" Vali replied, Irina began to get annoyed before she smirked.

"OK then, that means I get to hang out with Issei and you don't get to complain at all." Irina smirked, making Vali grab her arm. "Gotcha."

Vali's eyes widen and she cried briefly, soon she walked out wearing a white dress with a translucent white scarf resting across her shoulders. She also had her hair tied up to rest over her shoulders. She was blushing in embarrassment.

"I look ridiculous." Vali blushed.

"Actually, I think you look really beautiful in this." Issei replied, making Vali blush more genuinely.

"W-Well... I guess if you like it Issei, it's fine." Vali blushed, making Irina pout as she wrapped her arm around his.

'You are so lucky we're at a party right now!' Irina thought, still pouting.

Soon Sona and her peerage walk into the party room, catching the others' attention.

"How's it hanging Hyoudou, rocking the suit or not?" Saji asked.

"Can't it be both? I look good with my girl by my side regardless." Issei answered, making Vali blush again as the two had a playful chuckle. At that moment, a certain cherry haired Devil woman walked nearby, her face all flushed as she hiccupped. "Hey, is that woman alright?"

"Oh no, are you drunk again Lady Roygun?" Rias asked, sighing at the conduct of the current Great Devil Belphegor.

"Oh hey Rias, and drunk? No way. This is only my 20th glass, I don't get drunk until I have 50 glasses." Roygun smiled, making Mio's eye twitch in shock. Roygun soon hiccupped as she saw Issei. "Ooh, the Sekiryuutei huh? You know, you're a pretty handsome man, just my type. How about you and I have some fun together?"

Issei went wide eyed in shock while Vali did everything she could to not slap Roygun in the face, soon Roygun felt herself pulled away by Alanira.

"Seriously Roygun, I told you to behave. You're a Great Devil for Hell's sake. We need to paint ourselves as good examples, not sorry ones." Alanira sighed, looking at everyone. "My apologies, I turned my head for a moment and she dove right into the wine."

Alanira walked off as the others sweat dropped, soon waking back to the others and putting Roygun on a chair.

"OK, I got Roygun back. Is Odin arriving soon?" Alanira asked, getting the notice of a male Demon.

"Yeah, I had Nakir go pick him up as part of guard duty. He states they aren't too far out." Remiel asked, soon sighing. "Seems some of the Norse gods have bugs up their asses about the potential alliance. And like everyone else who's against the peace, the Khaos Brigade's recruiting them."

"Yes, it seems we must stay vigilant for a while. I've heard some disturbing reports myself." Uriel added.

* * *

A while later into the party, Vali noticed a familiar male Devil walking to another familiar female Devil, the moment he began talking however she suddenly got worried.

"Oh no, he isn't." Vali mentioned, getting Issei's attention. She soon groaned once she saw he did and held up her fingers. "3, 2, 1..."

Everyone suddenly reacted with surprise as the said female Devil slammed her hand down on the table and broke it in two. Said female Devil was shown to have long waist purple hair that had two buns at the top and pink-red tsurime shaped eyes, glaring at the male Devil venomously.

"If you have a death wish, then I'll be happy to fill it Gebedon!" The female Devil sneered, the male devil before her was revealed to have slick black shoulder length hair and deep dark purple eyes with reddish pupils. His eyes gave a bit playboy look as she smirked.

"Like I said Ineelana, filling's my job. If you want a real man in your life then I'd volunteer for it." Gebedon smiled, irritating Ineelana more as she stomped the ground.

"How about you volunteer to be a living ice sculpture!?" Ineelana shouted, purple ice forming around her as everyone backed up.

A young looking female Devil bit three whole chicken wings at once, even swallowing the bones as she watched. She had long green hair with two small braids near the sides of her face and light blue eyes. She grabs more as she kept watching.

"Uh oh, looks like Ineelana's pissed off again." The young female devil replied, soon eating the next batch of food in her hands. She turns to a male Devil with shaggy brown hair and dull orange eyes just watching besides her, scratching his nose without a care. "Hey Suzattin, you gonna stop them? Wouldn't be too hard for you."

"Nah, too much work. Besides... you aren't trying to stop them either Niruili." Suzattin replied, making the young Devil blush in embarrassment.

Meanwhile with Vali and the others, the Lucifer heiress sighed.

"Damnit Gebedon, you just had to be stupid to flirt here of all places." Vali sighed, catching the others' attention. "Yeah, I know him, and the girl he's fighting along those two spectators over there. Guess I've gotta stop this."

"No need, considering what you've done for us I'll clean up the mess." A male Devil said, making everyone look as a male Devil with messy neck length dark red hair and dark gray walked by the group.

"Hello Esketanus." Vali smiled, recognizing an old friend of hers.

"I'll give a warmer welcome right after this, should only take a moment. No different than snagging all the merchandise from a shonen anime." Esketanus replied, soon winding his hand before fling it out. Both Ineelana and Gebedon were about to clash when the hand grabbed both of them and suddenly sapped some of their strength.

"That's enough you two! Don't bring back dishonor to your clans' names after what Vali went through to restore their honor, if you have a problem then solve it elsewhere!"

Gebedon sighed.

"Alright, I'll see you some other time my sweet Ineelana." Gebedon shrugged, soon blowing a kiss to her irritation. She sighed and turned around.

Esketanus sighed in relief and soon flipped a coin to see it land on heads, soon smirking as he walked to the food table and gave a thumb's up towards Issei, the Sekiryuutei confused to the act.

"Vali, who are those guys?" Issei asked.

"My fellow Great Devil heirs, just like I'm a descendant of Lucifer they're descendants from the other five clans." Vali answered. "Ineelana Leviathan, Niruili Beelzebub, Gebedon Asmodeus, Suzattin Belphegor and Esketanus Mammon."

"Wait, so those five are gonna be the ones who'll eventually be running Hell alongside you?" Saji asked, Vali nodded at that. "Wow, it seems you know them all well already to."

"Of course, they're the reason I asked for their clans to gain another chance if I bet Riser. I got to know them when my training journey brought me here. They're all good friends of mine." Vali smiled.

Soon at that moment, a handsome young Devil man with black hair and violet eyes and a tall, muscular build walked behind Rias with a girl with blue hair in a ponytail beside him.

"It's been a while, hasn't it Rias?" The Devil replied, causing to Rias blink before turning, smiling as she hugged the Devil who hugged her back.

"Sairaorg! It's so good to see you, and who's this with you?" Rias asked.

"Nice to finally meet you in person, I'm Kirin Yamagari. I recently became Sairaorg's Pawn." Kirin introduced herself, shaking Rias' hand. "You've got a great cousin, and I'm proud to be part of his peerage."

Rias smiled at that, while Saji looked at Sona confused.

"Hey Sona, who's that guy?" Saji asked.

"That's the current heir to the Bael family, Sairaorg Bael. He's also Rias' cousin on her mother's side." Sona answered, shocking Saji as he stared at Sairaorg. "He's also considered the strongest among the young Devils right now. Be prepared, we may end up in a Rating Game against him in the future."

* * *

Issei was getting some food from a plate when a familiar blonde walked up by him.

"Yo, Sekiryuutei! It's been a while!" Issei suddenly turned to see none other than Ravel Phenex behind him, wearing a pink dress with phoenix feathers at the ends.

"Hey, your Riser's little sister... wait, it's on the tip of my tongue." Issei replied, taking a moment to recall her name. "It's Ravel, right?"

"And yet you needed a moment to remember? This is why I hate inferior Devils." Ravel said, turning her head at the last part.

Issei sweat dropped at that before clearing his throat and trying to break the ice.

"Out of curiosity, how's Riser doing?" Issei asked, making Ravel sigh.

"Not well, he's been depressed ever since he lost. Though I guess he asked for it with his Pride being crushed by the Devil clan that represents the sin. Can't say much else, after losing I was traded into my mom's house." Ravel replied.

'Wait, so she's not in his peerage anymore? I didn't even know trading was an option.' Issei thought, Ravel soon turned and offered something to Issei. "Huh? A gift for me."

"D-Don't read too much into it! It's just an offer of friendship so there's no hard feelings, be lucky that I gave you something normally meant for a High-Ranking Devil! For a low-ranking Devil like you to be given it is an honor among honors." Ravel replied, blushing with a frown. "Is that fine Lord Issei?"

Issei sweat dropped at being called lord, but soon blinks.

"Wait, was that the whole reason you even came to say hello?" Issei asked, making Ravel blush.

"W-What? No, of course not! I felt I should just apologize on my brother's half! Besides, Alanira is my older sister, so it would dishonor the Great Devils if I didn't show my respect to the members of Vali's household!" Ravel replied, soon turning around to hide her blush. "Speaking of which... I need to go see her, bye!"

Ravel walked off embarrassed.

"What just happened there?" Issei asked, soon putting the capsule he was given into his pocket. "So Alanira Mammon is her and Riser's older sister? With her pink hair and both of them being blondes, you'd never think that from a glance."

Soon Cassiel stretches and yawns as she walks into the scene in casual wear, getting the other higher ups' attention as she finally arrived.

"Seriously Cassiel, where the heck were you and why are you dressed that way?" Remiel asked annoyed.

"Cut me some slack Remiel, you made me help out and I needed to sleep after... and fell asleep in the closet after putting the mops away." Cassiel replied embarrassingly, making her fellow Demons sweat drop. "Well at least I came, sheesh! Anyways, our guests here woke me up."

They all turned to see the leader of the Norse pantheon, the mighty Odin, walk in alongside a beautiful Valkyrie with long, straight silver hair and light blue eyes who seemed to be no older than a teenager, she was currently wearing a lavender business suit.

"For a crotchety old bastard to the Northern waist, you're not looking to bad." Cassiel bluntly stated, making her fellow higher ups all pale while Lilith simply tried her best not to laugh. Odin chuckled at that.

"Not afraid to be honest are you Cassiel? That's a fresh change, most people don't have the gall to say something like that to me." Odin replied, making everyone sigh in relief while Cassiel just smirked. "Let me thank you personally for your invitation. Though you should really change out of that drab clothing, this is a party after all."

Cassiel snickers, and Mio suddenly sweat at that.

"Let's see what I can do then, here's a little thing I call the presto chango!" Cassiel declared, snapping as her outfit changed into a magic girl outfit based off of Nanoha Takamachi's outfit from her titular series. Mio went white while her fellow Demons all groaned. Odin stared before he laughed.

"Now I get why they say Demon's know how to party! How would you like to stroke Odin's beard?" Odin replied, the Valkyrie near him soon cleared her throat.

"Please keep in mind why we made the voyage milord, we're here representing Valhalla." The Valkyrie replied, making Odin sigh.

"Must you always be the downer in the room? That's the attitude that keeps you from finding a man." Odin bluntly replied, making the Valkyrie gasp before she teared up a bit. Cassiel sweat dropped at the sight. "Forgive her, this is my capable but neurotic assistant Rossweisse."

Vali suddenly gasped at that.

"Rossweisse? Wait a second, that name... oh that's right, Gondul told me that was her granddaughter's name." Vali mentioned to herself, remembering the Valkyrie who taught her during her training journey. "Who knew I'd meet here in the Demon Realm?"

At that moment, everyone heard Cassiel, who had since changed into an actual formal outfit, hit a fork against a glass to get everyone's attention.

"Now that everyone's here, I'd like to thank you all for coming. Most of all..." Cassiel began, soon looking at everyone. "...I have an announcement to make."

"How funny, so do I!"

That got everyone's attention as a magic circle suddenly formed, and Cassiel suddenly glared.

"...Great, a party crasher." Cassiel mumbled.

* * *

**Yep, that's right! As the arc name just stated, this first half of Season 3 is taking us to see my version of the DxD world's Elves! I've seen many DxD fanfics on here, but not once have I seen any of them mention Elves, much less show them. So let's fix that, especially if I'm the first to use them. Not to mention there are Elves in Norse myth, I figured he'd help everyone learn they needed aid.**

**I should apologize though, this chapter might be a bit... all over the place, aside from getting back into the swing of this story after the hiatus, this point of the story was one of those events that felt a bit hard to work with. That and I'd like to get all of Volume 5's canon stuff out of the way so you can all see the original stuff for this arc sooner than later.**

**Anyways, I hope you guys all like the Great Devil heirs, they'll be out of focus for the first arc of this season, but they'll be showing their stuff in full when the Diodora arc finally rolls around. Also to anyone not familiar with the series, similar to Mio, Wilbert and Maria are also characters from Testament of a New Sister Devil, namely they're Mio's father and guardian respectively. If you like DxD for the demons or fan service, this series might be for you.**

**For the hero that Jeanne's replacement on Cao Cao team, Jingu is based on? Empress Jingu who once ruled Japan during the third century. Each of the Hero Faction's main team seems to have a different nationality to them, and I felt Japan was the best way to know how to have fought against Yasaka, so I chose to make a descendant based on her.**

**Kirin on the other hand? She's an OC of mine, I created her because in this fanfic, I've got Vali taking the place of Seekvaira (she still exists though, so don't worry about her being retconned) in the Rookies 4 due to the fact she's gotten less focus, even when she was in the DxD team we barely saw anything about her or her peerage.**

**Since Vali, Rias and Sona will all end up with 10 members overall, and they're all in this story's Rookies 4, I felt Sairaorg's final pawn should be used. I won't say what Kirin can do until a later season, but to anyone who doesn't know it was stated by Ishibumi that Sairaorg's last Pawn is a Mutation Piece, so Kirin's stronger than a normal one piece Pawn would be.**

**With all of that out of the way, glad to be back everyone! Stay awesome as we finally experience Season 3 of the fanfic!**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- **

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, Irina  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Six unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating**  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress


	21. Chapter 21

**Time to introduce our mysterious party crasher, I think some of you might be surprised to who it is. Then again considering what I said about me linking the Elves' distress call to Odin's presence cause some Elf origins are connected to Norse, maybe you might already have an idea ^^;**

**Oh, and I think some of you may have noticed this in the last chapter, and I realized I had actually forgotten to mention this. The heirs for the Great Devil clans' personalities? All based on the sin of the Demon linked to them, or at least part of it is. Even Vali herself has parts of her personality based on the last two sins, though in a more noble way. Pride in the form of her family and peerage, and wrath through the chilling aura she makes when angry.**

**As of this chapter, the rest of this arc is going into original content territory, so anything from this point will at best only have a small scene that relates to a canon event. For one I've planned something with Saji, and there's a specific duo of characters that's gonna be showing up soon as well. Also to everyone who was patient, I can say also that we'll be seeing Kunou as of this chapter, so no more worrying what happened to her... well accept for maybe the scene you see her, but then your worries are over.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

* * *

** -Elves- **

**Elves are a Demi Human race of highly intelligent beings which excel at magic, especially wind, water and earth magic. They live in forests areas, and are known for their powerful archery skills, while also being pacifists, but anything put pushovers. The Elf race as a whole doesn't officially have a true allegiance to a specific mythology, but has many friendships with a few, the most notable being the Norse pantheon.**

**During the Great War, they chose to side with the Devils for their survival due to the method behind the Devils' magic system being similar to their own, and have since been friendly with the Devil race despite lacking any official relations with them as of the present day. They prefer quiet and serenity, which puts them at odds with Dwarves who are quite loud.**

**The most notable feature about Elves are their pointed ears, pale skin, and their hair which is either silver, blonde or green. Elves that lack these hair colors are those who possess heritage from another species.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Calling of the Elves Arc: Chapter 2 - Voice of the Forest _ **

At that moment, everyone heard Cassiel, who had since changed into an actual formal outfit, hit a fork against a glass to get everyone's attention.

"Now that everyone's here, I'd like to thank you all for coming. Most of all..." Cassiel began, soon looking at everyone. "...I have an announcement to make."

"How funny, so do I!"

That got everyone's attention as a magic circle suddenly formed, and Cassiel suddenly glared.

"...Great, a party crasher." Cassiel mumbled.

"Worse, I recognize that voice." Odin replied.

Soon from the magic circle, a handsome young man with silver-white hair that had a strong resemblance to Freed, but looked much more handsome and for lack of a better word, was perfectly sane. His attire consisted of a black chain mail armor and brown boots, and in his hand was a black and red Cursed sword that had a sun shaped design on parts of its hilt, adorned with purple outlines.

"How's it going everyone, the name's Siegfried. Though I'd rather you call me Sieg." Sieg introduced.

"The true descendant of Sigurd, just perfect." Rossweisse commented, her and Odin both familiar with the boy before them. Some Demon guards surrounded him before while Sieg looked around him with a smirk. "Why are you here?"

Sieg chuckled.

"Because I hate this and everything it stands for, already dropped from the church because of this stupid peace crap you've got. I draw the line here though, I'm not letting my ancestor's pantheon mix into that."

"The lyrics are different, but the song sounds the same. You're just a clown working for the Khaos Brigade!" Azazel replied.

"Working for? Please, don't insult me, my friends and I are working _with_ them if anything. Though I'll admit this is me killing some time." Sieg replied, soon holding out his sword. "So I hope you don't mind this guest I brought."

Sieg snapped, and suddenly some black monster appeared from a portal behind him, it was some eyeless lizard that opened its mouth and roared, revealing said mouth to be split into four, making it open like a blooming blower you'd only find in nightmares.

"What supernatural creature is that!?" Yuuma gasped.

"It isn't one. That beast is just a monster, which can only mean one thing... that monster was made by the Annihilation Maker!" Azazel grunted. "To think the Khaos Brigade has one of the strongest Longinus under their fold!"

The monster quickly rushed forward and dove at some of the guests, swiping its tail to damage the room's structure as it did. Valerie, Gasper and Asia all were in the line of the falling debris when a green magic circle fires off magic to destroy it. Asia is pushed back a bit, only for a devil with closed eyes and short black hair to catch her, making her look at him.

"Don't worry, you're alright." He smiled.

"Oh, thank you." Asia replied.

As the monster dove at the higher ups, only for Kirin to rush into view and soon grab it by the neck, locking it in place.

"You like to thrash around, well how about you feel what it's like to take a thrashing." Kirin asked, soon throwing her body up and slamming the monster down with powerful back drop. Making it tumble across the ground as Kirin landed on her feet.

"Eternal Coffin!" Ineelana shouted, causing the purple ice to encompass the monster... only for it break out easily as Sieg jumps onto its back. "What!?"

"This little beast is an Anti-monster made specifically against Devils and Demons. Sorry, but any tricks from either of your kind aren't gonna do much and most of you here are just that." Sieg chuckled, mocking the people before him.

The monster jumps at Ineelana, only for Uriel to blast holy energy and knock the beast back a bit, making Sieg jump off as he stared at Uriel who had cast the holy blast in question.

"Are you alright?" Uriel asked, and Ineelana sneered.

"Hmph! I could have dealt with it myself, you didn't need to save me!" Ineelana stated, making the Angel sweat drop. She turned and gave a sad look however. 'Damn it, why am I so useless compared to everyone?'

Sieg soon cracked his neck a bit.

"Alright, let's get ready then. Its time I change the tables myself." Sieg prepared his sword, only for a barrier to suddenly form around him and the monster to his surprise. "What the? A barrier!?"

"Left yourself wide open." Roygun smirked, having regained her sobriety as her hand glowed. Sieg sighed and soon readied his sword.

"Then I guess I'll show myself out." Sieg stated, soon slashing his sword, shattering the barrier to the Great Devil's surprise. "The Cursed Sword Gram, for this blade, a barrier like yours its child play to break."

The monster soon slithered around Sieg and a magic circle made the two vanish, everyone looked at the mess and sighed a bit.

"Not sure if this is a victory or a mockery considering he ran away. Well, let's get things cleaned up and start getting things back on track." Cassiel sighed, looking at Roygun.

"I got it, I'll have things fixed up in no time." Roygun nodded, making Cassiel smile in relief.

* * *

Meanwhile back around the outskirts of the mountain range where Yasaka and Kunou had been attacked. Cao Cao was gathered with Georg, Leo and Jingu when Sieg appeared with the monster uncurling from his body.

"Sieg, where were you all this time?" Cao Cao wondered, and Sieg smirks as he tosses Gram up, letting it get sheathed onto his back. The monster curling near Leo who rubbed its head before it faded into his hands and into his Sacred Gear.

"Oh, I was just crashing a party in the Shadow Realm, and I have to say I'm disappointed. None of the bigger names really tried to fight back. Probably wanted their new bloods to take a shot, and most of them were scared shitless, I didn't even see the Heavenly Dragons react. Guess formal wear demands weakness?" Sieg chuckled, making Georg sigh.

"Sieg, do you know how risky and stupid that was? Especially bringing one of Leo's monsters along? They'll be expecting us in the future." Georg replied, giving Sieg a glare as he ignored it. "How'd you think that would even go well?"

"Oh cut him some slack, we do have a spy for us in their ranks."

At that moment, the group turned as a two-meters tall man with a well-built body, short black hair with a metal head band walked into view. His muscles bulging and making most of his body mess, only a loincloth and slightly torn up shorts being the only clothes he possessed.

"Besides, giving them a small sample will make our victory over them much more satisfying." The man grinned, making Cao Cao smirk.

"Perhaps it will Heracles, for now let us continue our work. We can't seem to find the kid, so we should make sure we cause some discord and mistrust to work things in our favor for the time being." Cao Cao replied as he began walking off, the rest of his team soon standing up and following.

* * *

Soon after about 20 minutes of reparations, everything was cleaned up and the party began resuming. Vali walked by Ineelana who was pouting by the corner. The Leviathan heiress turned to look at her before turning her head again.

"Hey, come on Ineelana, don't be like that." Vali said kindly, making Ineelana turn away more. "You did good, most of us were all freaked out by Sieg and that monster suddenly showing up. You at least had the courage to try."

"Shut up Lucifer! I don't wanna hear that from the Hakuryuukou, you think you're so much better than me because you can actually be proud of your achievements!" Ineelana yelled, tearing up as she looked away after. Vali rubbed her back. "...So what if I fought back, it didn't do anything."

Vali sighed and poked her forehead to her surprise.

"You're better than you think you are, just remember that." Vali smiled, surprising Ineelana and she walked back to her peerage. After that, Cassiel tapped her fork against her glass again, preparing to resume what Sieg had interrupted. Everyone turned as she did.

"I apologize to everyone about our early interruption, and I'd like to thank everyone for stopping the attack that came of it. I can tell most of you were terrified and some of you unable to act due to your powers in the situation. However, no one ran away, so be proud everyone for standing up tonight!" Cassiel stated, making everyone clap.

"My original announcement has also been changed, due to the events of what occurred tonight, the answer to the question I intended to ask has already been answered by Odin. So it is my great honor to declare... the Christian and Norse pantheons have formed an alliance! Conflicts between our sides will eventually cease, and they will join our efforts against the Khaos Brigade."

Everyone clapped and cheered at the news, and soon a pact monument formed before behind the higher ups.

"To make it official, please sign the pact monument Lord Odin." Alanira requested.

"Of course." Odin nodded, soon placing his hand on the moment and placing his signature on it. Everyone clapped one more and Vali smiles at the sight. Another group to call allies instead of enemies.

* * *

A while later, after the part had ended, the various higher ups present were situated in the Demon leaders' conference room. Only this time it was being used by some of the Great Devils and Lilith, Uriel, Azazel and Shemhazai, then finally Odin with Rossweisse standing by his side.

"I think most of us can tell by tonight that the Khaos Brigade's influence has at the very least began attracting some Sacred Gear holders among other powerful beings. The Annihilation Maker's wielder being one of them is already cause for concern." Shemhazai stated, all the other leaders listening.

"I agree, this was a mere warning of what's to come. Though something about this attack felt off. Why did only Sieg himself show up?" Uriel wondered.

Roygun thought on that before gasping silently as she had an idea, soon speaking up.

"Perhaps they're not as unified as we believe? Not everyone might agree with Shalba's plans, Sieg may have only come on his own terms."

"If that's the case, then it may relate to some trouble I've been concerned over recently." Odin replied, soon standing up. "As leader of the Norse Pantheon, I beg for your assistant in a recent matter of ours. I fear that the Khaos Brigade has become involved with it."

* * *

Soon back at Cassiel's castle, everyone was relaxing in one of the many baths. The focus goes to the one the Sitri peerage girls... or rather the whole peerage minus Saji, as they relax and talk about everything that went down at the party.

"I still can't believe what happened, to think we'd get attacked out of nowhere by some white haired Kiba wannabe and a monster." Tomoe said, splashing some water over her face. "What did Azazel call that thing again? A monster of the... something maker?"

"The Annihilation Maker, it's one of the high-tier Longinus, so it's a lot more dangerous than Issei or Vali's Dragons in its potential." Tsubaki explained, defogging her glasses.

Ruruko springs up from under the water and looks at her.

"Oh yeah, aren't they the Longinus that are stated to have world destroying potential?" Ruruko asked, making Tsubaki nod. "Yikes, I guess if you could make monsters that can resist Devils and Demons than you could destroy the world."

"I think what's scariest is the legends about its Balance Breaker. It's said that the creatures that it creates under that conditions were so powerful, the Hindu Pantheon's strongest gods were the only things that managed to stop it." Sona replied, making everyone gasp.

They had good reason to, the Hindu pantheon was considered the undisputed strongest mythological faction by most of the supernatural world. Some said their abilities were like "cheats".

"Counting that Cao Cao guy's True Longinus, we've seen all but one of them. Just what can that one do?" Tsubasa wondered to herself. At that moment, Momo heard something running by.

"You guy hear that?" Momo asked, soon the sound of something slams into the bath door. "...Never mind, we all heard that."

"Hey guys, t-the higher ups asked us to come see them now! I mean like... _right_ now!" Saji shouted through the door, panting heavily and sounding quite panicked. "H-hurry and get dressed, I don't think this can wait!"

Soon in the water, Cassiel sighed at Saji's antics before giggling a bit.

"That boy's all scattered about, he needs to chill." Cassiel replied, suddenly freaking out everyone at her sudden appearance in the pool. "What? This is my home, I can bathe where I want."

"You're crazy, do you know that!?" Reya blushed angrily, making Cassiel giggle.

"Thank you, that's just how I like it. Your male half's right though. We need you there now." Cassiel replied, soon jumping out as she teleported back over. Everyone stared at the sudden event they just experienced.

"...Let's just get ready." Sona stated as she pushed her glasses up, trying to distract everyone. They all nodded in agreement.

* * *

Soon the three peerages were gathered together as they stood before the table and all the present leaders.

"Odin here says that he's seen bad activity around the Elf's territory, and after the deal with Sieg from early I think we've all got a good idea who this invader might be. Regardless of what anyone in the Khaos Brigade wants individually, they share the goal of making pandemonium." Remiel explained.

"Uh... if I may ask, why send us? Couldn't you all solve this kind of issue, couldn't Odin himself? Not to be disrespectful but-" Yuuma began, Azazel raised a hand to stop her.

"That's understandable Yuuma, but aside from needing to lead our people and be prepared if our lands get attacked... it also risks starting another large scale war. That won't be good for anyone in the end. Not to mention if we tried to solve everything and we all kicked the bucket, who'd be left to protect everyone?"

Yuuma suddenly shook after hearing that.

"O-Oh my... I think I get it now, too many worst case scenarios in the way." Yuuma nodded shakily, she gulped before she continued. "Though still, why us at all?"

"Unfortunately Yuuma, right now all of are the only ones' side from the other leaders present at the conference to have fought anyone in the Khaos Brigade. Their threat is still too new to most, I'm afraid Sieg's attack made it clear others need more time." Alanira sighed.

"Not to mention the Elves sided with the Devils in the Great War, you'll likely be easier trusted than any other species we send over. We can only work with our current hands at best. We'll be trying to amend that issue while you aid the Elves, but for now this is all we can do. This also means we can't send you any reinforcements."

Vali nodded.

"We understand, it has pretty much only been a few days since the Khaos Brigade's become public knowledge. Trying to be ready that fast is unrealistic." Vali agreed.

"And we'll accept the danger involved too, as long as we're in the dark we need any ally we can." Sona added.

Cassiel giggled at that, surprising the groups.

"How sweet, but don't think we'll be sending you without any new blood. We have a few volunteers who've decided to come with you so the Khaos Brigade doesn't have everything predictable for you. Come out you guys."

Soon from the wall, a small portal of shadow opens up as a familiar blue haired Reaper and a foreign looking man in his late teens, possessing a large physique that looked nearly as well built as Sairaorg's. He had gray hair with long bangs which covers his eyes, a black coat with a fur collar, a white shirt underneath, dark blue jeans and greave shaped boats.

"The two of us wish to offer our services. I am Loup Garou, but please call me Rugal, and this energetic one here is Bennia." Rugal introduced himself, making Bennia wave.

"Hey there!" Bennia smiled, waving at Lilith.

"It's been a while Bennia, hasn't it? Hades been behaving or do I need to give him another piece of my mind again?" Lilith chuckled, her and Bennia's eyes getting shadowed and glowing with yellow four pointed stars to everyone's slight fear. "Regardless, good to see you again."

Bennia smiles.

'I guess grandma knows her' Vali mentally sweat dropped, soon looking at Rugal and Bennia. 'The two of them both seem to be half human, but I can't tell what their other half is though... I guess I'll be seeing that soon enough.'

Lilith soon clears her throat as she collected herself.

"And here's the third volunteer." Lilith stated, soon revealing Kirin walk out from the shadows and bow. Surprising everyone. "She hasn't been a Devil for long, Sairaorg thought helping you guys would be a good experience for her. Make sure you learn well from them Kirin."

"As you wish Lady Lilith." Kirin nodded.

Finally, the last volunteer stepped up, revealing herself to be none other than Rossweisse.

"And I will be attending as well, to represent Asgard's new role in the alliance." Rossweisse replied.

"Seems like a good team, I'd come along too but... the Elves aren't exactly on the best term with us Demons. That means I have to stay behind." Mio sighed, making Cassiel pat her head as she curled onto the ground disappointed. "Just promise to let me see you of before you go?"

"We promise, don't worry." Rias smiled, making Mio feel a bit better.

* * *

Soon the three groups were standing on a magic circle in front of Cassiel's mansion, waiting for some last-minute supplies and for Rossweisse to show up who needed a moment to prepare herself and change out of her business attire. Mio was giving a warning to Issei and Vali.

"Your fire and ice magic are a bit harmful to their forest environment, if you have to fight then its best to rely solely on your Sacred Gears." Mio explained, and the two nodded.

"Alright, understood." Issei replied.

"Sorry for the wait everyone."

Everyone turned to see Rossweisse finally show up, now wearing her Valkyrie armor which consisted of a white breastplate with gold and pale blue accents and matching, fingerless gauntlets, boots, hip guards, and wing-shaped hair clips. She also wore a black leotard underneath her breastplate, black thigh-high stockings, and a pale blue cloth wrapped underneath her hip guards, all of which are clad with pink lacing along with her hair clips.

"I haven't had the chance to properly introduce myself before now, I'm the Valkyrie Rossweisse." Rossweisse introduced herself, aside from Arthur, Gasper and Kiba, all the guys within the three peerages slightly heat up at the sight of her outfit. 'This always happens when I wear this armor...'

Realizing Issei was one of the boys staring, both Vali and Irina slap one of their hands over Issei's eyes, making him gasp in pain from the sudden dual slaps. At that moment, Alanira who had her eyes closed and slightly watering walked into view.

"Here guys, it was last moment so I couldn't make too many, but I cried up some Phoenix Tears for you. It's a good idea considering you have no idea if you'll be split up and Sona lacks a healer on her peerage." Alanira explained, handing the case of them to Rias before rubbing her eyes. "Oh, and don't worry about me. My eyes are just dry from making them."

"Thank you, it was really thoughtful of you Lady Mammon." Rias replied, making Alanira give a thumb's up. Soon everyone got into the center of the magic circle as it begins to glow brighter, signifying the transportation was ready to be cast whenever.

"Alright, we're sending you over now. Good luck to you everyone." Gabriel smiled, waving at them before the magic circle send them off to the Elves' Forest.

* * *

Soon the whole group made it to the Elf Forest, and they opened their eyes to look around. It was a beautiful lush green forest, fully of various small wildlife, and a few bigger ones probably out of sight, along with a lot of flora that Humans would never see no matter how hard they tried to look.

"Whoa... so this is the place the Elves live at?" Kirin asked, moving towards one of the flowers that glistened a bit as the wind blew on it slightly. "I've heard Elves are a race that are strongly connected with nature, guess that rumor's true."

Rossweisse looked around, trying to see if anyone was nearby.

"Strange, Odin said there would be an Elf would be guiding us to the village, but there's no one here. Can anyone sense if there's someone nearby or closing in?" Rossweisse asked.

"Allow me." Kirin nodded.

Everyone was surprised as Kirin jumped up high into the air, making them all go wide eyed.

"Whoa! She's superhuman even by supernatural standards, what kind of vitamins is she eating!?" Bennia wondered.

"None, that's obviously a Sacred Gear. Which one is the question however." Rugal noted, and soon enough Kirin had landed on top of a tree. She looked around as she tried to notice anything odd.

"Hmm... I don't see any movement so far, and no signs of trouble. Maybe they're just running a little-"

Kirin suddenly lost her balance as something made the tree she was on snap, causing her to fall, but luckily land on her feet. She slides back near the others as a purple flame appears and takes the form of a draconic serpent.

**"{That form! It's only a piece of him, and something's not the same, but I know that being anywhere... its Orochi!}"** Vritra warned, the burning serpent nearing them. **"{Be on guard, this thing's an Evil Dragon like me, and incredibly venomous no less.}"**

Orochi hisses about before rushing forward, his body burning with purple flames that Le Fay recognized, but before anyone could try to fight it... an arrow suddenly flew by and punctured Orochi's eye. Making him screech in pain.

"Huh? Yumi, was that you?" Akeno asked, making her shake her head. "Then who was-"

"Stay close to the ground." An unknown voice replied, making everyone look around for it. "I'll explain in a moment, for now just stay down."

Everyone does and soon another few arrows fly by and hit Orochi, the serpentine dragon screeches a bit before his body burst into a purple flame and vanished. Everyone looked to see a figure wearing a green hooded cloak walk towards them from the trees.

"Forgive me for not being here when you arrived as promised, once I saw that creature I had to make sure it didn't get near the village." The figure explained, and Rossweisse walked up to her.

"Then you're the Elf that Odin mentioned would be meeting us here?" Rossweisse asked.

The Elf nodded and removed her cloak, revealing she had green hair and sky blue eyes, with skin so pale that it was nearly as white as snow. Her cloak's hood had a flower shape to it, with a white sleeveless top underneath. She also wore a pair of long, black gloves and boots with a white sash around her waist.

"My name is Ryuu Lion, I'm an Elven Warrior that protects this forest. Follow me as we head to the village." Ryuu replied, soon walking somewhere before the others follow her. "I think one of you is familiar with that beast by chance?"

**"{Yeah, that's the Evil Dragon Orochi, or more accurately it was one of his eight heads.}"** Vritra answered.

"I see, we feared as such. Around a weak ago it attacked our village, we managed to fend it off, but... it seems like it keeps coming back. We're running low on ways to defend ourselves and as the forest keeps getting damaged, so is our strength to defend it." Ryuu replied, jumping across a chasm area, soon opening a hidden bridge for the others to cross.

"It originally attacked us as a whole, but it divided itself since. If we can't stop it for good then I fear the Elves face the very real threat of extinction."

Ryuu hides the bridge again as the others crossed.

"The stupid snake doesn't seem to get the concept of giving up, does it?" Bennia said annoyed, groaning as she recalled Hades' occasional tantrums.

**"{There is something that worries me though... even if Dragons can revive after enough time, Orochi shouldn't have been revived yet. The only time I've heard of an early revival is Fafnir's due to the Norse Gods, and Valerie's the one with the Sephiroth Graal at the moment.}"** Vritra sighed worriedly.

"Wait, you mean..." Saji asked.

**"{Yep, Orochi's soul shouldn't have restored its body yet. Not to mention that piece of him didn't even speak... I don't like this. We better keep our guards up.}"**

After travelling a bit further through the forest, the group eventually reached a clearing where they saw a small village full of wooden homes and such, a bunch of young Elves with hair colors ranging from blondes, silvers and greens present. A few older looking Elves were either working or being patched up.

"This is the Elf Village, Afathmel. We welcome you all here." Ryuu suddenly stated.

"Wow, it doesn't even seem like everyone's aware of the threat looming around them." Issei noted, looking at all the happy Elves.

"We may be peaceful creatures, but we're not pushovers. While keeping morale right now has been a struggle we're still idealistic on our chances. Hopefully your aid will make them be right to feel that way." Ryu answered.

Suddenly the sound of someone nearly tripping caught everyone's attention, the sight of an Elf with long golden-blonde hair and light blue eyes wearing a green dress with white ribbons that fully expressed her impressive bust, and white stockings with unique holy designs and were connected to her shoes.

"Oh no, I'm such a klutz!" The elf whimpered, picking up the medical supplies and salvaging what she could from the food. She saw Ryuu walk over to her with the others. "Oh Ryuu, you came back. Does that mean these are-"

"They are Tiffania, I'm guessing you're going to help get more treatment for our little guest?" Ryuu asked, Tiffania nods before she noticed Vali and gasped. "Huh?"

Tiffania suddenly got really close to Vali and looked over her, making the silver haired Lucifer sweat drop as her personal space was being invaded.

"Long silver hair, blue eyes... no way, are you the one she mentioned?" Tiffania asked, making Vali blink.

"Huh?" Vali blinked, that was a question she didn't expect. "...OK, I've traveled across the world in a training journey, so if someone knows me based on what you said, I need more details on who that person is."

Tiffania thinks on how to describe her.

"She's kinda young, blonde hair and gold eyes, and... uh... she has a ponytail, ears and nine tails. She was also wearing some white cloth with some kind of red skirt." Tiffania explained, making Vali gasp.

"Wait a minute, that' sounds like..." Vali wondered, soon gasping as she realized exactly who it was. "Where is she, let me see her!"

Tiffania blinked at how panicked Vali had suddenly gotten, soon pointing at a house with a medical cross on it and making Vali rush into it. The rest of Vali's peerage rushed in after her, leaving the rest of the group confused on what was happening.

Inside the building, Vali surprised some of the Elves inside as she stopped running and began panting.

"Whoa, are you OK miss?" The doctor asked.

"Y-yeah, I think someone I know is in here." Vali breathed, catching her breath as she looked up. She soon widening her eyes as she got the confirmation she was looking for, on the table was exactly who she thought it was. "Kunou!"

The one named Kunou was a young girl Kyuubi, or nine-tailed fox Youkai, that was around 12 years old but had the appearance of an elementary school student, being short enough that Issei could probably let her ride on his shoulders. She had golden-blonde hair tied in a ponytail and matching eyes, with nine golden fox tails and matching ears.

Her main attire was the traditional miko outfit and tall geta with white tabi. The sleeves of her haori feature a giant red star-shaped pentagram, surrounded by five smaller pentagrams in between the points. Right now, she was only partially conscious on the bed, her eyes closed as she had a wet cloth on her forehead, the rest of Vali's peerage soon came in.

"Vali, mind... telling us what's... going on?" Issei started, panting a bit before seeing Kunou and her condition. "Whoa, she doesn't look to good. Is she a friend of yours?"

"She is, her name's Kunou, I met her during my training journey in Kyoto. She's the daughter of that region's Youkai leader. " Vali explained, soon looking at the young Kyuubi worriedly. "Poor Kunou... who did this you?"

At that moment, Kunou started coughing erratically causing alarm to everyone in the room, one of the nurses quickly grabbed her arm and began checking her pulse before she gasped in shock.

"Oh no, we're losing her!" The nurse called out.

"What!? No, please hang on Kunou!" Vali panicked, soon seeing the Doctor try some healing magic to help her... but no luck. He keeps trying with various healing spells but still nothing. 'No... come on, there's gotta be something we can do to help her!'

Everyone watched as Kunou was getting close to losing the fight, and Vali bit her thumb in worry... and then she gasped as she realized she still had some Evil Pieces.

"Come on, please let these be enough!" Vali begged, the Doctors and Nurses move as Vali gets closer and takes out one of her remaining pawns. She sweated as she saw one wasn't enough, she kept pulling them out until she saw even 5 wasn't enough. "Come on... please, let six be enough!"

Vali held all her pawns out... and they reacted, making her smile at the revelation she could save her.

"OK, here goes. I hope you can forgive me for this later Yasaka..." Vali breathed, soon placing all six pieces on her. The pieces all soon sank into her body. After a moment, Kunou twitched before she suddenly shot up and panted.

"My head... what happened." Kunou groaned, soon trying to get up but collapsing into Vali's arms. She looked up and saw her. "Wait... Vali? Is that you?"

Kunou collapsed a bit more, and Vali rubbed her back.

"Yeah, it's me Kunou. Just take it easy." Vali answered, making Kunou nod as she rested her head on Vali's chest. "Kunou... this might be a bit much to take in, but... you just nearly died. I wish there had been another way, but I had to reincarnate you as a Devil to save you."

Kunou gasped at that, and soon Vali blinked and face palms.

"Aw crap! I forgot Valerie was outside, she could have saved you without that!" Vali groaned, shaking her head. "I'm so stupid..."

"It's OK, you were... you were just trying to help me." Kunou assured Vali, making the Lucifer heiress feel a bit better.

"Thanks Kunou, I'm still sorry I jumped the gun there though." Vali replied, soon rubbing her head. "Kunou, I need you to try and remember, how did you end up here? Where's your mom and your sister?"

Kunou blinks as she tried to remember.

"I... I know big sis is at home, mama had me come with her to meet Amaterasu and... I... I don't remember anything after that." Kunou answered honestly, rubbing her head. "The rest is a blur."

"I see... just try to rest for now. We'll help you figure this out later." Vali replied, Kunou nodded and soon fell asleep. Vali rubbed her back and gave a worried look before holding Kunou in her arms. "Issei, would you mind giving her a piggy back."

"Not at all, don't worry." Issei said, soon turning to let Vali place Kunou on his back. "So... what's next?"

Ryuu and Tiffania walked into the room at that moment.

"We'll need you to come visit the Village Elder, she'll explain to you what's going on in full." Ryuu answered.

"Alright, let's see her then." Vali replied.

* * *

**That's right everyone, Vali's final peerage member is none other than Kunou. That's the reason I gave her an older sibling, so her mother still has someone else to succeed her that's pure Kyuubi. Now, in case any of you ask why she needed six pawns, it's because Kunou has been present alongside her mom during major battles including a Trihexa body, so six seems like an accurate representation of her power when compared to Vali's.**

**Also, just as Vali realized right there... D'oh! Valerie honestly could have saved Kunou without the whole need to reincarnate her into a Devil thing, Vali had just been too worried and forgot she could just go outside and tell her. Doesn't matter if you have a Longinus that revives the dead if the wielder or someone who's friends with the wielder forgets about it ^^;**

**I hope this chapter seems OK, I'm not as good with making original content when its fully original so since the whole Elf concept is completely my own idea aside from a small here or there (like Ryuu and Tiffania who are from other series like Mio), as a result I worry how well this Chapter actually came out. Hopefully since I did it once, the next chapter will do better since there'll be a bit more action in it.**

**So we've got not just Rossweisse, but Bennia and Loup traveling with the group in this arc, I think you all know what that means for this arc once it ends. I had Kirin come along mainly for the reason that I wanted to show what she can do now, and not later on around the time of the RG Tournament finals against Sairaorg. Her Sacred Gear is quite interesting, as is the creature sealed inside of it.**

**So as you can see, we've got an appearance from Orochi here, I think that can give you all a small idea of who the culprit causing all the problems in this arc happens to be. If you don't, then... well you'll just have to wait and see :3**

**Oh, two last things before we cut things off. The first is since Vali's peerage has finally been completed, I will no longer be showing it at the end notes of every chapter. The second is since I've begun to add more characters from other series, like what I mentioned back in Season 2's last leg, I'll be mentioning who they are and their origin series at the end notes, so if you don't recognize the character you'll know what to look for.**

* * *

** -Vali's Peerage- ** ** (Will be removed as of this chapter due to its completion)**

**King - Vali  
Queen - Issei  
Bishops - Le Fay, Asia  
Knights - Arthur, Irina  
Rooks - Bikou, Kuroka (Mutation Piece)  
Pawns - Yuuma (x2), Kunou (x6)**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Sairaorg's Peerage- ** ** (Only here for this chapter due to its completion)**

**King - Sairaorg Bael  
Queen - Kuisha Abaddon  
Bishops - Coriana Andrealphus, Misteeta Sabnock  
Knights - Liban Crocell, Beruka Furcas  
Rooks - Gandoma Balam, Ladora Bune  
Pawns - Regulus Nemea (x7), Kirin Yamagari (Mutation Piece)**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Mio Naruse - Testament of a New Sister Devil**

**Ryuu Lion - Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?**

**Tiffania Westwood - Familiar of Zero**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating**  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress


	22. Chapter 22

**Hey everyone! Before we begin, I've got two important announcements to make and both are related to DxD stories, so make sure to listen up because I think both will interest you.**

**The first one is a what-if story for A Dragon's Heavenly Bonds, one where rather than the Vali Team, the Great Devil heirs that I introduced at the beginning of the season become part of Vali's peerage and cause a whole different story with a different direction. Most of the ideas for this one are still a work in progress, but I will say that this one will actually be a harem since there are some people who wanted the story as a harem. This what-if will be the closest thing we'll get to that.**

**Now the second story idea? I want to everyone to pay attention to this one, the other day I talked with my fellow author AzureStoryTeller, who most of you may already know as the one who made this story possible for inspiring me with his story "The Will to Endure and Protect", after reading another story of his with Fem!Vali known as "The Heroic Calamity", I came to really like a lot of the ideas he introduced.**

**So the other day, I asked him if he would allow me to write my own what-if version of the story, essentially my own version of the story if I had written it, and he gave me the green light on it since he knows I'm not the kind of writer who tries to steal credit. I can't say much about what I'll be planning for this one just yet, but while sharing the same concepts and ideas, it will still be its own story, especially since I plan to make it a harem story. I'll be making sure to talk with Azure to make sure I avoid making it a carbon copy.**

**With that part cleared up, let's talk about chapter events now.**

* * *

**First important to mention, there's something in the chapter that's different from canon, and it connects to Kirin's abilities. Unfortunately, I can't say it here at the start notes or I'm going to end up spoiling everything about it. So I'll wait to reveal what it is at the end notes.**

**I'm glad that this original arc is going fine, no one's mentioned I seem a bit sloppier than usual so that's helped boost my confidence with it, it still feels off my usual forte so that doesn't make me any less nervous unfortunately. I do enjoy people liked Kunou's addition as the last member of Vali's peerage, and the fact I made a good excuse to how Vali didn't just ask Valerie to save her. *snickers a bit***

**I'll be saying now that most of our usual cast will be showing their usual things off-screen, this is because this arc is meant to have the new peerage members and Kirin showcase their abilities. That doesn't mean it's all about them, there's a surprise I have related with Saji, and it's one I think you'll figure out the moment I introduce the reason behind the separated Orochi heads.**

**So... with that out of the way, let's get this chapter started!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

* * *

**A/N: This Concept Talk is a little different, it's about ADHB's version of the Top 10 Strongest Beings, which I figured I should reveal now since some of them will be important later.**

**Also, this list ignores beings that are sealed or deceased.**

** -Top 10 Strongest Beings- **

**1\. Ophis & Great Red: The two Dragon God siblings, also known as the True White Dragon God Emperor and True Red Dragon God Emperor, or the Dragons of Dragons. They are the most dangerous beings in the world, but often ignore what happens it in, only caring about claiming the Dimension Gap for their own.**

**2\. Trihexa: A dangerous monster that's on the same level as Ophis and Great Red, but ranked 2nd because it's a mindless being. The origin of its birth is unknown, but its threat was so great that God and Satan sealed it at the cost of their lives to stop it. The Khaos Brigade is currently using its power for their own agenda.**

**3\. Ddraig and Albion + Mastered Possessors: The Red and White Dragon Emperors, once normal dragons who after meeting each other grew into a force that could challenge even God and Satan. They were both sealed into parts of their bodies and made Sacred Gears by God when their rampage threatened the Great War, but those who master their Longinus have the potential to be as strong as they were before being sealed.**

**4\. [SECRET]: A powerful Dragon who had the ability to adapt and evolve to his environment, and was immune to Dragon Slayer weapons. Due to lacking a challenge, it actually asked God seal it in a Sacred Gear so its possessors could grant it this. Some claim, including the two Dragons themselves, that had it met Ddraig and Albion before doing this, it would have become the third Heavenly Dragon.**

**5\. Vritra + Mastered Possessors: The most powerful of the Evil Dragons and the only one to earn the title of Dragon King, at one point it tried to murder Indra and pushed the God to the point he could only seal Vritra away into multiple souls that became Sacred Gears. Luckily, Vritra doesn't mind this as the act made him sane. Anyone who gains and masters all four of his Sacred Gears has the potential to gain his strength at his prime.**

**6\. Shiva: The Hindu God of Destruction, he was originally stated to have the role of destroying the world, but along with most apocalypse bringers (sans Loki and Trihexa) doesn't care and now considers it a boring and useless task after the Great War's damage desensitized him. He is constantly annoyed by Indra's attempts to start a war against him due to thinking he's tricking everyone with this claim.**

**7\. Brahma & Vishnu: The Hindu Gods of Creation and Protection, being part of the Trimurti alongside Shiva. Their power is only considered lower than Shiva due to their domains not being meant for raw power like Shiva's. They're currently the only ones keeping Indra in line, but both fear this may not last much longer.**

**8\. Indra: The Leader of the Devas and the Hindu God of War, Storms and Rainfall. He is also known as one of the three "Worst Gods" along Loki and Hades due to the three always causing problems with their actions, but as the worst offender of the three for his mind reading ability. He intends to declare war against Shiva, wrongly believing he still intends to end the world in the future.**

**9\. Crom Cruach: The second most dangerous of the Evil Dragons, and the only one that's currently not undergoing revival or sealed away. Once the loyal servant to the Evil God Balor, Crom Cruach was left to wander after his master's death. His current whereabouts are unknown, but Tannin knows he's still alive.**

**10\. God & Satan: The leaders of the Angels and Devils, God created the Angels and Satan was the first of them, namely the angel Lucifer, before falling and leading to the Devil race's birth, indirectly creating the Demons and Fallen Angels. They both discovered Trihexa and fought to seal the beat away, an act that's believed to have ended with their deaths.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Calling of the Elves Arc: Chapter 3 - The Fire in Kirin's Soul _ **

"We'll need you to come visit the Village Elder, she'll explain to you what's going on in full." Ryuu answered.

"Alright, let's see her then." Vali replied.

Everyone followed Ryuu as she leads the group to a large wooden hut, and inside of it they see an elderly looking elf sitting on the ground, a pot with some smoking plants being cooked within it as she slowly looks up to see them.

"...Ah, you must be the ones Odin said would come to our aid. Please seat yourselves and get comfortable." The Elder replied, making everyone rest. "...I believe you saw the monster that Ryuu slayed upon your arrival, correct?"

**"{Yes, one fraction of Orochi... I know my kind all too well.}"** Vritra answered.

"...That monster's arrival, most of us know it all too well. Near the outskirt of our borders... a strange woman suddenly appeared and demanded we give her all our Elven treasures." The Elder began, shaking the pot to reveal a shadowed female silhouette in the smoke. "...We refused, and after that she summoned the monster."

Soon Orochi's form with all of its heads appeared in the smoke, the woman's body created purple fire with a cross shape, catching Valerie's attention briefly as she felt something react in her body.

"Are you alright?" Gasper asked, noticing her reaction.

"I'm fine, I think it was just a reaction from the Sephirot Graal, I'm not sure what it was though." Valerie answered honestly, she didn't know just why those flames were significant. The elder continued her story afterwards.

"...The monster rampaged, and we barely managed to hold it off. However the woman did not falter. She split the monster into eight, and told us that they'd keep returning as long as all eight could not be slain within a day." The Elder explained, her shaking of the pot having ceased. "...She was right, we beat four yesterday and they all came back."

Vritra sighed.

**"{It makes sense, one head of Orochi is the man one, the other seven will eventually restore themselves after about a day if you don't take it out. Not sure how separating affects that, but I assume that all 8 needed to die within that same time frame.}"** Vritra answered.

"So we just need to take out the rest of them before then. How many have you gotten so far?" Kiba asked.

"As of the one you saw me vanquish, we've managed to defeat 5, but taking out one alerts the others, and we're low on man power, not to mention our tactics against them require us to sneak and quickly destroy them." Ryuu answered.

"If there's three, then it would be a good idea to split up our group by our peerages, it seemed like the one we encountered could have sensed us by the few of us with dragon powers." Sona reasoned, looking at the others. "The question is out of our guests, should go with who?"

Vali looked at the group, and after a bit...

"Kirin, you'll come with my peerage. Rossweisse will go with your peerage Rias, and since your peerage is smallest Sona you'll have Bennia and Rugal join you. Any problems with this arrangement?" Vali asked, everyone shook their heads. "Alright then, let's go."

"I shall accompany you as well, if my home is in trouble I will not sit idle." Ryuu replied, walking by Rias' group before bringing out a map of the land with eight dots scattered across it, five being crossed out. "These are the areas we've predicted the fragments of the beast to be around, they may have moved but you should start around here."

"Alright then, let's get to work." Rias stated, and everyone nods.

Each peerage and its added members all head off into different areas of the forest, meanwhile as they did, a purple flame flew near them all unseen... and a disturbing female giggle was heard from it before the purple flame fizzled out.

* * *

** _~With Vali's group_ **

Vali's group began walking through the forest as Vali and Issei held out their hands, speaking with Ddraig and Albion.

"You notice anything yet Ddraig?" Issei asked.

"What about you Albion?" Vali inquired.

**"[Sorry, but I'm afraid I've got nothing.]"**

**"(I don't sense Orochi either, my apologies.)"**

Both dragon wielders sigh, as they did that, Kirin walked by Yuuma and suddenly grabbed a bit of her hair to the former Fallen's surprise.

"Man, your hair so soft and shiny, how do you get it like this? I can only get the former to happen with my hair." Kirin complimented.

"U-Uh... I don't think I do anything special, I just shampoo twice when I show." Yuuma blushed, a little nervous. "Uh... so what about you Kirin, I noticed during the party that you said you recently became Sairaorg's Pawn."

Kirin blinked before smiling a bit.

"Yeah, he saved my life in so many ways I don't think I can ever fully repay him. The rest of his peerage even accepted me easily... I still remember it like it was yesterday." Kirin began, blushing a bit as the memory flowed back into her head.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

Kirin and a bunch of people in a small village all began running as a herd of Minotaur had begun invading the village, Kirin was suddenly blown to the side as part of a building collapsed, Kirin got up to look as she saw everyone that had ran beside her been crushed under the building to the point she couldn't see them... including her parents.

"No!" Kirin shrieked loudly, barely able to handle her hysteria. Suddenly the sound of stomping neared her as a Minotaur neared her, brandishing a sharp object as a weapon. Kirin fell on her back and crawled back as the beast near her. 'This is it... I'm about to die! Someone, please save me!'

Kirin closed her eyes as the Minotaur prepared to swing its makeshift weapon down, and it did... only for something behind it to strike it so hard, the beast's body suddenly swelled up and exploded. Hearing the sound, Kirin opened her eyes to see Sairaorg with a smoking fist, standing where the Minotaur had been moments before.

"W-what... you just..." Kirin gasped.

"Are you alright?" Sairaorg asked, and Kirin shook before crying a bit.

"You... you saved me, you just saved my life." Kirin cried, sobbing heavily and covering her eyes. "Thank you... thank you!"

Sairaorg put a hand on her shoulder as Kirin shed all the tears she could, as she was doing that, a beautiful girl with blonde hair tied up in a ponytail jumps up from another part of town and lands by him.

"Sairaorg, I'm sorry... we looked but it seems the Minotaur killed the whole village. No survivors were-" The girl began, soon noticing Kirin. "Wait, a survivor? So we did save one life, thank goodness, I was worried we failed to save anyone."

Kirin looked at her at that, her eyes wide and shaking.

"...No one, I'm all that's left? Everyone else is gone?" Kirin shook, soon crying again. The blonde haired girl looked at her before looking at Sairaorg.

"So what should we do with her? We can't just leave her here, but where is she supposed to go now?" She asked.

Sairaorg looked at the crying girl, and after looking for a bit... noticed a strong aura form her, and realizing how much her situation was like the rest of her peerage came to a decision.

"We'll take her with us Kuisha." Sairaorg answered, shocking Kuisha as she saw him take out his final Evil Piece, his Mutation Pawn.

"You're going to make her your last Evil Piece? Are you sure, I mean I won't stop you but..." Kuisha replied, soon sighing. "Oh what the heck, she's already seen this world. I guess taking her in is better than making her live wondering what led to this."

Kirin suddenly looked at Sairaorg surprised as he held out the Evil Piece to her.

"What... what is this?" Kirin asked.

"What you lost here can never be brought back, but you don't have to start over alone. Take this and you can start again with us by your side. Start over as a Devil." Sairaorg explained, making Kirin flinch a bit.

"A... Devil?" Kirin asked.

"All of my friends, all of my peerage, have gone through hardships together. Those hardships have caused us to work together towards a goal I'm working towards for the sake of everyone who believe sin me. If you accept, I'd like you to aid me with your strength." Sairaorg answered.

Kirin took a look for a moment, and looked at everything around her.

"Why me? I... I can't be strong, look at this... my home is gone, I could only run. There's no way I could offer anything to you!" Kirin cried, only to feel Kuisha slap her cheek. "W-why did you..."

"Listen close." Sairaorg explained, standing up and turning to face the setting sun. "You shouldn't underestimate yourself, someone who's been through pain like this has to handle the burden of the hopes of those who've gone before you so their deaths aren't in vain."

Kirin eye widen as she stares and listens.

"There will always be hardships and misery, in fact that's part of life. What you get to choose is the path you've set for yourself. Be fortunate to do what no one else will, that way when you finally die... the memories you leave in other assure you don't disappear."

"...Can I really do that?" Kirin asked.

"You can, all you have to do is stand up... and show the world the extreme fire in your soul!" Sairaorg exclaimed, turning at Kirin who felt the wind blow behind her, making her blush at this man standing before her. "So, what's your path?"

Sairaorg offered the Evil Piece again, and this time... Kirin reached out and grabbed the hand holding it.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

Yuuma stared in shock at her story.

"Whoa... no wonder you're so thankful to him. It's not as serious as that, but I guess I owe a lot to Vali too." Yuuma replied.

"Yeah, and I intend to help Sairaorg's dream come true." Kirin shouted, and had a slight blush that Yuuma noticed.

"Wait a second..." Yuuma began, soon whispering to Kirin. "Are you in love with Sairaorg?"

Kirin's face went fully red and covered Yuuma's mouth, nearly suffocating her.

"W-why would you ask something like that!?" Kirin blushed more, only serving to answer Yuuma's question. Soon she realized Yuuma needed to breathe. "Oh, I'm sorry!"

She removed her hands, letting Yuuma breathe again.

"I-it's OK, just be more careful." Yuuma coughed slightly, soon taking a deeper breath. "So... what's that strong aura that Sairaorg noticed in you?"

"A sacred gear, but I haven't been able to manifest it yet so I don't know what it is yet." Kirin answered, soon she and Yuuma bumped into the others as they suddenly stopped. They looked to see Kunou waking up, yawning as she did.

"Hey Kunou, are you feeling back up to speed now?" Bikou asked, the Kyuubi answered by jumping off of Issei's back.

"Yeah, I feel much better now. So what are we doing here?" Kunou asked, and soon a loud hissing was heard which scared her slightly. "W-what was that sound?"

Soon the hissing got louder.

**"[He's here!]"/"(He's here.)"**

Soon a flare of purple fire came out as one of the eight Orochi pieces slithers into view and hisses loudly.

"Wait, that's Orochi!" Kunou gasped, being familiar with the Shinto Gods, she Orochi well from the story of how Susanoo defeated the serpentine Dragon long ago. "Wait, but where are the rest of its heads?"

"Apparently, he split into eight, we've gotta clear out this one and two others our friends are after before the day ends or the other halves that were defeated will just come back again." Kuroka answered, looking at her. "You up for a fight kid or you wanna-"

"Fox Fire!"

Everyone sees Kunou blast a strong blast of fire at Orochi, knocking the Dragon back slightly to the Nekoshou's surprise.

"...Never mind, that question's been asked and answered." Kuroka sweat dropped, now she saw why Kunou needed the rest of Vali's pawns, she was more powerful than she looked.

Orochi shook its tail as it hissed louder, and soon curled as the purple fire on its body flared out and caused ten copies of itself made of the purple flames formed.

"Looks like there's one for each of us." Le Fay asked.

"Yes, it seems so. Who'll take on the original though?" Arthur asked, and Kirin walks up to face it. "Kirin?"

Kirin smirked and gave a thumb's up.

"I don't really have a way to hit the fire copies, besides... I'm interested in the challenge of fighting a dragon!" Kirin declared, rushing forward as the real Orochi fragment slithered at her. "Bring it on you snake faced Dragon!"

Orochi lunged at Kirin, only for the Pawn of Bael to slide under and then slam her knee in into its throat, knocking it back a bit. The Dragon hisses strongly before it inhaled, breathing out a purple fire. Kirin gasped and dodged it.

"I'm guessing that's not a usual like the fire on its body!" Kirin sweated, soon noticing the fire not just burning what it hit, but outright rotting it! "And its poison's in it too? Aw man, hey Vali!?"

"I'll get it in a minute!" Vali replied, donning her scale mail as she smashed an ice coated fist into one of the fire clones.

"Thank you!" Kirin replied.

Kunou forms some hinotama infused with her fox fire and tossed it at her Orochi clone, the burning dragon clone slithered around it before Kunou coated her hands and feet in Touki before rushing forward.

"Try and stop this!" Kunou yelled, kicking into the Orochi clone, hitting it hard and making it tumble before it got up and blasted fire at her. Kunou wrote symbols in the area making a barrier to block the attack. 'I don't know why, but these purple flames... something tells me that my normal immunity won't work on them.'

Kunou soon jumps up dodges Orochi again as it slithers forward and rams through some of the trees behind her, soon swelling up its cheeks as it prepared a blast of fire.

"There!" Kunou smiled, holding out her hand to make Senjutsu threads that wrapped around its mouth. The clone's whole body swelled like a balloon before the build within it overloads its form and causes it to pop.

**[PENETRATE!]**

"Eat this!" Issei declared, smashing his fist through one of the clones, instantly shattering its defenses with. "Hell yeah, that's how we do it!"

Arthur calmly swing his sword, dealing the final five slashes with Caliburn to destroy the clone he was fighting.

"Here's a gift from me!" Le Fay giggled, twirling her magic wound as a magic circle pours water on her respective Orochi clone, dousing the fires that made it. She gave a peace sign upon defeating it.

"Ryu Jingu Bang!" Bikou shouted, smashing his staff through the fifth clone and soon swing it around, aiming it towards the clone Kuroka was facing. "Heads up!"

Kuroka nods and mixes her Senjutsu and Yonjutsu into her magic circle.

"Try some!" Kuroka declared, making a confident face as she sends it flying. The two clones collide as the former flies off Bikou's staff, causing both to be struck and explode from Kuroka's attack.

"T-Take this!" Yuuma shouted, sending rays of dark light flying at the seventh Orochi clone, piercing through it before its flames fizzled out.

**(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

Vali flew forward and soon cut through the eight Orochi clone with her wings, turning as she saw it fade away.

"Was that it?" Vali asked, feeling bored by how easily she won.

"And that's all she wrote!" Irina shouted, swinging Excalibur Destruction down on the final Orochi clone, smashing it into the ground before it burst apart along with the crater it made from the impact. "Alright!"

Everyone soon saw Kirin suddenly tossed forward and crashing through the environment, the real Orochi hissing as it slithered at her.

"Hold on Kirin, we're-" Vali began, but soon Kirin held up a hand as she stood on her feet. She panted as she felt some blood trickle down from her forehead.

"No... I won't give in, no matter how many times I'm knocked down!" Kirin panted, looking at the Orochi fragment as she imagines it as the Minotaur that stared her down the day her village was destroyed. "I won't give up!"

Kirin rushed at Orochi again, dodging its tail swipes, only to feel Orochi lung at her and bite into shoulder. Kirin screamed as she felt Orochi's poison invade her body.

"P-Please, let me at least heal you!" Asia gasped, seeing Kirin cough violently. However Kirin stood up and kept walking.

"No, I will... not stand down, or falter. Even for a moment!" Kirin shouted, nearly falling before keeping her balance. Orochi and Kirin stared each other down, the serpentine Dragon rushing at her again, only for Kirin to hold it back, even as she felt the poison make her vision hazy.

"Don't underestimate me... I been through more pain than you can imagine, I carry the hopes of my family and friends who came before me, and I won't allow their deaths to have been in vain!"

Everyone sees Kirin push Orochi back, her aura spiking as she reacts to Ddraig and Albion.

**"(That aura...)"**

**"[...Is it really, possible? Is his soul within her!?]"**

Kirin feels Orochi resist her again.

"Hardships and misery... we all we have to face them, no one's life comes without problems. Sometimes you might wanna give up, just roll over and die. You can't let that happen... if you can stand up, walk forward and walk your own path!" Kirin declared, her aura burning further. "That's what Sairaorg taught me!"

_"Come on Kirin, show the world the extreme fire in your soul!" Sairaorg's voice exclaimed, echoing through her mind._

Kirin roared loudly, pushing Orochi back as she crossed her arms, causing her wrists and ankles to glow as her aura concentrates around them, making everyone stare as they didn't notice Kirin's eyes become red and take a draconic appearance, though her pupils became a light pink.

"I think... she's awakening a Sacred Gear! Irina breathed, and Yuuma stared as she was about to see the power Kirin mentioned she had to her.

"**IMPACT TYRANT!**"

Soon Kirin's aura broke off to take the form of a dragon with an appearance that Ddraig and Albion both recognized.

**"(It's Bahamut!)/[It's Bahamut!]**

"Bahamut? You know what this thing is, what is it?" Issei asked, though the one who answered was Vali.

"Bahamut is a legendary Dragon, one that was known for the ability to adapt and evolve to its environment and opponents. It was so powerful that it could have become one of the Dragon Kings." Vali explained, in awe she was seeing it firsthand.

"However, what ended up being the most notable thing about Bahamut was it was the only Dragon with a natural immunity to Dragon Slayers. It was so powerful nothing could equal it, but this lack of a challenge led to him requesting to become a Sacred Gear shortly before the Great War."

Everyone looks at Vali in shock as they heard the explanation.

"Whoa, it was that powerful? Just how strong would that be compared to Ddraig and Albion?" Kuroka inquired.

**"[The honest answer? Had Bahamut not become a Sacred Gear and met with me and Albion, there's a good chance he would have become the third Heavenly Dragon.]"**

**"(Even then, it wouldn't be wrong to consider him as the Blue Dragon Emperor unofficially. Out of the Top 10 strongest beings, Bahamut takes the spot of 4th place, behind only me and Ddraig ourselves.)"**

Gasps filled the air as blue wrist and ankle guards equipped themselves onto Kirin, her eyes still in Bahamut's form as she stared down Orochi and her body actually expelled his poison from her. The fragment of the Evil Dragon began to actual show some fear in its eyes.

**"=So... you are the partner I've been chosen to fight alongside. Greetings then young one. I am Bahamut, and from here on my power is yours!="**

"Thank you, now let's finish this!" Kirin exclaimed, soon rushing forward.

Everyone saw Kirin easily smash her fist into Orochi, the Evil Dragon not even having time to flee as Kirin grabbed its head and soon swung her leg to shatter its poisonous fangs with little effort.

Orochi screeched in pain, and soon blasted out its purple fire, it hit Kirin slightly, but soon she quickly began to shrug it off without being burned. The serpentine Dragon stopped before trying to swing his tail at her, but Kirin held up her hand to block the attack before grabbing the tail's tip.

"What power does her Sacred Gear have?" Kunou asked, amazed that Orochi had the tables turned in a mere moment.

"Bahamut's Sacred Gear, the Impact Tyrant, gives the user Bahamut's adaptability on a temporarily level and physical skills considered superhuman even to species of the supernatural world." Vali answered, in awe herself seeing Bahamut's power first hand. "That's probably why Kirin's shown such incredible physical skills."

Kirin began spinning around, swinging Orochi around like a lasso before she shot him into the air.

"Now it's time to finish this! Be ready Orochi, this is it!" Kirin screamed, soon jumping up high before diving down and forming the Bael circle crest in front of her hand. "Savage Impact!"

Orochi was soon struck hard by Kirin, and soon she ripped through Orochi's body. She landed on the ground and looked up as her Sacred Gear dispels. The fragment of Orochi soon exploded apart in midair, everyone watching in awe. Kirin panted slightly before smiling.

"That was... the fire in my soul." Kirin said, soon stumbling onto her butt. 'I hope you were watching Sairaorg, this is the strength you saw in me. You had been right all along... and I'll make sure that this power makes your... no, our dream a reality.'

Everyone soon helped Kirin up, and Kirin gives a toothy smile and a thumb's up at them, feeling proud of her achievement.

* * *

** _~With Rias' group_ **

With Rias' peerage, along with their additional guests Rossweisse and Ryuu, the group was about to enter the forest.

"Hmm... hey guys, I get the feeling we're being watched." Jeanne stated.

"We may very well be, considering what we're looking for we need to stay on guard." Ryuu replied, and as they continued on... none of them saw the purple fireball being used to watch them.

* * *

**That's right, there it was! That's Kirin's Sacred Gear, the Impact Tyrant, and boy was it awesome! I'll say right now that it's not a Longinus, but I am seriously considering it as a Longinus candidate alongside Gasper's Forbidden Balor View, and maybe Saji's Vritra Gears when grouped together, we'll just have to wait and see.**

**And this is what the change is now that we've met Bahamut, in canon he's one of Sirzechs' Rooks and in the form of a fish that he's officially registered as in most mythologies. Nowadays it's just as common to make Bahamut a Dragon in fiction, especially as a Final Fantasy Summon. Though I will admit, AzureStoryTeller's fanfic "A Heroic Calamity" is what inspired my idea for Bahamut in the story.**

**Since I'm using Bahamut as part of Kirin's Sacred Gear, I had to replace the canon Bahamut in Sirzech's peerage, which I'll also say is Lilith's peerage in the story (Grayfia being the exception), with the sky's equivalent to the Behemoth and Leviathan, the Ziz. So you might be asking now, who is Lilith's Queen if that's the case? I actually mentioned this back in Chapter 9, though it was brief and you likely may have not seen it, her Queen is good old Tannin.**

**I hope you like the backstory I gave for Kirin, and since some of you may be wondering, I am indeed pushing to have Kirin and Sairaorg end up together. I understand that Kuisha has a thing for Sairaorg in canon, and I actually think she might end up with him. However, canon hasn't given them very strong reactions, so I feel with an added member like Kirin, Kuisha won't get to develop them because while still loyal, in this story she'll notice Kirin is in love with him before she can gain such feelings. Plus you know me, I like to throw in twists and this is one of them.**

**The only thing that disappoints me about this chapter is how short it is, for my Serious/Full stories I go for a 6000 word minimum... didn't happen this time. It might be the weakness of this being an original arc, at least I was close so it's not too bad.**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- **

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- **

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Tsubasa, unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Ryuu Lion - Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown**


	23. Chapter 23

**Alright, before we start I need to answer a question from a Guest review.**

**"Guest: No, it isn't a plot twist. I just used the interpretation that Lucifer eventually became Satan for this fanfic, hence why the I use the term Great Devils to define Sirzechs and the others in this story, both Pride _and_Wrath are linked to the Lucifer clan as a result of this."**

**I hope that clears up your question, and sorry in advance it took a while to answer, but I usually like to rotate between my story updates (minus Date A Re:Live - Encore, that one's a bit more situational) and had to finish another chapter before I could submit this one to answer your question. It's been a while since I've had a mass update for this story.**

**Alright, this chapter was originally going to be split into two, but I just couldn't without making them too short, so I had to fuse them. So... time to announce this arc's reached its end! After this, we'll be heading into the Diodora arc where I've got something special for Vali and Issei, especially the latter. I wish I could hint what it was, but it's one of those things were even a small hint would be a spoiler that would automatically give it away, dang it... =_=**

**Recall how last chapter I said I'd be giving a special spotlight to Saji? This is that chapter so get ready for it! All I'll say is once you see who the villain is (unless you already guessed who it is, I only know 2 or 3 who told me directly), you'll probably figure out what it is. Also, I don't think I need to say this but... I'm saying it anyways cause I want to! As of this chapter, Rias and Sona's peerages will finally be completed! :3**

**I'm way too excited right now, the Rating Game tournament just really pumps me up due to the final match with Sairaorg. So I am really anticipating working on it.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Impact Tyrant- **

**A powerful Sacred Gear currently owned by Kirin Yamagari that hosts the soul of the 4th strongest supernatural being, the legendary Dragon Bahamut. What makes the Impact Tyrant so unique is despite the powerful soul sealed within, the Sacred Gear's powers are probably the most simplistic among the Sacred Gears, often leading to the rumor it was the original Sacred Gear that God used to begin the system with.**

**Those who possess this Sacred Gear are given physical skills and strength that are superhuman by even the standards of the average supernatural races, while also giving a temporary version of Bahamut's notable adaptability and immunity to Dragon Slayers. When manifested, it takes the form of wrist and ankle gauntlets while also shifting the user's eyes into Bahamut's.**

**Despite the powerful being sealed within it, the Impact Tyrant _isn't_ a Longinus, but it's considered a possible candidate for becoming one. There are even rumors that claim the reason it has yet to become one is because in all the time its existed, not a single possessor of this Sacred Gear has managed to achieve its Balance Breaker or a sub-species.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Calling of the Elves Arc: Chapter 4 - The Roar of Vritra _ **

** _~With Rias' group_ **

With Rias' peerage, along with their additional guests Rossweisse and Ryuu, the group was about to enter the forest.

"Hmm... hey guys, I get the feeling we're being watched." Jeanne stated.

"We may very well be, considering what we're looking for we need to stay on guard." Ryuu replied, and as they continued on... the sound of hissing entered the group's ears.

"...It seems what we're looking for decided to come to us." Rossweisse replied.

Everyone stayed on guard as the sight of the Orochi fragment came into view, and it hissed loudly as it stared the group down with a vicious stare.

"So, we meet again old foe, this time the fight shall end with your demise." Ryuu declared, and the Orochi fragment hissed louder in reply.

Soon it began twisting around and set aflame, and just like with the fragment that was fought by Vali's group, the flames created a total of ten burning clones of the fragments. Ryuu sweated slightly as this was a new trick to her.

"The vile beast never showed this trick in our previous encounters with it, this brings me worry." Ryuu mentioned, readying her bow. "I'm more surprised over the fact it would willingly come into view."

"I think I may have caused that." Jeanne replied, making everyone look at her.

"Remember my Stake Dragon Victim technique? Well, I neglected to mention that during a mission while me, Irina and Xenovia were still with the church, I alone had to go slay a problematic dragon that had been rampaging due to some strange experiments. After I managed to slay it, I think my balance breaker awakened by absorbing the Dragon's soul. Orochi might have been interested by its aura that sleeps within my sacred gear."

Jeanne scratched her head.

"...Well that's my theory at least."

"Regardless of how, its chosen to fight rather than hide away. We should use this chance we've been given." Rossweisse answered, readying her spear.

At that moment, Orochi and the ten fire clones all rush out at the group, leading each of them to split up and take a clone.

"Time for us to show this Dragon we're no pushovers." Rias declared, crossing her hands as a magic circle with the Gremory crest appeared on it. "Here's my new technique, Scarlet Silence!"

Rias swiped out her hands, creating a wave of her Power of Destruction only for it to quickly vanish, however the moment it hit her respective Orochi clone... that wave slashed right through it. The clone roared before bursting apart. Rias smirked at her work.

"That's the price of splitting you power into fragments, much less cloning yourself." Rias stated.

Meanwhile with Ryuu, the Elven warrior dashed around and fired a few arrows at the Orochi clone, but the fiery clone just ate up her arrows without taking any damage. Ryuu sweated a bit.

"It seems I'll need to pull out my full potential, grant me your strength Voice of the Forest... please." Ryuu begged, soon rushing forward and dashing by the Orochi clone at top speed. She began glowing with a green aura that shielded her from the flames.

"**In the sky of a now distant forest. Infinite stars scattered in the endless night sky. Respond to my foolish voice, give me now divine protection of starfire. Give the mercy of light to the one that abandoned you. Come, wandering wind, the wandering traveler.**"

Soon she pushed the clone back, and stood hovering in the air before holding her arms out as a magic circle with a wind symbol in place of a crest forms.

"**Cross the sky and run through the wilderness, run faster than anything else. Imbue the light of stardust and destroy the enemy! LUMINOUS WIND!**"

Ryuu's aura blew off her body, making the Orochi clone hiss in pain as he was hit by a multitude of green magical bursts, soon overwhelming the fiery clone as it burst apart. The Elven warrior soon floated to the ground.

"My village, my home... I shall stand against all forces to protect it." Ryuu declared, giving a serious look.

The third clone clashed with Jeanne, Hauteclere's quick strikes piercing into its fiery flesh as it roared and breathed fire at Jeanne. The holy swordsman jumping out of the way as it did and landing on a tree branch.

"I can't use my Balance Breaker here, it's too dangerous. Then I guess I'll just need to show it this trick... Promotion, Bishop!" Jeanne shouted, her Pawn shifting into a Bishop. She rushed forward and soon jumped behind it, slashing the air to make the kanji for the flower symbol.

"Sakura Storm!"

Jeanne spun and thrusting Hauteclere forward, and the clone of Orochi was suddenly pelted by a shower of cherry blossom petals, and each one that struck it felt like a sharp blade cutting through it. After the storm ended, Jeanne rushed by and thrust at Orochi once more... the clone suddenly was cut in half and fizzled out.

"This is my sword, my shield, and my wand... and that is my holy spirit!" Jeanne smiled.

"Sword... Birth!" Kiba declared, stabbing the cursed holy sword into the ground and making more of them form under the Orochi clone and stab through it. He soon formed the Flame Delete in his other hand and rushed at it. "And now time for you to freeze!"

Kiba stabs the sword into the clone, and the sword's flame eating properties instantly freeze the clone before the ice shatters and signifies its destruction. Meanwhile with Xenovia and Yumi, the two stand back to back as the fifth and six Orochi clones jump at them.

"No you don't!" Yumi shouted, forming a barrier around them. The two clones hit it and are shot back, and that left both Devils with an opening to exploit. Yumi forms the Lumen Shekhinah and charges an arrow. "Let the arrow fly, and signify our victory!"

Yumi releases the arrow, and it shoots into the Orochi clones head, exploded in a burst of light as the clone fizzled out. Meanwhile Xenovia readied Durandal behind her.

"Let's go... Durandal!" Xenovia yelled, swinging her sword forward as the force of her slash created a holy wave that cut through the other clone as it landed by the ground, cutting it into ribbons. The two smirk at each other and give a high five.

"Vali... you're the one who showed me I could accept myself..." Akeno began, memories of her mother and father flashing through her head. She breathes and decides not to change into her Miko outfit for this one instance. "If you can do it, so can I!"

Akeno jumped into the air as her Orochi clone dove at her, soon spiraling up a tree to follow her as she unfolded both her Devil and Fallen Angel wings.

"I am the daughter of Shuri and Baraqiel, a Fallen Angel... but I'm also the Devil Queen of Rias Gremory! Akeno Himejima!" Akeno declared, soon combining her thunder magic and holy power to create Holy Lightning. "Thunderbolt Strike!"

The Orochi clone lunged at her, only for the sudden lightning strike to electrocute it mid-lunge and soon make it explode. Rias looked at the sight, and teared up slightly.

"You did it. You finally put it behind you, I'm so glad." Rias replied, wiping her tears.

Shirone formed a hinotama in each hand before spinning and forming a flaming wheel, throwing it at the eight Orochi clone right as it attempted to chomp down on her. The force knocked it to the side. Shirone jumped out it before punching it, making it burst.

"Well that was lame, thought you'd put up more of a fight." Shirone yawned.

The last two Orochi clones slither at Valerie and Gasper, and in response, Valerie splits apart into her bats swarm form, flying around and confusing the two clones as they try to find the original among the mess. Gasper's eyes morph as he suddenly froze them both in time.

"Valerie, now!" Gasper shouted.

Valerie nodded and soon her bats all had their eyes glow, causing shadowy tendrils to constrict the clones before the sight of bursting was seen in the frozen time field. Gasper dropped it to see them burst.

"Nice job Valerie." Gasper replied, making Valerie blush slightly.

Meanwhile with the original Orochi fragment, it stared down with Rossweisse who readied her spear against the Evil Dragon. Orochi hissed before slithering at her, he thrust her spear at Orochi, but the serpentine Dragon slithered around it and then coiled onto it attempting to bite her, but she held up her arm guard and Orochi shattered its teeth.

"Simple tricks like that won't work on me." Rossweisse stated, soon thrusting her spear forward and sending Orochi flying into the air, and when the Dragon landed, it roared and began burning a large portion of the forest in an attempt to incinerate her alive.

"And neither will flashy ones, its time you learn firsthand what happens to those who challenge Asgard!"

Rossweisse crossed her arms as twelve magic circles form around her, she extended them out and soon twelve magical beams fire out and strike the Evil Dragon, extinguishing the flames with the force of the beams. As the fragment tumbled, Rossweisse flew at Orochi and thrust her spear into its throat and make it burst into flames before dissolving.

"That takes care of this fragment, hopefully the others have taken care of the other two." Rossweisse stated, sighing in relief.

'Whoa... she's so powerful, he's a lot stronger than she looks!' Yumi said, staring in awe.

"Come on, let's go back and see if the others finished up yet." Rias replied, walking ahead as the group followed her.

* * *

** _~With Sona's group_ **

Walking through the last area, Sona's group was looking for the last Orochi fragment with Bennia and Rugal traveling alongside them, Reya currently using her Scouting Persona to have her many masks try and spot Orochi's location. So far, none of the smiling masks had anything.

"Nothing so far, this Dragon's as slippery as the animal it takes a similarity to." Reya sighed.

"Probably not any more slipper than Lord Hades." Bennia commented, making Saji turn at her upon hearing that.

"You know, Lilith mentioned something about Hades to you as well. How do you even know anything about Lord Hades at a personal detail like that?" Saji asked, making the Half-Grim Reaper blink for a bit.

"Oh, I didn't mention it? I'm half human, and the other half of me is a Grim Reaper." Bennia replied.

Suddenly out of the group, Saji, Ruruko and Tomoe all stop in place and suddenly turn in shock to Bennia's sudden revelation of what species she was.

"You're a what!?" The three all shouted surprised.

"Is it that surprising!? In fact, how did no one notice, I'm carrying a scythe with a skull marking on it for Zeus' sake! Does that not say Grim Reaper to you!?" Bennia asked incredulously. "Man, who knew it was that hard for people to miss such an obvious fact?"

Tsubasa soon got closer to her to Bennia's surprise.

"If I may ask, I've heard that Lilith is one of the few people Hades' is afraid of, do you happen to know that story?" Tsubasa asked, and Bennia gave a wide grin and giggle at that question.

"Ooh, I love that story! What happened was..." Bennia began.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

Lilith was currently in Tartarus, the domain belonging to the Greek God Hades as he ruled over the realm of death. **(A/N: Quick reminder, the Underworld is the home of _only_ the Fallen Angels in this story.)** She was giving a rant to the God of Death over his attitude, Hades however had skin rather than being a living skeleton like currently.

"You're just a bloody racist at this point, I mean really... calling us Devils as Bats? That's racism at its finest! I bet you don't have any other reason you hate us. Yet you try make the Demons thing we broke our ceasefire, make me some blobby flesh monster to keep your prisoners and then try to drop some Orcs to invade Hell!" Lilith roared angrily.

"Oh shut up, you know fairly well that's justified Angel traitors!" Hades replied back, making Lilith growl slightly at that comment. "And where did it get you? Your kind's leader is dead, Satan bit the bucket and left you all cripples. Heh! That's all he was good for, I bet the world's thanking him for his death, he deserved it after all!"

Suddenly at that moment, all the nearby Grim Reapers suddenly turned as they heard a slap go off, and Lilith... showing the Lucifer line's signature calm looking anger and chilling rage aura looked at Hades.

"Hey Hades, I have something to say to you. Wanna know what that is?" Lilith said, smiling at the God of Death who sweated a bit.

At that next moment, somehow defying most logic and physics in the area, everyone in Tartarus suddenly saw Hades flung across the air and sent flying as Lilith somehow managed to throw him until he landed in the River Styx!

Hades soon clawed his way out, only surviving because it was his realm... but his skin had melted off leaving him a living skeleton, answering why he looked like he did now in the present. As he nearly got out, the darkness streams of Lilith's Primal Abyss ability got near him and threatened to touch him.

"I'll take shit directed at me, shit directed at the Devils, almost any kind of shit... except for one, anything that speaks bad about my husband. So you listen close Hades..." Lilith said, walking into view and smiling as the dark streams grabbed Hades close.

"If you ever try anything horrid against the entirety of Hell and its people or insult Satan again... I will have you punished so badly that you'll be replaced by another Death God or even possibly murdered. IS. THAT. CLEAR?"

Hades shakily nods his now skull shaped head, and from that day forward... the supernatural world learned Hades was afraid of the Devil Queen herself for reasons that remained a mystery between him, Lilith and the Reapers of Tartarus.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

"...And ever since, saying we'll get Lilith to come makes him look like he wants to pee his pants!" Bennia laughs, while everyone stares in shock at that. Tomoe snorting as she covered her mouth a bit.

"Lilith made his skin melt off by throwing him miles into Styx? I love her right now!" Tomoe giggled.

"I know, right? I can't believe I even got to see it, the dumbass finally got karma to spank him like a hot knife cutting butter! The icing on the cake was seeing him losing his skin, Zeus and Poseidon refused to find a way to give it back to him as a punishment for pushing Lilith that far! Bennia replied, laughing herself. "Priceless."

After letting the two calm their laughter, Sona cleared her throat.

"As interesting as that was, shouldn't we focus on what we came here for?" Sona asked, though more as an order than a question. Everyone quickly regained their focus... and at good timing too, the sound of a snake' hissing was heard. "Looks like I said that at the right time."

Everyone looked behind them as from the rear side of the group the final Orochi fragment hissed loudly and shook its tail as it neared the group.

"It's strange, Ryuu stated these fragments were trying to avoid being seen and yet this one came into our view without hesitation." Tsubaki noted, confused by the choice of behavior that was being seen and what was stated.

**"{It may be me, we are fellow Dragons so my aura might be something of a challenge marker to Orochi even in this form. Good thing is that saved us the trouble of searching. Bet Vali's group got a similar situation since they've got two Dragons for him to whiff out.}"**

"Regardless of how, it's time we take it out." Sona replied.

Orochi soon curled up and set aflame, the purple fire soon splitting into nine clones as it uncurled and stared at them. The fragment and all of its clones hissing as they slither around the Sitri group.

"Well that's just cheating!" Saji groaned.

"Looks like we each get one, time to get serious then." Rugal declared, removing his jacket and tossing it to a tree branch. He soon cracked his neck muscles. "Let us fight, fragment of the Evil Dragon Orochi."

The Orochi fragment and all of its clones soon slither out, each going after a member of the peerage. Rugal held out his hands as he grabbed the clone that charged at him, holding it back as it slithered forward.

"So, you have beef with me personally, I'll take your challenge." Rugal replied, his eyes glowing as they become more wolf like.

Sona pulled her hands back and gathered a large stream of water, soon tossing it out to form a water serpent. It and Orochi stare down before lunging at each other, one wrapping around the other before the water snake bites onto the clone's body. It shook before evaporating as the two elements cancelled each other out.

"Purple fire and demonic water, they cancelled each other out." Sona stated simply, cleaning her glasses as she did.

"**Mirror Alice!**"

Tsubaki formed the magical mirror as the Orochi clone she stood against expelled flames from its mouth, hitting the mirror before bouncing back and smashing the Orochi clone as her mirror broke.

"That's not all I have." Tsubaki said, grabbing some metal strips. "So have some of these."

Tsubaki threw the strips forward, and they turned into daggers in midair, stabbing into the Orochi clone before it popped like a balloon. Meanwhile with Reya, she motioned her hands as the Scouting Persona masks danced around the third clone, confusing it as it blasted its venomous fire at them in vain.

After a while, the clone roars and bursts out a wave of fire that burned every mask, and yet the clone noticed Reya's presence was gone as it looked around to spot her. Her giggles filled the air as her unseen self grabbed its attention.

"Can't see me? Well, I think I can give you a small clue where I am." Reya replied.

Orochi turned as a magic circle suddenly appeared and the hiding barrier Reya made faded, the Sitri Bishop fired off a dark magic spell, smashing the clone in the face before said face fizzled out and make the entire body follow.

"You can't fight what you can't see." Reya winked at the disappeared clone.

"**Applause Wall!**"

Momo held out her arms, and a pair of bracelets forms to make a barrier that the Orochi clone tried to smash and break through in vain. Momo sweated as she tried to hold it, and soon saw Orochi lunge back to prepare a blast of fire.

'There it is.' Momo thought, soon creating a magic circle and casting a familiar spell. "Reverse!"

The fire comes out as water instead, and Momo rushes through it to get in front of Orochi to its doubled surprise. One half being she turned it into water and the other half being she didn't seem phased by it.

"When you're allied to the Sitri clan, water's the last element you'd be affected by." Momo stated, forming a magic circle to blast a few orbs of light at the Orochi clone and make it burst apart.

Bennia giggled as she rode her scythe, dodging left and right as the fifth Orochi clone lunged at her constantly, she even yawned just to slightly mock the clone's efforts. After one particular lunge, she jumped up and smirked.

"OK, getting serious now? Very well..." Bennia smirked, grabbing a mask and putting on. The mask's eyes glowed as it was revealed to be a skull mask and Bennia grabbed her scythe. The blade emitting a chilling black mist from it. "**So will I!**"

Bennia rushed forward faster than the clone could react, and soon Bennia slashed her scythe through the clone. It roared as while not amputated through the spot he was slashed, the Orochi clone felt a searing pain.

"Oh that's right, you wouldn't know, would you? When the scythe of a reaper cuts into someone, it doesn't cut their skin... it cuts their souls!" Bennia grinned behind her mask, slashing the scythe again. Each slash had Orochi hiss in more pain until Bennia slashed a sixth time... the clone stopped moving before it burst apart. Bennia removed her mask and giggled.

"Bye, bye Orochi."

Ruruko rushed around with her speed, disorienting the Orochi clone as it tried to blast fire at her, eventually becoming dizzy as its flames were about to be expelled.

"Gotcha!" Ruruko stated, rushing forward and flipping in midair to do a dive kick at the clone. The end of Procellarum Phantom smashes into Orochi's throat, making Orochi's head shoot up and blast the fire into the sky. "Now take this!"

Ruruko shouts loudly as she gives a flurry of kicks to Orochi, and finally a round house that sends Orochi crashing into a few trees and fizzling out from the force. She turns and gives a peace sign in the opposite direction for emphasis.

"**Twinkle Aegis!**"

Tsubasa grabs the shield and begins spinning it around like a yo-yo as the seventh Orochi clone lunged at her, the shield spun and got caught in the burning clone's mouth, causing a discharge of burning lightning that slingshot the serpentine dragon into the trees behind it.

"Time to finish this." Tsubasa added, swinging Twinkle Aegis up before twirling the string and having the lightning and fire become plasma blades, and slamming it downwards to cut through the clone like a hot knife through butter.

Tomoe and her eight Orochi clone stare down at each other, and Tomoe breathes as she readies herself. She summoned her Sacred gear, a sword and kept it sheathed in its scabbard as the clone stood before her.

"Get ready, cause I'm taking you down!" Tomoe declared, rushing forward with a mighty yell.

The Orochi clone lunged forward, and Tomoe held out her sheathed sword to parry before swinging at the clone. Despite being sheathed, the burning Orochi clone felt himself get cut and knocked back, making it stare at shock.

"This is no ordinary sword, it's one that I should only fully draw out if absolutely necessary." Tomoe replied, a bit of darkness seeping out of the scabbard. This was no ordinary sword, but a sacred gear possessing a powerful curse behind it. Its name was... **Cursed Killer Muramasa**, the curse katana.

"It's still enough to finish you like this though!"

Tomoe rushed forward as the clone breathed fire at her, she moved out of the way and slashed her sword. In a moment... the Orochi clone was cut into ribbons and fizzled out. She breathed as she turned and dispelled her sword.

The clone that charged Rugal hissed loudly, roaring before pushing Rugal back a bit.

"So you do have some bite, well then... time I stop being all bark and bear my fangs as well." Rugal declared, holding out his hands and forming magic circles to fire out magical bindings near instantly. The clone struggled to break free.

"Don't bother, I have a magician for a mother. These aren't your normal bindings. Even then that's not my real trump card. That comes from my father's side."

Soon, Rugal's wolf like eyes grow more intense, and most of the group looks as veins form in them, he growls a bit before howling and having a magical aura surround him. When it ended, they stood before a bipedal wolf man, or better known as... a _werewolf._

"Whoa, that dude's half werewolf? Now that's sick!" Bennia smiled, feeling all giddy. "I wondered what kind of surprises he had hidden in there and this was totally worth that wait! I gotta watch this fight!"

Rugal stares at the Orochi clone before rushing forward and slamming his claws into the drake's throat, gripping it tightly despite the fiery skin the clone possessed. Rugal smashed a fist into the evil dragon's face before slamming both claws down on his head, and finally lunged as he bit into the Evil Dragon's torso, causing the burning clone to explode. After it was done, he changed back to normal and grabbed his coat.

"Looks like my bite was worse in the end." Rugal replied.

Meanwhile with Saji, the last of the Orochi fragments stood before him and hissed lightly as it stared at the possessor of Vritra.

"Alright, looks like we've caught the big one. Alright then..." Saji soon had the Vritra gears form on his arms and legs, follow by having his left eye turn black with a yellow pupil, becoming one of Vritra's eyes. "Let's take this creep down!"

"Oh, will you really do that?"

That sound caught everyone off guard, and suddenly from high up in the sky, a woman dropped into view above Orochi's fragment. She looked to be in her early 20s with short hair adorned with numerous ribbons and wearing a purple Gothic Lolita outfit.

"To think you've caused me enough trouble to make me come in person." The woman giggled, bowing slightly. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Walburga of the Khaos Brigade. Since you've ruined my plans... I'm going to have to cheat a little!"

Walburga raised her hands, putting everyone off guard.

"**INCINERATE ANTHEM!**"

Sona's eyes widened at that, and a purple cross of fire expelled from Walburga's body.

* * *

** _~With Vali's group_ **

Vali and the others noticed the fires shooting up from their location, surprising them.

"Whoa! Wait a second, isn't that..." Kirin asked.

"It is, and I'm pretty sure that's the area Sona and her peerage went, they're in trouble!" Issei shouted, causing the entire group to start rushing over.

* * *

** _~With Rias' group_ **

Rias and her group all gave the same reaction to seeing the cross of flames, Ryuu especially showed horror at the sight.

"That's the same thing we saw that day, that can only mean... she's here." Ryuu gasped.

"Rias, that's where Sona and her group are!" Akeno called out, recognizing the direction as the one that Sona's peerage had chosen to take.

"They're in trouble, come on!" Rias ordered, everyone quickly rushing over.

* * *

** _~With Sona's group_ **

Sona's group stared, and then Sona finally spoke.

"The Incinerate Anthem, it's one of the Longinus... and it's the last of the Holy Relics, namely it's the cross that Jesus Christ met his end on." Sona revealed, sweating heavily at the sight. "That purple fire is a Devil's worst enemy, they're holy flames."

Walburga chuckled, and soon the Orochi fragment curled as the cross' flames wrapped around it, afterwards the fragment unwrapped to reveal the true Orochi, all eight heads back on the same body!

"Now, time to have you face my little pet. Kill them Orochi!" Walburga declared.

All eight of Orochi's heads hissed and roared before rushing ahead and lunging at the group with each of them, everyone tried to dodge, but Tomoe, Bennia and Reya all were suddenly blasted by Orochi's holy fire breath and sent crashing through some of the forest.

"Oh no! Tomoe, Bennia, Reya!" Ruruko called out, though right after she saw the phoenix tear case flung to her by a magic circle.

"Ruruko, get them back up quickly. If you don't hurry the flames could kill them, especially Reya and Tomoe." Sona ordered, and Ruruko nodded before she rushed over to aid them. "This is bad... I don't know if we can face Orochi at its full strength. Guess we have no choice, we'll have to try or buy time for the others."

"Oh really? Well, I don't think I want to risk waiting." Walburga said, snapping her fingers. "**Balance Breaker! Incinerate Antiphona Calvario!**"

Suddenly Orochi's formed roared loudly before increasing in size and becoming even more infused with the purple flames of Incinerate Anthem, becoming a towering behemoth burning with purple fire on nearly half of its body.

"OK... now I'm officially worried." Tsubasa replied, sweating a bit at the sight.

Orochi lunched most of its head backs before breathing out its poisonous black flames immediately, everyone dodged them as Orochi's heads lunged at them. They were all quickly knocked back and tumbled across the area. Soon leaving only Sona, Tsubaki and Saji standing and without injuries. Ruruko watched as she applied the last phoenix tear onto Bennia.

"Oh no, everyone!" Ruruko called out, she quickly used her speed to try moving everyone downed out of the way before Orochi's heads could devour them. After getting everyone else however, one head managed to slam her.

"Ruruko!" Saji cried out, and soon he turned to Walburga in anger from see everyone's injured downed forms. "You bitch, you're gonna pay for that!"

Walburga laughed at that.

"Oh really? I think so, you're the ones writing on the floor in agony after all!" Walburga replied, still laughing. She formed a magic circle and Orochi roared in pain before all the heads came together for a massive blast.

"**Mirror Alice!**" Tsubaki shouted, forming the mirror to try and defend against the attack... but she only gasped as the mirror broke and she was flung back, the attack not even reflecting back from the overwhelming force.

"Tsubaki!" Sona shouted, shocked her Queen's sacred gear was so easily countered. The distraction made her oblivious to the sight of Orochi's tail about to pierce her, and right was it was about to...

"SONA!"

Sona suddenly felt herself pushed away as Saji had his side slightly pierced and cut by the tail, grabbing onto it tightly despite the pain he was in. The act had surprised her greatly.

"Saji..." Sona breathed, noticing his wound. "That was dangerous, why would you risk something like that?"

"Sona, I know for a while I haven't seemed like the ideal servant..." Saji began, struggling to talk due to the pain he was feeling. His mouth even slightly bleed a bit. "I can be an idiot, and I might not seem serious at times. I can understand why people would think that... I mean after all, before you brought me into your peerage I was a nobody."

Sona stared as Saji kept talking, surprised how much he was admitting his faults.

"But... I know one thing, that dream of yours is something worth fighting for no matter who laughs at it! I'll fight... to my breath for what you want! Because I'm your pawn, and... if I don't make that dream a reality, how can I repay you for what you've done for me!? That's how strongly I feel for you and your goals!"

Sona gasped silently, she had known how Saji had felt about her, but before now... she had just assumed it was one of random crushes on a popular girl that would fade when he realized he would never get anywhere. This however? Now she knew, he was serious about everything, his feelings and his role as her Pawn.

"Saji..." Sona thought, blushing slightly.

"Big talk for a weak Devil like you, time for you to meet your demise! Now die, burn him Orochi!" Walburga ordered.

Orochi's eight heads all aim at Saji, and he stared at them.

**"{SAJI!}"**

"Go ahead, I'm not afraid! This is where I make my stand! I will not, nor will I ever... run away!" Saji exclaimed loudly, and Vritra's eyes widen as he felt something. At that moment, Orochi blasted out his fire at him and it hit him full force.

"SAJI!" Sona cried out.

Walburga laughed at Saji's appearance demise... and then noticed something was off, Orochi was still breathing fire like his target wasn't killed.

"What the, why is Orochi still trying to burn him? He's already dead!" Walburga demanded, trying to make Orochi stop. However, at that moment, some of Vritra's flames were seen burning through the purple flames. "What!?"

Saji was seen with these flames burning on his body, countering the purple flames trying to consume him to Walburga and Sona's shock.

**"{Incredible! Simply amazing, I don't know how but it seems like you've someone made your feelings so strong I feel a new power! Yes... the four Sacred Gears, they are now one!}"**

Saji's Sacred Gears soon move and position themselves on his right hand, taking the appearance of a more fearsome and dragon like Absorption Line. This was the new Vritra gear made from combining the four into one... the "Cursed Malebolge!"

"You hear me lady, this is my power! The curse of Vritra I bear, the curse I bear the strength of for my comrades! For Sona!" Saji declared, his aura flaring. "Now let's see which one is stronger! Your holy purple flames, or my cursed black flames!"

Saji swung out his arms, Orochi being slightly knocked back, and the former's wounds now healed by the force of the fire he was burning searing it closed.

"**Balance... BREAKER!**"

Everyone in Sona's peerage watches in awe, while Walburga does so in shock as a black version of Issei and Vali's scale mail armor with four eye slits, all of which glowed purple. The tentacles soon thrust into some of the purple fire burning into the ground and curse it out of existence.

**{MALEBOLGE VRITRA PROMOTION!}**

"A Balance Breaker? Heh, so what if you achieve it or not! You'll still die!" Walburga declared, motioning her hands out with a magic circle. "Devour him Orochi!"

Orochi's eight heads all lunge at Saji, but the Pawn of Sitri rushed forward in an instant and had his tentacles pierce into four of the Dragon's heads while his fist and head smashed three more, leaving only the main head untouched... all of them instantly exploded as a curse consumed them.

"What!?" Walburga gasped.

"You may possess Holy Flames, but against my Cursed black fire they've finally met their fatal counter! You're done!" Saji declared, soon charging a dark purple blast and screaming as he blasted it forward. "Black Blaze Beam!"

The beam of dark fire blasted out at the final head of Orochi, consuming the Evil Dragon completely. Walburga growls as they defeated Orochi's soul.

"Now, it's time for you to get put into the slammer where you belong!" Saji shouted, preparing to fly at her... only for a wall of purple fire to block him. The whole group sees Walburga fleeing like a coward. "Get back here!"

"No way! The one who loses and runs away, she lives to fight another day!" Walburga replied, soon vanishing in a magic circle that transport her somewhere. Saji stared at her... and then suddenly feels pain and falls back, his Balance Breaker dispelling.

"Oh no, Saji!" Ruruko cried.

Everyone ran by his side, but luckily Vritra soon spoke up.

**"{No worries, he's just out of steam. Using his Balance Breaker for the first time just exhausted him and overtaxed his body. Not to mention he just had a wound seared closed. I'm surprised he didn't faint right then.}"**

As everyone watched his unconscious form, Sona smiled at him.

'Saji... thank you, I don't think I could ask for a better Pawn.' Sona thought, and at that moment the others all arrived. "You're all a little late."

"Hu? Wait, did you handle what we saw all on your..." Vali began, and soon saw Saji on the ground. "Hey, is he alright?"

**"[Well look at that! I can feel Vritra's power everywhere, the kid finally awakened his Balance breaker, didn't he?]"**

"Wait, are you serious!?" Issei asked, and Sona and her peerage each give a look of confirmation. "Alright Saji!"

Saji's unconscious form smiled as everyone helped hoist him up, and the group returned to the village to share the news that they've dealt with Orochi.

* * *

Back at the village of Afathmel, where the three peerages were all preparing the magic circle back home as the village and the Elder stood before them to see them off. The Elder smiled and walked to the Kings of each peerage.

"...Thank you once again for protecting our home from the threat that befell us, I shall send word to your leaders and announce our agreement to join your alliance against that woman's allies." The Elder spoke, she and the Elves all bowed to the three. "...You have our gratitude."

"We were glad to help, and on behalf of the alliance we thank you for allying with us." Vali smiled.

The group was prepared to leave, only for the Elder to stop them by holding a hand, and waving towards Ryuu who carried something in a cloth.

"A present from us to you." Ryuu replied, unwrapping it to reveal a copy of Le Fay's wand, but made of wood from the Elven forest. "This wand was handcrafted by us, using it should enhance your magic skills and the strength of one's elemental magic. Please accept it as the proof of our agreement to join the alliance."

Ryuu handed the wand to Le Fay who smiled at it.

"Thank you, I'll take good care of it!" Le Fay smiled, and soon she and the others all waved as the magic circle took them back home.

* * *

Soon back home, everyone was waiting for them, and soon congratulations were brought by the smiles they arrived with. Lilith walked up to her Great Granddaughter and smiled before asking her about what happened.

"So it was Walburga? I've heard Mephisto tell me about her before, and Sona states she saw her with the Incinerate Anthem... well, I guess it can't be helped. We'll just have to catch her and take it away when we get the chance. Anything else?" Lilith asked.

"There is one, hey Kunou?" Vali stated, causing the Kyuubi to come over to Lilith's surprise. "We don't know why, but Kunou was seen being nursed by the Elves. I had to reincarnate her to save her life... and because I forgot Valerie could do it."

Lilith snickers a bit at that, and Vali sweat dropped.

"Either way, she's still alive and is now my final Pawn. I might need to apologize to Yasaka eventually." Vali finished.

"I wouldn't worry, your reason was noble and Yasaka trusts you. As long as her daughter's safe I think she'll be happy. Be proud, you've grown up into a strong and beautiful woman." Lilith smiled, making Vali smile in return. "Now I think it's time we all return back to Kuoh, there's no place like home after all."

Vali nods, and soon everyone headed to the castle to prepare to return home. Mio walks by the group.

"Come on guys, tell me what happened!" Mio asked, anxious to know what she missed. Meanwhile as Loup and Bennia prepared to head off, Sona cleared her throat.

"I'd like to ask you both something, if you don't mind." Sona requested.

* * *

Soon, everyone was finally back home at Kuoh Town in the Hyoudou household, Issei fell back on the couch and stretched out. Luckily for them, Issei's parents were currently absent since Lilith got them a world trip vacation for the sake of masking their time for the Summer.

"Man, feels good to finally kick back and relax. We had to fight for so long in a row I'm exhausted spiritually, emotionally and socially by this point." Issei commented, making Vali giggle as she rubbed his shoulders. "Ooh, do that a little more to the left. I think I got a knot there."

"Hey! I'll do the massaging, move over!" Irina complained, soon pushing her a bit, and causing both to give their usual looks at each other as they both grabbed Issei's shoulders. Strangely enough, Issei did nothing to stop them since they were actually doing a good job as an unknowing team. "I won't lose to you!"

Jeanne sweat dropped and soon went to another room, soon hearing some crying and seeing the rest of Rias' peerage. She walked in and suddenly noticed Rossweisse in a corner of the room, sobbing.

"Rossweisse? What the, why is she here?" Jeanne wondered.

"I don't think you should ask." Rias warned, getting a bad gut feeling.

"...Rossweisse, why are you here?" Jeanne asked, making Rias sigh playfully as she awaited Jeanne's regret for asking.

"Don't know why I'm crying! No other man has every wanted me before, so why would my own boss!? I came back only to see he left me behind! By all means he just told me I got the red slip!" Rossweisse replied, crying and then mumbling a lot.

Rias smirked as she looked at Jeanne.

"You regret asking now?" Rias wondered.

"...Don't say another word." Jeanne sighed, unwilling to directly say 'yes' in reply. Rias soon had an idea, making Jeanne look. "What are you thinking about?"

"I think maybe this wasn't coincidence." Rias replied, soon walking by Rossweisse. "How about you and I talk business?"

"Huh?" Rossweisse replied.

Akeno giggled a bit as she realized what her King was about to do, the others aside from Kiba and Shirone looked at her. She simply giggled again.

"Sorry, no spoilers." Akeno replied.

* * *

**There we have it, the Calling of the Elves arc has finally ended... and yes, I know I said that Bennia, Loup and Rossweisse would be joining in chapter, but I figured I'd wait for the Diodora arc to show it on screen. I felt if I didn't I'd drag the chapter on longer than I should have. Don't worry, there joining scenes won't be off screen, they'll just be flashbacks I begin next chapter with.**

**So how about that, I brought Walburga in much earlier than canon, unfortunately she's not gonna make another appearance for a while. As much as I wanted to have her dealt with early, since Valerie's with Rias and I'm not intending on a Sephiroth Graal theft, I need her to achieve what'll happen by the time of the Volume 16 adaption. The good news is Saji's gotten his Balance Breaker now, and his Sacred Gear's evolved. This is the form that may make it a Longinus candidate. What happens in that area? Well... that depends on me :3**

**And yes, that's exactly what the incident implied between Hades and Lilith was. If there's one thing you never do to a woman its insult her family. Especially in the manner he did, Zeus and Poseidon were fully justified by keeping him a skeleton as a punishment. Still, that isn't gonna stop him from pulling what he'll end up doing around Season 6.**

**So, you like my choice for Tomoe's Sacred Gear? I hadn't made a decision on how to replace the sword she got in canon since that one had a name that wasn't meant for a sacred gear, but eventually I decided on Muramasa cause the cursed nature of the blade gave me an interesting idea on how she could use it.**

**Get ready next time, the Diodora arc begins and the Rating Game tournament will finally start. What big game will be first? *smiles* Rias and Sona's! So I hope you'll enjoy it, cause I'm gonna have fun writing this Rating Game with the new additions, and we'll be seeing a lot of crossover characters that'll be showing up in some peerages.**

**So... until next time in the Diodora arc everyone, and stay awesome!**

* * *

** -Rias' Peerage- ** ** (Will be removed as of this chapter due to its completion)**

**King - Rias  
Queen - Akeno  
Bishops - Gasper (Mutated Piece), Valerie (Mutation Piece)  
Knights - Kiba, Xenovia  
Rooks - Shirone, Rossweisse  
Pawns - Jeanne (x5), Yumi (x3)**

* * *

** -Sona's Peerage- ** ** (Will be removed as of this chapter due to its completion)**

**King - Sona  
Queen - Tsubaki  
Bishops - Momo, Reya  
Knights - Tomoe, Bennia  
Rooks - Tsubasa, Loup/Rugal  
Pawns - Saji (x4), Ruruko (x4)**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Ryuu Lion - Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona may be developing feelings**


	24. Chapter 24

**Alright, I'm locked and fully loaded to fire the bullet to start the Diodora arc, so... *holds up a pop gun and fires it off* There we go! ^^**

**I'll admit it feels a bit weird writing this chapter right now, but not for the reasons you might think. To explain, while I've already reached Season 3 of this fanfic, my Date A Live story has around the same number of chapters, and I only just submitted the last chapter for the story that ended Season 1 in the series. *chuckles***

**Maybe I should get to work on the story between Lilith and Satan soon, I think most of you have been wanting to see that by this point, that might make it less weird. Ignoring that small bit of mumble jumble from me, we're finally here at the Diodora arc where the Sports Festival, Rating Game tournament and... Diodora being an ass -_- *groans* I hate that Devil... *clears throat* well, all of that happens.**

**Get ready to see what everyone's wishes are for the Tournament, the Crossover characters I've put in everyone's peerage (and two special ones who are OCs with some... special traits to them ^^), and most of all... this season features a Rating Game with Rias and Sona! It was disappointing that the anime never gave us it, so I'll have to fix that in this story. Hope the added characters and lack of Issei in Rias' peerage doesn't throw me off.**

**And to help get things excited for you all... before we go too deep with anything related to Diodora, we'll be showing said Rating Game first! How's that for good news? Before we get to that, I'm going to be a bit daring and add lot that wasn't in the original Diodora arc, for example, since the party was in the Demon Realm, I've got something else to gather the young Devils together. All I'll say is it involves Gods that aren't from the Norse pantheon, the chapter will say the rest.**

**Oh yeah, for the next few chapters I'll be sharing the peerages of some other characters. Even if they don't get full battles, I will be showing brief bits of battles they have during the Rating Game tournament. The crossover characters I put in peerages depend on the traits, skills and personality of the Devil that they serve under.**

**It's kinda like how Sairaorg's peerage consists of Devils that are scorned by other Devils, Rias' peerage consists of Devils with tough pasts, Sona's peerage are all capable workers and going by the anime, Riser's peerage are all cocky and smug while Zephyrdor's peerage are all punkers and such. At this point I think that's a requirement for peerages... so Diodora's peerage not having this was likely was foreshadowing to his big secret 0_0**

**Now... let's get this arc started!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Ten Supernovas and the Rookies Four- **

**Young Devils are always expected to do well and grow strong for the day they inherit their households, regardless if its only temporarily or until their own children inherit the role. However, in the current generation, there's a notable group of young Devils, and an exceptional group within that group. This group is known as the 10 Supernovas and the exceptional four among them are called the Rookies 4.**

**What makes these Devils special among the current generation is they do what most Devils often never even consider due to their current culture, train their servants. Most Devils simply trade their servants in an attempt to get around obstacles they normally can't, but due to various circumstances, these Devils refuse to believe that will get them anywhere and grow with their servants to increase their strength.**

**These 10 Devils are Vali Lucifer, Rias Gremory, Sona Sitri, Seekvaira Agares, Sairaorg Bael, Ineelana Leviathan, Niruili Beelzebub, Gebedon Asmodeus, Suzattin Belphegor, and Esketanus Mammon. Among these 10, the Rookies 4 are Vali, Rias, Sona and Sairaorg who have shown signs of incredible growth and potential in a short period of time (Sairaorg), or have dealt with threats clearly beyond their actual skill level (Vali, Rias and Sona).**

**Lilith has high hopes for them all because she feels they can help change Hell for the better where she lacks the power.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Diodora Arc: Chapter 1 - Let the Tournament Begin _ **

Issei blinked a few times in shock, making sure he was actually seeing what he was.

"...Hey, can I have someone pinch me real quick?" Issei asked, Kunou grabs his arm and does just that. "OW! Yeah, I'm definitely awake. So... can someone tell me how this happened!?"

In front of him was the sight of Bennia, Rugal and Rossweisse all with suitcases.

"Well according to Rias and Sona, Rossweisse is now the former's second rook while Rugal and Bennia are the latter's second Rook and second Knight respectively." Irina answered, noticing Bennia in her casual clothes already making herself home on the couch and eating barbecue chips.

"This place is awesome, best deal ever!" Bennia exclaimed, throwing some chips into the air before notice and jumping to chomp them all. "Tasty."

"Well... I guess I can see Bennia's reason, Vali's grandma did apparently make Hades lose all his skin. Not so sure on Rugal and Rossweisse though, anyone care to share on that end?" Issei asked.

"Uh... well, what happened was-" Rossweisse began, and after mentioning everything up to the point where Rias mentioned talking about business to her...

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

"Here you go, it's a summary of the benefits package for servants of the Gremory Households." Rias stated as she handed a bunch of papers to Rossweisse, after she looked at them the Valkyrie gasped.

"No! Way! The insurance premium's no cheap!" Rossweisse read in shock, looking at more pages of the summary. "And no term life policy mumbo jumbo... Valhalla never offered dental or paid vacation days!"

Most of Rias' peerage watched in shock.

"If Rias ever needed a job, I think she's got a future as a business rep." Jeanne noted, sweat dropping at the sight.

"She's actually buying a Valkyrie on the cheap." Kiba added, getting Jeanne to stare at her brother in shock.

"And the Devil's whispers were woven with temptation, I could learn a lot from here." Xenovia noted, making some of the Gremory chess pieces inch away. "What? What did I say?"

Akeno and Valerie giggle slightly as Rias held her final evil piece, her second Rook, to Rossweisse.

"So, what do you think? Sign up with Team Gremory for the big win. Hell would be glad to have you." Rias offered, and Rossweisse took a look at it as she held it. After a while of thinking, Rossweisse had her answer.

"Perhaps the Norms of Fate spun the threat that lead me here, ever since we fought together in the Elven Forest, things just seemed right!" Rossweisse replied.

In a matter of moments, the rook entered Rossweisse and she soon spread out her new Devil wings before turning to the others and putting her wings away.

"Everyone, I look forward to our joyous days of working together!"

"As there you have it, Rossweisse's the final member of Team Gremory." Rias smiled.

"I don't know... that felt more casual then I expected." Yumi chuckled oddly.

"I prefer them short and sweet, that's what it was for us after all." Xenovia replied, making Yumi blink and giggle before she nodded.

'This is a dream come true! Odin, you can take your crummy job and shove it you prune faced old pervert!' Rossweisse thought, making Rias look at her as she wondered what she was thinking.

_-Flashback End-_

* * *

"Wow... I guess even Gods can be jerks at a small-scale size, that was cruel to leave you behind." Irina stated, sweat dropping slightly.

"Next time I see him..." Rossweisse began, showing a dark aura around her face similar to a certain Devil clan's two female members. Issei and Irina both backtrack a little bit, and Vali soon comes in.

"Is my grandma getting angry at someone again?" Vali asked, soon noticing Rossweisse. "Whoa, she can do that too? That's a surprise."

Bennia laughs as Rossweisse, who soon blushed and whistles at the sight.

"Uh... don't mind the angry Valkyrie, I'm just gonna... go over to the kitchen! Yeah, that's it." Rossweisse chuckled, leaving the room.

"OK, what about you and Rugal?" Irina said, looking at Bennia.

"Oh, that's a story, what happened was..." Bennia began.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

Bennia and Rugal both look as they heard Sona's offer, surprising her peerage as she held her remaining Knight and Rook pieces towards them respectively.

"You fought alongside us and did so well, you'd be great additions if you wanted to join us. So, what do you say?" Sona asked.

Bennia thinks for a moment and takes the Knight.

"Alright, I'm in!" Bennia smiled.

"Just like that!? You didn't even need five seconds!" Saji asked incredulously.

"Why not? I hate my dad's attitude, Lord Hades is a complete butt and Lilith was awesome enough to make him jump out of his skin... literally!" Bennia replied, giggling at that last part. "I'd rather work for the side allied to the lady who had the guts to remove Hades', so why not?"

Everyone sweat dropped slightly at that.

"Well... I guess that reason technically has some justified basis behind it." Tsubaki said, adjusting her glasses despite the oddity of the situation.

"Hmm... I guess I got nothing better to do, I'm already a student at Kuoh's college campus anyways. Count me in as well." Rugal answered, taking the Rook.

After a brief moment, the two pieces glowed before their respective new owners absorbed them. Rugal briefly spread his wings out before folding them... but Bennia was suddenly gone.

"Hey, where'd Bennia go?" Ruruko asked, suddenly Bennia with her wings out dropped down and shrieked loudly wearing her Skull Mask. "MONSTER!"

Ruruko screamed before she fainted backwards onto the ground. Bennia started laughing, removing the mask as she fell back and kicked her legs in laughter midair.

"I'm gonna enjoy this!" Bennia said, still laughing. Everyone gave a nervous sweat at that.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

Bennia was seen kicking her legs in laughter the same way again, Issei shaking a bit as the two girls sweated at Bennia.

"Oh man, jump scares never get old!" Bennia laughed, soon slamming a fist into the cough as she couldn't stop her laughter. "Damn it, I can't stop laughing! I can't breathe!"

Bennia soon laughed so hard, she rolled herself onto the floor where she kept going. At that moment, Mio walked in and noticed this.

"...Did I miss something?" Mio asked.

"No, I think Bennia's just being... Bennia." Vali chuckled, sweat dropping a bit. Soon Vali saw an envelope tossed to her. "Huh? What's this?"

"Lilith had to go back to Hell for something, so she asked me to drop that off to you, Rias and Sona. I didn't read it out of privacy respecting so I have no clue what it's about." Mio answered, and the moment Vali heard that she opened it. "...OK, please tell us! I'm curious!"

Vali's eyes dart around as she read it.

"The Young Devils' gathering! The highest ranked Devils want the current heirs of this generation and their peerages to gather, and luckily the only ones who have to dress formally are the non-Devil guests." Vali explained, sighing in relief. "Oh? Seems the guests are some other Pantheons that are planning to join the Alliance."

"So Lilith left to help organize that? Makes sense, she's the leader of Hell after all." Irina noted.

"So... what do you think it's about?" Issei asked.

"I have a slight idea, but I think we'll want to wait before mention anything in case it's something else. Be prepared for a magic circle jump to Hell any day now." Vali replied, soon closing up the letter and heading to another room.

"I'll be getting ready along with Rias and Sona. Oh, and Issei? Can you and Asia go shopping? We need food for a welcoming party we're giving our new house guests."

"Alright, I'll go take care of that." Issei nodded, soon going off to look for Asia.

As the two went off their respective directions, Irina looks at both at them before looking a bit sad at the sight.

'They seem so natural, more than I am with Issei... no! I can't give up on Issei, I'm still Childhood friend number 1!' Irina thought, making Rugal stare at her oddly.

* * *

Issei and Asia were soon walking through the streets of Kuoh Town, holding some shopping bags in hand.

"Are you excited for tonight's welcoming party?" Issei asked, making Asia nod.

"I am, I want everyone to feel at home. Especially Rossweisse." Asia replied.

"I wonder what my parents are gonna think when they see our three new guests. I just hope they don't accidentally strain the Valkyrie's neurosis." Issei joked lightly, and soon noticed a bunch of sport based shoes by the shoe store. "Oh man, I nearly forgot! The Sports Festival's coming up."

Asia looked at Issei confused.

"Right, you don't know about it. It's a competition held between classes each Summer. We basically duke it out to see who's best at various sporting events." Issei explained.

"Oh shoot, and while I came from the church I have no grace." Asia sighed, unfortunately this distracted her slightly and she got her foot caught on a leg. Making her trip, Issei turned as he heard her start to fall... but luckily someone caught her. "Oh, thank you for the save."

Her mysterious catcher simply smiled.

"My pleasure... Asia Argento." The young man replied, catching both Asia and Issei's attention. In fact... Issei swore he had seen this dude somewhere before. "How lucky I caught you today, after all you're the reason I'm here."

"Hey, wait a minute... you're that guy who caught her when Sieg was causing trouble in the Shadow Realm!" Issei stated, finally putting a face to an event.

"I've fantasized about seeing you again, after all we have such history together." The young man stated, making the two look at him confused. "I believe this is something better shown away from the public eye."

While the situation was odd, the two followed him to an artificial lake surrounding by some pillars. Once there, the man removed his cape jacket and opened his shirt up... revealing a familiar scar to Asia.

"That scar... I don't believe it! It's you!" Asia gasped.

"That's right, I'm the Devil you saved with your Sacred Gear way back then. Unfortunately, I never got the chance to introduce myself, my name is Diodora Astaroth, Ajuka Beelzebub is my older brother." Diodora revealed, soon closing his shirt and putting his cape back on.

"I never expected you to reunite with you in the Shadow Realm, I wanted to speak to you then, but due to the commotion I missed the chance. So I've come to pick up where we left off."

Diodora kneels at Asia, soon kissing her head to Issei's shock while Asia blushed a bit.

"For us to have met twice, in the world above and the world below... we are clearly bound by fate, so I must take you as my bride."

"WHAT!?" Issei shouted loudly, unsure if he heard that right. Asia's face simply went red.

* * *

Vali sighs at the revelation she just received.

"So Diodora Astaroth huh? Yeah, I have the unfortunate pleasure of knowing him." Vali replied, making Issei blink at her use of 'unfortunate'. "Right, guess I should explain why it's an unfortunate pleasure. For some reason, I just don't like that guy, and I don't know why since Gebedon is more of a Casanova than he is."

"I guess we always have someone who we don't like just because we don't." Issei replied, scratching his head. Soon looking at Asia who seemed a bit saddened. 'Not to mention he's the reason Asia got kicked out of the church.'

Vali stands up and pets her Bishop on the head.

"Diodora's been said to have grown up a little sheltered and is a bit socially awkward, just ignore him and he'll go away eventually." Vali smiled.

"OK, I'll do that." Asia replied.

Gasper soon opened the door, getting the trio's attention.

"Hey everyone, we're all ready downstairs for the party." Gasper stated.

"Alright, we're coming." Vali replied, turning at Asia. "If Diodora does give you any trouble and you don't know what to do, just let me know. OK?"

"Right." Asia smiled.

* * *

Downstairs, everyone was gathered together having a small party, with Mio and Azazel watching from afar. The former drinking soda while the latter was holding wine.

"It's nice to see youthful idealism, our sides had been fighting for too long." Azazel smiled.

"Preaching to the choir there Azazel, even if some won't approve. I guess that's just one example of what we need to fight for." Mio said, clanging her soda against Azazel's glass. "Angels and Fallen, Demons and Devils, Norse and Elves. We're already got a good group of allies striving for peace."

Gabriel giggled as she walked out from the kitchen.

"A good demonstration of what happens when we work together instead of against each other." Gabriel smiled.

"Yeah, too bad we didn't have a Demon to help everyone in the Elves' Forest." Mio sighed, making Gabriel pat Mio's back. Soon the Devil remembered something. "At least we'll be doing something in Hell's small gathering... right Vali, please say yes!"

Vali giggles.

"Yes Mio, you'll likely get to do something." Vali answered, making Mio silently pump her fist. "You all know we can see you doing that."

Mio blushes and puts it away.

"Not too afraid to be open on how you feel, huh?" Tiamat suddenly said, surprising everyone.

"Tiamat!? When you'd summon yourself, in fact where have you been since forever!?" Issei asked, the female Dragon King taking a whole plate of chicken.

"Hey, not might fault you forget to summon me when you can. Not to mention I told you when we made the familiar pact I'd come when I wanted." Tiamat replied, and soon everyone unfamiliar with Tiamat being Issei's familiar stared in shock. "I see we have some new faces, now stop staring."

* * *

Soon the next day, everyone had briefly come back to their classes in school to decide their events for the Sports Festival, Irina currently had her hand raised and was literally begging for a certain event.

"Ooh! Pick me! I wanna do the treasure hunt! Put me down for that!" Irina exclaimed.

"Alright." Aika replied, writing her name by the event. "OK, the next competition is the Three-Legged Race. So who wants to be part of that tripod?"

Issei yawned a bit, he hadn't gotten much sleep last name due to Bennia's antics. Not to mention Diodora kept distracting him.

'That dude missed his chance already, and now he's becoming a stalker.' Issei thought, groaning mentally.

"Issei!" Aika called out, making him flinch a bit. "That hole on your armpit an air vent?"

"What!?" Issei panicked, and realized too late what had happened. "Wait, no don't0"

Aika snickered as she wrote Issei's name down for the event.

"You weasel! That was dirty, even for your standards!" Issei shouted.

"So, who else wants to do it?" Aika asked, and Vali blushed as she raised her hand. "Done deal!"

Irina secretly bit a handkerchief in jealousy as Aika wrote Vali's name down.

* * *

Soon outside, everyone was seen training for the event, Yumi and Jeanne running across the field for practice.

"You can do it you two!" Asia smiled, cheering them on.

Issei was tying his shoes when Saji noticed him during his work.

"Hey Hyoudou, what event did you get for the festival?" Saji asked.

"The three-legged race with Vali... Aika's fault, and you?" Issei asked.

"The bread eating contest, I hope I don't puke form it." Saji sighed, soon she heard Bennia blow a whistle at him. "Ah! I'm working Bennia, I'm working!"

Saji goes ever faster, and Bennia giggles.

"I'm gonna milk this for all its worth." Bennia giggled. Issei sweat dropped in worry at the sight, and soon he heard Vali moan slightly, making him blush and turn as he saw Aika playfully groping her.

"Wow Vali, you had quite the growth spurt since break started!" Aika chuckled, Vali blushing.

"Stop it, I swear this counts as sexual harassment!" Vali whimpered, looking around for something to stop this until she noticed Issei. She motioned her hand. 'Quick, Interrupt this now!'

Issei quickly ran over.

"Hey Vali, ready to begin practicing?" Issei called out.

"Yes, let's start right this second!" Vali replied, Aika finally letting go.

"Hey Issei, don't get stiff cause your bodies are pressed up together!" Aika called out, making to two nearly trip and blush. 'They make it so easy to tease them!'

Vali had a vein form on her head.

"He'll stay soft by thinking of you!" Vali angrily yelled at her, making Aika sweat drop as nearly every student looked at the three after hearing it.

'...OK, maybe I overdid it a little.' Aika thought.

Issei rubbed Vali's back as she pants to reduce her anger afterwards, the Lucifer heiress blushing in embarrassment.

"Issei... I can't believe I just did that, I feel so embarrassed." Vali answered, covering her face with her hands.

"Its fine, Aika just doesn't understand personal boundaries." Issei replied, soon getting the leg band to tie their feet together. "Alright, let's show everyone how this is done."

Vali nods and wraps her arm around Issei, he blushes as Vali's left breast presses onto him.

"Sorry!" Vali apologized.

"Its fine, no problem at all!" Issei replied, though clearly unable to stop focusing on his girlfriend's chest touching him this way. 'Damn it, I think Aika intended for this result! Don't think about it, distract yourself Issei! Think of... baseball, yeah! Baseball!'

Soon he breathes, unaware of a familiar duo peeping from the nearby bushes with binoculars on hand.

"OK, here we go!"

They try taking a step, only for Vali to fall forward, leading to Issei catching her.

'OK, I think we need baby steps.' Issei thought, unaware of Vali looking and noticing something that made her blush.

"Uh... Issei, your hand!" Vali blushed, making Issei notice he had accidentally caught her via her right breast.

"Ah! Oh my god, I am so sorry- Whoa!"

Somehow, in his attempt to move off Vali, he ends up falling and making her fall on top of him. The end result was Vali's large oppai falling on his face.

'Paradise reached!' Motohama and Matsuda thought from the bushes.

"Hey Issei, maybe we should practice without the leg band for a while?" Vali suggested, blushing as she got up slightly. Issei mumbles and just gives a thumb's up. Meanwhile from a distance, Irina was blushing as she tried to cover her face with her hands but fails.

'On second thought... maybe it was a good thing I didn't end up doing the three-legged race.' Irina mentally sweat dropped.

* * *

After an exhausting day of Sports Festival practice, everyone had returned to the Hyoudou household where Vali noticed a bunch of letters present, and Asia blushes as she realized who they were for.

"Oh for the love of... does Diodora understand woman at all!?" Vali asked rhetorically, soon using her magic to destroy them all. "I'm thinking I need to have a serious talk with Ajuka about his little brother soon enough. This is getting ridiculous."

"I'm sorry." Asia apologized.

"Relax Asia, can't blame a boy for letting a crush make him dumb." Vali replied, rubbing Asia's head. Soon a magic circle with the Lucifer crest formed. "Oh? Hey Issei, get the others here, Grandma's got something for us to hear."

Issei nods and rushed to get everyone. After about 5 minutes, everyone was gathered as Vali tapped the circle and a hologram of Lilith appears from it.

"Ah, everyone's gathered here." Lilith began, looking at everyone. "I believe all of you are aware since the other day that there's a gathering for the Young Devils, correct? Well it's time to visit Hell for it because it's starting in half an hour. Oh, and Irina? I need you to bring both your Excaliburs with you, it'll make sense once you arrive."

"Uh... OK?" Irina replied, a bit confused.

Soon a large version of the same magic circle appeared on the floor as the small one vanished, opening the gate to Hell.

"Well everyone, here we go. Time to see Hell... literally." Vali replied, giggling at her small joke.

"That was lame." Shirone sighed, Kuroka nodding in agreement.

Soon the group walked into the circle, and they arrived in a banquet hall in Hell, various Devils and other guests were already starting to gather despite the event wouldn't officially start for another half hour. Kunou looked around in awe.

"Wow, look at all the people here!" Kunou breathed.

"I know, I can already see some Gods from the Greek pantheon even, this seems like a pretty big deal." Yuuma replied, looking around in shock.

Around a food table, a Greek Goddess with long silver hair that was mostly tied in a bun and wearing blue and white dress was seen scarfing a ton of meat buns laid out, as that happens a Norse Goddess with longer than shoulder length light blond hair and flowers on the sides of her temples, wearing an elegant white dress, began walking down the stairs and noticed her with a giggle. She walked up to her and tapped her shoulder, getting her attention.

"Good evening Artemis." The Norse Goddess greeted, causing Artemis to swallow the meat bun she was eating and turn to face her.

"Oh, Freyja!" Artemis replied, clearing her throat. "It's been a while hasn't it... you always seem to notice me first in large gatherings like this, don't you?"

Freyja giggled at that.

"Well of course, you're one of the deities I like the most." Freyja smiled, and Artemis shrugs.

"Eh, fair enough. I'll admit you're not as unbearable as some deities I know." Artemis sighed, suddenly noticing one of said Goddesses rushing up to them.

"It's Freyja!" A blue haired goddess in a black moon themed dress, her hair in an up-do, shouted as she rushed over. "And miss Greek Virgin number 1."

Artemis had a vein form on that.

"I told you already Tsukuyomi, that's on purpose because I represent that trait! My god!" Artemisia roared, Tsukuyomi just cleans her ear and intentionally ignores her. "I know that's on purpose!"

Tsukuyomi blows a raspberry at her, and Freyja sweat drops as she holds Artemis back. As this happens, a certain dark blue haired in a blue tuxedo God from the Hindu pantheon stares at the small chick spat with an Asura guard by his side.

"Yikes... that looks like it could get messy." The God stated, sweating a bit.

"I think it already has Lord Varuna." The Asura noted.

As the group walked around, Vali soon noticed Ineelana wearing her casual clothing, giving her a bit of a rebel look. Beside her was a girl with long, violet hair, with a black ribbon placed just above her bangs. Her eyes were a much darker shade of purple, and often lend her a sad demeanor. She held a blue bear like plushy in her hands.

"Hey, Ineelana!" Vali called out, waving to her.

"...Hello Vali, trying to pride yourself as usual?" Ineelana replied, making Vali sweat drop in reply to that. "Hey, don't give me that look. I can say whatever the hell I want. There's no rules on thoughts after all."

Vali chuckled and sweat dropped again.

"Eh... yeah, but you're not doing well of hiding how you really feel." Vali answered, making Ineelana flinch and turn away to mumble. "Oh, who's your friend here?"

"My queen, Murasaki. That's all you get to know." Ineelana replied, pointing her finger at Vali. "I intend to prove I'm better than you when we finally have a Rating Game, so prepare yourself Vali Lucifer! We may be friends but I will treat you like an enemy when that time comes!"

Ineelana walks off, and Murasaki turns to everyone.

"Um... don't be too hard on her, she's been through a lot. E-Excuse me." Murasaki replied before following her King. Vali smiles a bit, glad Ineelana's queen was looking out for her.

"Murasaki's right, Ineelana has a severe inferiority complex. She's a lot better than she thinks she really is. Wouldn't be surprised if her peerage has a similar mindset, for some reason a peerage is usually a lot like their master." Vali replied.

"Yeah, I think Riser's peerage told us that." Issei noted, making Vali chuckle a little. Soon the sound of a loud whistle was heard. "Oh? I'm guessing that means things are about to start?"

Vali nods, and everyone goes silent as the lights dim before they all focused on a certain spot.

* * *

After about a few minutes after the lights dimmed, the spot there all focused revealed Lilith along with the six Great Devils and some other high ranked Devils gathered in a seating area.

"Welcome everyone, I am Lilith Lucifer, the current ruler of Hell and the Devil race. I'd like to thank everyone for coming to today's event. Along with the gathering of the young Devils, various pantheons and races under them have come for considering in joining the alliance against the Khaos Brigade." Lilith began, looking at said guests.

"So, I'd like to honor and thank the Shinto, Greek and Hindu pantheons for their consideration and for attending this evening. Now I think it's time we announce our main event and introduce this generation and the promising young Devils within it!"

Almost everyone claps at that, especially the Devils.

"We have some very upcoming Devils in our current fold, some belonging to the families of the Great Devils themselves, other who are expected and even a few who are surprises. However..." Lilith began, giving a wide smile.

"Most impressive is that we have an irregular bunch this generation. A group of ten Devils who have ignored the usual mindset of relying purely on their dark powers and trading servants when they hit a wall, instead choosing to train themselves and the peerage they'll stay with for the long run."

Some older Devils show sour faces at that, but Lilith tightens her hand and shuts them up with her aura.

"Myself and the Great Devils have since decided to label these Devils as the Ten Supernovas. So I introduce to all of you..."

Soon a light appears over Vali.

"Vali Lucifer!"

Vali blushes a bit before another formed above Rias.

"Rias Gremory!"

The next light formed overhead of Sona.

"Sona Sitri!"

Ineelana saw a light appear over her head.

"Ineelana Leviathan!"

Niruili was devouring a bunch of food, making her blush as a light shined over her.

"Niruili Beelzebub!"

Gebedon adjusted his outfit, having expected the next light would shine on him.

"Gebedon Asmodeus!"

Suzattin was snoring on one of the tables, making everyone sweat drop as it shined on him/

"Uh... Suzattin Belphegor..."

A beautiful young woman with long blonde hair and pink eyes, wearing glasses and holding a cold, sharp gaze and a blue robe that exposed very little skin adjusted said glasses as the light shined on her.

"Seekvaira Agares!"

Esketanus was shining a pin he had on hand, flashing it as the next light shined on him.

"Esketanus Mammon!"

And finally, Sairaorg stood proudly as the final light shined down on him.

"And finally, Sairaorg Bael!"

Another round of applause was given, and everyone clapped again.

"And among these ten, four especially have gone above and beyond what anyone could have guessed, I have chosen to call them the Rookies Four." Lilith continued, soon showing lights over only Vali, Rias, Sona and Sairaorg.

"Sairaorg Bael was born without his clan's signature ability, the Power of Destruction, and didn't originally gain the right to be the heir to his households. However, he on his own trained and destroyed every limit held on him and regained that right. Meanwhile Vali, Rias and Sona have been present during a fight against two terrorist attacks where their opponents were beyond their skill level. They came out alive, and helped contribute greatly to foiling both."

There was less applause this time, it was expected considering things like jealousy and refusal to respect them for some reason or another. The only reason any cheers happened was likely because not everyone present was a Devil.

"Alright, now that we've cleared that up... I'd like each Devil of this generation to step up and state their dream for everyone to hear! Don't be afraid. You'll be fighting for it, so think of admitting it as that first step of the fight." Lilith stated, making many nervous.

The first to step up however seemed to be lacking it, a Devil with a yellow and black punker outfit, reddish skin, blue hair and white facial markings.

"I am Zephyrdor Glasya-Labolas, heir to the Glasya-Labolas Clan. My dream is to succeed my Clan and expand our influence beyond Hell's borders!" Zephyrdor boldly declared, shocking many with his confident and his claim. Falbium smirked at his declaration, impressed he had such a goal considering his attitude.

The next Devil stepped up, Zephyrdor's bold claim having culled most of the nerves everyone else had.

"I am Seekvaira Agares, heiress to the Agares Clan. My goal is to bring my family to greater heights by discovering ways to improve the Evil Piece system." Seekvaira declared, interesting Ajuka. Many of the elders started to get interested.

"I am Rias Gremory, heiress to the Gremory Clan. My goal is to succeed my Clan and reach the top of the Rating Games rankings." Rias revealed, Diehauser Belial looking at her closely once he heard it.

Sona looked nervous, and soon Saji grabbed her hand. She looked at him and he nodded. Seeing his support, she breathed and decided to risk it.

"I am Sona Sitri, heiress to the Sitri Clan. My goal is to create a Rating Game School for devils and beings of all social standings." Sona stated, and compared to the previous dreams mentioned... most of the elders began laughing. Serafall was about to react, but Lilith stopped her and gave her a look.

"Seriously, that's your goal?" An elder replied mockingly, Sona was clearly shaken by didn't let it become visible to them. "Sona Sitri, I believe you know that we already have such a school in the Academy. Why would you make a goal like this?"

"Because... I want every Devil to know the joy of the Rating Games instead of a select few. To allow every Devil to have the chance to better themselves and strive to be their best." Sona answered, trying to stay calm as she cold.

Serafall sweated, she wanted nothing more than to beat down the Elders for mocking her, but she knew why she couldn't. Lilith and all the Great Devils knew the darkness within the Rating Games... Sona did too, and her dream was an indirect challenge against it.

"Well, you should probably strive for a different goal! Because that's-"

Suddenly Lilith slammed her fist down, breaking the part of the stand she and the others were all sitting on. The elder who was speaking and the rest of them all suddenly went quiet along with all the spectators as Lilith gave her and Vali's signature chilling aura as her anger manifested... but this time her eyes were open.

"I'm going to kindly ask you to shut the hell up." Lilith said venomously, making it clear that if any of the Elders continued that she would do something despite everyone would see it.

"The point of this is for them to state their dreams, not for us to mock their dreams and tell them to not bother. I will not tolerate any of the Elders or anyone else insulting the next generation!"

No matter what the elders could do, no one was willing to oppose Lilith. After all... it was a common rumor that the Lucifer clan's representation of the sin of Wrath came from her side due to what God once did to her.

"Now... with that out of the way, I'll say that I actually support Sona's goal and believe she's wise for her decision." Lilith continued calmly, surprising many.

"We can't stick to the past forever or we'll repeat our mistakes. Let me all ask you something... what if someday, somehow, all the High-Class Devils suddenly disappeared and only Middle and Low-Class Devils were left? A school for high class would become useless and the Devils could easily become extinct. Sona's idea considers this possibility, and gives the Low-Class that chance to restore our kind should we somehow disappear."

Lilith glared at the elders again.

"From this moment, if anyone mocks one of these Devils' dreams... I will force you out of this room with the lights brightened to show everyone who you are. You wouldn't want to suffer such a humiliation like that, am I right?"

The elders all turned away angry, and Lilith smirked. Sona sighed and smiled having new respect for the Queen of all Devils. while Serafall teared up happily and gave Lilith a 'thank you' look for standing up for her little sister.

"Let us resume where we left off now, shall we?" Sirzechs suggested, and Diodora soon stopped up.

"I am Diodora Astaroth, heir to the Astaroth Clan. My goal is to succeed my clan and create a facility in Hell that can be used by both Devils and members of the Church." Diodora stated, though for some reason... Lilith gave an odd look at that goal, but only briefly. Vali noticed that.

'Grandma only makes that look if she feels something off... why does that give me a bad feeling?' Vali thought worriedly, especially considering his recent interactions with Asia. 'I hope for once we're both wrong on this.'

Sairaorg stood up next, a strong confident look on his face.

"I am Sairaorg Bael, heir to the Bael Clan. My goal is to earn better rights for the Extra Demon clans and the surviving members of the extinct 72 Pillar clans." Sairaorg stated with pride, the elders all gave sour looks but said nothing due to Lilith's threats.

After that, the other heirs and heiresses began sharing their dreams until only the Great Devil clan's successors were left. Seeing this, Ineelana stepped up, looking at the other Great Devil heirs, they nodded and she breathed deeply.

"I am Ineelana Leviathan, heiress to the Leviathan clan... your honors, this may be a surprise, but me and the other heirs and heiresses of the Great Devil clans do not have our own dreams. We all share the same dream as the heiress of the Lucifer household. So she speaks for all 6 of us." Ineelana confessed, surprising many.

After that, Ineelana walks by Vali, and lightly taps her shoulder to show her support, Vali gulped and walked ahead. She had already seen the reactions to the dreams Sairaorg and Sona had revealed... and knew what she said would probably be the one the elders hate the most.

"I am Vali Lucifer, heiress to the Lucifer clan. My dream is..." Vali began, remembering the one event that lead to this moment.

* * *

_-Flashback Start-_

A 15-year old Vali looked at her great grandma before looking at the same landscape showing all of Hell before her.

"You see all of this Vali? This is the land half your heritage comes from, the land your great grandfather worked so hard to create." Lilith stated, looking at it with a smile before frowning a bit. "However... even before the point he lost his life to stop the war and an even greater threat, he saw the problems that had slowly slipped by him."

"Huh? What do you mean grandma?" Vali asked, confused.

"...Lies, deception, corruption, racism, and so much more. He had every intent to stop and destroy it, and I was ready to aid him." Lilith replied, soon giving a sad look as things like the King Piece flashed through her head.

"Unfortunately, the Great War began and he never did. Then in our attempt to recover, more problems came, and eventually our Civil War pushed things so far that even I can't stop without the elder scum of Hell using it as an excuse to end me. I have allies, but I also have enemies within my own people."

Vali stared in shock, and soon Lilith turned and kneeled to her.

"But you Vali? The way to preserve his legacy, to end this vile mess they've begun... you have the potential to do it, I know you can. The key to changing the entirety of Hell for the better lives as you." Lilith answered, smiling brightly.

"You... you really think I can do it?" Vali asked, and Lilith nods. "How can I though? I don't know what to do."

Lilith pets her head.

"Not now, but you will. The friends you've made with the other Great Devil heirs, your peerage, the people you've met and will meet. Through them that answer will come, for that reason..." Lilith answered, giving a serious but hopeful look.

"Vali, I will not give you anything to inherit when finally become the head of the Lucifer household. I want you to earn everything for our clan on your own, build a new future for all Devils with your own strength, starting from the bottom as you forge a new height for us all."

Vali stared in shock.

'A new height...' Vali wondered, and that began the single thought that lead to the goal she had now. The dream for all Devils.

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

Vali closed her eyes before giving a determined look, and with that... opened her mouth to reveal the fateful words that would change everything.

"My dream is... to restore Hell by having it restart from zero!" Vali shouted loudly.

Upon hearing this, all the guests, various Devils and even Vali's own peerage showed shock to the claim. The Elders faces were all turning so red there was pretty much a guarantee that had or were going to pop a blood vessel. They all looked at Lilith thinking this was her doing... until they saw even Lilith was shocked.

'What? No way... she's surprised too? Then does that mean, she didn't have any involvement in this!?' The main elder thought, turning back to look at Vali.

'Vali... is this the answer you've found? Something tells me to understand it fully, I need to hear all you have to say.' Lilith thought, gulping as she hoped what she heard would be a good thing. '...I trust you Vali, so prove that I'm right to do so.'

Vali breathed and continued.

"For most of my life, I never saw the land I was born. I lived with my parents and my grandfather... I went through a lot and suffered, more than any child ever should. I thought I was just the unlucky one." Vali began, soon shaking her head. "I was wrong."

She remembered seeing how her fellow Great Devil heirs were shunned and tormented unfairly for crimes a few sharing their name committed.

"After training around the world and finally seeing Hell, I realized I wasn't unlucky... Hell's current system was the cause. People like my Grandfather were born because of that system, and my Great Grandfather, Satan... he died before he could fix the problems he failed to prevent."

Lilith gasped, starting to realize what Vali meant.

"Unlike every other Devil heir and heiress out there, I don't have anything I'm allowed to inherit. So everything I'll have when I become the head of the Lucifer household is something I have to earn, and for that reason..." Vali continued, her look so determined that no one was brave enough to interrupt or stop her.

"...for the dream my great grandfather built Hell upon, for the sake of my friends that suffered to make it this fair and to everyone unfairly treated by the way Hell is now, my dream is to start things from scratch so Hell can be the great place Satan always intended it to be! Without discrimination, corruption, racism, deception... to start over with everything good and leave the bad in the past where it belongs!"

Vali breathed, having nothing left to say. For a while... nothing was said, and she didn't blame the silence, the very things she was fighting to get rid of where exactly what let people like the elders Lilith and the Great Devils hated but had little they could do to stop them without risking being turned into enemies thrive on them.

Just when the elders believed Vali had made a fool of herself and her support was next to if not nothing... a clap suddenly began, Issei doing so. Soon Vali's peerage followed, then most of the young Devils and eventually nearly everyone minus the elders and a select few were clapping. Lilith herself gave a proud smile as she soon did the same, and Vali looked before smiling.

'Grandpa... are you seeing this? Right now, at this moment, I'm truly carrying the will you left behind.' Vali thought, tearing up slightly as she smiled brighter.

'No way... why are so many supporting her!?' All of the elders thought.

"I'll admit it, that's a far-sighted goal. One that will take quite a large amount of time and work to accomplish, though it isn't impossible. It'll be interesting to see what will happen." Lilith commented, showing support for Vali's dream without showing favoritism to her granddaughter.

The elders all sneered at that, it was clear Vali would be a problem they'd need to take care of.

"And that brings us to the final announcement I have. For all these dreamers, I think it's time we see how willing they are to fight for these dreams. That's why it's been decided... we'll be having each one of them participate in a Rating Game Tournament!" Lilith exclaimed, shocking many.

"A tournament?" Kirin gasped.

Many of the Devils began to murmur about the event, and Lilith soon raised a hand to quiet them as she continued.

"And also, the Great Devils and I have all come to a unanimous decision. This tournament isn't without a reward, and that prize is, without even my authority able to stop or oppose it..." Lilith began, everyone watching intently due to her words before pausing.

Lilith then smiled, and she dropped the bomb.

"...that the winner will have their dream made into a reality!"

* * *

**That's right, you heard Lilith right. The one who wins the tournament has their dream made real and no one, not even Lilith herself, can give any opposition to it. That means even the dreams the elders don't want will be possible if the one who has it wins.**

**I hope that twist with the various gods joining sparked some attention, and I had a reason for it too, what's that reason? I didn't mention every God that's present at the moment and that relates to Vali's dream. To put it simply, Vali's words are essentially the in-universe reason for most of what will happen during the story's adaption of Volumes 7-12 (aka Seasons 4-6).**

**I did say I wanted to be daring and shake things up, and I figure having the tournament winner be allowed to have what they want would truly shake it because now everyone has a reason to fight hard and win it. That means both good and bad apples have a chance, and Vali's team is gonna have to keep an eye out because the Devil elders won't want her victory.**

**And yes, I have gender flipped a few deities, only the ones who haven't had official appearances though. This is a fanfic and I've seen some series that do it, plus technically DxD did it with Gabriel since officially she's a man in the bible, and Tsukuyomi isn't an uncommon gender flip target in DxD fanfics. Either way, I'm shaking things here :3**

**Get ready for next time, because a certain Rating Game match will begin! Also, for the next few chapters, I'll be showing who's in the other young Devils' peerages. So before we end things here, I'll show you Ineelana and Niruili's.**

**See you next time everyone, and stay awesome!**

* * *

**A/N: The theme for Ineelana's peerage is characters who have ice powers, short fused tempers or have an inferiority complex/look down on themselves and anything closely related**

** -Ineelana's Peerage- **

**King - Ineelana**   
**Queen - Murasaki**   
**Bishops - Yumi, Female OC**   
**Knights - Stella Vermillion (x2)**   
**Rooks - Sinon, Mine**   
**Pawns - Ophelia Landlufen (x8)**

* * *

**A/N: The theme for Niruili's peerage is characters who eat a lot but are still skinny, have strange tastes in foods or just eat food incredibly fast and anything related to being gourmands or food lovers**

** -Niruili's Peerage- **

**King - Niruili**   
**Queen - Reina Izumi**   
**Bishops - Lina Inverse (x2)**   
**Knights - Akame (x2)**   
**Rooks - Tohka Yatogami (x2)**   
**Pawns - Fang (x3), Orihime (x2), Natsu Dragneel (x3)**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Murasaki - Senran Kagura**

* * *

** -Crossover Peerage Member origin series- **

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki, Yumi**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Stella Vermillion**

**Sword Art Online - Sinon**

**Akame ga Kill - Mine, Akame**

**Asterisk War - Ophelia Landlufen**

**Myriad Colors Phantom World - Reine Izumi**

**Slayers - Lina Inverse**

**Date A Live - Tohka Yatogami**

**Fairy Fencer F - Fang**

**Bleach - Orihime**

**Fairy Tail - Natsu Dragneel**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona may be developing feelings**


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey everyone, before we get started... you should know why I didn't get a chapter up for a while despite my usual flow, and why for an unknown period of time I likely won't have my usual flow. You see... my grandmother just passed away, since I don't know when this chapter will officially be up, it was during the early afternoon of May 24th.**

**I wasn't particularly close to her, but it still hurts... the few days before it were where we expected things, so I simply couldn't focus at the time and I still can't now, so writing's gonna be difficult for a while. I kindly request that no asks me what did her in, truth is I don't actually even know and it could have been her clock just finally ran out, all I can say is disease wasn't the killer.**

**OK... *breathes* now that I have that out of the way, let's resume.**

**Alright, we'll be seeing the reactions to the reveal of the prize, more talk with the Gods including some character God talks, and you'll see why Irina needed to bring both Excaliburs she had with her. After all of that, we'll be starting the first Rating Game between a familiar pair of Devils, boy will this be fun! So, think you can guess what I'm gonna pull? Well... I doubt you will |B)**

**I'll also say while the Rating Game Tournament's going on, expect a lot of Deities to be popping in and out to see the festivities, some will be my own interpretations while others might be crossover versions, the only rules I've set are it needs to be a deity who's never directly appeared in the story, and if their gender is mentioned then I can't pull off the old gender flip like I did with Tsukuyomi last chapter, and a God who's a Goddess in this chapter.**

**Oh yeah, I think some of you noticed I added to the summary, I figured since I mentioned a while back that Vali is the protagonist and Issei's the deuteragonist, it was best that I actually mentioned it for people who are coming in to read the story.**

**Now with that cleared up, let's get this chapter started!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -The Devil Elders- **

**A particularly nasty group of Devils in the Underworld only below the Great Devils and Lilith herself, they thrive in improving their lifestyle at the cost of others and during the end of Satan's reign, began causing problems in the underworld that slipped under his nose. While Satan could have ended the problem, he was killed in the Great War before he could and the Elders continued to make a mess, even using the Civil War and the Evil Pieces to their advantage.**

**Lilith and the Great Devils are all aware of the truth of their actions, but they are only able to know to keep them in a loose leash as should they try anything, they expect and know the Elders will use it against them and somehow turn their own people against them somehow. One of the most notable of the Elders is Zekram Bael who considers the Bael clan's authority is only able to be exceeded by Lilith due to the current Great Devils not being actual descendants of the Devil names they've inherited.**

**Upon learning of her Great Granddaughter Vali, Lilith had a strong feeling that she, the only one left with Satan's blood yet not cruel or evil like Rizevim or his father, may be the only one who has the potential to finally root out the problems they've ruined all of Hell's society with. As such, she and the Great Devils prepared the ultimate gamble with the Rating Game tournament, hoping she and those she inspired can finally break the wall cannot... but the Devil Elders will not stand idle, and fight to keep their power.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Diodora Arc: Chapter 2 - The Tournament Begins _ **

"And that brings us to the final announcement I have. For all these dreamers, I think it's time we see how willing they are to fight for these dreams. That's why it's been decided... we'll be having each one of them participate in a Rating Game Tournament!" Lilith exclaimed, shocking many.

"A tournament?" Kirin gasped.

Many of the Devils began to murmur about the event, and Lilith soon raised a hand to quiet them as she continued.

"And also, the Great Devils and I have all come to a unanimous decision. This tournament isn't without a reward, and that prize is, without even my authority able to stop or oppose it..." Lilith began, everyone watching intently due to her words before pausing.

Lilith then smiled, and she dropped the bomb.

"...that the winner will have their dream made into a reality! No ifs, ands or buts about it! For this prize, all politics and what not will be damned! You literally have no limits but reality itself!"

Every young Devil heir and heiress' eyes go wide and white at the declaration, many Gods seemed impress by the bold declaration, while the Elders were steamed. They had good reason, Lilith had just walked around their red tape in a way it was impossible to use it against her without it backfiring on them, especially if one of the Devils with a more idealistic dream won.

"So, I take it that's motivated you all? Good. Most of the Devils and faction leaders in the alliance all thought this would spark." Lilith smiled, giving a smug smirk at the elders who all growled at her.

"Not to mention it works as a bonus. You'll all be getting training to be battle ready should the Khaos Brigade throw any unexpected attacks our way, and it'll force you all to get stronger for the chance to win. So I implore you all young Devils, see what the Ten Supernova's efforts are like and try to win this thing with all your strength!"

Soon Diehauser got his cue from Lilith who swiped her hands a certain way, causing him to walk onto the stage.

"I am Diehauser Belial, the current head of the Belial clan and current Rank 1 among the Rating Game. We've already decided the various brackets, so it is time I announce the first official battle in this tournament." Diehauser announced, getting everyone's attention. "We have chosen..."

Eyes focused more as everyone listened.

"...Rias Gremory and Sona Sitri!"

Both Rias and Sona show shock to that, as did Vali and all three of their peerages. At the very get go, one of them was going to be eliminated by the other.

"At the get go they're facing off? Aw man, talk about unlucky..." Issei noted, sweating a bit.

"And I think it's to be smart, make the Elders drop their guards. You've had to notice their faces, right?" Arthur inquired, and the others nodded. "It's obvious... they're the same kind of dirty politicians you'd find in real life but in a focused area. Sona's dream seems to work against things they favor, while Rias' seems more... beneficial to speak."

Everyone looks at Vali, and she simply nods.

"Whoa... so you're saying the problems here in Hell are all their mess? No wonder they looked pissed at what you and Sairaorg said, what you both want works against their lifestyles." Le Fay replied.

"Exactly, at the same time we need to consider the fact despite this, Sona's play style seems advantageous when faced against Rias' style. She prefers to fight with her group and focuses on a heavy attack rush." Arthur continued, soon focusing on the two heiresses. "Most of all, imagine if the one who has a disadvantage succeeds?"

"It would..." Yuuma began, soon gasping. "...make it harder for the Elders to try and fix match because any surprise result could get them caught!"

Arthur smirked slightly, confirming Yuuma's guess.

"Not to mention if someone with good intention wins the tournament, then that would help so many Devils, but said individual has to fight for it to make it a reality. Denying them that right after winning would do the same. It's a whole cross over red tape, but... it's a gamble to have the right Devil get the prize." Irina reasoned.

"Exactly, that's the reason it gets around the red tape. Because Lilith's not choosing an individual, she just chose the prize and now the point is seeing who gets to the lamp to make their wish in the end?" Vali noted.

After things quieted down, Lilith claps her hands.

"Since you'll all need time to prepare and see the other chosen matches, the Tournament won't officially begin until tomorrow. I wish you all luck and to enjoy the rest of tonight's festivities. As of tomorrow... let the games begin!" Lilith declared, making many cheer excitedly.

* * *

After everything calmed down from the announcement, Tsukuyomi was seen alongside her sister and brother, Amaterasu and Susanoo. Amaterasu was a young red haired woman with the appearance of the common "Yamato Nadeshiko" used to define an ideal Japanese woman, wearing a formal kimono as her outfit.

Susanoo on the other hand was... quite obese with red tinted skin and white hair in a white toga for his formal outfit, his scarfing of all the nearby didn't do any favors for his weight. Despite this, see him in battle and you'd learn why the so called "lazy god" managed to kill Orochi in the past. As Susanoo scarfed down more food, he suddenly noticed Kunou present.

"Hey girls, look who's over there!" Susanoo shouted, getting his sisters' attention. Kunou having recognized his voice turned and smiled before rushing over. "If it isn't little Kunou!"

"Lord Susanoo, and Lady's Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi!" Kunou shouted, soon feeling Susanoo squeeze her into a tight hung that'd normally break a human's ribs. After being put down she wobbled a bit. "As strong as ever Lord Susanoo... are Lord Izanagi and Lady Izanami with you?"

Tsukuyomi giggled at that.

"Oh, heck no, so much work came up recently from complaints, the two got bogged down in creating life and killing things! I'm sure mom wants to see dad for a massage at this point!" Tsukuyomi replied, making her sister and Kunou sweat drop.

"Anyways, how are you doing Kunou? I'm surprised so see you here? Did you come with your mom, if so where she?" Amaterasu asked, and suddenly Kunou's ears and tails drooped which told the Sun Goddess that something was wrong. "Oh no, what happened?"

Kunou fell forward, her head landing on Amaterasu's lap.

"...I'm here because my friend Vali had to save me by making me a Devil, my mom and I were attacked coming to see you. That tells me she didn't make it to you." Kunou revealed, catching Susanoo and Tsukuyomi's attention. "I still don't even remember everything that happened."

"Yasaka may have been kidnapped? What hubris is this!? Who would dare attack one of our greatest Yokai leaders, I will have their heads for-" Susanoo began before Tsukuyomi chucked some ham into his mouth.

"Oh no you don't, we're not repeating what happened to Amaterasu's fields again." Tsukuyomi said, tapping her foot on the ground. Susanoo flinched as Amaterasu gave him the same look before he sweat dropped.

"Alright, we'll send a look out for Yasaka. For now, it might be a good idea for us to tell your younger sister we have you both staying due to rumors about the Khaos Brigade in our residence. Once we get a sign of what happened, then we'll let her know. Best we don't worry her more than we should."

Kunou nods and hugs Amaterasu, who rubs her head.

"Don't worry, we'll take care of this. We know Vali will watch over you until then." Amaterasu smiled.

* * *

Athena, who was shown to be a girl with shoulder length black hair and a golden wreath while wearing a deep purple dress as her formal wear, stared at Artemis as she saw her down even more food, though out of irritation for dealing with Tsukuyomi's annoying antics from earlier, Athena tried to move the food away... only for her to have Artemis look at her.

"Uh..." Athena barely got out, sweat dropping at her sister's appetite. At that moment, the long silky golden haired Aphrodite giggled as she came into view wearing a pink rose by her ear and red formal wear that... well, best way to describe it was she wasn't afraid to really show anything off. "Oh, hey Aphrodite."

"I see our sister's eating more than normal, so which deity was it?" Aphrodite asked.

"Based on what Freyja told me, it was Tsukuyomi." Athena replied, making Aphrodite smile as she put a hand on her head and shook it. After some time passed, the sight of Irina passing by entered Athena's sight. "Hey wait, isn't that the girl we were asked to find?"

Aphrodite looked at Irina.

"Orange hair, twin tails, purple eyes and a sword on her back with a string on the side... yeah, that's Irina Shidou. You go talk to her, I'll go find Hephaestus and Hestia so they can start their work." Aphrodite confirmed, soon walking off as Athena walked after Irina, making Artemis turn confused... until she saw a familiar silver haired Lucifer.

"Hey Vali!" Artemis called out, the heiress of Lucifer suddenly flinched before trying to run off, only for Artemis to take out a rope and pull her back over. "If it isn't my old student, how's it been for ya?"

Vali shook nervously, a familiar training regimen flashing through her mind.

"Hey, why are you shaking like a leaf right now?"

"Uh... no offense Artemis, but ever since your training I've been a bit afraid to come into a certain distance with you." Vali replied, sweating a bit. Artemis snorted before laughing a bit.

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad. I only left you in the forest alone on occasion and in an area my arrows would shot anything that risked your life." Artemis answered, soon thinking. "Although I do admit I dropped you into that one canyon once."

Vali paled as she remembered falling into it.

"Then I left you in that flooded water with some alligators." Artemis continued.

Vali paled and shivered a bit, remember narrowly avoiding being bitten by the ferociously hungry reptiles.

"Oh, and then I sent you up into the sky on a few trips with a Pegasus." Artemis finished, smiling at the memory.

Vali outright shook as her body went white.

'That's only fun to you because you're the _hunting_ Goddess!' Vali thought, soon falling onto the ground and fainting. Making Artemis stare in shock.

"Huh? Maybe the memories were too exciting for her, I know they were for me!" Artemis smiled, unaware everyone who had listened to her knew she was completely wrong about her claim. Artemis soon went back to eating, Freyja staring from afar with a sweat drop.

'And that's the other reason she's a Goddess representing virginity, maybe hunting so much disconnects you from reality?' Freyja wondered.

* * *

Soon enough, Irina found herself in a specific room of the party hall as Athena lead her inside, seeing a pair of Goddesses appear as Aphrodite began to walk out.

"You might be surprised with what they'll be doing." Aphrodite stated, poking Irina on the nose to the Lucifer Knight's surprise. She turns to see her leave before noticing Athena smile and turn around as well.

"If you notice us after you leave, feel free to tell us how it went." Athena replied, soon following her sister.

Irina blinked as the vanished and soon took a look at the two Goddess before her, one had short red hair with a tail that reached down to her waist, crimson eyes or rather eye due to a black eye patch she wore over her rather sharp face. She wore a buttoned shirt that showed slender body and some of her cleavage, with black gloves, tight black pants and brown boots. She was the Greek Goddess of Smithing, Hephaestus.

The other girl had long flowing pink-scarlet hair and soft orange eyes, and a loose white and blue shirt with hanging sleeves. While wearing jean shorts with some wear and tear, some scorch marks, and even a few dirt and oil stains. She was the virgin Greek Goddess of Hearth and Architecture, Hestia. She swung down into view, getting a closer look at Irina.

"Ah, so this is the Holy Sword user of Excalibur, nice to meet you. Hestia and Hephaestus as your service." Hestia introduced.

"Oh, hello. Uh... I'm confused, why am I here?" Irina asked.

"That's simple, Lilith wanted us to consider doing a favor for you. That favor would be forging your Excaliburs together into one." Hestia answered, surprising the Angelic Devil. "And yeah, we can do it. That Valper idiot was all sloppy and wanted an explosion, worse is the blade was just too fragile."

Irina's eyes sparkled as Hestia reveals the other four Excalibur fragments minus Ruler, which was in Arthur's possession at the moment, hanging on a hidden section of the wall that she opened up.

"Thank you! Here, you can-" Irina began, only for Hestia to wag a finger. "Huh?"

"She wanted us to _consider_ a favor, if we actually do it depends on you. Why would you want the power that comes from fusing the Excaliburs, especially since unlike when it was forged, the fragments' new abilities will have made it stronger and more dangerous?" Hephaestus asked, soon glaring with her one visible eye.

"Do know depending on your answer, we might just leave."

Irina gulps, soon sweating as she tried to think of how to answer this. To have Excalibur's full power would be helpful, especially in the coming battles, and soon she takes a deep breath.

"For Issei's sake, I'm his childhood friend and I'm not letting myself lose to Vali! I want to be the sword by his side!" Irina declared, and after a bit...

"Yeah, this was a waste of time. We're leaving." Hephaestus claimed, making Irina pale as she walks by. Soon Irina collapsed to the ground. Hephaestus noticed Hestia staring at Irina. "You coming?"

Hestia kneeled by Irina, staring at her head.

"...You aren't gonna convince anyone with lies you know." Hestia replied, making Irina's eyes widen as she stared at the ground. Hephaestus stared, deciding to let this play out briefly.

"I get you're a Devil, and Devils represent sins, especially being a Knight of a Lucifer, the Devil clan of Pride and Wrath. In fact, no one's perfect even among beings like Angels and Gods. My brother learned that the hard way long ago, and I worry how things would have gone if he hadn't. Having Pride is fine, but tell me... is the pride you currently have worth it?"

Irina's eyes shake as Hestia breaks down on her.

"Pride that makes you lie, that's not the kind of pride you should have, it's the kind you're proud of. Pride from an achievement or a strong determination. Look at your King, her pride? The people that have been important in her life, even her wrath is noble, a focused she only uses when people threaten those tied to her pride. That's a pride worth fighting for, tell yourself... what pride is worth fighting for? You can give us one more answer, so will you lie... or be honest enough to drop the pride you have now for a better one?"

Irina shook, making the two Goddesses look at her, and soon she gripped the ground making slight skid marks.

"Damn it... alright fine! It's because Vali has a single goal on her mind, a goal that's as noble as any Angel's would be, and it's on a dangerous path! When I joined Vali as her Knight, I did it out of jealousy because she took Issei from me!" Irina replied, tearing up slightly as she did.

"I loved him for a long time but he got together with her... and I couldn't just give up on him! I want to help Issei, but before now I haven't bothered to actually be Vali's knight at all! Now that I've heard of her dream... I finally want to give her my strength! I can't do it like this, I need a weapon to clear the way! I feel so awful about how I've been now, I hate it... I hate it!"

The two look at her, and smile.

"...Looks like Lilith was right to believe you'd do it." Hephaestus stated, making Irina get up and look at her. "We agreed to forge it from the start, but she told us only to accept once you were willing to abandon your pride and truly show your honor as a Knight of Lucifer. It takes true courage to put yourself lower than someone else for their sake."

Irina gasped, this had been a test for her sake? She smiles as she gets up.

"Thank you so much!" Irina cried.

"Just know this, for right now we'll only forge Excalibur Mimic, Destruction and Blessing together for now. If you want us to add the others in, you need to prove yourself to your fellow Knight, this will also be how he'll trust you with Excalibur Ruler, understood?" Hestia asked, making Irina nod. "Alright, give us the blades and we'll get to work."

Irina soon unsheathed Excalibur Destruction and then turned Excalibur Mimic into its katana form.

"You have any particular preference for what you want the sword type?" Hephaestus asked.

"Hmm... I'd saw a mix between a one-handed sword and a katana." Irina answered, making the Goddess nod as she and Hestia began their work.

Irina watched as bit by bit, they slowly turned the two blades into their base metals and cores while adding some new materials and metals to it, after this the work mainly went to Hephaestus who began to hammer it into a certain shape and form which was the form of a holy looking one-handed sword that had a katana aspects to its design.

"Alright, the body's been forged. Now time for you to give it life Hestia." Hephaestus stated, making the Goddess reply as she formed a blue flame on her hand. Hephaestus put the blade in some water to cool it off and laid it out.

Hestia soon touched the steel of the blade with the finger holding the blue flame, then ran it across it as a bunch of blue runes form, before the colorless blade suddenly gained a gold and white color scheme with marks of blue on it.

"Hmm... so how does it look?" Hestia asked.

"Yep, that'll do it. We just forged a new Excalibur from three of its parts." Hephaestus smiled, handing the blade to Irina who held it and got a feel for it. "So how is it?"

Irina swung the blade a bit, and soon smiled.

"Yeah, this feels right. So... what should I call it? It's not any of the Excaliburs that made it anymore." Irina smiled, soon wondering what to label her new weapon.

"Hmm... you're King is the Hakuryuukou and the boy you care for is the Sekiryuutei, and they're striving to be more than what they are now. Only two Dragons exceed Ddraig and Albion, so..." Hestia began, soon smiling at the idea she had.

"Let's name it after the title those two Dragons share, this is the _Excalibur DxD_, the Excalibur wielded by the Knight who aids both Heavenly Dragons to greater heights. That sound good?"

Irina looks at it.

"Excalibur DxD... yeah, that feels right somehow. Thank you both so much! I promise, I'll work hard and prove myself worthy to inherit the other four fragments." Irina replied, soon heading to find the rest of her peerage. Hestia smiles and looks at Hephaestus.

"You know, I get the feeling people like her are gonna be just what this world needs in the coming days." Hestia replied, making the Goddess of Smithing nod with her own smile.

* * *

After a few more hours passed, the festivities ended as everyone began heading back to their respective homes due to the sun beginning to set in Hell and the Human world. The Lucifer, Gremory and Sitri peerages all heading home via Lilith's magic circle.

"Well, I'm gonna crash early. I had a lot of work to do today and tomorrow and the next week or so after's not gonna be any different." Lilith replied, soon heading towards her room. After this, Rias and Sona looked at Vali.

"We'll be heading to our rooms as well, we'll be facing off against one another tomorrow in the first Rating Game after all." Sona replied.

"Yeah, I don't wanna play favorites so I'll only say this... hold nothing back, one of you will lose so at least show everyone you gave it everything you did in your attempt to win." Vali said, flashing a thumb's up. "That way you've got no regrets."

The Gremory and Sitri heiress both smile before heading to their rooms, their peerages doing the same as they began their planning. Meanwhile with Vali's peerage, the heiress of the Lucifer clan sat on the couch and pouted it to let the others know to join her on it.

"Alright, I think before we do anything, we should all see firsthand who our most dangerous opponent will be." Vali revealed, soon using a magic circle to play a video recording of a previous Rating Game. It soon showed a video of Sairaorg and Zephyrdor in a Rating game match. "This was before Kirin joined him, but it shows us all of his peerage."

As the video plays, Vali's peerage first sees his first two pieces. The first, tall lanky man, transformed into a black Dragon and smashed through the defenses of Zephyrdor's peerage while the second, a 3-meter tall man with a monster like face managed to boost his muscle mass and walk through the magic fire of Zephyrdor's bishops before smashing the ground and scattering them.

"These are his Rooks. Ladora Bune and Gandoma Balam, the former is a descendant of the extinct Bune household which had the power to change into Dragons, while Gandoma is a member of the Balam clan which can give themselves superhuman strength." Vali explained.

Soon an armored man riding what looked to be the Pale horse rushed through the battlefield, eventually making duplicates of himself as he did. While Zephyrdor's pawns all prepared themselves, they were suddenly forced to the ground as a blonde haired man's eyes suddenly had their pupils turned into multiple overlapping rings and increased gravity on them.

"Then there's his Knights. Beruka Furcas and Liban Crocell, the former is a member of the Furcas clan which can tame horses, his being the Pale Horse, while the latter is a part human descendant of the extinct Crocell household wields the sacred gear Gravity Jail. It's basically Gasper's sacred gear, but with gravity."

The next pieces to be revealed began with a man who quickly blinked across the battlefield like a mirage, as one of Zephyrdor's knights went after him, the sight of a staff appears in the man's hands and suddenly said knight felt his power get sealed by the staff as it turned into light and placed markings that cursed him. Then afterwards, a woman with wavy blonde hair in a business suit unleashed a storm of various magic that stormed the enemy in the form of spears.

"These are his Bishops. Misteeta Sabnock and Coriana Andrealphus, the former is a human descendant of the Sabnock clan who could move like a mirage and uses the Sacred Gear Trick Vanish, a staff that seals the enemy's powers. The latter is a descendant of the Andrealphus family, her clan power Battle Festival lets her make magic turn into dead weapons."

Soon Kuisha was seen taking the stage against Zephyrdor's queen, and as the latter prepared a blast of fire magic, Kuisha snapped and opened a hole to create a portal behind the enemy Queen. He turned in shock, only to be blasted by his own magic and retired.

"That's Kuisha Abaddon, she's a member of the Abaddon clan that's part of the Extra Demon clans. Her clan ability is called Power of Hole it's kinda like my Primal Abyss if it was more like a Wormhole than a black hole. Plus, it's more of a support type ability than an offensive one."

Then finally came Sairaorg's last piece, his other pawn which was inside some kind of cloak. It simply stomped the ground, splitting the earth beneath it as it tossed most of Zephyrdor's remaining pieces across the sky.

"And... well to be honest no one knows who that is at all, but he was worth 7 of Sairaorg's pawns." Vali finished, soon showing the last bit with Sairaorg. "Now watch close, this is how strong Sairaorg is despite being a Bael with no Power of Destruction."

* * *

_-Begin Recording-_

Zephyrdor stared with a sweat at Sairaorg, and soon growls.

"Damn you! If this is it, then I'm going out guns blazing!"

"Then bring it on!" Sairaorg smirked, getting into a fighting position.

"Bastard!" Zephyrdor screamed, throwing a storm of Devil power at Sairaorg... only for the heir of Bael to punch through the magic by coating his fists in Touki! "He blocked it!"

Sairaorg makes a position to jump.

"It's my turn now." Sairaorg declared, soon jumping after him. Zephyrdor formed multiple barriers in a row... only for Sairaorg to destroy all of them before his fist crashed into Zephyrdor and swung him at the ground. That ended the match.

_-Record End-_

* * *

"Holy crap... he can use Touki?" Kuroka asked in surprise.

"Wow, that was a flawless victory, no wonder he's consider the strongest among the Young Devils." Bikou noted, sweating at the sight. "Fighting against him early on would mean we'd probably get our asses kicked."

Most of the group nods in agreement.

"And that's not including Kirin, not to mention his peerage has a strong bond. Like I said before, peerages tend to be similar to their master, and this case... everyone in Sairaorg's including himself are shunned by the people of Hell. That's why he declared the dream he did." Vali revealed.

"Wait, shunned? But why would they be? Why Sairaorg no less, isn't he the Bael heir?" Kunou asked.

"That's part of this messed up system I need to destroy with my own wish. The extinct clans? They aren't really extinct because everyone in them died, it's the fact they couldn't keep their bloodlines pure due to the losses in the Great War." Vali explained, sighing a bit.

"I get we need to keep many pure blood Devils to avoid our race being descendants of Devils, but this only causes more conflict and eventual destruction over our own. That's just the story behind some of his peerage though. Sairaorg himself is shunned due a punishment my great grandpa used on my grandpa Rizevim."

Issei recalled that Lilith's Primal Abyss.

"Is that related to why Lilith can use the Primal Abyss despite being a Lucifer by marriage only?" Issei asked.

"Exactly Issei, and why the Great Devils have the same powers as the claim names they inherited. A punishment a Devil can face is having their clan ability stripped away. Satan took my grandpa's Primal Abyss and gave it to Lilith when they disowned him." Vali answered, sighing again.

"Unfortunately, that eventually lead to it being shameful if you were born without your clan ability. While Rias lacks the Gremory clan's ability, she avoids this because she has the Bael clan ability in its place."

"Whoa... the Devil world is in a big mess, isn't it?" Yuuma asked, and Vali nodded. "Don't worry, we'll help you win this tournament!"

Vali smiles at that, and soon... everyone suddenly sees a magic circle appear in the house. One that Vali recognized.

"Astaroth... of course, and I think it's obvious which one it is." Vali glared.

And speaking of the Devil, quite literally even, Diodora Astaroth makes his appearance in the room.

"Salutations everyone, how lovely to see you all." Diodora greeted, though Vali kept her annoyed glare present as she shifted her position and crossed her legs.

"So what do you want?" Vali asked, meanwhile besides her, Asia was a bit shaken. Issei grabbed his hand to comfort her... missing the brief glare Diodora's eyes gave as they briefly opened up.

"Shall we proceed to business? I'd like to offer a Bishop trade." Diodora requested.

That claim shocked the entire group while Vali kept the same expression, soon uncrossing her legs as she focused her glare on him more.

"You want to trade for Asia, don't you?" Vali stated bluntly, clearly stating it as a fact and not a question. Asia shaking noticeably as Issei tightened his grip on her hand.

"Am I really that transparent?" Diodora chuckled, soon showing magic circles with long blue haired girl and a blonde haired girl with a bow in her hair, both wearing the same outfits as the other. Vali noticed this, and the fact they seemed familiar. "I assure you it's a fair exchange, both are-"

"Denied." Vali replied instantly, making it clear she was not interested in the slightest. "I'm guessing you didn't hear a thing about what my great grandma said, the Ten Supernovas do not trade their household members. Asia is like a sister to me, so don't even try."

Asia smiled at that claim.

"In fact, using this to try and get the girl who turned down your marriage proposal only proves how little you understand her. If that's all you have to talk about, get out of here... now." Vali stated harshly, her entire peerage clearly feeling her chilling aura form as a warning sign.

"How very disappointing, very well. I'll respect you have no interest in such an offer. However, I won't let that dissuade me." Diodora answered, soon standing up. He walked to Asia and took her hand to her discomfort. "Our meeting and reunion were both predestined, I'll never give up. I love you Asia."

Vali growled and stood up, putting a hand on Diodora's shoulders.

"Hey, back off now Diodora or-"

Suddenly to everyone's surprise, Diodora sweated Vali's hand off him. His eyes open again as if to make a point.

"Know your place half-breed, I can't stand being touched by a filthy Dragon like yourself." Diodora stated, covering his mouth after the contact. Everyone was angry but stood down since Vali didn't react to it. "How revolting it must be for Lord Satan and Lady Lilith to have a-"

It only took a few moments for Vali to suddenly punched Diodora across the room and into the wall through striking his gut, now it was clear that he had touched a nerve he shouldn't have even neared.

'She's pissed now!" Everyone thought, Diodora soon getting up as he and everyone else saw Vali without the light in her eyes and a strong yet dark glow to them.

"Listen here Diodora, if you insult that I'm half Human then I won't care, if you insult that I'm the wielder of a Dragon I won't care either. I've faced those insults enough to not even care about them. However..." Vali continued, looking closer at Diodora with her glowing eyes.

"...If you insult my great grandparents through insulting me, that's when you cross the line. I'm warning you now, pull that crap again and I won't hesitate to end your life, is that understood... Dio- no, Diarrhea Astaroth?"

Issei jaw dropped at that insult of his name, while Diodora got up and simply brushed himself off.

"Yes, my apologies. I took that last comment too far." Diodora apologized, though it was clearly fake. Soon she pointed a finger at Vali. "This isn't over Hakuryuukou, we'll pick where we left off in the next Rating Game. It's been decided we will be fighting each other in the first round. When I win, I hope you'll accept my love, my darling Asia."

Diodora disappeared in a magic circle, and soon afterwards... Vali just stood there.

"Vali... are you alright?" Issei asked.

"No, I'm not... I never thought I'd feel this way towards anyone, but that moment I honestly wanted to murder him." Vali answered, her fist tightening. "...Albion, is it-"

**"(Calm yourself Vali, everyone in the world has someone they wish they'd want dead. That's an example of what it's like to be truly angry or to hate. Most never actually go any further, and it would be better to humiliate him so he'll remember it.)"**

Vali sighed and nodded.

"OK, if he's our next opponent then only one thing to do everyone... kick his sorry ass!" Vali declared.

"YEAH!" The Lucifer peerage all cheered. At the same time, Vali takes a look at the tournament brackets and sees Diodora was their first opponent, however they had some better news luckily.

"Alright, we're in luck everyone. Sairaorg's on the other side of the brackets. We won't have to worry about him until the finals, although... depending on who wins their game, Sona and Rias will have to face us." Vali confirmed, making everyone look. This is where the game begins everyone... so let's give it our all."

* * *

Soon the following day had come, and everyone was at a certain location watching a live feed of the first Rating Game Tournament match. As everyone did, the announcer made his appearance, revealing it was Naud Gamigan from the Vali vs Riser game.

_"Welcome everyone! My name's Naud Gamigan of Hell's media department, and I have been selected as the announcer for the Rating Game tournament!"_ Naud announced, making everyone in Hell cheer.

_"We welcome everyone to the Rating Game tournament, and this exciting first match! Now before we begin, let me introduce today's honored guest, coming from the Hindu pantheon, I introduce to you..."_

Naud clears his throat, and jolly laughter is heard. Soon, he moved to the side as from above, a muscular man wearing a red and yellow elephant mask and long, shaggy, ash-brown hair, drops into view. He wore an orange sash that went over his right shoulder and wrapped around his waist. A Gold rimmed, leather plate sits on his stomach, holding the garb together.

He also sported white pants with dark brown under the knee boots that also had gold accents. He had lots of jewelry on hand, also wearing as a thick gold necklace and arm bands alongside gold rimmed gauntlets.

_"Thank you one and all for letting me attend as your first Guest announcer!"_ The god declared, soon posing. _"It is I! Lord! Ganesha!"_

Soon the Hindu pantheon's members all showed excitement as Naud adjusted his outfit.

_"Thank you for that Ganesha, that was a good way to wake everyone up. Now... let us introduce this match's rivaling Devils!"_ Naud announced, soon holding his hand out. _"You saw her push Riser to his knees at nearly unfavorable odds, and she's like a mother to her peerages. I give you... Rias Gremory!"_

Soon coming in from one side of the arena, Rias and her peerage walked into view.

_"And now on the other side, she's got a keen intellect and has education for all classes on the mind, the Devil of cold waters that calculates victory with every piece of info she can gather... here comes Sona Sitri!"_ Ganesha announced loudly.

The other side of the arena soon showed Sona and her peerage walk into view, and with both sides out they stopped in place and stared down each other.

_"For this match, the arena of choice is a copy of Hell's Dragon mountains! The match type? It's none other than a new one we just created called the Hidden King! That means the Kings of each peerage must choose someone to take over the King's condition of defeat meaning instant victory!"_ Naud announced.

That shocked everyone, it was a complete twist on the usual rules, even Rias and Sona were caught off guard.

_"Now, get ready to choose who to take over as your pseudo-king and once you do..."_ Naud announced, closing his eyes for dramatic effect.

_"...The game will begin!"_

* * *

**And things are about to heat up! Let's see where this goes, cause it's a fight for the top to make one dream out of hundreds become a reality. How far will everyone get? Who'll cry, who'll stand tall, who will lose happily? Emotions are gonna be flying out here!**

**So we had Kunou meet the Shinto trio, leading to Season 5 when Volume 9's events adapt into the story, let's hope they get a lead on what happened to Yasaka soon. If anyone asks what Tsukuyomi meant, I feel the real life Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi's marriage caused their issues, so in this story they made night and day as part of an act to heal Izanami, so she's not a corpse anymore but still has her job as a Death God.**

**Yikes, that was a painful training session you went through their Vali, and yes... Artemis is somewhat disconnected to how brutal her regimen is because she's the Hunting Goddess, someone like that isn't gonna realize most people can't handle those vigorous challenges the same way, Vali was probably lucky in hindsight ^^;**

**I bet that scene with Irina was a surprise though, I think you've noticed that her and Vali's running gag isn't showing as often this season, well... that's kinda because it's the same as the Raynare curse, it'll fade eventually once Irina accepts that she has to move on. Either way, she's become more serious as Vali's Knight now. I didn't give her new Excalibur all the powers for a reason.**

**I feel in canon, the True Excalibur appeared way too quickly, so I figured Irina should earn each additional blade to forge into the fused Excalibur until she can get all seven, especially since Arthur has Ruler on hand and kept out of reach for good reason. I'll say that she'll get Transparency next, then Nightmare, then Rapidly before she earns Excalibur Control.**

**Wow Diodora... that was dumb, even for you. I think any Devil would have known that you shouldn't indirectly insult Satan or Lilith, much less to anyone related to them which Vali just happens to be. He deserved that punch and that's a taste of what he'll be owed eventually. Well, now they've just gotta play the waiting game to pay karma onto him.**

**Anyways, next time... the fabled Rias vs Sona game begins! Why did I choose Ganesha as the first guest? Well, watch the second and third episodes of "Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?" and you'll see why, I figure who better to start the Tournament as a guest announcer than him? He's not afraid to get loud or shout with enthusiasm, and I like it ^^**

**Thanks for reading today's chapter, see you next time... and stay awesome everyone!**

* * *

**A/N: The theme for Gebedon's peerage is characters who are good looking, Casanovas, flirty or popular and anyone who unintentionally attracts others the opposite gender**

** -Gebedon's Peerage- **

**King - Gebedon**   
**Queen - Yoko Littner**   
**Bishops - Fate Testarossa (x2)**   
**Knights - Sanji, Ikki Kurogane**   
**Rooks - Guiche, Elfman**   
**Pawns - Ayato Amagiri (x4), Lubbock (x4)**

* * *

**A/N: The theme for Suzattin's peerage is characters who are capable but lazy, unskilled but strong, usually tired or don't fight in a serious manner and possibly hiding hidden potential they may not even know of**

** -Suzattin's Peerage- **

**King - Suzattin**   
**Queen - Saya Sasamiya (Mutation Piece)**   
**Bishops - Nanoha Takamachi (x2)**   
**Knights - Welf Crozzo, Yuuki Konno**   
**Rooks - Leone (x2)**   
**Pawns - Gowther (x8)**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Hephaestus - Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?**

**Ganesha - Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?**

* * *

** -Crossover Peerage Member origin series- **

**Gurren Lagann - Yoko Littner**

**Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Fate Testarossa, Nanoha Takamachi**

**One Piece - Sanji**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Ikki Kurogane**

**Familiar of Zero - Guiche**

**Fairy Tail - Elfman**

**Asterisk War - Ayato Amagiri, Saya Sasamiya**

**Akame ga Kill - Lubbock, Leone**

**Is it wrong to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon - Welf Crozzo**

**Sword Art Online - Yuuki Konno**

**Seven Deadly Sins - Gowther**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona may be developing feelings**


	26. Chapter 26

**Hey everyone, I want to apologize for taking so long to make an update. I mentioned this in my Date A Re:Live story, and not everyone who reads this story reads that one, so not all of you may have seen it. My grandma's funeral happened on the 27th, and due to being in a church at the time... I just couldn't make myself work on anything DxD related.**

**I've still been unable to get past this stage, but I knew you might want to know what's going on, so I decided that I'd write this short Omake chapter in the meantime to at least give you an all update and let you know what's going on, and know the story is still going. For now, it's just an unexpected hiatus until I'm able to regain the bearings I use when writing this story.**

**Also, I had another reason I wanted to get something up today. Today, or June 1st to anyone who reads this chapter after the day passes... IS MY BIRTHDAY! *blows a noise maker* I'm excited! First thing I say, no one ask me how old I am, you never ask a girl her age. All I'll say is I'm my early teen years, or is it early-mid teen years now? Meh, details. It's my birthday and that's what I'm excited about!**

**So, what is this Omake about exactly? Well, I wasn't able to think of anything new considering the whole issue above, so I did something and realized there are some scenes in the story that happened off screen and should probably show you even if they're incredibly short. As a result, I'm going to make the first ADBH Omake show you all how Yuuma became part of Vali's peerage.**

**This will be short, but a short update's better than none, so I hope you like seeing this previously off-screen moment ^^**

* * *

** -Yuuma Amano- **

**A pure-blood Fallen Angel birthed from Fallen Angels of the Armaros faction, and the younger sister of Raynare Amano. Yuuma has always been a shy and easily shaken individual, averse to violence and prefer to avoid fights that aren't necessary, a trait that was looked down apart on the Armaros faction due to being a more combat oriented faction within Grigori's ranks.**

**In an attempt to avert this, she was forced to work as a brief aid to the Kokabiel faction, but it completely backfired and Yuuma's shyness was shaped into outright timidity. She'd only find any friends who'd understand and support her in the Penemue faction in Kalawarner and Mittelt, and eventually she intended to join the Armaros faction... until her sister began to change, scaring her so badly she chose to join the Azazel Faction instead despite how cowardly it made her seem.**

**Eventually, Yuuma would begin some studies over Sacred Gears and then later meet Issei Hyoudou after learning of a danger that may threaten him, one that went against Azazel's orders to watch him. From there, the story of Yuuma's role as a member of Vali's peerage would slowly unravel as she learns to stand on her own feet and become more than the timid and cowardly Fallen Angel she had always been.**

* * *

** _DxD Omake - How Yuuma joined Vali's peerage_ **

Yuuma was standing in damaged structure of the abandoned church, a somber look on her face as she noticed a single burnt father on the ground. She picked it up, and it was clear who the fire came from, but only a Fallen Angel close to another could recognize or tell the difference between their feathers.

And this feather? It was one of them, because... it was the only feather of Raynare's left, the only part of her that survived her death by Issei's awakening. Despite how awful she had become, how much her changes made her hate her... Yuuma still couldn't stop the pain of her death, no matter what she couldn't erase family.

"Damn it Raynare, why? Why did you go down this road?" Yuuma cried, covering her eyes with her free hand. "Why were you so stupid!?"

Yuuma squeezed the feather in her hand before letting its crumpled form drop to the ground, she soon walked away from the church, as she did... she had been unaware of the one survivor to escape the Primal Abyss as he finally crawled inside from a secret entrance.

"Damn it... damn it all!" Dohnaseek coughed, glaring at the wall. "They... will all pay!"

* * *

Yuuma began walking back to the warehouse docks she had made her temporary residence, after she had reached it she sat herself down before making a call via a magic circle. Azazel's form appeared as a projection from it, causing him to look at her.

"Ah, Yuuma. I'm guessing this is a status update or a mission report?" Azazel asked.

"Yeah, mission complete... Asia Argento was saved and is now your daughter's Bishop, you should probably expect her to bring Asia home. Also, Raynare and the rogue Fallen angels are all gone as well. I think Issei unlocked his Sacred Gear as well." Yuuma replied, making Azazel sigh in relief before smiling.

"That's good to here, I'll see you back here soon." Azazel stated, however before he cut the line... Yuuma held out a hand. "Oh, something else you need to say?"

Yuuma sighed before she answered.

"Lord Azazel, I've decided... that I'm going to leave Grigori." Yuuma replied, surprising Azazel a bit. "I'm sorry, but after today... I just can't go back. What happened with my sister? It's just too hard for me to live like a Fallen Angel now, and that's something I'll be forced to live with. I know it sounds selfish but-"

"Yuuma, I understand. No matter how horrible she was the fact she was your sister can't be erased, or the feeling you had to lead the events that killed her. I won't make you stay." Azazel answered, making Yuuma smile at him. "Do you have a plan though? If you don't have some idea on where you'll be going, you could end up killed."

Yuuma thought.

"Not yet, but... I've been considered a few ideas. Don't worry too much. Yuuma out." Yuuma answered, soon hanging up. "...What am I saying? I don't know where I'll go, or even what I want. I'm probably just going to wait for something to happen and then just fade away."

Yuuma slumped a bit before falling asleep.

* * *

Vali waved goodbye to Issei and Asia, the former offering to take the later home as Vali went to go pick up some groceries.

"Alright, let's see what I need again..." Vali asked herself, taking out the list and soon reading over it. After looked over it fully she smiled and put it away. "Right, now it's time to start-"

At that moment, Vali bumped into someone and rubbed her head.

"Ow! Oh crap, I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean... to..." Vali apologized, soon realizing she and Yuuma were looking at each other. "Yuuma? Why are you still here, I thought you'd return to Grigori?"

"Oh, uh... I left Grigori the other day. I'm not going back." Yuuma said sadly, making Vali blink in surprise. "It's just too hard after what happened."

Vali frowned slightly, but realized exactly what she meant.

"I see... guess her death hit you harder than you expected it to, didn't it?" Vali asked, making Yuuma nod.

"I don't know what I'm gonna do now, it's so hard to live as a Fallen Angel now. I think I might-" Yuuma began, but soon remembered about the Evil Pieces... and that Vali still had plenty of them. She grabbed the heiress of Lucifer by the shoulders. "Vali!"

"W-what? What is it!?" Vali said surprised.

"Please... I beg of you, let me join you!" Yuuma declared, making Vali stare at her. "Please, make me part of your peerage! Make me into a Dev-"

Vali slapped a hand over Yuuma's mouth, making the Fallen remember they were in public.

"...Oops." Yuuma blushed, realizing her goof. Vali pulled her someone more private right at that second before stopping there.

"You seriously want to become a Devil?" Vali asked.

"I... I don't know what I want, but... I don't know. Meeting you, Issei and Asia... I don't think that was a coincidence now. My sister's involvement, my own insecurities and doubt... maybe this is it?" Yuuma answered, looking at her with shining eyes and a serious look. "So please... I don't care if I'm just your pawn, let me join you! I beg you!"

Vali stared at her, and realized for the first time since she had known Yuuma... she had some level of confidence, she was standing on her own feet for something she believed in the best she could and to change herself for the better. That kind of determination?

It was something the rest of her peerage shared with her, even the recent additions of Issei and Asia. Maybe Yuuma was right about their meeting not just being chance.

"Alright, if you really want this then I'll let you join me." Vali answered, making Yuuma gasp. "I don't know why, but I feel a strong fire in you. One I'd like to see blaze into a bright light. So, let's walk our paths together."

Yuuma teared up, soon hugging the silver haired Devil to her surprise.

"W-whoa! Slow down there Yuuma, easy." Vali chuckled.

After a bit, Vali took out her pieces and soon held them up until she saw she needed at least two pawns. Yuuma gasped a bit at the fact she needed two.

"Two pawns? Interesting, I think there's some potential you'll find one day Yuuma." Vali said, soon placing the pawns on her. In just a moment, Yuuma felt her body twitch as the pieces entered her and changed her, finally ending with Devil wings popping out of her back as she turned to see them. "Congrats Yuuma, you're a Devil now."

Yuuma smiles brightly.

* * *

The following day, a drowsy looking Yuuma walks out to meet up with Issei, Vali and Asia as the silver haired Lucifer began training the Sekiryuutei, hoping to help him develop his newly awakened power. She soon got close enough to see them.

"No problem." Issei replied. Soon after that, he heard something through the bushes and noticed Yuuma walk into view, stretching as if she just woke up, or forced herself to. "Wait, Yuuma? What are you doing here?"

"Well, I am part of Vali's peerage after all. Why wouldn't I be?" Yuuma asked, then noticing Issei's shocked expression while Vali blinked before face palming. The heiress of Lucifer realizing what she had forgotten to tell Issei earlier. "...Vali, did you-"

"Yeah, I was too focused on Issei's magic training. I guess now's a good time so... surprise Issei! Yuuma's my new Pawn, or two of them to be specific." Vali answered, rubbing her cheek in a sheepish manner. As if to confirm it, Yuuma showed her new Devil wings to Issei.

"After what happened with my sister... I just can't bring myself to go back to Grigori again, and it was hard to really live as a Fallen Angel with that fact. So, I begged Vali to let me join her." Yuuma explained, her face a bit somber when mentioning Raynare. She soon bowed her head. "So... please take care of me from now on Issei, Asia!"

"Sure thing, but no need to be so nervous around us." Issei answered, Yuuma sweat dropped at that response.

Yuuma soon looked at the scene before her and smiled a bit.

'I don't know where things will go from here, but...' Yuuma thought, watching the smiles on Vali, Issei and Asia's faces. She gave a silent giggle as she brightened her own smile in response to it. 'I've been given a new start, as a Pawn of Lucifer.'

* * *

**There you have it, that's the story on how Yuuma became the first if Vali's Pawns, and also showing how Dohnaseek came back for the Season 2 finale. Too bad for him he does when he finally does. *snickers a little***

**I know it wasn't much and this chapter was small... but I swear once I get through this small block over what happened with the funeral a while back I'll get to work on resuming the main story. When I do, I'll make sure to make the Rias vs Sona Rating Game amazing!**

**Thanks for your patience and understanding, and I'll make sure I can resume this story to, because I'm not gonna give up on it!**


	27. Chapter 27

**OH MY GOD FINALLY! This took forever! I mean it too, I was unable to get a chapter up for this story for such a long time, I ended up completing the entire 2nd Season of my DAL fanfic, now only the movie chapters are left. What finally got me to finally figure out a way to update this story? I had to do another DxD fanfic, which in case you don't follow me is called "The Calamity of the Abyssal Nexus Dragon", and is that what-if fanfic I told you all about during Chapter 22's start notes.**

**Some characters from this story will end up appearing in there, in fact my OC Kirin is a main character alongside Issei (who unlike this story IS the protagonist) and Vali, there's even a character I've been trying to introduce in this story that's appeared in if. If things go well, I'll be revealing her in this chapter... 0_0 *gulps* please let things go well, please! I wanna introduce her before the good chances for her all get passed because I keep messing up on them! *breathes* Sorry, got carried away there ^^;**

**Well, now that I've got that out of the way... let the Rating Game between Rias and Sona finally begin! Also, due to said focus on the DAL fanfic, please forgive me if I'm a bit OOC with everyone, I still need to get back in the swing. So, who's gonna win, and who's gonna lose? More importantly, who did each side choose as their King under the special rules of their match? I can only say it isn't Rossweisse for Rias, as choosing their newest member is too predictable to Sona.**

**As for Sona, well... actually due to this chapter's Concept Talk, I don't think I'm gonna be able to hide it. By now you know if I put something there, it'll be important eventually, I mean sure... I could move it into the next chapter, but I was already so off if I do that, I might forget the info. *bows* My apologies everyone, but I think most of you want this story to resume so please bear what's a potential spoiler just this once! Most of you know it is right below, so you there's also just skipping it until after you've read the chapter.**

**As for how swapping the King status affects everyone? The King doesn't get any enhancements and the one made King for the game keeps their pieces' boosts, this prevents the other side by realizing who it is because if Rias chose Akeno and suddenly had a knight speed, but also stronger magic, that would make it clear that she swapped with Akeno. This match rule is made so only the actual Kings can't be the King.**

**Now before we start, I have one last thing to apologize for, I thought what happened with my grandma might have been why I couldn't update, but now I realize I was too focused on showcasing everyone in the Rating Game fighting, and my choice of a rule didn't help, truth be told... I thought I might have to make a side story and put the actual fight once I could make it in that story, and skip ahead just to even resume this one!**

**In the end, I realized what I needed to do for this chapter if I were to continue the story... I had to focus on who got picked as the kings. Don't worry, you'll still see some of the others fighting, but they'll be brief scenes with each side's chosen King candidates having their fight take most of the chapter's focus. I apologize once again, I didn't realize how tough writing this chapter would be until I had actually reached it, and I didn't want to have to edit the prior chapters or reboot the arc just to work around some issues.**

**With that, let me give you all an important lesson I got from AzureStoryTeller when I talked to him about why I might be having trouble. "Be careful not to shoot yourself in the foot with your writing", what it basically means is be careful that you don't accidentally write yourself into a corner, and depending on the situation you have to either keep pushing until you break through it or risk disappointment from readers who may have been expecting something you mentioned. It can be a tough decision to get through.**

**Alright, with that out of the way, let's get started. I should let you know I'm trying to test out a new writing style that I may or may not keep using from here on, so you might notice this chapter looking a bit different than usual. It shouldn't be a major change though, except for maybe how long I start making my sentences... if that actually counts as changing your writing style that is ^^;**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Cursed Killer Muramasa- **

**A sword type Sacred Gear wielded by Tomoe Meguri, it was once a blade that eventually became a cursed sword, however the curses behind it were so powerful that eventually they were able to forcefully evolve the blade into a Sacred Gear. This sword is most often seen in its sheathed form, a red and black scabbard that seeps darkness out of the scabbard.**

**When the sword is finally drawn out of its sheath, a black and red blade that emanates the darkness that seeps through the scabbard is revealed, and the sword's full untamed power is unleashed onto the world. Tomoe often keeps the blade sheathed and states she should only draw it if absolutely necessary, a feat to this day she has never done.**

**The Sacred Gear's nature has detrimental effects on a Human host, stated to make them very ill and give them short lifespans, the cursed power not being meant to be handled by a creature other than a Demon or a Devil, making it considered one of the most feared of Sacred Gears and the nicknamed the "Cursed Sacred Killer" for its powers and side effects on its chosen hosts.**

* * *

** _Season 3, Diodora Arc: Chapter 3 - Gremory-Sitri Showdown!_ **

_"Now, get ready to choose who to take over as your pseudo-king and once you do..."_ Naud announced, closing his eyes for dramatic effect.

_"...The game will begin!"_

The crowd cheered loudly, while each peerage quickly huddled together as they made their decision. The Gremory team the first in focus.

"Rossweisse, you know a bit of strategy, what would you recommend?" Rias asked.

"Let's see, I'd definitely be the bad choice in this scenario, since I'm new to your peerage it would be too expected. Yet at the same time, Sona knows most of our techniques and tricks, so everyone else is won't have anything to surprise them." Rossweisse calculated, soon taking another thought.

"Unless... does one of us have something, even if its small and very little, that Sona might not know about? That could be used to our advantage." Rossweisse asked.

Everyone looked at each other, and soon Jeanne cleared her throat, getting their attention.

"Actually, one of us does have something Sona's never seen. In fact, the whole reason she hasn't seen it is because she's very terrible remembering she has it to use." Jeanne stated, stifling a laugh near the last part.

Everyone stared at her oddly until she stopped her stifled laugh.

"OK, I had my fun. The person we should have as our King is..."

Jeanne whispered it everyone as they listened. Meanwhile with the Sitri group, they were still deciding on who to choose for their side.

"I don't I'm the best idea, I mean think about it... making one of your strongest pieces of the king? It would be too obvious, everyone would just try to team up and take them down. We need someone more discrete." Saji suggested.

"I hate to admit it, but considering how strong Vritra is, choosing Saji as the King would be too expected. It would be the same if Vali were in the game and chose Issei. Maybe we could use Bennia or Rugal? Since we have two new members, it wouldn't be as expected. Does that sound good to all of you?" Tsubasa asked.

Sona put a finger to her chin, and soon shook her head.

"No, that wouldn't work for the same reason I think Rias would be aware choosing Rossweisse as her king would be too obvious." Sona wondered.

As everyone kept thinking, Ruruko gasped loudly.

"Wait, maybe we should go with someone who looks out in the open but actually isn't. I think I know who to choose for that!" Ruruko exclaimed.

"We're listening Ruruko, who do you have in mind?" Reya asked.

Soon enough, both teams made their decisions and Naud sees each team use a magic circle to show who they chose. He shows Ganesha who laughs heartily upon seeing the chosen King candidates.

"_Spectacular! Lord Ganesha is surprised by this result!_" Ganesha declared, soon looking to the side to give a flashy smile towards the wall.

"_By the way, my name is Lord Ganesha._" Ganesha smiled.

Naud sweat dropped, soon clearing his throat before nearing his microphone again.

"_...Alright then, now that both sides have chosen their King candidates, let the game begin!_" Naud announced at the top of his lungs.

The entire crowd cheers as both teams began rushing against the environment of the Dragon mountains to near each other. Rossweisse, Jeanne and Bennia all transforming into their battle attire during the process.

"Alright, everyone split! Go after Sona Rias!" Jeanne ordered.

"Right!" Everyone replied.

Soon the group split up, meanwhile on the Sitri team's side.

"Everyone, use the Epsilon Tactic!" Tsubaki ordered.

"Got it!" Everyone replied.

Everyone split up the same way as the Gremory team had.

Ruruko used her Sacred Gear to rush across the battlefield at top speed, preparing for a sneak attack as she neared a certain Valkyrie's position.

'The so called flying cannon, she might have her magic and rook traits to help her, but that won't be enough once I start my move.' Ruruko thought, smirking as she continued running.

Soon she found herself at her desired location, the patch of land marked as the Gremory team's base.

"Promotion - [Queen]!" Ruruko shouted, her Pawn Evil Piece morphing into a Queen.

"Alright, I've got my promotion! Now it's time to take her down!" Ruruko declared.

Ruruko soon used her further enhanced speed to zoom through one peak of the mountain and soon the peak to jump to another mountain, as she flew over to it...

"Hey Valkyrie!"

Rossweisse turned in surprise, hearing Ruruko's voice but not seeing her due to her speed. Soon Ruruko flipped soon her legs would land on the mountain, soon using the force to ricochet towards her with her right foot out.

"**[RICOCHET ROCKET!]**"

"So fast!" Rossweisse gasped, barely managing to form a magic shield in time.

Ruruko's foot soon collided with the shield, and to the Valkyrie's shock, managed to crack her shield as they were shot towards the ground. The whole crowd gasped as Rossweisse's feet skidded across the dirt and formed a strong dust cloud while Ruruko's kick kept its power going.

Eventually, the dust settled and Ruruko panted as her kick's power faded and her left foot on the ground to balance herself.

"_What an astounding attack! If I know my facts right, Valkyrie are a Half-God race, to have a Devil's kick due that damage to a shield is nothing short of an exceptional feat! Lord Ganesha gives her his respect!_" Ganesha announced.

"_Oh, looks like the dust is clearing. Everyone, let us see what the aftermath of that attack was!_" Naud announced, the adrenaline reaching his lungs.

Ruruko panted as she looked in front of her, and gasped as she saw Rossweisse's shield very cracked, but still having held from her attack.

Rossweisse looks at her, still mostly fresh despite being bathed in dirt.

"No way... you defended it?" Ruruko gasped.

"_Oh my goodness, she managed to defend against the attack!_" Naud screamed into the mic.

The crowd cheered loudly at that.

"B-but how?" Ruruko asked, her right leg refusing to budge out of worry.

"I'll admit, that kick had the strength to break my shield easily." Rossweisse admitted.

"However, knowing that, I had to improvise. Notice anything about my shield?" Rossweisse asked, pointing at it.

Ruruko shifted her foot slightly, and her eyes widened at the sight.

"The center of the shield... there's not even a bit of damage there!" Ruruko stated.

The crowd gasped at that.

"The most vital part of any shield or barrier spell is the center, the epicenter of the spell's magic. Often when a spell like this is used, the spell is cast from the center but spread out, however I knew that you'd break it that way. So, I focused all my magic at the spot you hit, relying on pure chance that you'd kick that area. Due to all the magic focused on a single point... your kick did damage my shield, but not enough to shatter it." Rossweisse explained, causing Ruruko to gasp.

"Now, time for me to retaliate against your attack!" Rossweisse declared.

Rossweisse swiped her hands, breaking her cracked shield and making the fragments turn into magic circles that prepared magical beams.

Ruruko gasped and soon began running, dodging the magical beams firing at her.

* * *

Bennia laughs as she flies at Yumi, her skull mask's eyes glowing as she spun and slashed her scythe, creating a saw of soul energy towards the archer. Said archer pulled on her bowstring and fired off an arrow of light at the attack.

"That won't work!" Bennia cackled, appearing through the smoke to swing her scythe down.

"[**GUARD OF FAITH!**]"

Bennia's scythe clashed with a shield made by Adamant Will, and soon it broke as Yumi jumped up and draw her bowstring again at the unguarded Bennia.

"Aw shit!" Bennia screamed.

"[**LUMEN YUMI!**]"

Yumi fires off the arrow, and Bennia's hit dead center, being knocked back before fading in blue light.

"_One of Lady Sona's Knights, retired!_" Naud announced.

"_But unfortunately for the Gremory Team, she wasn't the King Candidate, the game continues!_"

Yumi sighs, readying to draw another arrow as she began looking for another member of Sona's peerage anywhere in the area.

* * *

"Meow!" Shirone exclaimed.

Shirone and Rugal, who had taken his Werewolf form, were slamming their fists into each other at high speed.

'I need to be careful, she broke my claws before I could use them. Well, then it's time to use my magic and my might.' Rugal thought, soon getting on all fours and howling.

Shirone looked around and noticed streams of magic ripping out of the ground towards her.

"What is-" Shirone gasped.

Suddenly the magic streams encompassed her, binding her to the ground as the magic pushed against her, trying to knock her unconscious.

"Now, time to finish this." Rugal stated as he ran on two legs and prepared to slam his fists down on Shirone's bound form.

To his surprise, right as he was about to smash them on her, a sudden bright light formed and his wolf instincts told him to jump away. He listened and just in time to avoid strong white flames that seemed to radiate with pure energy.

When Shirone finally came back into view, she was now wearing a white kimono, had longer hair and looked... older, around her sister's age maybe?

"Get ready doggy, you get the honor of being the first to face off against my [**Shiro Mode**]." Shirone declared, motioning her hands to create two fiery white wheels and flinging them as Rugal who howled to release a beam from a magic circle at the twin wheels.

* * *

Sona waved her hand, forming a water serpent before it split into nine, creating a water hydra, Rias dodged the heads' strikes before charging her Power of Destruction in her hands and transforming it into in a compressed spiked form in her hands.

"[**SILENT DEVOURER!**]"

Soon the familiar mutant dragon that her powers sometimes took the form of appeared, but this time with a body similar to that of an Eastern dragon as it slithered around the Water Hydra's heads and constricted it, soon opening its mouth and trying to devour it.

"I'm impressed Rias, you've come a long way from simply throwing your power around like dodge balls." Sona complimented.

"Thank you, but flattery won't get you anywhere in this fight." Rias smirked.

"True that, but this may." Sona replied, snapping her fingers.

A few of the free heads bit the Silent Devourer's body, causing the mobile Power of Destruction to scream as both attacks broke apart.

"OK, I admit I didn't expect both of our attacks to be cancelled out. I guess I'll need to take this more seriously." Sona stated, soon removing her glasses as a sign she would be getting serious.

"Alright then Sona, this is a rare chance we can go out without the usual worry in a game." Rias smiled, forming a few spheres of her power in around her palm.

* * *

Jeanne thrust forward, stabbing her rapier at Tomoe who screamed as she was knocked back, Muramasa's sheathed form still in her hands. She widens her eyes as Jeanne gets before her.

"[**CHRYSANTHEMUM CASCADE!**]" Jeanne shouted.

Tomoe was knocked back as a storm of sharp flower petals flew down at her like a rain of blades. She held Muramasa up to parry a few of them but she failed to block all of them and had a few cuts on her arms and legs.

"With such fierce attacks, only one thing makes sense... did you figure it out?" Tomoe asked.

"I did, your sword was clearly being used by you when we fought Kokabiel, but I've never heard anyone on my team claim they've seen you use it. Combined with the fact you have it sheathed, you had the best chance of being the King Candidate." Jeanne explained.

Jeanne readied herself, prepared to make the last blow and win the game.

"Now, I just have to beat you and we win!" Jeanne declared.

Tomoe breathed, soon standing up as she looked at Muramasa, noticing the darkness slightly leaking out, she puts the sheath back in place and grips each end with both hands to Jeanne's surprise.

"_Oh, what is this? Lord Ganesha believes that Tomoe Meguri has chosen to finally unsheathe the Sacred Gear blade she's been hiding all this time!_" Ganesha announced.

"_Hmm... something seems odd, why has she kept it hidden? Is it a strategy or some kind of plan?_" Naud commented, curious about the truth of Muramasa.

Tomoe grips tighter, breathing as her hands shook a bit.

"I told myself to try and never draw Muramasa out unless things became truly serious, and all this time I've never considered the need to. However, this time? Things are a different story. Sona's dream, we're all fighting for it, if I must finally do the unthinkable and draw this cursed blade... then I won't hesitate to take the risk for her kindness in giving back the years I lost to it!" Tomoe declared.

Meanwhile from a distance, Sona stops briefly to Rias' surprise, almost aware that Tomoe was about to unsheathe her sword.

"No Tomoe, you don't have to do it for my sake! Don't risk it!" Sona shouted.

"Sona, I am a Knight of the House of Sitri. As a knight... I will keep my word to you!" Tomoe declared loudly.

Tomoe unsheathed her blade, revealing the blade and red steel hidden within, and soon a large stream of darkness spewed out of the blade, the cursed aura that gave the Sacred Gear its macabre name.

At that moment, the aura crawls into her, and Tomoe falls to her kneels and screams as it seeps into her. Jeanne and the crowd both watch silently as it the blade's darkness didn't even show any signs of stopping.

"_W-what's going on?_" Naud commented quietly, just as shocked.

* * *

Back with Vali's group, they all watched when Vali's eyes recognized that sword.

"Oh my god... that's her Sacred Gear?" Vali gasped as she saw it.

"Why... what is it Vali? What Sacred Gear is that?" Kuroka asked curiously, wondering why Vali seemed worried about the Sacred Gear.

"Cursed Killer Muramasa, it's an evil and dangerous Sacred Gear. Also known as the [Cursed Sacred Killer], because... most who have this Sacred Gear slowly due to the curse it holds." Vali answered.

Everyone gasped at that.

"Muramasa was once a normal sword forged by Human hands, not the Sacred Gear it became today. During its use... hundreds of thousands were slain and assassinated by this accursed blade. Eventually, all the negative emotions turned it to curses, and they evolved Muramasa into a Sacred Gear. That darkness you see? All of the curses, a curse that only Demons and Devils can ignore. This curse causes it's chosen wielder to suffer illness that weakens them, even drastically cutting their lifespans." Vali explained, sweat trickling down her face.

"So then does that mean Tomoe became a Devil to keep it from eating at her lifespan? My god... that's horrible." Irina gasped, shaking slightly.

"And now she's unsheathed that power, the question is will it consume her or not?" Arthur wondered.

* * *

Tomoe's screamed became distorted, but soon she grits her teeth and focused, Muramasa shaking as Tomoe's will overpowered it, her hair became untied as all by the lower part of her hair became black, her sclera taking the same color as black kanji like markings appear on her arms and legs.

"...Muramasa, you obey me now." Tomoe declared, holding the blade out.

"_Ooh! What a show, Lord Ganesha can't the right words to properly define this with his utmost respect, the young knight as revealed a new power!_" Ganesha announced, Naud to shocked to respond.

"You tamed that cursed blade, amazing." Jeanne breathed.

"This blade murdered many people, and their feelings of grief, rage, fear and despair... every time I draw this blade, I must feel the full weight of those emotions to gain the strength I need to protect Sona's dream, even if only for a short moment." Tomoe stated, her body shaking a bit.

'This is more strenuous than I thought, but I have a good feeling... she's the King Candidate! So, I'll end this now!' Tomoe thought.

Tomoe soon rushing forward, now possessing double her prior speed. Jeanne barely had time to parry her now increased striking speed with Hauteclere as she was pushed back slightly with each strike.

'Just what is that sword doing to her? Her speed, her strength, maybe even her instincts are nothing compared to before!' Jeanne mentally grunted, barely holding back.

Jeanne quickly jumped away before slamming her free hand on the ground.

"[**STAKE VICTIM DRAGON!**]"

Soon the Dragon made of holy swords rose from the ground, and quickly roared before it rushed at Tomoe.

Tomoe shifts her feet and screams before rushed forward, and slashing at the drake of holy swords, and to the surprise of Jeanne, shatters it in seconds without batting an eyelash.

Soon she zooms at the fully unguarded Jeanne and strikes at her, she starts to vanish in blue and turns to the Sitri swordsman.

"That was impressive, however... something you should know. I'm not the King Candidate." Jeanne replied, soon vanishing.

"_One of Lady Rias' Knights, retired! Though the game still continues to Lord Ganesha's excitement!_" Ganesha announced.

'Wait, it wasn't Jeanne? Then who is it... I'm running out of time in this state!' Tomoe wondered.

Soon a familiar holy slash wave is swung towards Tomoe, and the Sitri Swordsman sees none other than Xenovia with Durandal in hand facing her down.

Tomoe gasped before smirking.

"I get it, the Gremory's King Candidate was one of their Knights, I just guessed the wrong one." Tomoe realized, a smirk on her face.

"Let us finish this Tomoe, since we're both here and both representing our teams as our King Candidates, we shall end this fight here. Don't you agree?" Xenovia reasoned, holding Durandal out.

"Of course, as our honor as the Knights of our Kings." Tomoe shouted, rushing forward.

Xenovia rushed forward as well. The two began clashing blades with each other, Xenovia managing to keep up with Tomoe's blade strikes better than Jeanne due to her knight speed improving her reaction times.

Tomoe began to pant and slow down a bit, feeling Muramasa's side effects start to kick in.

'I need to hurry, there's not much longer before I'll need to sheathe Muramasa again. If I don't win before then I'll be forced to retire and we'll lose.' Tomoe thought, looking at her sword.

Soon she notices Xenovia making a certain movement.

'That's it, an opening!' Tomoe mentally smirked.

Tomoe shot forward and thrust Muramasa like a spear, and knocked Durandal out of Xenovia's hands to the Gremory Knight's surprise.

"You're done Xenovia! Sona, victory is ours!" Tomoe cheered, swinging Muramasa down.

The sword neared Xenovia when...

*CLANG*

Tomoe suddenly gasped as the sight of a thick one-handed sword similar to Durandal, though with small gem shards styled in a floral pattern on the blade, Xenovia grunted before throwing Tomoe off.

"What? A second sword, but how is that!?" Tomoe asked in shock.

"This is the Holy Sword Joyeuse, my second holy sword. You weren't the only one hiding a space ace, but mine wasn't hidden in plain sight. In fact, it was present all along. When I have a single sword, I don't use technique and just focus on power, but that's because I'm not proficient in single sword combat." Xenovia explained, soon grabbing Durandal before showing a dual wielding standing.

"My true skill comes when I wield two swords, that is my true strength."

Tomoe gasped in surprise.

"That's why you were made the King Candidate, because you were the only veteran member who still had a trick we didn't know yet. Dang it, this isn't good, I have to finish this now or it'll be all over." Tomoe stated, her body shaking a bit.

Tomoe rushed forward and began stabbing Muramasa forward at the fastest speed she had managed before now, however to her surprise, Xenovia reacted with both her blades faster than Tomoe could swing them.

"Joyeuse's power enhances the senses of the one using it after accepting their fatal flaw, one I've discovered since becoming a Devil." Xenovia stated, soon pushing Tomoe back with her swings.

"No, this is... I can't..." Tomoe grunted, Xenovia soon forced Tomoe back a few feet before crossing her blades in an X shape.

"[**CROSS CRISIS!**]"

Xenovia swung both her swords forward, creating an X shaped slash wave that surprised Tomoe and sent her flying forward.

Tomoe soon tumbled across the ground, she grabbed Muramasa as she was panting heavily and sighed before she got up and sheathed her sword. Her body returned to normal as Xenovia looked at her surprised.

"I was too slow, that's it." Tomoe coughed out.

"How... how did you manage to tame a cursed sword and get it to listen to you?" Xenovia asked.

"It's simple, as the sword's power flowed into me, I had my willpower tell all the souls cut down by this blade I'd carry the burden of letting them live out all their lives through me. As a Devil, they've all got a chance to live the time they never got through me. It'll be a heavy burden for me yo carry, but in a way, it was one I was already carrying." Tomoe admitted, falling to her knees.

Tomoe coughs a bit more, sighing as she smiled.

"I nearly did it Sona, won us this game. I just didn't last long enough. Well... we tried, so let's see those Elders try mocking your dream ever again. I... I resign." Tomoe stated as she looked to the sky.

She faded in a blue light.

"_L-Lady Sona's Knight has retired, and by the rules of this match... by her choice as Sona's King Candidate, Rias Gremory wins this Rating Game!_" Naud announced loudly.

The entire crowd cheered at that.

Meanwhile with everyone on Sona's peerage that hadn't been defeated, they all stopped and realized they had lost the game. Sona herself put her glasses back on and smiled a bit at Tomoe's courage.

"Tomoe... you took a risk you never had, and no doubt you may unsheathe that blade again in the future. Still, because you did it just for the sake of trying to achieve my dream, I thank you from the bottom of my heart." Sona whispered to herself.

"_Lord Ganesha is pleased, what an outstanding battle! Let us give congrats to the victorious Gremory Team!_" Ganesha announced.

Everyone cheered at the result, while a certain Devil elder with an outfit on his collar matching a symbol on Sairaorg's outfit was seen watching the result with a sneer.

It was the symbol of the Bael clan, and this was the first Bael... Zekram Bael.

"The Devil we wanted to win did, but it seems like the crowd doesn't care. It looks like in the end it won't matter..." Zekram sighed.

Zekram takes a look at the brackets where Vali's name was listened.

"Not unless we kill the one bearing the name of Lucifer, we have no choice now." Zekram stated, forming a magic circle to contact someone.

A dark look shined in the Elder Devils' eyes as he walked off.

* * *

Soon the end result reached the Lucifer team and soon the live recording was closed by Vali.

"So, it looks like Rias' team won, but Sona got really close." Arthur commented.

"Still, that was pretty bad ass. I can't Xenovia had a second sword this whole time, and I'm pretty sure she's serious about her dual wielding claim, so that makes her stronger than most of us thought." Issei added.

"I was hoping we could use that secret against her when the right time came, but now we've gotta rely on what we already have. Neither side has any secrets to hide unless they learn something new during the period between now and our Rating Game with them." Irina replied.

Vali chuckled at that.

"Winning this tournament won't be easy, but what it will be is fun." Vali smiled.

Vali soon opened a new live recording, showing the next match, where Suzattin and Seekvaira were facing off against one another.

"Now, you guys should see some of how the Great Devil Clans' heirs fight their battles." Vali stated.

* * *

The sight of Suzattin and Seekvaira and Suzattin throwing dice at the ground was seen, the former rolling a combined total of 12 and the latter rolling a combined total of 7.

Seekvaira sweated at the result as she realized the only members she could send out using that number was her Pawn Kiyome, and... herself.

'This is bad, can I really risk myself on the field right now?' Seekvaira thought.

"I send myself and my Knight Yuuki to the field." Suzattin said tiredly.

The Agares heiress soon noticed Suzattin walking out on the field alongside his purple haired Knight.

"He's on the field as well, this is my chance! I send myself and my Pawn Kiyome to the field!" Seekvaira declared.

Seekvaira and a busty young woman with long brown hair in multiple drill-like curls both walk onto the field, the latter tightening a whip in her hands as she brought it out into view.

"_And here it comes everyone, the Kings of each time are about to duke it out! That means this is likely this match's final round!_" Naud announced.

"_Lord Ganesha finds the immense risk breath taking, let us see these youths clash their ideals here and now!_" Ganesha announced.

The crowd all cheered, and soon Kiyome shot her whip forward towards the violet haired swordswoman as she twirled around the whip strikes, giggling as she did before appearing in front of the Beast Tamer to her surprise.

"Oh no!" Kiyome gasped, realizing she was wide open.

"This fight was fun, but even good things have to end. So let's make this ending good!" Yuuki smiled, soon making her sword glow.

"[**MOTHER'S ROSARIO!**]"

Kiyome barely had any time to react as an 11-hit strike struck her body like she was hit by machine gun fire, and she shouts as she fades away in blue light.

"_One of Lady Seekvaira's Pawns, retired!_" Ganesha announced.

Seekvaira sweated at the sight and announcement, looking at Suzattin who looked as tired and lazy as ever. All that did was worry her more.

'Suzattin's a member of the Belphegor clan, he's often doing nothing and just lazing around... and yet he and his entire peerage have actually done well during this entire match despite that. In fact, I worry that he's still barely trying along with most of his peerage.' Seekvaira thought.

Suzattin cleaned his ear a bit, almost like he refused to make the first move.

Seekvaira soon motioned her hand to cast a magic spell, and Suzattin took this as his cue to start moving, only for Seekvaira to raise her other hand.

"[**CHRONO BREAK!**]"

Suddenly the sight of Suzattin and Yuuki's movements being frozen by time decelerating around them entered the crowd's view as Seekvaira moved her spell at Suzattin's abdomen.

"Sorry, but this match is mine." Seekvaira stated.

"[**...Will of Creation**]"

Suddenly Seekvaira's spell blasted through an afterimage to her surprise, and a tap on her shoulder turned to show Suzattin was behind her.

"Hope you don't mind, but I made a fake while you were looking at your Pawn disappearing. Don't forgot to cover your head too." Suzattin yawned, walking away from the spot.

"Hey, don't walk away-" Seekvaira shouted.

However, the Agares heir would suddenly hear a sound and turned to notice the afterimage's time resume due to his lack of focus, and a storm of spears suddenly flies at her ready to strike.

"Aw crud-"

Seekvaira was hit by all of them, causing her body to fade in blue late.

"_Lady Seekvaira has been retired, the winner is Suzattin Belphegor!_" Naud announced loudly.

The crowd all cheered at that.

* * *

"Whoa... he seemed he'd have trouble, but he beat the Agares heiress like it was nothing." Kunou gasped.

"That's the Belphegor clan for you, they tend to be lazy, but when they put out the effort, they can do some amazing things. Suzattin knew what he was doing when he was making his peerage." Vali added.

"Especially that girl with the purple hair and the sword, she was just so fast... I couldn't see her movements properly. Barely anyone can achieve that through my eyes." Kuroka stated, recalling how even her eyes blurred at her final attack against Kiyome.

Soon the sound of Kunou's stomach growling caught everyone's attention, the Kyuubi blushing as she held her stomach in embarrassment.

Vali giggled at that.

"Alright, sounds like we should get some food in our stomachs. I think it's almost time for Dinner anyways." Vali smiled.

About half an hour later, everyone was at the table eating the food Vali had made, with Irina seating herself down after having grabbed her choice of drink.

"Where's Issei and Yuuma at?" Asia asked.

"They're both holed up upstairs, they wanted to plot out our strategy for the next Rating Game." Vali answered.

Asia looks worried, and Le Fay pats her back.

"Hey, don't worry Asia. You've got him and Vali to protect you, like a big brother and sister." Le Fay smiled.

"I just realized I never asked, but how did all of you join Vali's peerage in the first place?" Kunou inquired.

"I met Vali when she visited Mount Meru, helped me to convince my old geezer to let me find my own path to become strong." Bikou stated.

"Le Fay and I both encountered Vali when she came to Camelot, and I came to follow her after she helped me find an answer to a problem I had been unable to solve on my own. I've been loyal to her ever since." Arthur answered.

"And I followed my brother as my way of thanking Vali." Le Fay smiled.

"When Vali came to Hell for the first time, she fought to prove I had only killed my previous master out of self-defense and removed my status as a Stray Devil." Kuroka answered.

"Issei saved me from Fallen Angels trying to take my powers, and Vali offered me a home." Asia replied.

"As for Issei and Yuuma? I saved Issei from death that Yuuma's older sister, Raynare, caused by stabbing him to death. Yuuma begged me to make her a Devil after her sister's death left her lost on where to go in life." Vali finished.

Kunou looked at everyone and blinked.

"Wow, it seems everyone here was saved by either Issei or Vali." Kunou mentioned in awe.

"Well... not all of us, while the saving criteria did have a part in it, I forced Vali to make me her Knight by sending her prayers until she agreed." Irina stated, turning her head away slightly.

Kunou went wide eyed at that.

"Dear God, please forgive me for my deceptive act back then." Irina prayed.

Everyone else sweat dropped a bit, and soon resumed eating.

* * *

Meanwhile upstairs, Issei and Yuuma were working on the battle strategy.

"OK, so far we know that Diodora's battle strategy likely connects to his clan ability, [Akashic Calculative]. This clan ability makes the Astaroth family well known for their tactics and battle strategies as the ability helps them gather information. Not to mention Ajuka Beelzebub's Kankara Formula is an extension and evolution of this clan ability." Issei thought aloud.

"And we at least know about his Bishops, by the way he was so quick to offer his trade, my guess is they have healing magic. Maybe not as effective as Asia's but enough that their strength could compensate." Yuuma added.

As Issei adds in that information, he suddenly notices Yuuma making an odd look on her face.

"Is something wrong Yuuma?" Issei asked.

"Something feels off here. I didn't think much at first, but now that we're here... an obsession with Asia that was enough he insulted Vali's great grandparents, a goal related to a facility that the Church can use in Hell, and even the fact his two peerage members looked like nuns. Add that with the fact he was healed by Asia, an act that had her excommunicated, don't you feel those details are too connected with one another?" Yuuma explained.

"Actually, now that you've said that, that does feel too related. Not to mention there's always been something about Diodora that hasn't sat well with Vali. Even the fact that he's so focused on Asia..." Issei nodded.

As some thoughts replayed in his mind, Issei grit his teeth.

"Yuuma, I think we need to talk to Lilith about this."

* * *

**And trouble stirs, Issei and Yuuma have both noticed some signs that Diodora's hiding something, even if they don't know what it is. Now they're about to bring the news to Lilith and see what her thought on the matter are. Be prepared everyone, because I'll say it now... we're about to enter the darkest moment of Season 3, and you might be surprised on where things end up.**

**So, there you have the story on Tomoe's Sacred Gear, to further elaborate what I couldn't really bring up in the chapter itself, Tomoe was very sick for most of her life and no one expected her to live a long life. She might have been lucky if she could live past 50 years due to Muramasa's curse. Luckily for her, Sona met her and knew some of Muramasa's legends, so she gave up a Knight piece to let Tomoe be healthy and live a long life.**

**We never really saw Sacred Gears that are next to if not completely negative in nature, and I felt Muramasa was the best way to showcase this. While the right conditions came up for Tomoe to control this cursed blade, she was honestly lucky... most with this Sacred Gear are doomed to die an early death, by bad luck or its curse eating away at them.**

**I hope what I did show of the Rating Game did please you, showing Rossweisse's magical skill with her new Evil Piece traits, revealing Koneko's the Shirone Mode (which is renamed out of necessity) and showcasing Xenovia's second sword. Joyeuse was suggested to me by a few of my reviewers that I talked to when I needed ideas for a Holy Sword that the series hadn't used before. When I heard it had somewhat of a relationship to Durandal, it felt like the right sword to give Xenovia.**

**Hope you enjoyed the brief moment of Suzattin's Rating Game, I won't be showing ever match in the story, but I may make a Side Story to fully show this match and others, no guaranteed though. If I do, expect to see a "A Heavenly Dragon's Tournament" story on my profile, though I honestly think it'll be more likely to not happen due to how hard making this Rating Game ended up for me.**

**See you next time everyone, because it is time... for Diodora to begin his plans ):D**

* * *

**A/N: The theme for Esketanus' peerage is characters who are a famous, sneaky, greedy, determined or focused in their ideals and know of what they want and how to achieve it**

** -Esketanus' Peerage- **

**King - Esketanus**   
**Queen - Female OC**   
**Bishops - Sylvia Lyyneheym, Erya**   
**Knights - Chelsea, Shizuku Kurogane**   
**Rooks - Claudia Enfield (x2)**   
**Pawns - Kurumi Tokisaki (x7), Zest**

* * *

**A/N: The theme for Seekvaira's peerage is characters who were spectacles, have personalities that are uptight, strict or serious and those with some kind of otaku status for anything, not just mecha otaku like her**

** -Seekvaira's Peerage- **

**King - Seekvaira**   
**Queen - Alivian (Canon dragon character from the Seekvaira SS)**   
**Bishops - Nia Honjou, Isuzu Sento**   
**Knights - Wave, Ayase Ayatsuji**   
**Rooks - Seryu Ubiquitous, Erza Scarlet [Mutation Piece]  
Pawns - Kiyome Abe (x2), Imu (x6)**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Ganesha - Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?**

**Yuuki Konno - Sword Art Online**

* * *

** -Crossover Peerage Member origin series- **

**Asterisk War - Sylvia Lyyneheym, Claudia Enfield**

**Fairy Fencer F - Erya**

**Akame ga Kill - Chelsea, Wave, Seryu Ubiquitous**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Shizuku Kurogane, Ayase Ayatsuji**

**Date A Live - Kurumi Tokisaki, Nia Honjou**

**Amagi Brilliant Park - Isuzu Sento**

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Zest**

**Fairy Tail - Erza Scarlet**

**Senran Kagura - Imu**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona may be developing feelings**


	28. Chapter 28

**Before we begin, I thought I'd let everyone that there's an upcoming omake chapter after Season 3's final chapter that'll be based on a certain OVA, namely the one about Riser since it's necessary for Ravel to eventually show up around the time of Season 5's events. That'll be all I'll say about it for the moment, don't wanna reveal too much about it just yet.**

**I don't really have much to say this chapter because, well... most of you know what'll probably go on, it's what's changed from canon that'll be a big twist when it shows up. Aside from that, the only thing I have left to say to you all before we begin will be this... I've got something special to tell you all when we reach the end notes, so stay tuned and enjoy the semi-final chapter of Season 3!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Tartarus- **

**The realm of the dead, most often linked to Greek Mythology due to being run by the God of Death: Hades, it's the equivalent of the afterlife for the awful and the bad that Hell is sometimes labeled as. While Hades is a Greek deity, Tartarus is connected to all death in the world and where the race of Half-Gods known as the Grim Reapers makes their home, working under Hades' command with few exceptions such as Bennia.**

**The living conditions of this realm are horrible for both the dead and the Grim Reapers that live there as Hades is known for being a particularly nasty God despite not being classified as an Evil God, being considered part of the worst trio of Gods, which lead to him leading the realm due to his brothers Zeus and Poseidon not agreeing with his act and attitude. Lilith Lucifer has also once been insulted by him, which lead to his skin being melted off, turning him into a living skeleton.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Diodora Arc: Chapter 4 - Betrayal of Astaroth _ **

"Is something wrong Yuuma?" Issei asked.

"Something feels off here. I didn't think much at first, but now that we're here... an obsession with Asia that was enough he insulted Vali's great grandparents, a goal related to a facility that the Church can use in Hell, and even the fact his two peerage members looked like nuns. Add that with the fact he was healed by Asia, an act that had her excommunicated, don't you feel those details are too connected with one another?" Yuuma explained.

"Actually, now that you've said that, that does feel too related. Not to mention there's always been something about Diodora that hasn't sat well with Vali. Even the fact that he's so focused on Asia..." Issei nodded.

As some thoughts replayed in his mind, Issei grit his teeth.

"Yuuma, I think we need to talk to Lilith about this." Issei stated, a worried look on his face.

"I agree, something tells me if we don't we'll be dealing with worse" Yuuma nodded as she sweat a bit.

* * *

In a shadowed area, the sight of a male silhouette kneeling to another male silhouette sitting in a chair.

"So, what do you suggest we do next? Need I remind you how we failed our last assault? If you cannot give me an idea that actually can bring success then don't even bother with it." The man on the chair stated.

"If I may, the unexpected defeat came from the Sekiryuutei's efforts, not to mention the Hakuryuukou managed to hold off the forces from the gate up until shortly before it fell. The power they possess is a threat to us, but... perhaps we can use that to aid us indirectly." The man kneeling stated.

"Hmm, your right, they aren't ones to be trifled with. Not to mention that half breed's care for some of her own. Let's use that to our advantage. Go tell Zentiika to make preparations... we're going to be given those Devils who still follow Satan realize why they need to abandon a fallen deity." The man in the throne declared.

* * *

Irina sighed happily as she soaked in the Hyoudou Household's bath area, her hair not in her usual twin tails as she did. After spending another 15 minutes in the bath water, she soon got out and tied her twin tails back into place before walking through the halls towards her room.

As she did, she heard the sound of grunts and metal clashing and turned to see it was coming from the training room where Jeanne and Xenovia were present. Jeanne thrust Hauteclere at Xenovia who dodged, causing the blue haired swordsman to spin while holding both her blades and knocked Jeanne to the wall. Jeanne stared in shock at how easily Xenovia got to her, while Xenovia panted a bit, soon they both noticed Irina by the door.

"You're still up?" Xenovia asked.

"Just came out of the bath and saw the lights, training for your next match?" Irina answered before asking her own question.

"Yeah, now that people know Xenovia's got two swords we figured she should really work out using them both ahead of time. I'm just diversifying between my magic and swordplay depending on what promotion I can use." Jeanne nodded.

Xenovia sighed.

"I have to, compared to Kiba my swordsmanship relies more on overall force than the talent and technique he's better in. It hurts to admit it, but if I face an opponent whose defenses are too strong, I won't be able to do anything." Xenovia admitted.

"Don't put yourself, everyone's their own kind of ass kicker. There's nothing wrong with you needing more muscle than style to do it." Irina smiled, making Xenovia look at her before giving one back.

"Thank you that means a lot." Xenovia replied.

"Oh yeah, didn't you get Excalibur Destruction and Blessing fused into Excalibur Mimic? Show us your new blade." Jeanne requested.

Irina giggles before grabbing the string on her arm.

"Alright, one Excalibur DxD coming up." Irina stated.

Irina undid the string, shifting the blade into Excalibur DxD's true form, both Holy Sword users stare at the blade in awe.

"This is it, it may not be as awesome as a blade as Joyeuse, Durandal or Hauteclere right now, but the more I use it the more I'll get closer to reforging the True Excalibur. Who knows, maybe you two might help me in getting Arthur's approval to have the next blade fused in." Irina stated.

"First time you've ever called us your seniors." Jeanne giggled.

"Hey, Irina... you've been more aware of how things with Issei and Vali are, right? Think you'll one day have to admit you and the two of them are meant for each other. Think you can do that?" Jeanne asked in concern.

Irina sighs, scratching her head.

"Yeah, I'll have to someday. I want Vali to see I really am a Knight of Lucifer, not just a bratty girl who forced her to make her join her peerage. Even more, I want Issei to know I'll support him, even if it makes me sad I can't be with him." Irina admitted.

"I think you can do it, and tomorrow your match with Diodora's a good chance to take a big step towards that. Break a leg out there and win it for all of us." Xenovia replied, making Irina smirk as she rubbed her nose.

"Of course, we're gonna make it clear he isn't touching Asia." Irina said with a thumb's up.

* * *

Issei was using the elevator to head upstairs while trying to hold an already sleeping Yuuma upright as he prepared to take her to her room, he soon noticed the door open to see Asia and Kunou in their sleep attire looking at them, with Asia holding a pillow in her hands.

"Hi there Issei." Asia greeted.

"Oh hey girls, what's up? Yuuma and I were talking with Lilith about something downstairs when she fell asleep." Issei replied, soon catching Yuuma who nearly fell over.

"She's been trying to help me make the strategy for hours."

Kunou chuckles as she helps Issei keep Yuuma from falling on the ground.

"Issei... if we lose the game, I just want you to know-" Asia softly spoke.

"Oh pish posh Asia, we're not gonna lose. Let Diodora say what he wants cause Vali's not gonna hand him over to you. Not unless he's willing to cut off his manhood." Kunou answered, making Issei snort a bit.

Asia smiled at that.

"Thanks Kunou." Asia replied.

"Now come on, let's all show that Rating Game who's boss! Then we'll win all our Sports Festival Events while on our victory streak!" Issei declared.

Asia gasps before smiling.

"Right!" Asia nodded.

* * *

Lilith was seen in her personal quarters of the house, wearing a dark red robe that showed a generous view of her cleavage while Gabriel, Mio and Azazel all sat in various the room's various seating spots. Each of them had magic circles speaking to their more trusted higher ups in their factions.

"I hope you apologize for the late call Sirzechs, it's about Diodora Astaroth. Aside from the recent increase in power that may or may not relate to the King Piece... Issei and Yuuma gave me some particularly scary information. Not to mention the near-death that recently happened to Falbium's brother." Lilith explained.

"You think Diodora's up to something and the latter's related to all of it?" Sirzechs asked.

Azazel sighs as he took a sip of his wine.

"Yeah, so it seems. Either those Devil Elders are up to something or..." Azazel began, trailing off a bit.

"The Khaos Brigade may have some involvement." Shemhazai finished, making Azazel not.

"Then perhaps Diodora's dream factors into this somehow, I've been fairly worried by that choice of words. As have all the Seraphs." Michael replied.

"What should we do?" Gabriel asked.

Mio looked at her mother and the other two Demon leaders.

"I see no other option, I've finished talking with Zeus and the Greek pantheon's pretty much all but officially signed as an Alliance ally. We'll have to put a plan into action, and I think I'm the only one who's got the mischief to counter Diodora's tricks." Cassiel replied, making Mio sweat.

"I don't think it'd be safe to tell Issei or Yuuma what we've figured out, let's just hope when this gets pulled off they know what's happening... it makes me feel heartless, but I guess we'll need to do this out of necessity." Mio stated, sweating slightly.

* * *

Vali smiled as she held out some outfits to everyone, causing everyone in her peerage to look at them in shock. Each of them had a silver-white color in the middle with the Lucifer family crest plastered on the upper chest area in the secondary color of each outfit.

Issei had red, Le Fay had cyan, Asia's was yellow, pink for Irina, Arthur had green, brown was Bikou's color, Kuroka got black, Yuuma's was purple, and orange was Kunou's choice of color. Vali's was white, with the silver-white area of hers black instead. Everyone blinked a few times as Vali smiled.

"Uh, Vali? What are these exactly?" Issei asked for everyone.

"Since it's our first Rating Game match in the tournament, I thought some team outfits might be fun." Vali giggled, already wearing hers.

"Well... she did already make them, I guess it would be rude to say no." Yuuma chuckled, putting hers on.

"Huh, you know it isn't that bad actually." Yuuma admitted as she looked at it and noticed how it felt.

Right as that was going on, a knock on the door was heard and Vali went to open it, revealing her friends from the Great Devil clans.

"No way, guys! Did you come to see us off?" Vali asked surprised and happy.

"Of course, we wouldn't miss it for the world!" Niruili smiled, ignoring the fact Ineelana was annoyed and Suzattin was yawning and half asleep.

"Aw, thank you guys!" Vali smiled, hugging them all.

Ineelana coughed loudly.

"Oh come on, you know you like it." Gebedon replied.

"SHUT UP!" Ineelana roared.

Soon the magic circle meant to transport them to the chosen battlefield appeared, Vali turned along with the rest of her peerage who were all in their team uniforms. She smiled at her friends one last time.

"Well, we're off guys, I promise you we're gonna win this!" Vali stated.

"Yeah, do you best guys!" Esketanus stated.

Soon Vali's peerage vanished in a magic circle, and after they did the Great Devil heirs turned as they saw Lilith finally walk into view.

"Ready you five?" Lilith asked.

"Sirzechs told us about everything, just let us know when you're ready and we'll head over." Suzattin yawned.

"Then get your battle shoes on, because that would be right now." Lilith answered.

* * *

Soon enough, the Lucifer team appeared in a spot in Hell that looked like a rocky wasteland with curved and jagged stalagmites towering over everything. A floating structure was seen in the distance with its gate right before them.

"Whoa, that's where we're gonna fight?" Kunou asked, surprised at the battlefield they were given.

"I remember you guys telling me about your fight with Riser and how it was a floating castle, but that didn't prepare me for this at all." Irina stated, shaking slightly.

Vali soon shifted her head a bit, sweating slightly.

"Something's odd, why didn't the referee say anything to mark our arrival?" Vali wondered.

"Maybe there's been some kind of problem? Or Diodora's not here yet?" Le Fay guessed.

Asia soon turned and gasped, getting everyone's attention as certain magic circles appeared... the ones used by Anti-Satan Faction Devils!

"Those Magic Circles... it's the Khaos Brigade!" Issei shouted, soon holding out his hand.

**"[BOOSTED GEAR!]"**

Irina and Arthur draw out their swords and got battle ready, while briefly readied a holy ring around her left hand.

Kuroka, Kunou and Bikou popped out their Youkai traits, flipping backwards to cover Asia.

Yuuma twirled in midair to unfold two sets of wings, and Le Fay whistled for her broomstick as she pulled out her new magic wand.

**"(DIVINE DIVIDING!)"**

"Why are they here?" Vali asked, her Sacred Gear forming on her back as the KB Devils appeared before them.

"To the despicable usurpers in the false royal house of Lucifer! We're here to take back what's ours!" A Devil declared loudly, he and many others brandishing their weapons.

Soon Asia screamed, causing the three Yokai to turn as they saw her levitated into the hands of one Diodora Astaroth.

"Diodora!" Vali seethed angrily.

"I knew it, that bastard's a bastard because he's a traitor!" Issei growled.

"Greetings everyone, Asia Argento will be coming with me and these Devils of the Khaos Brigade will murder each and every last one of you. Is that a sufficient request?" Diodora greeted, soon opening his eyes which now stopped bothering to hide his real nature.

"Wow, to think you'd ally yourself to lowly criminals? You have any idea what this is gonna do to the Astaroth clan, not to mention your own brother?" Kuroka answered with an angry look.

Vali's anger began to radiate off her in a visible silvery aura.

"Oh, quit your whining, or better yet these gentlemen will do it for you!" Diodora smirked.

"Kill the Lucifer heir!" The KB Devils all roared.

Soon the entire group moved out of the way as the rain of magical fire blasts down on them. As that happened, Diodora soon teleported himself towards the Rating Game arena they were meant to fight in, Kunou managing to spot this.

"He's gone to the Rating Game field, we need to reach him if we wanna save Asia!" Kunou called out.

"That might be a little hard right now!" Vali replied, sweating at the Devils as they were prepared to blast them again.

However, they'd never get the chance as a bolt of lightning crashed down and caught them all off guard as smoke covered the area and slightly blinded everyone.

As the dust cleared, the sight of an old man with slightly tanned skin and long white hair, with a mustache and a beard that covered his entire lower face, wearing a white turban came into view. Electricity sparked across his body.

"Whoa, who's that guy?" Le Fay asked.

"HERE ME! I AM THE MIGHTY ZEUS, WHOEVER CAN TAKE MY HEAD WILL BE A WARRIOR OF LEGEND!" Zeus declared, shocking Vali and her peerage.

"That's Zeus!?" Yuuma gasped.

The Khaos Brigade Devils all quickly ignored the others and focused on Zeus, the mighty leader of the Greek pantheon roared as she clapped his hands, creating a burst of lightning that killed every Devil closest to the group.

"Issei, Yuuma, you made the right call. Thanks to you we realized Diodora was making secret deals behind everyone's back. We put a trap within his own trap." Zeus answered, looking at the two.

"Then we're not here for a Rating Game. We were bait for Diodora's forces, thanks for the save." Issei said, thanking Zeus who smirked.

"Now go save your friend, I'll take care of these wimps!" Zeus shouted.

Vali nodded.

"Thank you Lord Zeus, we won't waste the chance you've given us. Double time it to the temple everyone!" Vali shouted.

"Double Timing!" Everyone replied.

They all began running towards the temple as fast as their feet could carry them.

* * *

Odin stood before the enemies before him, and soon held out his hand.

"Come forth [Gungnir!]"

Soon a gold and dark blue spear with three points and white string formed from a surge of water, he spun it before turning it and firing at the enemy forces before him. Cutting a hole in their ranks.

Seekvaira soon stood before a group of KB Devils, soon raising her hand as her eyes glowed.

"**[CHRONO BREAK!]**"

Soon they were all frozen in time, and coming from behind her came Zephyrdor who soon tossed out some magic shots before firing a flurry of them, causing all the frozen Devils to be purged instantly from the high-speed attack.

Tiamat dropped into view from the sky, and she opened her mouth before firing a powerful blue blast that razed through most of the Khaos Brigade's forces. Sairaorg was seen behind her, smashing his fists into the KB forces and tossing them around like rag dolls.

"**[ETERNAL COFFIN!]**"

Ineelana screams as she slams her hands on the ground, causing a storm of ice towers to stretch up and encompass many Devils in ice before they shattered apart, the Devils being nowhere in sight.

Gebedon brushes his hands through his hair as he stared at the Devils about to fire at him, and soon his reddened pupils shrink as they focus.

"**[Invader Sense]**"

"Ah, that's interesting... you don't want people to know about your secret fetish for licking your own feet?" Gebedon stated in a fake intrigued tone.

Many KB Devils stare at one another as one yelped in horror, wondering who it was.

That brief moment of confusion was fatal as a familiar set of energy hands flies out and drains them of all their powers, Esketanus smirking at the sight of all of them getting lethargic and weak.

"Alright Suzattin, they're all yours." Esketanus stated, looking at his friend as he lazed on the ground and looked at the KB Devils somewhat annoyed.

"Right... [**Will of Creation**]"

Suddenly a bunch of swords rained down and cut through each KB Devil, killing them instantly before Suzattin rolled around and continued his lazing, causing Esketanus and Gebedon to sweat drop at the sight.

Niruili stood before a bunch of Devils who charged magical blasts before firing them at her, the Beelzebub heir smiled before opening her mouth at an unnatural level and eating all the magic to their surprise.

"Tasty! Oh yeah, gotta love my [Devouring Mimicry] ability." Niruili giggled.

"M-Mimicry!?" A Devil paled.

Niruili giggles and her eyes sparkle like stares before holding her hands out, the Devils all scream as their own fire comes back at them before they even realized it, purging them all and making Niruili do a victory dance where she was.

"Now that's how you listen to your gut!" Niruili stated, giving a peace sign to no one in particular.

* * *

Vali and her peerage ran ahead and soon saw a magic circle appear her ear.

"You all still OK?" Lilith's voice echoed out.

"Grandma? Yeah, we're OK. Now think you can explain what's going on exactly?" Vali asked.

"Well Diodora used your game to let the Anti-Satan Faction launch a full-scale attack. Luckily, Issei and Yuuma were able to notice something odd about Diodora and we hid our own contingency plan inside by springing ambushes everywhere." Lilith explained.

Soon the sight of Tannin and the rest of Lilith's peerage attacking waves of Devils, annihilating them instantly was seen. This was followed by many others from all of the Christian pantheon's races, the Greek pantheon, and even Norse pantheon's members.

"Boy did they walk into that one, Diodora shouldn't have been such a cocky dumb ass, he'd probably have dropped the idiot ball he was holding otherwise. I'll apologize for not saying anything though... I thought you'd end up in more danger if telling you caused Diodora to learn of our plans." Lilith apologized, throwing out a Primal Abyss to devour around 10,000 KB Devils.

"Never mind that, we've gotta rescue Asia! Diodora took her and went for the temple!" Vali replied.

"Wait, he did what!? Damn... we had something ready to intercept him and get Asia back. Sorry about that, but the temple should still have the effects of a Rating Game inside so he's trapped by it. Use the chance to give him hell and pop him in the mouth once for me!" Lilith stated.

"We'll pop him more than once, so deal!" Issei shouted.

Soon enough they all made it to a certain point in the temple, and once they did they were met by the sight of 15 robbed figures. It was clear who they were... Diodora's peerage members.

And right on cue, a familiar voice laughed at all of them.

"I knew you'd follow me, so I decided to put up this little welcoming party for you all." Diodora's voice echoed.

"Oh piss off Diodora, you walked into the Rating Game field so play the game or just give Asia back and admit you're a coward here!" Issei stated.

"Fine, fine. Though we'll be playing how I've set things up. I've made a few paths for you all to cross, distribute your pieces left or right anyway you want as you fight these battles simultaneously. On the right path, two Rooks and Eight Pawns await, while the rest will be on the left side's battlefield." Diodora explained.

Vali looked at the cloaked pieces.

"Issei, Kunou, Irina, Yuuma and Le Fay go right. Everyone else follow me on the left path." Vali stated, making everyone nod.

"Then let the game begin!" Diodora exclaimed.

Diodora's peerage vanished as everyone went through their respective paths, on the right battlefield two paths showing the Pawns and Rooks respectively were seen.

"Issei, I'll handle the rooks. Knowing Diodora those Pawns are all probably promote to Queen." Irina replied.

"OK, good luck!" Issei nodded.

Soon Irina took the path with the Rooks as the rest deal with the Pawns. Once both sides arrived, Diodora's pieces remove their cloaks... and everyone was surprised to see them wearing the same outfits as his Bishops.

"OK, I'm not liking that sign at all." Issei replied, feeling like he was seeing a pattern.

Meanwhile on the opposite side, the remaining 5 pieces all appeared removed their cloaks the same way, Vali looked at Arthur.

"Think you can deal with those Knights for us?" Vali asked.

"Of course, I shall finish them post haste." Arthur replied, drawing Caliburn from its sheath.

Kuroka giggled at the sight.

"To only give us these 5, Diodora and his peerage have way too much confidence." Kuroka stated.

"Let's knock them down a few pegs then." Vali stated.

* * *

The Rooks rushed at Irina, causing the twin tailed Knight to parry their kicks and knock them back, soon swiping Excalibur DxD using Mimic's powers to whip them.

They both ducked to her dismay, so she spun it overhead before slamming the tip on the ground, activating Destruction's ability and smashing the field, causing them rush out of the way in their attempt to dodge it.

"What? That can't be possible, she should only have Excalibur Mimicry!" The green haired Rook stated.

"That doesn't look like the blade she prefers to shape it as though, this sword must be different." The red haired Rook replied.

Irina smirked.

"You'll see we actually save our hidden aces, and thanks to this match no one else will know this either." Irina claimed, holding her sword out.

** _ \- (*My Hero Academia - Peace Sign*) - _ **

Kunou tosses some Hinotama at the Pawns who dodge easily, Le Fay and Yuuma unleash spells and light shots respectively, but they still dodge it.

"Alright, time to burn!" Issei declared.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

Issei equipped his Balance Breaker and ran through the battlefield and slapped the ground with red magic circles, catching the Pawns' attention.

"Here goes..." Issei stated, raising his hand before quickly snapping his fingers.

"**[PURGATORY!]**"

**[EXPLOSION!]**

The others all duck as fire burst across the entire battlefield, Issei smirks at the sight, only for a foot to deck him in the face!

Issei falls over, and soon get sup to see to his shock that the Eight Pawns had all survived the attack.

"No way!"

**"[Issei, that wasn't a natural defense. Sounds like Diodora's thrown some more cheating in. I knew he wouldn't fight fairly, but this is a new one.]"**

"Shit, most of my magic relies on fire!" Issei grunted.

"That takes out my ace abilities too!" Kunou sweated.

* * *

Vali, who had assumed her Balance Breaker as well, was currently facing a flurry of attacks from Diodora's Queen while using her Reflect ability against them.

**(Reflect!) (Reflect!) (Reflect!)**

"Dang it! I can't use Reflect and Divide at the same time, I'm locked up here!" Vali grunted.

"Underestimating my master was a foolish mistake!" Diodora's Queen chuckled.

Bikou soon jumped off Vali's shoulders as he made his staff extend.

"And so was ignoring us! Extend, Ruyi Jingu Bang!" Bikou declared.

"And here's some sage magic for ya!" Kuroka chuckled, moving her hand to blast it out.

The Queen and Bishops all guarded as it hit, and Vali soon dropped her Reflect... the three however all gasped as Diodora's Queen and Bishops were unharmed, their magic link healing each other.

"That spell... damn it, we can't beat them unless we defeat all three simultaneously." Bikou grunted.

"They fight better than Riser's pieces ever did." Kuroka sighed.

* * *

Issei and the others all stood back to back, all Eight Pawns jumping around like they were doing a ballet.

"They move like their minds are synchronized, if only we could confuse them." Le Fay sweated, unsure of what to do next.

"It isn't like the solution will fall out of the sky either." Yuuma added.

Issei's eyes widened at that.

"Wait, actually it might, we just don't wait for it to start falling. Grab on my wings you guys!" Issei ordered.

"Eh!?" They all shout.

"Just do it!" Issei shouted, making them all grab on.

Issei stretched his wings out and jumped overhead, making a hole in the ceiling as the Pawns stopped briefly in the confusion. Soon Issei screams as she flies down at the ceiling with his fists drawn back to strike.

"Le Fay, use an Earth spell now!" Issei shouted.

"Issei, you genius!" Le Fay gasped, realizing his plan. She held out her magic wand in response.

She fired the spell right as Issei smashed the ceiling, and as the rocks fell, they suddenly gained magic circles that burst them into pieces that fell three times faster, making them like bullets. The Pawns all scream as the shots hit them, making them vanish as the field retired them.

The group lands, and soon Kunou and Yuuma did a victory dance as they ran around in circles.

"Nice one Issei, that was perfect!" Yuuma cheered.

"Yeah, that's one way to talk through your fists!" Kunou nods, her tails wagging happily.

The Rooks look in shock.

"They beat all the Pawns, no way!" The red haired Rook replied.

"Good, now that they've been dealt with, I can really cut loose. Go, empower me... Excalibur Blessing!" Irina exclaimed, a gold aura giving her power.

The Rooks went on the defensive.

"Asia, I will protect you! Now smite my enemies Excalibur!" Irina exclaimed loudly, forming a yellow burst that made the Rooks scream as both were instantly retired before they could even react.

"Nice!" Issei shouted.

Soon all of them catch the sight of the battle on Vali's side, Vali and Kuroka both putting shields as Bikou tried to fire back at them with Senjutsu, and Arthur cut against incoming fire that he could reach with Caliburn.

"Damn! I wish we could help them, there's gotta be something we can do to encourage them." Issei growled.

"Wait, I have an idea." Irina smirked.

Vali soon noticed a magic circle form by her ears.

"Hey Vali!" Irina shouted.

"Irina?" Vali said in surprise.

"While you're wasting your time over there, I'm going to have Issei all to myself. In fact, time for a kiss." Irina giggled, going for a slow-motion kiss to Issei's surprise.

Right at that moment, the sight of Vali's aura flaring out in anger catches everyone's attention. Irina made a fist pump as she saw it worked.

"Yes!" Irina cheered.

"Wait... what!?" Issei said flatly.

Vali's anger began distorted growls, looking towards Irina's directions her eyes glowed a dangerous shade of blue.

"**Irina! I can't believe you'd actually say that right in front of me! Thinking you can do that just because I'm separated from my man, when I get over there you're gonna see me raise Hell with you! You hear me? I! WILL! RAISE! HELL!**" Vali screamed enraged, her aura spiking out further.

"...Jealousy, it truly is woman's kryptonite." Arthur commented.

"Seriously, all of this over a man-" Diodora's Queen yelled.

Suddenly Vali stares at her and her eyes flashed.

"**SHUT YOUR MOUTH YOU BASTARD!**" Vali screamed, forming a certain spell.

"Oh no, move out of the way!" Bikou shouted instantly.

The three all fled instantly before all five of Diodora's remaining pieces all scream, the Cocytus spell instantly freezing the entire temple area and retiring them. Everyone stared in shock while Irina sweated a bit.

"...Was that-"

"Her Cocytus spell? Yes, yes it was." Issei answered, making Irina go white. Vali soon stomped into view as Irina flinched and shook in fear.

"IRINA!" Vali shouted.

Irina gulped, holding her hands up defensively.

"Wait, I can explain! I swear!" Irina panicked, screaming like a maniac inside her head.

* * *

Everyone walked up the stairs to where Diodora would be waiting, Irina panting heavily at the bullet she dodged by a hair.

"Irina, you and I will have a serious talk about boundaries when we save Asia, understood?" Vali claimed, making it clear she had no right to reject it.

"...Right, OK." Irina whimpered.

Once they finally got inside the building of the temple's peak, a magic circle appeared by Vali.

"Vali, do you read me?" Ajuka's voice answered.

"Lord Beelzebub? I hear you, what is it?" Vali responded.

"I decided to do a little side investigation about my younger brother, and I think you'll want to hear this. If only to get you properly angry when you take care of him." Ajuka stated.

Vali's right eyebrow raised a bit.

"OK, go ahead." Vali nodded.

"You know all those girls you've likely fought already? They're related to why Diodora had such a specific dream, they used to be nuns, some of them were even saints once. To put it simply, he has a nun fetish." Ajuka explained.

"What did you say!?" Irina gasped.

Vali's eyes shook at that as she suddenly began to realize something.

"Ajuka, keep going. This is related to Asia, isn't it?" Issei replied.

"Right, he saw Asia a long time ago and he was infatuated instantly. Though Asia was too precious of a treasure to the church to kidnap without problems. So, he had to make her unprotected... and injured himself, that way Asia would heal him while he intentionally showed he was a Devil to the church members." Ajuka explained.

Everyone in Vali's peerage gasped in horror.

"He got her excommunicated on purpose, that bastard! He was behind it from the very beginning!" Issei growled with rage.

"And that's not the worst of it. Yuuma, remember your sister Raynare? Well, Diodora was waiting the whole time for her to die and then off Raynare so he could make her part of his own peerage. Only reason he failed was because he made the mistake of waiting and thinking Issei would die instantly." Ajuka finished.

"THAT SON OF A BITCH! I'M GONNA KILL HIM RIGHT-" Issei screamed loudly, prepared to charge at Diodora.

Vali grabbed his shoulder with her hand.

"Vali, are you expecting me to let him live-" Issei asked angrily, only to stop as he saw Vali's face.

"No." Vali answered.

Vali's face was so angry, her eyes weren't reflecting any light and her aura wasn't even bothering to hide, if Vali had an anger meter to reflect how made she was... this was clearly close to if not the very peak of her rage.

"I want you to let me be the one to kill that f-" Vali replied.

Yuuma covered Kunou's ears with her hands, not wanting her to hear Vali drop the F-Bomb. Vali rushed forward and smashed the door down, and Diodora smirked and began to cackle as he saw her with Asia being held in some strange device.

"Asia!" Issei called out.

"...I knew you'd come" Asia weakly replied, looking at them.

"What took you so long? You should have seen her face when I told her the particulars of my plan. Her expression was absolutely priceless! I never get tired of it, seeing a woman of faith and conviction give into despair!" Diodora cackled, soon making an angry face.

"And yet no matter what I try, Asia clings onto hope. It must be because she has friends like you big bad Dragon Emperors. Though I've forgiven you, you're all the reason she's gotten such high hopes, killing you will push her to the deepest despair. Once that's done, I'll give her an Evil Piece both literally and euphemistically-"

Suddenly, a cut formed on Diodora's cheek as an icicle flew by him, Vali's eyes shadowed before she looked at Diodora with her eyes glowing.

"**Diodora, I'm going to murder you so brutally that you'll go to Tartarus without ever seeing Hades at the checkpoint!**" Vali screamed hysterically.

**"(VANISHING DRAGON... BALANCE BREAKER!)"**

Soon Vali was equipped in her scale mail, and it was steaming with the mist being emitted by her own anger.

"Go ahead, but I have a King Piece and an offering directly from Trihexa! Try and stop-" Diodora mocked.

Vali smashed her fist into her gut instantly before flinging across the ground.

"You bumbling oath... I'm a high-ranking Devil you half breed filth! Brother of the current Beelzebub!" Diodora complained, firing shots at Vali.

"A noble like me can't lose to a savage weakling like you-"

Vali simply deflected Diodora's attacks with his fists, and when he forms a few barriers she simply kicks through them, smashing her heel into Diodora's face.

"Ow! My face! My beautiful face, it hurts!" Diodora whined in pain.

"You're the real weakling here." Vali said angrily.

Vali picked up Diodora, and she held up her fist as she Diodora into it. While normally someone would consider that too brutal, none of Vali's peerage consider her taking it too far due to how horrible of a person Diodora revealed himself to be.

"I don't understand, I've gotten so much stronger from Trihexa's power... I won't like a disgusting Dragon beat me like this!" Diodora screamed, soon forming a barrier to block Vali.

"Hah! You're trapped now, this barrier's impenetrable!" Diodora mocked, laughing crazily.

"Unbreakable my face you ass!" Vali shouted.

**(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

Vali shot forward and punched the barrier once, smashing it open instantly to Diodora's horror.

"I'd have half a mind of using my Primal Abyss on you if it weren't for I want you to suffer for every moment you made Asia cry!" Vali roared, smashing her fist to send her flying into the wall.

"Impossible, I can't be defeated! I even had a plan to deal with Sairaorg... I won't lose to a false Lucifer! I'm Diodora of the Astaroth family!" Diodora screamed angrily and fearfully, charging a spell at Vali.

He fires it, and Vali uses a simple ice spell to break it apart before it blasts through the wall, slashing par of Diodora's side off as he falls over and holds his bleeding wound as she sputters fearful breaths.

Vali soon stands before her, and he gives a fearful look as he sees a monstrous version of Albion's silhouette behind her.

"That's all you deserve, so wait as you bleed out to the very last moment!" Vali stated, walking away as she walked to the seal holding Asia and tried to rip it apart with no success.

"What the? It won't budge, why won't it come lose!?" Vali gasped.

"That is a custom Longinus seal made by the owner of Dimension Lost just for me, it was set to disarm when over... but if you defeat me I requested it to absorb and kill her! If I can't have her, I'll erase her from existence rather than give her back!" Diodora declared, laughing insanely.

Vali's eyes widened in horror.

"No... Asia!" Vali gasped.

"Vali... I'm sorry." Asia cried.

Issei stared, and soon gasped before he rushed over and put a hand on Vali's shoulder.

"Issei?" Vali asked.

"We've got one chance Vali, trust in me. Amp it up Ddraig!" Issei shouted.

**"[You've got it partner!]"**

Vali gasped, and soon nodded.

**"(I'll lend my strength too Vali, don't give in.)"**

"Thank you Albion." Vali smiled.

Soon both of their Sacred Gears glowed brightly as they pushed themselves to the limit.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]  
(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

Soon everyone was blinded as the Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou's powers burst out, making their auras flood out like wildfire around the area.

"Now... **[PURGATORY!]**"

"And... **[COCYTUS!]**"

The two custom spells flare out and smash against the Longinus Seal, making everyone shout as the force nearly blew them, Asia screamed as the force was enough to smash the Longinus Seal apart. The three fell back, Vali's scale mail breaking.

Asia slowly got up, looking at the both of them.

"Are you two alright?" Asia asked.

"No... t-that isn't possible, how could two Mid-Class Longinus break a s-seal made from a High-Class Longinus! This... this c-can't be!" Diodora stuttered in shock and horror, seeing everything he worked for fail as hard work destroyed his talent effortlessly.

Irina rushes at Asia and hugs her.

"Asia, thank goodness you're OK! I don't know what would have happened if we lost you!" Irina cried, hugging Asia tightly.

"That's right, you're not going anywhere. We'll always keep you safe." Vali smiled.

Everyone smiled the same was, and Asia joined in... only for a yellow pillar of light to suddenly encompass her before she disappeared, causing everyone to stare in horror... worst of all was Vali's, whose eyes shook as if her mind was a computer system that just crashed.

"Asia? ...ASIA!" Issei screamed out.

"Where is she!?" Issei asked in a panic.

The others couldn't even find words as they stared, and Diodora just watched with a satisfied look at seeing Asia disappear.

"Now that's enough of this nonsense. Especially with you Diodora, how pathetic."

Most of the group turned to see a woman with a strange dress like armor, having long gray hair that covered her eyes from view descend from a portal and float in the air before them with a dull expression on her face.

"Who are you!?" Issei demanded furious.

"The true descendant of Belphegor, Zentiika Belphegor." Zentiika answered, looking at Diodora.

Diodora reached out, laughing victoriously.

"Please Zentiika, help me... imagine combing our powers." Diodora begged.

"Hmm... alright then, I'll help you. Help you die faster." Zentiika stated as she pointed a finger at him.

Diodora stared before a pillar of light killed him.

"Good, he's dead now." Zentiika sighed in relief, looking at Vali and her peerage.

"Now I've gotta kill you... such a chore, but you're too much of a thorn in our sides." Zentiika declared lazily.

* * *

Meanwhile on the battlefield, Lilith forms a Primal Abyss to swallow more Devils of the Khaos Brigade when the sight of a magic circle showing the Asmodeus crest appears and a Devil with the appearance of a good-looking man wearing the clothes of a noble appeared. His clothes were black with a dark red belt motif and a cape. He had black hair tied up to a small ponytail and violet eyes, and possessed the rare Devil traits of pointy ears and pale skin.

"Well, if isn't one of the traitors." Lilith scowled, clearly displeased to see this Devil.

"That's right, I am the true descendant and heir of Asmodeus. My name is Creuserey Asmodeus! I have come to avenge the fallen Leviathan and Mammon, and when we do we'll use Trihexa's power to destroy this land and create a new world for Devils!" Creuserey introduced, showing his hand with the Trihexa symbol.

Lilith sighs and gives a serious look.

"I can't believe how stupid you are, Devils are already barely recovering from the Great War and yet you'd risk them going extinct from another unnecessary war?" Lilith stated angrily.

"An impostor Queen who sides with Angels, Fallen Angels and Demons has no right to speak as a Devil!" Creuserey countered.

At that moment, Gebedon appeared by Lilith to the latter's surprise.

"Lady Lilith... allow me, will you? As the current heir to the Asmodeus house, allow me to kill the man who ruined my household all those years ago! Is that fair?" Gebedon shouted with anger.

"Go ahead, show him how weak he really is." Lilith agreed, teleporting away.

"The weak one is you false Asmodeus, now die alongside your artificial existence! **[INVADER SIGHT!]**" Creuserey yelled.

All he gets from Gebedon's mind is his pickup lines for girls to is surprise.

"The real Asmodeus household trains against its own ability, and unfortunately..." Gebedon replied, showing his own Invader Sight activating as he sees Asmodeus thinking about the worry of Gebedon hitting his weakness.

"You left your thoughts on your weakness exposed!" Gebedon shouted, creating a magic circle that spews out a venomous cloud right as the other Asmodeus' torso.

Creuserey gasped as his body dissolved away like dust.

"No, this is... that's impossible! You're a fraud, yet you defeat me!?" Creuserey gasped, and Gebedon sighed as he smirked.

"See that? You're the weak ones, that's why you lost the civil war. Rot in Tartarus where you belong" Gebedon declared, finally avenging the stain on his family name.

* * *

Everyone stared at Zentiika angrily.

"Where'd you send Asia? What did you do to her!?" Yuuma screamed.

"Oh, that blondie girl? Hmm... yeah, I sent her to the Dimensional Gap, by now that bimbo's already dead." Zentiika replied nonchalantly.

Kunou's eyes widened at that, while Arthur raises his eye and grabs Kuroka and Bikou before the two could react, Zentiika not even noticing.

"No, if she's there then... the Gap's already dissipated her." Kunou shook in horror.

"No... you're lying. YOU'RE LYING!" Irina screamed.

Irina drew Excalibur before forming both her Devil and Angel wings, rushing at Zentiika.

"I swear I'll kill you for what you've done! I'll cut you down piece by piece until you scream for mercy!" Irina screamed until her voice became so high pitched, her voice was naturally distorted.

'Boring, I've already broken the Hakuryuukou and yet I've gotta deal with this. So tedious.' Zentiika thought, yawning as she raised her hand out.

Using her Will of Creation ability, she formed a glove that tasered Irina with each of her finger tips, making her scream as she was knocked back.

"Irina!" Issei shouted in worry.

"Bring her back, I said bring her back! Don't take her away... ASIA!" Irina screamed as she cried more.

At that moment, everyone heard the walls of the temple collapse, with floor where Vali stood now a crater as Vali slowly turned with an empty look in her eyes at Zentiika, and suddenly the betraying Belphegor looks at her oddly.

Vali slowly walks towards Zentiika, and her peerage looks at her worriedly yet feels an aura warning them to not even try anything, Vali stayed silent the whole time she trudged towards the Devil that took Asia from them.

**"[Issei!]"**

"Huh? Ddraig, what is it?" Issei asked.

**"[If you want to avoid dying, get away immediately... the Devil called Zentiika made a poor decision and now we'll all suffer from it!]"**

At that moment, Vali's mouth opens and she roars, but rather than her voice... it was a Dragon's roar, namely Albion's Dragon roar.

"Ddraig, what's happening? Tell us... please." Issei asked.

**"[The true curse of the Heavenly Dragons' conflict, started by our first hosts. This is...]"**

**"[...The Juggernaut Drive]"**

Suddenly everyone was blown away across the room as a white aura flashed out, Zentiika screamed as she slammed into the wall and coughed out blood, seeing Vali suddenly wearing her scale mail.

Following that, the sight of blue lights formed and the sound of moaning came from them, like fallen souls screaming their regrets and tears. Vali's armor was shadowed as it began to shift and transform.

"**I, who shall awaken...**" Vali chanted.

"_It's starting, the time's finally come..._" A high pitched female voice spoke.

"_I don't know you._" A low pitched male voice replied.

"**Am the White Heavenly Dragon who claimed the principles of supremacy from God!**" Vali continued chanting.

"_It has always been this way..._" A low pitched female voice answered.

"_That is correct, always and forever._" A gruff male voice continued.

"**I envy the infinite and long for the dream...**" Vali kept chanting.

"_What the world desires..._" The gruff male voice resumed.

"_What the world rejects._" What the high pitched female voice added.

"**I shall become the White Dragon of Supremacy!**" Vali chanted loudly.

"_Has always been power..._" A raspy male voice stated.

"_Has always been love..._" A medium pitched female voice bemoaned.

"**_NO MATTER THE OCCASION YOU ALWAYS CHOOSE THE PATH TO RUIN!_**" Vali said alongside every voice.

"I shall take you to the limits of white paradise!" Vali yelled, prepared to state her final word.

"**_[JUGGERNAUT DRIVE!]_**"

Soon a white pillar of light burst from the temple, getting the attention of the entire battlefield, with Tiamat and Tannin both showing horror at the sight.

"Those stupid bastards... what have they done!?" Tiamat breathed in horror.

"They've awakened the worst power of the Hakuryuukou, and while used by its greatest wielder yet." Tannin stated worriedly.

Lilith's shook as she saw it.

"Vali..." Lilith whispered.

* * *

Meanwhile somewhere in the world, Ophis felt the echoes of Vali's power and she stood up almost instantly.

"...Stupid Khaos Brigade, can't believe you thought you'd be able to attack a Dragon Emperors with Despair, any deaths on your side today were earned for your arrogance." Ophis coldly stated towards the empty area.

She soon teleported away.

* * *

Issei coughed as he and the rest of Vali's peerage soon got up and looked through the smoke to see what had just happened, and when they did... they all suddenly wished they hadn't, because the sight was horrid.

Standing in front of them while glaring at Zentiika with a light that was nearly white colored venom dripping from her jaws, was Vali... only now she looked like a mechanical version of Albion in his original body before he was sealed into a Sacred Gear.

"My god..." Irina breathed.

"Is... is that really Vali?" Kunou wondered, holding Yuuma tightly who was shaking in fear as much as she was.

Issei stared in shock at what his girlfriend had turned into.

**"[This is what happens if feelings of despair, rage and sadness culminate past a threshold you shouldn't cross. It gives a user enough power that they become as strong as me and Albion before we were sealed... but at a price. The user's lifespan is devoured by an extreme amount as compensation... if it doesn't kill them first.]"**

"What, are you saying this could kill Vali!?" Issei gasped.

**"[Well lucky for you, but unlucky for everyone... because of Vali's nature as a half-Devil and of the Lucifer bloodline, her own Devil power is being consumed in place of her lifespan. What makes that dangerous is it'll keep her on a rampage for an hour before the transformation has any chance of being undone. By all means, her life isn't in danger, but all of our lives _are_!]"**

Zentiika shook before raising her arm out.

"Die!" Zentiika screamed, unleashing a battalion of Dragon slaying weapons with her Will of Creation, but not a single one doing anything to her horror.

*ROAR!*

**(COMPRESSION DIVIDER!)**

Zentiika felt a large amount of blue energy hit her, and soon enough... her body began to fade!

"What!? No, no don't do this... don't kill me-" Zentiika begged, soon disappearing as if she was erased from all existence aside from memories.

"My god..." Issei whispered, staring in panic and horror.

Vali gives another loud roar that echoed across the horizon of the battlefield, today was a dark day for Hell. Because their greatest fight today wouldn't be an enemy...

...it would be an ally that now had the same strength as one of the two beings ranked as the 3rd most powerful in the entire world!

* * *

**Uh oh... Vali just entered the Juggernaut Drive! Worse, due to her intense Devil powers, it'll at least rampage for a minimum of an hour, so for once the danger of a drastically reduced lifespan doesn't help at all... oh and if you're curious, this was a _Complete_ transformation into the Juggernaut Drive which makes all of what I said before that even worse!**

**Issei's taking the spotlight for the next chapter, because now while everyone has to work together, the only one who can save Vali from herself is him, but how will Ddraig's power be enough against Vali when the limiter on Albion's power is gone and he still has his, with the risk of entering his own Juggernaut Drive being too dangerous to even attempt? Well... only answer to that, Issei needs something more that isn't the Juggernaut Drive.**

**Be ready everyone, because Season 3 is about to meet its exciting end. Before that though, I have an announcement I think you'll all like. So let me mention that right now so you can all see it ^^ *giggles* Get ready everyone, because next time the season 3 finale is about to happen and with it we'll be seeing the Season 3 OVA about Riser play out :)**

**Oh! After the announcement, look below because I'm sharing a very powerful peerage, one made from characters I've seen throughout a few series that I feel are very strong and have incredible abilities without being anywhere near unbeatable. Who's peerage is it? I ain't telling ^^**

* * *

**Alright everyone, here's announcement! So... are you all ready? :3 *giggles* The announcement is... *begins a drum roll* After this fanfic's season 4 ends, A Dragon's Heavenly Bonds... will have a crossover with my story Date A Re:Live! Oh, and the biggest part about it? Well... it's canon to _both_ fanfics!**

**So, are you all surprised? It's one thing for an author to try a cross-over, and another to do one for series more of their readers know they do... but for two of their own stories? Definitely a rarity :3 *giggles* This will be my first attempt at a crossover story, so wish me luck when it finally happens.**

* * *

**A/N: This is a secret peerage that will appear later in the series, for now though... here's your sneak peek. Feel free to try and guess who it belongs to, after all, it could be anyone's considering all the powerful faces within it :3**

** -Secret Peerage- **

**King - Unknown**   
**Queen - Edelweiss**   
**Bishops - Rinne Sonogami, Jasmine**   
**Knights - Heathcliff, Reinforce**   
**Rooks - Esdeath, Kaido**   
**Pawns - Acnologia, Rei Ryghts, Uzume Tennouboshi, Meliodas, Chisato Hasegawa, "Legendary Soul Bird" Ruhk, Medaka Kuromkami, OC Character**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**N/A**

* * *

** -Crossover Peerage Member origin series- **

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Edelweiss**

**Date A Live - Rinne Sonogami**

**Senran Kagura - Sayuri/Jasmine**

**Sword Art Online - Heathcliff/Akihiko Kayaba**

**Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Reinforce Eins**

**Akame ga Kill - Esdeath**

**One Piece - Kaido**

**Fairy Tail - Acnologia**

**Hyperdimension Neptunia - Rei Ryghts, Uzume Tennouboshi**

**Seven Deadly Sins - Meliodas**

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Chisato Hasegawa**

**Medaka Box - Medaka Kurokami**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona may be developing feelings**


	29. Chapter 29

**Oh yeah! Here we are everyone, the epic Season 3 finale! Get ready, because I want to tackle this whole thing in one go, meaning by the time I reach the end notes, this chapter may be _very VERY_ long. Though it'll be worth it to avoid leaving you all on another cliffhanger, that and I technically already promised you all that this was the finale chapter so I ain't breaking that now.**

**This is the biggest fight we've had yet to date, cause its everyone versus Vali, and right now the Juggernaut Drive has basically made her Albion in terms of strength and that means no one is anywhere close to her in power, not even Issei unless he also entered the Juggernaut Drive... which he can't for multiple reasons, including the fact he'd use up his lifespan before he'd be able to enough to stop Vali's rampage.**

**Oh yeah, some of you may have noticed Rias and Sona weren't part of the battle, so I guess there's no harm in revealing this now. The Omake that adapts the Riser OVA is actually happening at around the same time as this, and for safety reasons the civilians are being kept in the dark about it. So as a result, neither of them or their peerage members are aware of what's happening, including the Juggernaut Drive.**

**I think what will excite you most about this chapter though? We're finally gonna get some signs of someone who's been a greater scope focus of the story but hasn't really appeared before now, and also... well, what I can say without giving it away is Issei's about to pull out a new trick that you'll love seeing, and it's something that I got inspiration from after seeing something in One Piece.**

**So, it's time now... everyone, the epic showdown of Juggernaut Drive Vali is about to start! *hits a gong for emphasis* BEGIN!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Blazing Inferno of Scorching Flames & Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom- **

**The original powers of Ddraig and Albion respectively, and their signature abilities that represent their true powers. Ddraig's Blazing Inferno of Scorching Flames came as a result of his strong fire drake heritage with descendants of light and plant drakes that amplified the flames' ability to ignite, shine and burn to the point it could consume even the most powerful of Gods.**

**For Albion, the Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom came due to his unique dual heritage from an ice drake and a poison drake heritage, combined with a shadow drake descendant that churned and manifested into a chilling white mist that rotted and reduced all it touched into nothing and also had the same potency for killing gods.**

**This power made them feared, but left both of them with no one to challenge, and caused the two to live empty lives, unable to permanently die to the Dragons' natural ability to revive from their souls after enough time passed. Though one day, the two would have a fateful encounter, and after annoying each other used their respective breathes... only to discover neither could harm the other with it.**

**For the first time in either Dragons' lives, they had found a reason to live as the sight of a being that equaled them stood before the other. They soon chose to seal their breathes and began fighting each other, wishing to grow without their signature dragon breathes, eventually leading to the creation of their Boost, Divide, Penetrate, Reflect and various other skills inherited by the Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou.**

**It's stated that the sign a Sekiryuutei or Hakuryuukou have finally mastered their powers and fully inherited the ability to gain the Heavenly Dragons' full power is the day they manage to unlock these abilities. To this day, no one has succeeded, with the closest to it being the Juggernaut Drive allowing all of their abilities to be used... at the cost of the host losing or nearly losing their life in doing so.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Diodora Arc: Chapter 5 - Wrath of the Juggernaut _ **

Zentiika shook before raising her arm out.

"Die!" Zentiika screamed, unleashing a battalion of Dragon slaying weapons with her Will of Creation, but not a single one doing anything to her horror.

*ROAR!*

**(COMPRESSION DIVIDER!)**

Zentiika felt a large amount of blue energy hit her, and soon enough... her body began to fade!

"What!? No, no don't do this... don't kill me-" Zentiika begged, soon disappearing as if she was erased from all existence aside from memories.

"My god..." Issei whispered, staring in panic and horror.

Vali gives another loud roar that echoed across the horizon of the battlefield, and it was so powerful it began cracking the ground below her and the surrounding area of the game field as everyone nearby covered their ears.

Vali's eyes looked around, growling before making an eerie humming sound as her wings start glowing. A pillar of white light soon shot into the air, illuminating the area while blinded those looking directly at it.

"What's she doing?" Kunou asked worriedly.

**"[Could this be-]"**

Soon a small group of the remaining Khaos Brigade Devils all ignore throwing caution to the wind and charge at Vali, their desire to kill the heiress of Lucifer overriding their common sense of fear warning them to run. The pillar soon expanded and captured all the Devils within it.

**(DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10**

A spot on the metal skin's chest opened up, revealing a blue orb that was charging all the power into a mighty blue glow.

"I don't like the sound of that!" Le Fay panicked.

**"[You're right, get away from here now or you'll die! That's a dangerous technique only Longinus can use!]"**

"Come on, let's get away before we die!" Yuuma exclaimed.

"Issei!" Irina called out.

Issei looked at them and then back at Vali worriedly, he gritted his teeth and closed his eyes before assuming his Balance Breaker and flying away with everyone.

**(DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10 (DIVIDE!) x10**

**(LONGINUS... SMASHER!)**

Soon the glow focused into a mass of power before Vali roared and fired it off, most of the fighters far away all ran away in advance, but for the rest of the Khaos Brigade's forces... this attack annihilated every last one of them and left a majority of the field ruined.

* * *

Meanwhile inside the Dimensional Gap, Arthur was moving himself, Bikou and Kuroka in a barrier formed by Caliburn. The latter two were giving confused looks to why Arthur had even dragged them here in the first place.

"Arthur, why are we here exactly? This is place is just one big void and I'd rather not run into Ophis or Great Red if they're in here right now." Bikou asked nervously.

"We're here to save Asia before it's too late." Arthur explained.

Kuroka and Bikou show surprise at that.

"What, but that Zentiika chick said-" Kuroka stated.

"-That she sent Asia here, that means she's not dead yet. If we don't hurry though, she will dissipate into the void, worse is if we don't bring her back then Vali might..." Arthur explained, soon feeling a wave of power.

"Shit, we're too late!"

Kuroka looked at Arthur confused until she suddenly noticed something and gasped, getting the attention of the boys.

"Look, over there!" Kuroka said as she pointed forward.

"Wait, is that..." Bikou gasped.

Asia's unconscious form was seen floated in the gap, though signs of dissipation were already started.

"Bikou, get her in the barrier quick! Kuroka, the moment he does, start healing her!" Arthur order.

"Right! Ruyi Jingu bang!" Bikou shouted.

Bikou's staff stretched out and locked onto part of Asia's outfit, pulling her into Caliburn's barrier.

One she was inside, Kuroka began using Senjutsu to help heal Asia's life force.

"That is one lucky girl, though what's this about being too late?" Bikou asked.

"Vali's activated a technique you and I both heard from her long ago, the one she said she must never let herself use." Arthur answered, making Bikou gasp.

"Wait, are you talking about..." Bikou asked.

* * *

The force of the destruction scared most who saw it, while those who weren't just gave worried looks.

"Dear god..." Irina breathed.

Irina soon looked and noticed aside from the rampaging Vali, and the apparently deceased three of their members were missing, she quickly panicked.

"Where's Arthur, Kuroka and Bikou! Don't tell me the blast got them!" Irina shouted, making the others notice they were missing.

"Big brother!?" Le Fay called out worriedly.

Soon Vali was seen flying out towards the fighters of the Alliance's side, Tannin quickly flew out and locked claws with Vali who simply roared at her grandma's queen.

"Vali, get a hold of yourself!" Tannin screamed loudly.

Vali's eyes glowed as she answered by slashing across Tannin's stomach, leaving a nasty scar before tossing the Dragon Devil into the ground with her jaws.

"Damn it, this is bad!" Zeus sweated.

"...We don't have a choice, subdue her whatever it takes! Everyone use whatever they can to knock her unconscious and bring the Juggernaut Drive's threat down!" Lilith ordered, looking away with closed eyes as she gave the order.

Everyone nodded and prepared their counterattack at that moment.

Ineelana crossed her arms as an aura formed around her, soon swinging her arms out as she screamed loudly.

"**[ETERNAL COFFIN!]**"

Purple ice formed and suddenly pulled Vali to the ground, Vali roared as she attempted to break free of it.

"**[WILL OF CREATION!]**"

"**[DRAINING ROBBER!]**"

Soon adamantium chains form and constrict Vali onto the ground even further, followed by an energy hand stretching out to drain her strength away. Suzattin and Esketanus both sweat as they hold out their signature powers.

Vali shifted her head and prepared to blast a beam at them, causing Niruili to rush ahead and jump in front of them.

"**[DEVOURING MIMICRY!]**"

Niruili's mouth opens to an unnatural level as she eats the attack, she swallows it before slowly regurgitating it.

"Gebedon, give me a weak spot!" Niruili requested.

"You got it! Even a power like this isn't immortal, I'll find it... **[Invader Sense!]**" Gebedon replied.

His eyes focused and soon noticed the gem on her chest was a weak spot.

"Fire at the chest!" Gebedon stated.

"Right!" Niruili nodded.

Niruili soon fully upchucked the magic she ate, firing Vali's own beam at her chest for about a solid 20 seconds before she used up everything she ate. She pants as she falls over, causing Gebedon to catch her.

Tannin and Tiamat soon opened their mouths and breathed their signature breathes at Vali, and luckily for Tannin, Ineelana's Eternal Coffin had its fire immunity keep her trapped while maximizing the chance to inflict damage.

"**[GUNGNIR!]**" Odin shouted.  
"**[THUNDER GLADIATOR!]**" Zeus yelled.

The sky has a large pillar of lightning strike down while Odin aimed a blast from Gungnir at Vali.

Lilith watched as everyone fired everything they had to strike Vali, their combined attacks creating a magical explosion of rainbow energy inside. However, she soon saw a silhouette move before its eyes glowed menacingly.

"Oh no!" Lilith exclaimed.

**(HALF DIMENSION!)**

Blue energy shot off Vali's Divine Dividing wings, and suddenly everyone in the vicinity felt themselves get weakened as the ability sliced their power in half. Vali roared loudly, soon shattering the magical attacks and causing a large recoil that shot everyone back.

Lilith looked up in fear as Vali released some icy mist from her mouth, she had come out of that were barely even a scratch on her.

"...She truly is as powerful as Albion right now, none of us have the power to even come close to having a fighting chance." Lilith whispered so quietly, even she almost didn't hear it.

"Damn it, Vali! Wake up... I said wake the hell up!" Ineelana screamed, shedding a few tears as she did.

Vali lurched her head back, a large amount of mist gathering, but moving in a fluid motion like a liquid. While initially no one knew what it was a first... the sight of some of it dripping on the ground which was quickly melted into a crater changed that.

That sight alone scared everyone, including Zeus and Odin who had good reason to be afraid... that was a technique they know even they were screwed against.

"Uh... Lady Lilith, what's with that gross drool?" Niruili asked.

"That's not drool, that's poison! Not just any poison either... it's the venom that made Albion so feared before the day he met Ddraig, the Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom! Otherwise known as the icy poison that eradicates gods!" Lilith gasped, scaring everyone.

"It kills gods!?" Suzattin screamed, unnaturally loud for once.

"And it's aiming right at us!" Gebedon exclaimed.

Vali roared before breathing out the poisonous blizzard that would spell instant death for all of them, the entire field being reduced to nothing as it neared them.

Just when it seemed like there was no hope for any of them... a large white beam fired off from the sky and ripped the entire breath to shreds. Everyone looked up, and the sight of a familiar black-haired Dragon floated down, sitting in the air like she had an invisible chair below her.

"Ophis?" Lilith gasped.

"Hi Lilith, it's been a while." Ophis greeted.

"Why are you... wait, did you come because of Vali's Juggernaut Drive? If so then you can defeat it for us!" Lilith begged.

Ophis sighed, confusing Lilith. True Ophis was one of the only three beings that Albion's venomous blizzard did squat to, but there was a bigger problem than that, and Lilith didn't know it... so Ophis decided to spell it out with a question.

"Tell me, do you want Vali stopped, or do you want her dead?" Ophis asked.

"W-what?" Lilith gasped.

"Just as it sounds. True, I do have the strength to beat her, but I'd have to kill her to stop her rampaging. I'm assuming you want your little girl to stay alive?" Ophis bluntly answered, making everyone pale a bit.

"Unless you want me shielding you from that acidic mist again then there's squat I can do." Ophis admitted.

Lilith went white in horror, while Ophis looked towards a certain direction.

Back at the area Vali's peerage was, the sight of a dimensional cut opening and letting Arthur and Bikou walk out was seen, getting their fellow teammates attention as they walked into view.

"Arthur! Bikou! We were worried, where have you been?" Issei asked.

"Just a little pickup job." Bikou answered.

Everyone saw Kuroka come out, and a collective gasp was made as she was seen holding Asia with Arthur's coat around her.

"ASIA!" Everyone exclaimed.

"The moment Zentiika mentioned she sent her to the gap, I went there instantly. I brought Bikou and Kuroka so it would be easier to grab her if we saw her, and so we could heal her from any damage to her life force." Arthur answered.

"If we had found her any later we might have been too late, that was closer than I've ever wanted to be." Kuroka admitted.

Soon everyone saw Issei unfold his wings, making them turn to him.

"Issei?" Irina asked.

"She transformed because she thought Asia died, if we tell her she's OK, then Vali should turn back to normal!" Issei stated.

"Then I'll go with you!" Irina replied.

"As will I!" Yuuma exclaimed.

Before they could start flying, Issei's aura pushed them back and began flying ahead.

"No, I'm going alone!" Issei declared.

"Wait, Issei!" Irina shouted.

Issei flies through the sky towards where Vali was, her body currently just standing in place and radiating white energy for some reason as he watched.

'Don't worry Vali, I'll save you... I promise!' Issei thought.

**'[We're at a disadvantage, you better have a plan or we're dead kid.]'**

As Issei flew in closer, a bright white flash suddenly went off in the air, and Issei turned in shock as he saw large white Dragon similar to Great Red's true form, but more feminine in appearance and with a more lengthy and slender body.

Vali turned and blasted at the large white Dragon, but her attacks had no effect on it. Vali soon took flight to clash with the opposing white Dragon, everyone including Issei watched as the two Dragons clashed against one another in midair.

"What the... wait, that Dragon! Isn't that-" Issei gasped.

"**_Issei Hyoudou! I'll give you an opening, but that's all I can offer!_**" Ophis' voice echoed from the large white Dragon.

"Oh my god, it is Ophis!" Issei exclaimed.

**"[So that's Ophis' true form, it's the first time I've ever seen it...]"**

Vali roared as she tried to damage Ophis in vain using her claws, after being annoyed by it long enough, she opened her jaw and bite Vali on the neck to make her drop to the ground and land on her feet, too weakened to fly again.

Ophis got near and went immobile, Vali took the chance and released a blue glow.

**(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

Vali began absorbing some of Ophis' powers, while the True White Dragon God Emperor didn't show any signs of getting weaker due to her infinite power... Vali on the other hand was looking a bit taxed with every second.

**(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

Vali's body began to shake slightly, making panting like motions before firing off the Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom at her, but to no avail as it didn't work on Ophis.

**(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

Vail shook as she fell to her knees.

**(DIVIDE!)**

Soon the Divine Dividing wings overheated and cracked a bit, showing they were rendered useless to the Juggernaut Drive and wouldn't recover until Vali broke free to restart their systems.

Ophis soon shifted back to her normal state.

"No one can handle infinite power except for me, she couldn't handle all that strength. I can leave the rest to you Sekiryuutei Issei." Ophis stated.

"OK! Thank you Ophis, I owe you!" Issei stated as he flew down near Vali.

Soon he landed and dispelled his Balance Breaker.

"Hey Vali, it's me! Wake up Vali!" Issei called out.

"...Issei?" Vali's voice weakly responded.

"Issei, I... I..." Vali replied.

Suddenly Vali screamed before the dragon roar of Albion took over, causing her to knock Issei back as she got up. Vali's real voice still screaming in pain, as if her consciousness and another were both present at the same time.

"Vali!" Issei screamed.

'Something's not right here, but what is it?' Ophis wondered as she watched.

* * *

Watching from a very faraway distance, a trio stood to watch the rampaging Vali, all of them wearing hoods to hide themselves as a precaution with the one in the back holding a strange hand sized staff shaped like a white dragon with yellow eyes.

"Oh how ironic, to have Ophis appear but be unwilling to kill her, and suddenly something forces the Juggernaut Drives' curse to keep the armor moving despite the host wishing to dispel it." The first hooded figure smirked darkly, revealing a small braid of silver hair and a male face.

"Zentiika made the costly mistake of waiting and not leaving once it manifested, but it's a fair cost to take this power as our own. No one will stand against the might she'll be unleashing on the world as a result of this." The second hooded figure replied, a male face and long brown hair spilling out of his hood.

The third hooded figure holding the staff, chuckling as he watched, rubbing his fingers through his beard slightly as he watched.

"Oh poor Vali, you've wasted too much of my time since that day, time for old gramps to give you the punishment you deserve. I think first I'll make you kill your friends, and then... I'll make you devour mother dearest. All while you're conscious to see it, but first here's an appetizer to your suffering!" He laughed.

Soon the good blew slightly, revealing the third figure's identity to be... Rizevim Livan Lucifer!

* * *

Inside Vali's mind, the sight of the heiress of Lucifer was kneeling on the ground and holding her head, various memories flooding through as various voices shouting words of torment and terror into her mind, the horror too much for her to take.

"Stop it..."

A certain face appeared in a nightmarish form, the eyes fully white as only the sclera were seen.

"Stop it!"

The sound of a male's insane laughter came, coming from the nightmarish face that was her grandfather's image distorted by her own fears and trauma embedded deep in her by his actions.

"STOP IT!"

* * *

_Vali fell to the ground as a silver haired man with a small beard struck her, making her shake a bit. Another silver haired man, one much younger and with a mustache instead of a beard, only staring at her with contempt._

_"Get out of here worthless trash." Rizevim stated._

_The young Vali cried as she ran off, the younger silver haired man glared before gritting his teeth and walking away._

_When Vali was alone, she cried as a brown-haired woman hugged her close and wiped her tears._

_"Mama... Mama!" Vali cried, her mother rubbing her back as she teared up slightly._

_"Vali..." Vali's mother replied quietly, unsure of what else to say or do for her daughter._

_The younger silver haired man passed by and grit his teeth._

_"To think she'd consider that half breed mutant as a living being, can't believe that bitch is so blind." Vali's father sneered, looking at his father._

_"Oh, the half breed will see hell soon enough, it's time to mold her as a weapon to my will." Rizevim smirked, his mouth twisted in a cruel manner._

* * *

_Vali cried as Rizevim hold her by her collar, holding her over a cliff._

_"No, stop it please! Don't do it grandpa!" Vali cried, trying to kick her legs in a vain attempt to get herself back on land._

_"Shut your mouth, now use your power or die!"_

_Rizevim soon dropped Vali off a cliff by throwing her, she tried to get her wings out, but a magic circle that acted as a seal prevent her._

_"No... I don't wanna die... I don't wanna die!" Vali screamed loudly._

_Tears were shedding from Vali's eyes as she began to near the ground, only for two white and blue wings to form, barely reducing her crash into the ground as she tumbled across it, shouting in pain as she held her arm._

_All of this was happening while Rizevim smirked darkly._

* * *

_Vali shook as she saw the sight of her bloody hands, her voice trembling, and her body feeling like it wanted to throw up but refusing to do so because her grandfather was watching her and he'd punish her if she did. The ones that laid on the ground before her was a Youkai with a gourd like head, and a white haired Nekomata that even in the present day, Vali didn't know was Kuroka and Shirone's mother._

_"So this is the mighty Nurarihyon? Hah! Pathetic, more like the mighty senile and weak Nurarihyon! See this Vali, this is what you are, a weapon to kill for my bidding! Killing someone like him shows just how many people are too weak to oppose you!" Rizevim cackled._

_Rizevim soon walked off, continuing to have a good laugh about the situation before him._

_Once Rizevim finally got far enough away, Vali's eyes and body shook even more heavily, and she fell to her knees before she immediately threw up on the ground as the sickness that had formed in her stomach finally lurched out of her._

* * *

_"...No, I won't do it!" Vali shouted._

_Vali shook a bit as she stared at her grandpa who only stared at her, and in a single instant...she was knocked down to the ground by Rizevim, holding her cheek in pain as she suddenly saw Rizevim use magic to teleport Vali's parents into the room._

_Seconds after they appeared, he had some young looking silver haired man use his magic to bind them._

_"What? What are you doing father!?" Vali's father roared._

_"Vali..." Vali's mother said worriedly, noticing her daughter's stare at them._

_"To actually say that to me, I'm afraid there's a severe consequence for that. Now... you'll watch the price you've paid." Rizevim stated, charging a magic surge of energy in both of his hands._

_Vali's eyes widened and saw her mother look at her and she tried moving her hands to cast her Primal Abyss... but then her mind was plagued by Rizevim's face and she stopped as illusions of his hands held her in place._

_By that point she was too late, she saw her mother shed some tears and close her eyes before a scream went off as blood splattered across the room, some landing on her face. Vali's entire body and eyes shook as she saw the dead body of her father and mother, but only the latter's death having affected her._

_"And now, you're next." Rizevim stated, charging another magic surge._

_Vali gasped and soon she cast an ice spell to make a cover of mist and start running away, panting heavily as she got outside and didn't even bother to look back. She ran through a place she didn't know the name of, her Grandfather flying after her with every attention to likely murder her at this point._

_She nearly tripped a few times and soon found herself cornered at a cliff face. She quickly tried to turn and run somewhere else, but a suddenly pair of magic blasts fired, and Vali gave a silent scream of pain as they shredded through her arm and shot through her chest, limiting her movement as Rizevim walked into view._

_"There's nowhere to run, this is where you meet you end." Rizevim smirked._

_Vali's eyes shook as she realized Rizevim was about to end her life as he just kept getting closer. Looking in front of her and behind her, she did the only thing she could think of... use the one power as a Devil she had and he didn't._

_"PRIMAL ABYSS!" Vali exclaimed in a loud scream._

_A black swarm of darkness discharged from her hand, catching Rizevim caught off guard as it pushed him back, forcing him to struggling to avoid having the void pulling him inside of it for all eternity... and then the cliff face Vali was on soon broke._

_Vali gasped in fear and horror as she suddenly fell towards the ground far below her... and slammed into it hard, making her black out as she crashed into it. When it had ended, Rizevim looked and saw she had disappeared._

_"...Huh, looks like she's dead now." Rizevim stated, soon flying off before anyone could notice her._

_Meanwhile outside of Rizevim's knowledge, Vali's KOd form was crying on the ground she landed on, in clear pain and likely with a broken bone or two. While she was unconscious... her face sweated and twitched as the nightmarish face of Rizevim laughed at her and his illusionary hands latched onto her._

* * *

"See that? That's all of your failures, that's all you're good for!"

**"You've taken many lives, there's no excuse for age or being forced. Their blood is on your hands!"**

_"A person like you doesn't deserve redemption, you should have become the weapon you were meant to be."_

"Time to pay what you owe, give in the to the power of the Juggernaut!"

Vali's eyes shrink and shook.

"No... please stop, stop it." Vali begged, shaking more.

"[Just drown into the power already!]"

"{You are the Hakuryuukou, this is your fate. Accept it already!}"

"(It matters not who the Sekiryuutei is, that boy is the red one, lover or not you must fight him to the death. You must kill him and survive!)"

"=That bastard is sick, but he's right about what he told you... destroy him!="

Vali screamed loudly, soon she feels a weak hand reach out to her. Vali gasps as she saw her mother laying below her, her eyes lifeless as a representation of her dying face back from when she was only a child.

And then right after that, she flashed to look like Asia before flashing back.

"Mom? Asia?" Vali gasped.

"I'm sorry... I never meant to make you cry Vali, please... forgive me..." Vali's mom/Asia weakly replied, touching Vali's cheek before it went limp and they both faded into magic energy that passed by her without a trace.

* * *

The roar of the dragon armor resonates with Vali's screams as Issei covers his ears and gets blown back.

"Vali, don't let it win! Fight it!" Issei shouted.

'No doubt about it... something else is influencing her, but what is it?' Ophis thought, her gaze slightly shifting behind her as she thought this.

Issei ran in front of Vali.

"Vali, please! Don't you hear my voice! It's me, Issei-" Issei shouted.

Issei's words would never finish as Vali's claws gouged into him, a sight that horrified everyone who saw it as he was flung forward and tumbled... his blood splattering across the ground slightly, and he didn't get back up or move afterwards once they saw it.

"No..." Lilith gasped.

"ISSEI!" Vali cried as she screamed.

At that moment, the rest of Vali's peerage who had stayed behind on Issei's insistence all rushed over. Irina lifted Issei up.

"Come on Issei, this isn't funny! Say something!" Irina cried, shaking him in vain.

"No... please Issei, don't go... don't die!"

Issei's body didn't respond at all, no matter who wanted to deny it... the cold truth seemed to be staring before them.

"No... he can't be..." Yuuma breathed.

"He didn't make it?" Kunou gasped.

"Issei..." Arthur breathed, his usual calm facade breaking.

"Oh my god..." Le Fay shook, holding onto Asia before she began crying.

Kuroka stared in shock, and soon stared at Vali as the dragon armor containing her with anger, and soon screamed as she blasted Senjutsu on it without restraint or reason. All she wanted right now was to see it break and release Vali for what it caused her to do.

Yuuma soon did the same and blasted holy spears out it, blasting the armor in vain as it began to rampage near them.

"You bastard, let her go! Pay for what you did to Issei!" Bikou roared in anger, extending the Ruyi Jingu Bang to slam it down on Vali.

"How dare you!" Irina shrieked with tears in her eyes, flinging off a swarm of holy rings at her.

Le Fay screamed in sadness and rage, aiming her wand out as she cast every spell she knew. Arthur shouted as he charged and swung down Caliburn on Vali, all the attacks hit and yet not one of them did a thing to Vali's armor.

'No... Issei, Issei! I'm sorry, I didn't want this... I never wanted any of it!' Vali thought, crying within the scale mail armor she had no control over.

'No... I couldn't protect them, why can't I protect the people I care about?' Vali mentally asked as her voice shook.

"He was the only one strong enough to have a chance of saving her... either Vali dies from this power now, or she kills everyone here. What a curse it is to have the power to do something but at the cost of killing her... is it worth it now if she's lost the one she loves most?" Ophis whispered to herself, unsure if she should intervene now.

Vali cried out loudly as the scale mail roared loudly, creating a loud shout that blew Vali's peerage away.

Seeing the sight before her, Ophis gave a heavy sight before she prepared to raise her hand.

'I have no choice... I have to give her mercy, don't think badly of me for doing this Vali.' Ophis thought, raising her hand as she prepared a blast, only to suddenly feel something odd pass her senses.

'Wait, what is this?' Ophis thought, soon motioning her eyes towards Issei as she traced the source to his apparently dead form. Her eyes soon widened as she suddenly felt some life in him and her eyes widened.

* * *

Within another landscape, Issei felt himself laying down injured, and soon various silhouettes of red energy form and bemoan as they reached out for him, she weakly looks up as he feels the energy they were emitting... the same energy Vali was when she activated the Juggernaut Drive.

"**Juggernaut Drive...**" A male voice stated.

"...Use the Juggernaut Drive." A female voice agreed.

Issei's eyes widened and made an angry look.

"What the hell are all of you saying? Use the Juggernaut Drive!? Is that the only solution you all see!? IS IT!?" Issei shouted angrily, surprising the many voices.

He saw it in his eyes, a vision where Vali was holding him, his armor destroyed and himself puking a lot of blood from my mouth. Without having seen any more besides this, he could easily see he was in critical condition... all because he used the Juggernaut Drive.

"(You must, the Juggernaut Drive!)" An elderly voice called out.

"{The Juggernaut Drive is the only solution.}" A young voice replied.

"=Yes, that's the only solution.=" A woman's voice stated.

Issei growled more, and soon slammed his hand down, pushing himself up to the many voices' surprise. It was as if something in Issei was pushing against their own feelings, one so strong the threshold from Juggernaut Drive looked close, but was so far away it wasn't even near him.

At that very moment, the past possessors began to hear voices... the voices of Issei's friends.

_"Come on Issei, this isn't funny! Say something!" Irina cried, shaking him in vain._

_"No... please Issei, don't go... don't die!"_

"Do all of you hear that voice? That voice, it belongs to a friend of mine, do you know why it sounds like it's so full of tears?" Issei asked angrily.

"It's because of all of you! Juggernaut Drive this, Juggernaut Drive that... are you supposed to be my predecessors? Well if you are, answer me this, does ruining the lives of others and harming countless more all you care about!? All just to settle some stupid eternal conflict you claim to be fate!?" Issei demanded, asking the armor piercing question to them directly.

Not one of them spoke, nor could they answer... and they all stopped moving as Issei got on his feet, the gash from his physical body still present.

"You want my answer? No, it isn't... all you've done with this conflict is cause more pain in an unending cycle! The one you want me to fight, she's the girl I love, I don't give a damn about your fight, your need to win, or your pride!" Issei roared.

"All I care about is protecting her, and protecting my friends! The people so important to me! The Red Dragon of Domination isn't who I am, because my name's Issei Hyoudou, the Queen of Vali Lucifer!" Issei declared.

_"You can't fall and croak, it isn't like I respect you or anything, but you better not make Vali sad! Hear me Issei Hyoudou!" Ineelana shouted._

_"That's right! Issei, keep on standing up no matter what!" Niruili cheered._

_"Issei, your heart isn't dead yet! Please... please wake up!" Lilith begged._

_"Please Issei, get up... everyone's calling for you." Irina pleaded._

_"What's wrong Hyoudou Issei? Is this the end? You aren't finished, right? Then try to stand up. Your feelings aren't something so weak!" Sairaorg praised._

Issei's eyes widened as the voices reach him, and he breathes before smiling.

"Don't you hear it? That's the support I've gained, and not because I have the Red Dragon's power. I achieved that myself, just like Vali's achieving her dreams with all her strength, and she's even stronger than I am!" Issei shouted.

The many past possessors are still silent, but then the sight of one past holder, one with a clearly male silhouette gets closer.

"Let him walk his own path, perhaps his is the one she all should have walked." The man states.

"[Belzard, what are you-]" A raspy voice calls out.

"I agree with him." The female voice answers.

"[What, you as well!?]" The raspy voice roared.

Issei smiled at that, the sight of all of his friends flashed by his mind, people who would become his friends, his acquaintances, his family... and it ended with Vali smiling at him... the smile he wanted to protect.

At that moment, a red light begins to glow from within Issei, his eyes gaining a green glow, this surprised one of the past possessors.

"\\\T-That power... I don't believe it! You have the same power as that Hero!?\\\" A gruff voice shouted in fear and amazement.

"What power? I don't recognize this." Issei asked, surprised at what was happening.

The past possessors all look at each other, all looking like they were having a meeting of sorts with each other, and then they all turn to Belzard, who nodded to everyone of the past possessors.

"[The future... can you really show us the future?]" The raspy voice asked.

"Show you? No, I'll do more than that... I'll make it myself! So, let's see it together! I will bring it to, with all of you working alongside me! To my comrades! To my friends! To the woman I love! To everyone! We will show them!"

"Future..."

"**We will create the future.**"

"**T**h**e**n **i**t** i**s** t**i**m**e**,** w**e** m**u**s**t** b**r**e**a**k **t**h**e**s**e** c**h**a**i**n**s** o**f** f**a**t**e**.**.**. a**n**d **f**o**r**g**e** o**u**r **o**w**n** d**e**s**t**i**n**y**!**"

"That's right... my future, our future, everyone's future. I will make it happen, but I need you to make that happen... VALI!" Issei shouted.

* * *

_A young 7-year old Issei stared at his grandfather as he looked at him, rubbing his head._

_"Listen well Issei, not just anyone can be a hero. It isn't a title that you get from brandishing a sword or carrying a shield, it isn't about strength or intelligence. It's someone who's willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of the one they love, but not to lose their life, but to save the lives of the ones they love." Issei's grandpa states._

_"Can I... really do that?" Issei asked._

_Issei's grandpa lifted him up and put him on his lap, smiling._

_"You may stumble along the way, but don't lose heart. The victory will always rise up if they believe... so hold onto your wish, for the girl you wish to protect. That's what will make you a hero!"_

_"I'm a hero... for Vali? I'm a hero!" Issei declares._

* * *

Issei's hand twitches, and Ophis' eyes widen, and soon Issei pushes himself up.

"Issei!" Ophis gasped.

Soon everyone else right as they got up from Vali's attack all looked, and they saw standing up, alive! His wind somehow gone now.

"Issei!" Irina cried happily.

"How's this possible? The wound... it's like he never even got it." Lilith breathed.

** _ \- (*My Hero Academia - You Say Run*) - _ **

Issei began to walk near Vali as he equipped his Balance Breaker, who shed tears of happiness in the armor.

"Issei... thank you!" Vali cried, relieved he was alive.

"I want to stand by your side Vali, ever since I met you, the symbol of being strong... I saw it in your eyes. Someone who survived hardships and hadn't given up. Someone who wants to protect everyone who's become important to them. I'm here now because of you, and now... it's time I break through, because right now I've only got one thing to promise you in this very moment." Issei muttered, soon looking towards Vali.

"I'm going... to destroy the curse of the Juggernaut Drive!" Issei exclaimed.

That claim surprised everyone, even Ophis.

"Ddraig and Albion, the Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou... to be forced to fight? Not any more, I won't let that happen ever again! We're fighting to change our destiny, and for the sake of the one I love, I shall change that impossibility into a possibly! Past possessors of the Divine Dividing, do you hear me? I will change that zero!" Issei exclaimed again.

"Issei... you can do it, I believe in you Issei!" Vali shouted loudly.

The dragon armor roars and soon blasts out a breath of the Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom. Issei took it, knowing it wouldn't hurt him, and soon Vali rushed out at Issei prepared to kill him for real this time... only for Issei to dispel his helmet and suddenly give a fierce look at the armor.

Everyone suddenly felt an intense pressure blast against them, and suddenly even Vali's dragon armor went still, feeling itself feel fear as it shook heavily. That wasn't the strangest thing though... Issei's hair had become a glowing red and his eyes had become a glowing green, shaking intensely as if his willpower was shattering the will of the Juggernaut Drive.

"No way, can it really be?" Zeus gasped, recognizing the ability Issei was using right now as if he saw a ghost.

"Wait, you know what Issei's doing!?" Lilith gasped.

"Yes, a long time ago there was a clan of Heroes, but they were wiped out. I don't know every detail about them... but I know about one. 500 years ago, the Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou of the time both entered the Juggernaut Drive and rampaged across Europe. However, before the destruction became too great, a single hero of this clan used this very power to stop them in their tracts until the Juggernaut Drive's ultimate cost was paid, though the hero lost his life in the process." Zeus explained.

"A single power overcame the Heavenly Dragons? No way, you're kidding!" Ineelana claimed surprised.

Zeus shook his head.

"I kid you not, though since he died, the legends implied he didn't pass this ability down, but... he must have had a child before his death without the child or its mother knowing this. Issei must be a descendant of that hero's child, he is the inheritor of an ability that allows ones will to be channeled to empower their allies buy dominate their enemies into submission, it's known as... **[Domineering Will]**!" Zeus continuing, exclaiming at the last part.

"Domineering Will..." Irina breathed.

Issei gave an intense stare towards Vali, her dragon armor stepping back in fear, shaking a bit.

**"[Partner, I have an idea! One that should help us save Vali before the hourly time limit risks damaging her lifespan!]"**

"What is it? I'm all ears."

**"[This power, if it shakes the Juggernaut Drive, then use it on yourself to draw out your own's power without transforming into it. If you use it like that... while it's a guess and a gamble, because your using the power of yours without despair behind it, the two should collide like matter and antimatter and destroy each other. Your claim of destroying the Juggernaut Drive can very well become a reality if you think you can do it!]"**

Issei's eyes widened in shock, and soon he stares at Vali and gives a determined yet serious look.

"Alright, let's do this... here goes!" Issei said passionately.

Issei screams as he screams, forcing the dormant power within him to draw out, as a deep red aura tries to take over, Issei's face has its veins show up and some of the scale mail armor start to emit flames as his own power holds it at bay.

"He's straining his body to use Ddraig's full power yet not be swallowed by the Juggernaut... Issei Hyoudou, Vali Lucifer, both of you have shown me something I never expected I'd see. Maybe you might be the ones to finally break your chains of fate." Ophis said to herself.

"I'm coming Vali, just wait a bit longer!" Issei shouted, soon rushing forward as the land underneath his feet ripped apart.

**[BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10 [BOOST!] x10**

Vali's dragon armor soon began to panic and rushed at Issei, roaring as it began to try and strike back against Issei. Issei kept dodging while smashing his fists into the armor in the exact same spot, forming incredible stress as he did.

As Issei went for an uppercut strike, the dragon armor roared and spun, smashing its tail against Issei and struck him back near the others before charging a blast of the Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom at them, intending to let them be caught in the crossfire.

"I WON'T LET YOU! Further, take me another level further, push me higher!" Issei shouted loudly.

Within Issei's mind, a realm of space is seen with his past possessors representing stars, lines of light form as each 'star' showed a silhouette of the possessor it represented as they formed a giant network of constellations.

Issei shouted, and soon parts of his scale mail's shoulders shake before they break slightly and form a pair of cannons on them, soon firing them and blasting through the poisonous blizzard and smashing into the Juggernaut Drive's dragon armor.

"What just happened!?" Le Fay asked surprised.

"I've heard rumors about this, because the Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing have the eventual potential to make their hosts become as powerful as the Dragons sealed within them, they can adapt and evolve to their wielder's wishes. Did Issei just do that right now?" Esketanus wondered as he answered Le Fay's question.

Le Fay's eyes in surprise at that.

Issei boosts himself closer to Vali and grabbing the armor's arms tightly, soon blasting again as he fired everything he had from the cannon's, and this time the sight of a crack on the armor's core gem was seen.

"Yes, it's cracking!" Issei shouted, grunting slightly as the stress on his body was getting intense.

**"[Keep going, don't give in! You can do this Issei! Show me your determination, show me why I'm right to believe you are the one who will my strongest host and the strongest Sekiryuutei!]"**

"You've got it!" Issei exclaimed, rocketing a punch forward into the Juggernaut Drive's gut.

The dragon armor roars before lunging forward and biting off the scale mail's armor, smashing the cannons and shattering half of Issei's helmet. Issei and strikes its face and the two were pushed back as they stared at each other.

The Juggernaut Drive roars angrily while Issei grunts, ripping off what was left of his helmet as he gives a fierce stare.

"Vali, I need you! Don't let the despair of this power win... show it you're better than it'll ever be!" Issei exclaimed.

Vali's eyes widen from within the armor.

"You still have a goal to fulfill, a dream to achieve! And my goal... is to do whatever it takes to make it happen!" Issei shouted as he rushed towards her.

"Issei..." Vali breathed.

The dragon armor prepared to attack again, but this time the armor found itself unable to move to its surprise. Inside of it, Vali struggled as she mustered everything she had to push against the Juggernaut Drive's power.

* * *

Back with Rizevim and the other two, Rizevim suddenly saw the mini-staff begin to spark a bit as Vali's efforts began to make it malfunction.

"What!? No, you will not resist me! I control you Vali I own you!" Rizevim declared.

He pumps more of his magic power, trying to resume control.

"Learn your place!" Rizevim shouted angrily.

The staff sparks as it draws in more of Rizevim's magical power.

* * *

Inside Vali's mind, she screams as Rizevim's added magic power creates more of his nightmarish faces and illusionary hands to grab her with, she felt herself shaking as they did... but a red glow formed as Issei's Domineering Will shone through the darkness.

"Issei... you've kept fighting, no matter what. You've had a rough past too, got killed because you had the Boosted Gear just because you may be a threat, and you've never had many friends... but that doesn't stop you. You keep pushing forward for my sake." Vali breathed.

"_Obey me!_" Rizevim's voice echoed, more of the illusionary hands get near Vali.

This time however? Vali's shaking and fearful face, she turns to show Rizevim the same face as Issei, and began shining with a white light, Rizevim's nightmarish faces shriek in a distorted manner before becoming a single normal one and the hands vanished.

"No! Never again, I'm not your tool, I'm not something for you to own! I am Vali Lucifer, and I'm the one that will end your threat once and for all! You don't deserve the Lucifer name, and never again... never again will I let my past with you haunt me!" Vali exclaimed.

"I! AM! FREE OF YOU!"

Within Vali's mind, the same star visage appeared around her and connected like constellations briefly.

* * *

Rizevim had his veins showing around his forehead and eyes as he tried to focus.

"N-No... this can't, I won't let-" Rizevim roared.

The mini-staff broke, shocking him and the other two cloaked figures.

"What!?" The brown haired one gasped.

"That's impossible!" The silver haired one exclaimed.

"She broke free of my hold, impossible!" Rizevim shouted.

Rizevim stared at the area, tightening his fist.

"It's that boy, the Sekiryuutei... how dare he. How dare he do this to me!" Rizevim whined angrily.

Rizevim glared more intensely, hatred towards the Red Dragon Emperor forming in his heart.

* * *

Issei neared Vali and began channeling every bit of power he had left for one blow.

"DDRAIG, DO IT NOW!" Issei screamed.

**[BOOST!] x999  
[EXPLOSION... MAXIMUM!]**

**"[Show that Juggernaut Drive it's not welcome, destroy them for good!]"**

"Vali, this is it... it's time for you to wake up from this nightmare once and for all! Now **[Crimson Domination Fist!]**" Issei shouted, throwing his fist and only activating Ddraig's [Explosion] at the last moment to maximize the attack at the moment of impact.

Both Issei and the Dragon armor feel the force of the backlash smash into their bodies, the force of Issei's attack and the energy leaking from Vali's armor flood into the other's sacred gear, soon going so deep that a black mass emitting mist came into view... and had the two powers collide with them, shattering them apart.

Outside, Issei's scale mail shattered and his hair and eyes reverted to normal, finally hitting his limit. He looked to see the Juggernaut Drive's armor shatter apart, making a shocked Vali stare forward before falling into Issei's arms.

"Issei..." Vali smiled, soon collapsing onto him exhausted.

"You kept your promise... thank you." Vali smiled weakly, the backlash of nearly all her Devil power being used to power the Juggernaut Drive for 50 minutes left her exhausted and lethargic.

"Yeah, that I did. Welcome back." Issei smiled back.

** _ \- (*insert song end*) - _ **

At that moment, everyone in Vali's peerage, minus Le Fay who was still holding Asia, and her friends from the other Great Devil clans all rushed over as they cheered. Lilith smiled and cried happy tears while everyone else smiled and gave looks of relief that it was all over now.

Ophis looked from where she was floating, soon smiling as she noticed a dark mist representing the Juggernaut Drive fade away, the curse of that dark power would no longer torment the world anymore.

"He... no, they shattered fate itself. Potential like that could change this world. Vali Lucifer, try your best to win that tournament, that's the first step needed to truly change things if you're truly serious about your goal." Ophis smiled.

Vali soon looked at everyone.

"You stupid idiot, it wasn't like I was worried but that was just dumb to make us all panic like that!" Ineelana pouted.

"How do you feel?" Irina asked.

"Welcome back!" Kunou and Yuuma said in unison.

Soon enough, Le Fay noticed Asia stirred.

"Guys! Asia, she's waking up!" Le Fay called out, making Vali flinch.

Asia's eyes soon opened up, and she looked confused.

"Huh? What happened, weren't we in-" Asia stated as she tried to understand what was going on.

"ASIA!" Vali cried, soon knocking Le Fay over as she hugged Asia close.

"Oh Asia, I thought you were gone! You're alive! Oh Asia, we'll be friends forever won't we!?" Vali sobbed loudly.

"Forever." Asia replied, a bit confused.

"That's good, then you can't leave us like that ever again! OK!?" Vali ordered, soon sobbing heavily as Asia rubbed her head.

Issei soon noticed something in the sky and gasped. The others soon turning, giving similar reactions as something swam through a dimensional fault floating through the sky... a giant red dragon! He only briefly appeared before disappearing again.

"Who is that!?" Issei shouted.

"That's... that's the True Red Dragon God Emperor, his name is... Great Red!" Vali gasped, looking at it as well.

"So that's the Dragon God counterpart of you Ddraig?" Issei asked.

**"[That's right, Great Red... the Dragon of Dreams.]"**

As everyone stared, Ophis suddenly seated herself on a rock, using it like a seat.

"You just had to make a flashy passing by, didn't you brother?" Ophis stated.

"Wait, did you just say brother!?" Yuuma exclaimed.

"Of course, we're siblings born of the gap." Ophis said like it wasn't a big deal.

"No way..." Vali gasped.

Ophis soon holds up a hand with her finger out, making it look like a gun.

"I'll say it again brother, one day... one day I'll defeat you and obtain my silence in the Dimensional Gap." Ophis stated, soon moving her hand as if she fired her 'gun'.

"Issei, Vali. You've ended an eternal feud... I'd think hard about what to do next, because from no one the path of the Red and White Dragons will be formed by the both of you and your efforts." Ophis advised, soon vanishing back into the Dimensional Gap.

Vali blinks before sighing and smiling a bit.

"Come on everyone... let's go home." Vali suggested.

"Yeah, let's roll!" Issei smirked.

* * *

On a random cliff face in a different spot of hell, Jingu yawned as she waited for Cao Cao and the others to come back, a sleeping Leonardo on her lap. Only a bit after her yawn was let out, she noticed Georg's magic circle as he, Cao Cao and Hercules all walked through.

"Oh, welcome back you guys. Did you find Great Red?" Jingu asked.

"It was only a mere moment, but we did. That was enough to help us on the next stage of our plan. A few other things happened though." Georg answered.

"Hmm? Do tell." Jingu asked.

Sieg soon dropped down out of nowhere, no one paying much mind to his random entrance.

"Why'd you care about watching the Hakuryuukou and Sekiryuutei fighting each other? No offense CC, but that' not like you." Sieg asked, noting their leader's oddities as of lately.

"It was a whim, nothing more than a whim... and perhaps it isn't actually over just yet." Cao Cao replied.

"You mean the Juggernaut Drive might come back? No offense, but they looked pretty dead to me-" Hercules replied.

"Not that, I meant the fight in Hell. After all... what some find peace can be painful to others, even those not Angels or Devils." Cao Cao stated, soon recalling a certain symbol he noticed amidst the chaos...

...A symbol belonging to one of the Gods of Asgard, one who's silhouette briefly took shape on the battlefield without anyone's notice.

* * *

Vali stretched out before laying on the couch.

"Good to finally be back, it's weird to think we were there for only a few hours when it felt like maybe three days. Sorry about all that mess I put you through." Vali admitted.

"It's fine, if anyone's to blame is Diodora. Luckily, he's rotting in Tartarus now. I'm more worried about how the Astaroth family's gonna be affected by this." Kuroka wondered.

"I asked Lilith about it, since Ajuka pulled an investigation on his one brother and this was happening for years, the Astaroth family got off lightly. The worst they're dealing with is that they can't choose their new heir on their own." Irina answered.

Vali chuckles at that.

"Speaking of which, where is Lilith?" Issei asked.

In another room, Lilith was seen in her room, shedding tears as she dug into a few tubs of random ice cream flavors.

"Oh poor Vali, I'm so ashamed of myself! How did I let all of this happen? Who'd ever forgive me for this!? Satan, I know how ashamed you must be of me from the grave!" Lilith sobbed as gobbled up another bucket.

Vali blinked a bit and sweated in worry.

"...I'm gonna go check on her." Vali quickly said as she ran off to find her.

"Good luck, she really needs it." Issei called out.

Vali soon heads upstairs, and soon hears the sounds of Lilith's sniffling. Taking a deep breath, she moved her hand to open the door.

Lilith, not expecting anyone to come in, flinched and tossed the tub of ice cream aside.

"Knock of the door next time! Don't you see I'm-Ah, Vali!" Lilith exclaimed.

"You're blaming yourself for what happened, aren't you?" Vali asked.

"...Because I am, that was my plan. We nearly lost Asia and looked what happened to you. Some family I-"

Vali suddenly hugs Lilith close, surprising the latter.

"Stop it, none of that was your fault. Besides... the only reason I came back was because Issei reminded me of the warmth of everyone who saved me." Vali smiled.

"Vali?" Lilith breathed surprise.

Vali smiles at her.

"So don't blame yourself, just always stay here with me. Is that too much to ask for... mom?" Vali asked.

Lilith's eyes widen as she gasped, her ears tearing up. Vali has just called her...

Lilith soon starts crying happy tears, hugging Vali back as she felt her granddaughter's... no, her daughter's embrace.

'That's right, as long as I have you, Issei and the others. No matter how much that man fears me... I'll be able to move forward without any doubts. I'm no longer caged to his will, I'm free.' Vali thought, still smiling with closed eyes as she hugged Lilith.

* * *

A while later, Issei was looking at the night sky of a balcony, he turned as he heard Vali walk onto the balcony as she came out too.

"Hey Vali." Issei smiled.

"The others told me everything I missed, that power of yours is something amazing." Vali replied.

She rubbed his face, and he winced slightly from some bruising from the power strain he endured.

"Poor guy, you got all battered and bruised just for me. I'm so sorry." Vali sighed.

"Hey, these are no big deal. As long as we're together I'll put up through anything." Issei replied.

Vali blushed at that, soon looking forward.

"You said back there that I'm so much stronger than you, that was... surprising. I never considered you felt that way. If anything, you were the one I thought I was the strong one between us." Vali admitted.

Issei looked at her surprised.

"When I first met you, and got to know you, I thought to myself, 'This boy feels so much like me, but why isn't he sad, in pain or afraid' from the confidence that your face had. I kept wondering, what did you have that I didn't? To think you thought it was the otherwise, it's surprising to know how you really felt. Guess it was no surprise we fell for each other, we're a pair of idiots, aren't we?" Vali joked, her ears tearing up as she smiled a bit.

"Yeah, I guess we're idiots then. Though we're idiots who know exactly what we wanna do. So, let's win that Rating Game tournament. It's time for you to make that dream of yours a reality with all our strength." Issei replied, looking at her.

The two gazed at each other longingly, and soon slowly inched closer before gave each other a kiss.

Neither of them noticed, but Irina was resting her back against the wall of the opposite side of the wall, while shedding tears in her eyes she smiled at them.

'I'm not ready to admit defeat yet, but... promise you'll always keep him happy Vali.' Irina thought as she sniffled quietly.

* * *

"Welcome home, hope you had a nice trip." Issei greeted.

"Looks like travel suits you." Vali added.

Seiji chuckles a bit at that, Issei and Vali along with Irina and Kunou were seen greeting him and Hana, who had finally come back from their trip around the world.

"Such a pleasant surprise your family owns a travel agency." Seiji replied.

"And were gracious enough to give us this trip as a gift for opening our home." Hana added.

Kunou peeked from behind Vali, getting Hana's notice.

"Oh, who's this cutie?" Hana asked.

"O-Oh, my name's Kunou. It's nice to meet you." Kunou introduced herself as she bowed.

"We've had some new guests move in, Kunou here is the daughter of a friend of my mother's. She's a bit busy do to her work. I hope you don't mind." Vali explained.

"Oh not at all dear, she can stay as long as she likes." Hana smiled.

Kunou smiled and bowed.

"Thank you so much!" Kunou stated.

'They went through a living nightmare, and yet they've all made it out smiling. The road to peace is long, but with all of them I think we can do it.' Azazel thought, smirking at the sight before them.

"Hey Vali, the three-legged race? Let's get ready to show them how it's done." Issei stated.

"Right!" Vali replied.

* * *

Smoke fireworks were sent into the air and burst off as the Sports Festival had officially begun, every began competing in their assigned sporting events and after a certain amount of time passed...

"Our next event is the three-legged race. All competitors to the start line, all runners gather up." Rossweisse announced.

"You ready Vali?" Issei asked, trying a headband on his head.

"Sure, let's show them!" Vali nodded, doing the same.

Everyone got into position, and soon Rossweisse covered her one ear as she raised the arm to cover the other and fire off the signal gun. Immediately after, everyone began running, with Issei and Vali barely taking the lead.

"Keep going guys!" Kuroka cheered.

"First place is all yours!" Yuuma exclaimed.

"Come on, win it!" Irina shouted.

"Your form is really good!" Asia complimented.

"Go for the gold!" Kunou cheered.

The two keep going, and then soon start going faster as they noticed the other teams start to slow, surprising everyone as they began rushing towards the finish and crossing it to the excitement of everyone in the Mythological Research Club.

"We did it!" Issei and Vali cheered.

"That's our President and VP!" Bikou stated.

* * *

Soon that night, once everyone was asleep, Lilith quietly went into Vali's room and walked to the side where her right hand was laid out.

"I'd like to ask you a couple of questions?" Lilith asked.

"Oh, and I'm not talking about my daughter, I mean you... Vanishing Dragon."

A blue circle formed on the back of Vali's right hand.

**"(You may, though I feel I'm already aware of what you wish to ask me.)"**

"It was clear near that one moment in the fight, Vali had shaken the Juggernaut Drive's influence and yet the armor was able to act on its own. It couldn't have been you because in that state, Vali and you are essentially the same being. Do you have any idea what happened?" Lilith asked.

**"(Well I don't have a definite answer, but I do think I have a strong feeling based on clues. Swear you won't tell Vali though. I don't want her to be aware that wasn't just her own mind's perceptions being warped.)"**

Lilith nods.

"Deal, I'm not stressing out my daughter any more than I have to." Lilith replied.

**"(Some outside force was controlling Vali's emotions, as a result she Juggernaut Drive wasn't able to be dispelled until Issei and Albion destroyed the very source... who I think did it? You may not want to hear the answer, if you wish for me to stop here, say so now.)"**

Lilith sweated a bit, just who was it that Albion actually warned her about learning their identity. However, she knew she needed to hear this or they could just cause something else in the future.

"...Tell me." Lilith ordered.

**"(Very well, the evidence points that the culprit was... your son, Rizevim Livan Lucifer.)"**

Lilith's eyes were shadowed, but not out of fear... out of rage and anger, even pure hatred. It was all clear by the horrified yet murderous look in her face, especially her shadowed eyes which currently had their pupils a single color.

Rizevim Livan Lucifer, once her and Satan's son, later their ultimate mistake and the reason she ever gained the Primal Abyss despite not being a Lucifer by blood... the worst Devil in history, and even now he still saw Vali was his tool for his twisted world view.

"Rizevim... you bastard. You better hope I don't find you, because if I do..." Lilith seethed, her eyes shaking from her anger as she gave an intense scowl.

"**_I'll murder you without any hesitation._**"

* * *

**That's it, we're finally hit the end, Season 3... is finally over!**

**Now that was a high-stakes battle, Issei almost died, everyone was going all out to stop Vali with Ophis being limited by the fact she'd be unable to stop her but not kill her, and now the Lucifer team's aware Ophis and Great Red are siblings after all the time Vali knew her. Best of all, Rizevim's starting to get more active, but Vali's managed to break the hold that froze her up in his presence, the fear's still there but now she will act against him if needed.**

**To top it all off? Vali's finally decided to consider Lilith as her mother, looks like living through that and everything Issei said, not to mentioning shattering Rizevim's ultimate grip on her has finally helped her start moving forward from the deepest traumas of her past. Though now Lilith's aware her ex-son is up to no good and she is pissed beyond all measure.**

**So how do you like Issei's new power? The Domineering Will, now that's an ability worth of the possessor of the Dragon who's been named the one who stole the principles of domination from God, works as a good counterpart to Vali's Primal Abyss which actually correlates well to Albion being the Dragon of Supremacy. *giggles* Lucifer bloodline ability for the win :3**

**My inspiration for it came from various things, the most obvious and prominent being Conqueror's Haki from One Piece which is pretty similar to it, but also from a scene in the Season 2 finale of Testament of a New Sister Devil where the intensity of one moment actually made me form the idea before connecting it to everything else, hence the reference to it being an ability possessed by a hero. It may not be an offensive ability, but it is a powerful one, and it's helped Issei catch up to Vali's level.**

**Also, those were indeed his Illegal Move Triaina cannons, the way Issei develops them will be a bit differently since I need how he gets them in canon to give Vali a similar power when we reach the Kyoto arc, but I will say right now that the cannons we saw him use weren't the ones linked to his Knight, Bishop or Rook traits so consider the ones he used their base form.**

**Uh oh! Looks like Cao Cao's group is up to something, and we've already got Season 4's problems starting to manifest. Though the start of Season 4 isn't gonna begin just yet, we've gotta show the Riser OVA so we can see where Rias and Sona where during all of this. *chuckles* That and I do need to help Ravel eventually get to Kuoh and become Issei's manager, we'll also reveal someone I've been trying to introduce all this time, luckily this OVA gives me the chance to finally do that.**

**Also, to answer this question before it becomes a problem due to how strong Nurarihyon is, there's a reason I chose him to be the Youkai leader that was briefly alluded to in the flashbacks showcased when Vali was talking with Gasper last season, because... Kuroka and Shirone's mother was good friends with him, and considering Kuroka is part of Vali's peerage... well, I think you know where that might end up going :3**

**I hope you all enjoyed this epic Season finale, see you at the OVA before we get on the Season 4 train, until then... stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**N/A**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - No progress  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona may be developing feelings**


	30. Chapter 30

**OK everyone, time for the Riser OVA Omake that happens during the events of the Diodora Rating Game and Juggernaut Drive incident, where are favorite... or maybe un-favorite, because I don't know what you all think about our playboy yakitori *snickers* deals with getting his loose feathers plucked out and his wings straightened... wow, that sounds weird after saying, I'll keep it! ^^**

**Before I start anything here, I'd like to give thanks to a review made by fazrulz21. He told me he didn't expect anything in the last two chapters and that I'm the one English writer he can't predict, that makes me glad because that's my intention for every chapter, and some chapters tend to do it better than others. My writing style is based on Tachibana, the Date A Live series' author, which is foreshadow based... but with my own twist. That twist is... twists! *giggles* Get it, the twist is a twist? :3**

**OK, that small joke aside, I mix foreshadowing to something with strong hints, but I also throw in a little trickery within my author start/end notes and sometimes in the chapter itself, let you see a few things coming but surprise you when you least expect it so the unpredictability helps keep things interesting. Knowing what that comes out like I intend in my writing is a good confidence booster.**

**Now, back on track, the Gremory and Sitri peerages are gonna be occupied with dealing with Riser since he's been put in the Rating Game tournament too and his match is coming up any day now... he isn't in the right state for that and with current Devil society, that's not gonna do any favors to just himself but the entire Phenex clan as a whole. However, Issei isn't with them and Tannin's absent to aid his King in the Diodora attack, so how's this gonna affect what happens in this OVA?**

**Guess we're about to find out, so... *hits a gong* chapter begin!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Domineering Will- **

**A powerful ability from a long dead clan of Heroes that originated from somewhere in Europe, while the name of the family and the heroes wielding this ability are unknown and lost to time, the Greek God Zeus is quite familiar with this power. The Domineering Will allows one to manifest their will into a weapon of powerful proportions despite its lack of offensive uses.**

**The Domineering Will was believed to have been forever lost in the battle that proved its potential and fame, when the current Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou both entered the Juggernaut Drive and rampaged. The supposed last possessor of this ability managed to use Domineering Will to force the two into submission until the Juggernaut Drive killed both hosts, though in the process he lost his life.**

**However, it turns out that this hero had a wife and child who were unaware of the heritage that kept the Domineering Will ability alive, where it would eventually end up in a descendant that ended up as Issei Hyoudou who used it to manifest Juggernaut Drive level strength to free Vali from hers and destroy the curse in both their Sacred Gears.**

**The Domineering Will is a powerful ability on par with a Devil clan power, and if there's still more potential within it, then Issei Hyoudou will be the one to reveal it to the world.**

* * *

** _ Season 3, Diodora Arc: Chapter 6, Omake - Re-Rise of the Phoenix _ **

On a train heading towards Hell, the Gremory and Sitri family were scattered about doing various activities, Bennia was holding a hand of cards as she tried to give a poker face towards Rossweisse.

"Come on, give up already! Your face is turning as red as a rose! Go on, make your move!" Bennia tainted, soon motioning her eyes a certain away.

"Nice try." Rossweisse said with a calm face, grabbing the card in the opposite direction.

Bennia paled as she lost the card she didn't want to lose.

"No! I lost again, damn it!" Bennia exclaimed with exaggerated tearing in her eyes.

"No offense, but you're just too obvious Bennia. That's the worst thing to have for someone playing Old Maid. I should know, it's how I always beat Xenovia!" Jeanne snickered.

Xenovia blushes in response to that.

Meanwhile, Rias and Sona were both looking towards their peerages playing before Sona turns.

"It's been a while since we've been to the of Phenex, hasn't it?" Sona asked.

"Yeah, last time we came it was for the party that Vali crashed. I can't believe my brother pulled that under our noses." Rias replied, chuckling a bit at the memory.

Rias soon looked towards Ravel as she gazed out of the train window, recalling how they got to this situation.

* * *

_Rias and the others were all present at the Hyoudou Household, having just come back from an errand that left them unable to see Vali and her peerage off before their match against Diodora. They were all prepared to come and watch, only for a silver crest to form on the ground._

_"A magic crest? Which Devil clan does that belong to?" Yumi asked._

_"That's the clan of... wait, Lucifuge?" Akeno replied in surprise._

_In a few moments, a girl with normal silver colored hair that reached to her back and looked to be about a year younger than Vali, wearing casual yet fancy clothing with a buttoned-up shirt that slightly left some of her gifted bust's cleavage in few appeared from it._

_She didn't come alone however, behind her was a more familiar face, Alanira and Riser's younger sister, Ravel Phenex. The Lucifuge soon opened her eyes, revealing the same silver color that Grayfia's eyes had._

_"A pleasure to meet you Lady Gremory, Lady Sitri. My name is Yumina Lucifuge, I am the younger sister of Grayfia Lucifuge and current heiress to the Lucifuge household." Yumina introduced herself, bowing slightly and briefly raising the sides of her skirt as she did._

_"Oh, uh... it's a pleasure. Is there something you need?" Rias asked._

_"Indeed, I come to request your aid. I believe my associate here can fill all the details that I cannot." Yumina nodded, soon moving aside to allow Ravel to pass by._

_Ravel gave a nervous look, taking a few steps forward._

_"Rias, I apologize for the sudden visit, but... I beg of you! I need your help to save my brother!" Ravel cried._

_"Riser?" Rias breathed, surprised at Ravel's words._

_Half of Rias' peerage showed confusion at the name, as did Bennia and Loup._

_"Riser? Who is that." Xenovia repeated._

_"He's the third son of the Phenex household, and Rias' former fiancé." Kiba answered._

_"Ex-fiancé? So they were gonna get married, but wait... if he's her ex, then how'd the engagement break off?" Jeanne asked her brother._

_"That would be Vali's doing." Kiba chuckled._

_Akeno giggled before continuing after seeing Jeanne's confused face._

_"Rias had no intention to marry him, if you had seen him back then you'd know. Her brother couldn't do much due to Satan's death not being announced and being seen as Satan's successor. That didn't mean he couldn't help indirectly. We lost a Rating Game to help free Rias, but Vali goaded him into another, and Vali's group managed to deal the winning blow. In fact, that's when she and Issei first kissed." Akeno explained._

_"Aw, that's so romantic." Yumi blushed._

_"But Riser was undefeated before then, I don't think he took it well." Shirone added._

_As the others talked, Rias spoke with Ravel._

_"I assume you've heard the stories since then? How he's only been moping since then." Ravel asked._

_"Wait, are you saying Riser still hasn't recovered after all this time?" Rias gasped._

_"I probably shouldn't have come here, but... Riser's match in the tournament is coming up soon, and without Vali's peerage here right now, I don't have anyone to turn to! When I asked, Yumina suggested he should learn your peerage's fortitude." Ravel explained._

_Rias showed surprise at that._

_"Fortitude?" Rias repeated in surprise._

_"Gee, wonder where we got that from?" Yumi wondered, thinking of a certain King of Queen of another peerage._

_Soon the entirety of Rias' peerage chuckles a bit._

_"More importantly... he should be ashamed of himself! Sulking for over half a year because of just a single loss and saying Dragons scare him? He's stopped partaking in games, he's let gossip magazines that not even my big sis can keep off the market! If he was just holding a grudge I wouldn't be patronizing him like this! He needs to man up and grow stronger, how shameful of him!" Ravel exclaimed angrily, surprising everyone._

_"But... he's still my big brother." Ravel sniffled slightly._

_Everyone looked, and soon it was clear what their answer was._

_"We've got your back Ravel! Guess in a sense some of our indirectly responsible, so we've just gotta fix this." Saji declared._

_"Well... if you absolutely insist... I would appreciate it." Ravel replied._

* * *

Rias sighs a bit.

'I just hope we'll be able to help Riser recover.' Rias thought.

Yumina soon sees a magic circle appear before her, and quietly snaps as the windows briefly hide a sight so no one in Rias or Sona's peerages would see it. Right now, they had to focus on the Riser issue, not what Vali's peerage had to deal with.

After the train finally arrived in Hell, both groups found themselves at the Phenex Household. The building was based described as a castle/mansion mixture that had torches, controlled flames on the buildings, even the trees had burning tips!

"Whoa! This is... are all Devil households like this?" Yumi asked.

"Not exactly, it depends on the ranking of the clan on the 72 pillars, or their overall standing if they're of a different classification. My home is more like a mansion as the Phenex clan ranks higher." Rias explained.

"And Sona's clan is higher than that, so that would mean..." Yumi wondered, soon imaging it.

What she imagined was too big for her mind to take and she shook her head.

"Never mind, I'd rather my head not explode." Yumi quickly said as she blushed.

"So... what does Riser do all day?" Saji asked.

"He just stays in his room going over Rating Game simulations, though he sometimes calls people over to play chess with him." Ravel explained as they passed by Riser's peerage as they stood against the wall.

Soon they reached the door to Riser's room.

"Big brother, you have guests. Please open up." Ravel requested as she knocked on the door.

"Ravel? ...I don't want to see anybody today, I had a nightmare." Riser quietly replied.

Ravel sighed.

"Your guest is Rias." Ravel added.

Suddenly the sound of something crashing is heard.

"RIAS!?" Riser panicked.

"Yes Riser, it's me." Rias answered.

"Why have you come here after such a long time? Are you here to laugh at me!?" Riser yelled.

Anyone not familiar with Riser sweat dropped at the reaction.

"I just want to talk with you for a bit, let me see your face." Rias requested.

A heavy stomping is heard before the sight of Riser, who was wearing purple-pink pajamas, was a bit messy looking, had unshaven stubble and to the dismay of most of the girls... smelled awful from not showering.

"What could you possibly want with the man you rejected!?" Riser demanded, and then... saw Saji.

"V-V-V-Vritra's possessor!? No!" Riser screamed, suddenly jumped back under his bed covers.

"Eh!?" Everyone blinked.

Ravel walked towards his bed while everyone looked in his room, Rugal had to cover his nose as the eyes watered from all the stench of the food in his room.

"...That ain't healthy." Bennia noted, sweating a bit as she swore she saw a piece of moldy food move.

"Go away! Don't let the dragon near me, I don't wanna recall that time, that horrible feeling!" Riser whined as he had a breakdown.

"I know you made it out that it was particularly bad, but I had no idea you meant _this_ bad." Sona said surprised.

Ravel sighed, soon grabbing Riser's sheets.

"For crying out loud! Rias took the time to come and see you, please stop cowering underneath your bed covers!" Ravel demanded angrily.

"Leave me alone! Go home!" Riser begged.

"This isn't gonna be easy, what do we do?" Rias asked.

"First off, we should get him out of this room." Rugal reasoned, his nose starting to get runny and his eyes red.

* * *

After a lot of pulling and dragging, and forced cleansing, Riser was outside the house with an annoyed look on his now cleansed form. He was currently sitting by the phoenix statue that acted as the Phenex clan's landmark.

"So, what's the plan?" Sona asked.

"He should be here any minute now." Saji replied.

Soon the sound of something flying overhead reaches the Phenex household's area, and Riser falls to the ground and panics at the sight of it.

"D-D-D-D-DRAGON!" Riser panicked.

Soon a blue dragon with ice like growths on its body flew into view, a high-ranking Dragon under Tannin. Soon beginning to land near the group.

"Why is there a Dragon here!?" Riser panicked.

"So, you're Riser Phenex? Master Tannin mentioned you interested him as a promising King, but seeing you right now, it's clear you have a serious problem." The ice dragon spoke.

"Huh? We called for Tannin, where is he?" Saji asked.

The Dragon turned to Saji.

"Lady Lilith requested for help from her entire peerage, and as her Queen, Tannin had no choice but to go to her aid. Therefore, as a Dragon under him, I shall assist in his place. So, what seems to be the issue?" The ice dragon asked.

"His family says he could use a little fortitude, think that's doable?" Kiba asked.

"Ah, fortitude, that's child play for a Dragon's training methods!" The ice dragon spoke, grabbing Riser as he tried to flee. Saji, Bennia, Kiba and Yumi all got on his back right after.

"We'll be watching to make sure things go alright, we'll contact you if we need any help!" Kiba called down.

"...Please, take me with you!" Ravel called out.

Everyone looks at her.

"I... I want to help with my brother's recovery!" Ravel exclaimed with determination.

"Hmm... that girl has good eyes, her skills will be helpful. You may come as well." The ice dragon replied.

Ravel smiled before flying upwards with flaming wings, soon pulling off some kind of trick with her fire to replace her outfit with an explorer's outfit.

"N-No! Why do I have to go to the Dragon Mountains!?" Riser panicked.

"It's for your own good big brother! Please go along with it!" Ravel giggled.

"NOOOOOO!" Riser screamed.

* * *

After flying for a while, the group sees a mountain full of Dragon dens and various Dragons flying around.

"Wow, look at all of them!" Bennia said excitedly.

"DRAGONS!" Riser screamed fearfully, trying to squirm free.

"This area is where the breed of Dragons who live off Dragon Apples live, I will be training you here. IS THAT UNDERSTOOD!?" The ice dragon shouted.

Riser shrieks.

"Oh yeah, speaking of which, what's name so we can use it? Would be kinda rude to just call you that ice dragon." Saji asked.

"Just call my Blizzard. Now you Riser, you'll be having your body and soul broken and rebuilt from scratch!" Blizzard replied.

Riser shrieks.

"You should probably try some of the training as well, is should benefit you for the upcoming matches in the tournament."

"Good thing we brought jackets." Yumi chuckled.

* * *

Soon everyone minus Ravel, who was instead perched on Blizzard's back, ran through the snow as Blizzard flew behind. He noticed Riser was moving too slow and soon blasted him with his ice breath.

"Ah! You froze my fire-" Riser complained.

"YOU'RE TOO SLOW! Run that ass off, and say Dragon every second you're doing it! Do it! Dragon! Dragon! Dragon!" Blizzard ordered like a drill sergeant.

"Come on big brother, you can't give up at this level. Say it! Dr-ag-on." Ravel giggled.

"Man, Riser looks like he's being hunted by a Dragon. Hashtag roasted yakitori!" Bennia snickers as she takes her phone out and gets a picture.

Riser whines.

"Why is this happening to me!?" Riser cried.

"SAY DRAGON!" Blizzard shouted, blasting Riser again to the latter's agony.

* * *

Meanwhile back around the main area of Hell, everyone was the baths of a hot spring area, Rossweisse sighs as she soaked, soon stretching a bit.

"Hot springs are so nice, I can feel the stress melting away." Rossweisse said happily.

"Is that stress caused by a certain God of Asgard?" Akeno joked.

"Don't even bring old that prune faced pervert, I devoted myself to my boss and then he leaves me with nowhere to go." Rossweisse complained.

She soon lowered herself more into the water.

"I'll never forget or forgive what he did." Rossweisse said with a scary face, soon muttering something underwater that no one could make out.

"I get the feeling we don't wanna know what she's saying." Tomoe gulped.

"I wonder how Saji and the others are doing?" Ruruko asked.

"It seems like we ended up leaving everything to him and the others, didn't we?" Sona asked.

"Oh, worried about your new crush Sona?" Reya chuckled playfully.

Sona blushed before she sputtered a bit.

"W-what are you talking about!?" Sona asked.

'You're not really denying it Sona.' Rias mentally giggled.

"I wouldn't worry just yet, I bet things are going along fine." Xenovia replied.

"They haven't called yet either, so that could be taken as a good sign." Tsubaki nodded.

"Well, we can only hope." Shirone stated.

* * *

Riser panted as he was forced to climb up a mountain side.

"I'm... I'm dying!" Riser complained.

"Seriously?" Yumi replied, surprised how low his stamina was.

"It hasn't been that long since you started training." Kiba added.

Riser growled.

"I'm a high-ranking Devil! It's my duty to put a higher value on my blood and shrewdness! That's how it is for high-ranked Devils, I simply can't do boorish training like this!" Riser screamed, soon flying up.

"NO FLYING!" Blizzard yelled, blasting ice at him.

Riser screams as he falls, causing Saji to pull on his rope to save him.

Bennia snickers before taking another picture.

"Hashtag epic fall!" Bennia exclaimed.

"We've got a really rocky road ahead, don't we-" Yumi wondered worriedly.

However, she failed to notice she grabbed a lose rock, and soon screamed as she fell herself. Kiba notices this and uses one of his arms to catch her in time.

"That was close, are you alright Yumi?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah, thanks for... catching me..." Yumi answered.

Soon the two realized how close their faces were, making them both blush as they gazed at one another. Saji and Bennia looked in surprise, as did Ravel while Blizzard just kept shouting at Riser.

* * *

Soon a few hours passed and everyone except Riser was taking a break as Ravel suddenly brought a table for them to all have lunch on, it even had an umbrella overhead despite the impracticality of it in their current environment.

"It's been a few hours already, how do you think my brother's doing?" Ravel asked.

"Considering what Tiamat's training did, I think he's handling it pretty well." Kiba answered.

"He's doing better emotionally than me, that's for sure." Saji added, taking a sip of portable soup.

Everyone heard Riser scream as Riser blasted at him again, narrowly dodging it.

"You think so? That makes me feel relieved." Ravel smiled.

She sneezed soon after.

"You doing alright there Ravel?" Yumi asked, soon sneezing herself.

"Sounds like you two are getting sniffles or stuffy noses." Saji replied, pulling out some soups for them both.

"Hey Ravel, out of curiosity, if you went to a Human school then what year would you be in?" Yumi asked.

"Very well, if you must know then I shall answer your question. I would be a first year in high school." Ravel answered.

Yumi looked shocked.

"Wait, a first year? Really? Wow, you seem so mature I honestly thought you'd be a 2nd year. That would make us classmates if you ever attended Kuoh Academy." Yumi replied.

"Well... admittedly, I'd like to try on a Kuoh Academy uniform." Ravel replied.

"Really? Maybe I could see if Rias could let you try one." Yumi smiled.

"Oh, uh... t-thank you. That reminds me actually, Rias and the others will be visiting a hot spring on the mountain tonight." Ravel replied.

"A hot spring! Oh boy, I'd love to soak in those after all spending all this time in the icy cold." Yumi said excitedly, soon sneezing again.

"Someone needs to watch Riser for the night though, looks like we've gotta do this the hard way... we draw straws!" Saji declared, bringing some out.

Everyone draws, and Saji hangs his head down as he got the shortest stick.

"Crap!" Saji shouted.

Soon everyone heard Riser scream as he got blasted, soon rolling around the mountain slightly as a snow ball.

"I've got him..." Bennia sighed, floating after him.

* * *

In a cave with a small fire burning, Riser and Saji were curled in sleeping bags while all the others went for the hot springs.

"Just my luck, I have to keep watch." Saji sighed.

Soon the fire went out.

"Dang it! Hey Riser, the fire's out, reignite it." Saji stated.

...No response.

"Riser?" Saji wondered.

"Oh come on, even you've gotta be cold right-" Saji groaned, walking to Riser's bag.

Riser wasn't in it, just a stick with a face sticking its tongue out. Saji soon realized that could only mean one thing... he was trying to peep!

"Damn it Riser! Vritra, sense him out!" Saji exclaimed.

**"{Oh boy... fine, I'll do it.}"**

Saji flew out in his Balance Breaker, his Devil wings spread out as he rushed ahead.

After a few minutes, Vritra caught a certain devil's aura.

**"{Found him, straight ahead!}"**

"RISER!" Saji shouted.

Riser turned as he saw Saji zoom at him.

"Shit! He found me!" Riser grunted.

"I'm not letting you peep on the girls, especially not Sona!" Saji declared.

"If anything, I wanna peep on Rias, not your flatty of a master!" Riser shouted.

"Oh ,hell no, you did NOT just insult Sona! That's it! Come at me you fried chicken!" Saji roared.

Saji fired off the Absorption line, while Riser dodged and blasted out some of his Phenex fire. Vritra's scale mail shot its tentacles out and devoured the flames with their curses before Saji clashed with him directly.

"Lacking fortitude my ass! You recovered just for trying to see boobs? My god, you're a freaking pervert!" Saji shouted.

"Why you!" Riser growled.

Their energies zoomed across the area, unknowingly nearing a certain spot.

Riser soon smirked, causing Saji to notice.

"Crap, you tricked me!" Saji grunted.

"Hah, you can't stop me now!" Riser exclaimed.

'Crap, what do I do now!? Wait... yes, that's it!' Saji thought.

Saji pointed his finger forward.

"Oh no, I already see Rias!" Saji stated.

"What? Where!?" Riser gasped.

"GOTCHA!" Saji exclaimed.

Saji struck Riser on the hand, making him fire down to the spring waters.

* * *

Meanwhile on the girls' side of the Hot Springs, everyone was soaking in the heated waters. Rias and Sona were seen talking with Ravel.

"Glad to hear no major trouble's been happening." Rias stated.

"Though I bet Saji's probably complaining right now." Sona replied.

Yumi stared at Rias and Ravel's figures, and then at the others as they soaked in the waters.

"With this, my womanly power may increase." Xenovia noted.

"Xenovia, even I think that's a stretch. Good for your skin or not." Jeanne chuckled.

Yumi whimpered as she saw Valerie shift slightly making her breasts bounce before she sunk deeper into the water.

"Asia, I understand your pain now." Yumi said, tearing up slightly.

"Relax Yumi, we'll bloom soon enough." Shirone said as she rubbed Yumi's back.

Soon the sound of splashing was heard.

Everyone initially ignored it, but soon another splash followed.

"What was that?" Ruruko panicked, covering herself slightly.

Meanwhile near the edge of part of the hot springs, Saji stared with a sweat drop at a KOd Riser who floated in it.

"Crap, that backfired... and may have only worsened his Dragon fears." Saji gulped, his armor showing his sweat.

"Saji?" Tsubasa called out, causing the possessor of Vritra to flinch.

"T-Tsubasa!?" Saji sweated in worry, not trying to turn around.

Most of the girls panicked a bit.

"You peeping tom, you're the worst." Shirone said mildly angry.

"Ah! I'm not ready for this, someone hide me!" Rossweisse panicked.

"W-wait, I'm not even looking! It isn't what you think!" Saji said in a panic.

"YOU PERVERT!" Ravel screamed, unleashing her flames.

Saji screamed as the flames burned him, meanwhile on the boy's side, Kiba blinked and turned upon hearing the scream.

"Did you hear that?" Kiba asked.

"What happened over there?" Gasper wondered.

* * *

"What a disaster you put us through!" Saji complained, looking at Riser with a slightly charred body.

"Quit your whining, we Devils are made of tougher stuff, especially a high-ranking Devil like me. Still, to be honest... it wasn't a bad kick for a low-ranked Devil." Riser admitted.

Saji looked at Riser surprised.

"Your master has a good pawn in her ranks." Riser smiled.

"Riser..." Saji replied.

"I'll give up on Rias, but... that doesn't mean I'll hand over the spot for the tournament's prize!" Riser declared.

Saji sighed at that.

Meanwhile outside, Blizzard stood next to Ravel.

"It looks like he's recovered." Blizzard stated.

"Yeah. Everyone, thank you... thank you so much." Ravel smiled in relief.

* * *

The following morning, Vali noticed a magic circle for the Lucifuge clan appear as Rias and Sona's groups finally came back alongside Yumina, surprising her.

"Rias, Sona, everyone! Where were you guys? We came home and no one had any idea where you went!" Vali exclaimed.

"Sorry about that, we had some business to take care of. We saw you've moved up in the tournament, we knew you'd beat Diodora, so how easy was the match?" Sona asked.

Vali blinked a bit as Yumina suddenly turned, sweating a bit as she silently cleared her throat.

"...What are you talking about? I know you weren't there, but I figured you were at least aware of what was going on." Vali replied in confused.

"Huh? But, you left for your match with Diodora before we left, didn't you?" Rias asked confused.

The members of both her and Sona's peerage shared equal confusion to Vali's words.

"Oh my, god you guys don't even know about Diodora's betrayal, do you!?" Vali gasped.

"He what?" Momo said in surprise.

"Well turns out Diodora excommunicated Asia intentionally because he had a nun fetish, all of his peerage were ex-nuns or saints, and he sided with the Khaos Brigade that caused Cassiel to sneak an ambush in his own ambush. Oh, and then everyone had to fight me because I went crazy, and Issei unlocked a new power to save me while were as strong as Albion and Ddraig for about a few minutes, and then we saw Ophis and Great Red show up... you really didn't hear any of that? It was a full-scale attack on Hell for Satan's sake!" Vali exclaimed.

All of them stared at Vali in shock, Yumina still turned away. It wasn't exactly going to be a fun conversation to explain only those present at the fight had any idea it ever happened while the rest of Hell completely oblivious to it.

Vali soon looked at Yumina, not recognizing the Lucifuge heiress.

"Hey, who are you exactly?" Vali asked.

"Greetings Lady Vali, I am Yumina Lucifuge, current heiress to the house of Lucifuge. I was the one who brought Lady Ravel of the Phenex clan to request the heiress of Gremory and Sitri's aid. With that task over and you present, I now stand here... to allow me to serve under you as your manager!" Yumina declared.

Vali stared at Yumina upon saying that, everyone giving more surprised stares as the sound of crickets were somehow heard. Bali blinked a few times at her declaration before it finally registered and she reacted.

"...WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?" Vali exclaimed loudly, her voice reaching outside as a bunch of nearby birds suddenly flew off in surprise.

* * *

**Well, that's that. There you have her, the character I've been trying to introduce for a while, Yumina Lucifuge, heiress of the Lucifuge clan and Grayfia's younger sister. For a quick explanation, during the civil war, Grayfia and Euclid were some of the few Lucifuge clan members who sided with the Anti-Satan faction, but their parents didn't. As Grayfia switched sides, while the Lucifuge clan, did get some flak, they didn't get it as bad as most of the other clans.**

**Grayfia's parents took succession of the Lucifuge household, and Grayfia had intended to be named the new heiress, but she lost that right due to marrying Sirzechs. As a result, Grayfia's parents gave birth to Yumina a year after Vali's birth so there would be a new heir, and they still continue the tradition of serving the Lucifer clan even now, which is gonna make Yumina what Ravel will be to Issei later on.**

**Oh, just so I clear this up now, Ravel has a small crush on Issei, but she's already accepted it was one-sided because Issei and Vali got together only a bit after she started noticing she may have fallen for Issei. So, she's still a bit tsundere, but this is more on the terms of her being friendly and her future role as Issei's manager since there's no harem. Not to mention she's gonna be distracted by her bird-cat rivalry with Shirone soon enough :3**

**Not to mention, since I realized I've neglected that area a bit, I've finally shown Sona's all but stated to have fallen for Saji, and I finally gave Kiba and Yumi's relationship a push. In regards to Valerie and Gasper, I'll say Season 4 will finally start showing some progress between them, I just had less of a chance here. *chuckles* It's hard to focus on side romances ^^;**

**And that wraps up the Omake, see you all next time when we finally begin Season 4 ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**N/A**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - Both showing signs of feelings  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona's heavily implied to have feelings**


	31. Chapter 31

**OK, here we are guys, the first chapter of Season 4! This season we're adapting Volume 7 and to replace Volume 8's short stories, I've got something special... we're gonna see some major fights in the Rating Game tournament before the fabled finalists get prepared for Season 5! So essentially, we have a Loki Arc and a Tournament Arc! I hope that gets your blood pumping for events.**

**And just as a friendly reminder, the moment this season ends, Season 5 will be on the back burner temporarily for the upcoming crossover this story will have with Date A Re:Live, that crossover is canon as I've mentioned before since I'll likely introduce some power ups that will transfer over to the main story. Though that's getting a bit ahead of myself, right now the Loki arc's what we're focused on.**

**The Loki arc is gonna happen very differently from canon, for one... well I guess the biggest thing I should mention is while this story's version of Issei still has a fetish for big breasts, he doesn't show it out in the open, even though his girlfriend's got one of the biggest pairs in the story. *chuckles* Basically my point, aside from the one time in "A Dragon's Heavenly Night", he never expresses it outwardly.**

**As a result, there isn't gonna be a Chichigami appearing to pull off a Deus Ex Machina, though I might have Azazel mention it as some weird rumor he's studying since Rizevim does mention Chichigami later on to explain. *clears throat* Well, anyways it's time for Loki to start taking the stage, and with it some more secrets about Trihexa are going to come to light.**

**With all of that said, time for us to begin this chapter. Now, since we're in the Loki arc? I'll start by saying... "The Twilight of the Gods is fast approaching!"**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Longinus Smasher- **

**A powerful technique exclusive to the Sacred Gears that are labeled as Longinus, in a sense being the proof of their status and show the genuine articles from the fakes. The Longinus Smasher is cast by a Longinus Gear gathering all the power it can from one or more of their respective abilities before unleashing it as one grand beam attack.**

**The Longinus Smasher was originally a special power hidden within St. Longinus that he unknowingly transferred into Heaven's system when he used the True Longinus to end the life of Jesus Christ, causing the spear to be made the first Longinus and eventually allow the foundation for the eventual 13 Longinus that exist in the current day.**

**When a Sacred Gear achieves the conditions to gain the Longinus Smasher and evolve into a Longinus, its signified by a bright flash of energy, creating a rainbow pillar in the sky only those of the Supernatural world can see. There's no signs to a Sacred Gear achieving and activating this effect other than it can't be a Sacred Gear that has multiple copies of itself, but it is theorized the stronger a Sacred Gear is, the more likely this result can happen.**

**So far, there are three Sacred Gears that are believed may eventually inherit the Longinus Smasher and evolve, the Forbidden Balor View, Impact Tyrant, and Cursed Malebolge.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Loki Arc: Chapter 1 - The Howls of Mischief _ **

Lilith was currently seated for a meeting between every faction joined with the Alliance, currently speaking with Michael, Cassiel, Azazel, Odin, Zeus and the new addition of Izanagi with a hologram of Izanami besides him due to being unable to leave her current location.

"The latest fight with the Khaos Brigade has made one thing clear, the Anti-Satan faction is in ruins. Whatever threat that's allied with them the next time we cross paths, it's almost guaranteed it will be another group or person, we already know Walburga is in their ranks for one." Lilith explained.

"Not to mention there's still those enigmas who kidnapped Yasaka. Have you found any leads on that?" Azazel asked, looking to the Shinto pantheon's leaders.

"Unfortunately, no we haven't. The ones who did it are still unknown to even us." Izanagi sighed.

"Although we did learn one thing, whoever did it wasn't from a species within the Christian Pantheon, and Sacred Gears were involved. So that means whoever they were... they were most likely Human." Izanami added.

Lilith sighed, clasping her hands together.

"So, in other words, we've got no clues to what will happen next, and yet... I somehow get the feeling what comes next will be big." Lilith admitted, a trickle of sweat dripping down her cheek.

* * *

Within a dark room in some unknown location, the sight of a handsome man with eyes like a delinquent was seen.

He had light blue hair that floated behind him and waved a bit like a snake, with two small bangs and a blue jewel on his forehead. He wore yellow earrings, a robe similar to Odin's except with slightly different ornate markings and colored white.

He was Loki, the Norse God of Mischief.

"So those foolish Devils finally sent most of their own to their demise, all for the sake of letting one man fulfill his fetish? Oh, how foolish their strategy was, the kind of chaos that creates fools and ends way too quickly for my tastes." Loki said to himself.

"Now... it's my turn to play." Loki smirked.

* * *

Meanwhile back in Hell, a few Devil soldiers were cleaning up the area where the Anti-Satan Faction's attack had gone off. A soldier soon looked at certain spot of the area, noticing something odd.

"Huh? What's this?" The Devil wondered, soon getting close to it.

_"...it's time the Twilight of the Gods began fast approaching!"_

Suddenly the particular Devil screamed as rampant energy went off, purging him and attracting many other Devils to the sudden death as the rampant energy took a certain form that left a loud howl across the landscape.

* * *

***My Hero Academia, S2 Opening - Peace Sign***

**(Oo-ooh, yeah! Oo-ooh, yeah! Ooooo-ooooo-ooooooooooh... let's go!)** The sun of Hell slowly rises and made its red sky shine brightly, cutting the shadows away as the Rating Game tournament arena was revealed by its light, making it glisten as a bunch of young Devils began to walk towards it. Vali, Rias, Sona, Sairaorg and their peerages all following behind them in their respective team outfits.

**(*soft guitar instrumental plays*)** Soon the view rushes through all of them before rising up to show the arena from the sky, and then diving downwards into the arena's center as the force hits the ground, revealing the message **"A Dragon's Heavenly Bonds"** etched within it, soon white with red outlines.

**(I always hear people asking me every day, why did I choose a dream that's so far away?)** The sight of Sairaorg stretching while flexing his muscles was seen, Kuisha walked to his side before handing him a water bottle which he quickly drank before looking towards the sun and cracking his neck and knuckles with a noticeable popping sound.  
**(Because I'd rather try to reach it with all my might, as the thought of still failing from doing nothing scares me every night!)** Ineelana makes a serious looking face that was slightly frowning bent over and shook her body a bit, readying herself before she ran forward with all her speed and might. Her queen Murasaki soon joined her before she jumped up and froze the ground below her, skating across it like an ice skater.  
**(All I want in life is to just live free, rather than have regrets that will end up scarring me! So I don't mind if people laugh at me, because what decides my fate won't be destiny!)** Rias stretched her arms up with her hands held together, Akeno walked by her giving her an encouraging look, Rias giving one back before she and her peerage walked forward for their next Tournament match.  
**(What's this malice... on the horizon? It's starting to blot out the sky! Is someone gonna save me now? No, I can't just wait... and let someone tell me what could be a lie!)** Niruili swung side to side as she readied herself, with Esketanus standing before her giving a challenging smile. Gebedon slide near a few female Devils who glared at him, making Suzattin lazily yawn as he just fell on the ground. Zephyrdor gave a cocky grin, with many other Devils appearing behind him, all gunning for the tournament prize.  
**(This is our problem, so we gotta fight back... if we want this horror to die! So let's all stand up, and flash a peace sign... because we're gonna be the heroes this time!)** Vali and Issei walked into view, looking at each other, and both giving smiles and nods of approval. The sight of Loki appearing up in the sky before them, with Fenrir and his two pups along with the Midgardsormr appearing in front and behind him respectively. The two soon have the other Young Devil kings and their peerages appear by their sides, all ready to fight with them.

**(*three heavy guitar slams*)** Vali and Issei jump forward, assuming their Balance Breakers as they rush to punch Loki.

**(Don't! Stop! Now! On this path that lies right before us! We've got a battle, and a fight for justice! This fire burning deep in my heart is so intense that I might just explode!)** Ineelana launched out a blizzard of her Eternal Coffin, with Midgardsormr firing a blast that Niruili ate, followed by Gebedon's Invader Sight activating and giving Esketanus and Suzattin the perfect chance for their Draining Robber and Will of Creation to strike the serpentine dragon.  
**(Four! Three! Two! One for all, and all for one! I won't stop this battle until it's been won!)** Zephyrdor uses his clan ability to rush faster, with Rias using her power of Destruction, Seekvaira her Chrono Break and Sona using the Sitri clan ability as they knocked Hati and Skoll back. The other young Devils all quickly fired off their own clan abilities as they hit Fenrir, and a few shadows slipped by them watching the fight.  
**(I'm like a bolt of lightning, and I dare you to challenge the storm!)** Soon Sairaorg jumps high in the air for a punch, the environment shifting into the Rating Game tournament arena as he punched against Gebedon, followed by Niruili, Suzattin, Ineelana and Esketanus all trying to fight against him and hopefully beat the heir of Bael.  
**(This is our time, now flash a peace sign! That's the journey of the DxD!)** Rias shoots her hand forward, unleashing her Power of Destruction against Vali who unleashes her Primal Abyss to counter it, the two rushed through the resulting smoke as the screen rapidly swaps between both of their faces before freezing as they were about to make contact with each other.

**(*soft guitar instrumental plays again*)** Vali flies in her scale mail before dropping down into view and dispelling it, Issei and her peerage joining her before Yumina slowly walks out and stands alongside them, the sun slowly setting behind them and letting the afternoon glow illuminate them as a **"DxD"** forms in front of them.

* * *

Everyone was cheering as the next round of the Rating Game tournament had begun, and this time the match up was between Ineelana Leviathan and Zephyrdor Glasya-Labolas, the two in a ruinous city based field with two abandoned buildings representing their bases.

Zephyrdor ran forward at sonic speeds as he used his clan ability, [Punk Rocket], which let him move at speeds through magical propulsion like he was a living motorcycle. Ineelana's sole Knight, Stella Vermillion swung her sword forward as a dragon shaped flame tries to strike him.

"_Welcome back everyone, I'm your favorite announcer, Naud Gamigan! For today's rounds, my special guest is the Queen of the Fairies... Titania!_" Naud announced, holding the mic while holding his hand out to a woman with dirty blonde hair, a flower crown, a white dress and butterfly wings.

"_Hi there._" Titania announced, waving at everyone.

"_Right now, we're seeing the match against the heiress of the Leviathan clan and the heir to the Glasya-Labolas clan! Ineelana and Zephyrdor! Right now, it looks like the Leviathan heiress is on edge in this Monolith Raid game where destroying the monolith of the opposing team is the same as beating the king. Zephyrydor's clan ability gives him too much speed in this closed environment, and it's starting to hurt Ineelana's chances! Titania, what's your opinion on who has the lead right now?_" Naud announced, asking his guest announcer.

"_If you want my honest opinion? Well, I'd have to say Ineelana has better chances._" Titania replied.

The crowd and Naud both show surprise at her answer.

"_Anyone notice that out of all her pieces, her second Bishop hasn't move at all? In fact, not only is she still in Ineelana's base, but isn't even near her team's monolith. I get the feeling she's hiding something._" Titania answered.

Sitting in part of the Leviathan team's building, a girl with long black hair in an up-do kept herself immobile as she sat in place, her eyes closed like she was meditating. She was Ineelana's second Bishop, Tamara Harrison, a recent addition to her peerage whose abilities were still unknown.

Ineelana's sole Pawn, the white-haired Ophelia Landlufen, gripped her hand to ready her miasma until she received the signal for Ineelana's secret plan.

'I hope nothing's going wrong, if this plan works then one attack's all I'll need. Is the destiny the announce stated absolute, or can we deft it?' Ophelia thought, keeping herself calm and focused.

Meanwhile in Zephyrdor's base, Ineelana used the ice from her [Eternal Coffin] ability to slide around the environment. A man with a metal mask and a Mohawk followed behind, his armor letting him be an all-terrain bike as he chased her from behind.

"You're not getting away from me little ice queen! I'm gonna run you over like it's nothing, so get ready!" Bowser chuckled as he laughed.

"Piss off, and I'm not insulted by that nickname at all, so hah!" Ineelana declared, her Rooks both sigh at her obvious lie.

Sinon aims her Hecate and fire sat Bowser, and Zephyrdor's queen smirks before spinning and cutting through the large bullet with the spikes on his armor. Sinon gasped as the two halves break the wall and soon send debris flying.

Back at Ineelana's base, Stella and her first bishop Yumi both hear the sound while Zephyrdor smirks knowing Bowser's work was heading over.

"I'd watch yourself if I were you!" Zephyrdor declared.

The two suddenly see the wall explode from incoming debris, and Zephyrdor soon zips away as he expected them to be retired.

"Hah! And with that, I'm on my way to-" Zephyrdor chuckled.

Suddenly a bunch of ice froze the wall and his feet, Zephyrdor turned in shock to see Yumi's hair had grown longer and slightly changed shape, taking a light blue color as she transformed into her Ice King mode. As for Stella, her arm was limp, showing it was broken.

"You honestly think... that's enough to take us down? We're part of Ineelana's peerage and a Leviathan's jealousy at being overshadowed means we're some of the toughest cookies around. Case in point... this is proof of how tough!" Stella shouted.

Stella grabbed her broken arm, screaming as she moved it into a non-broken position before burning her own fire around the joint, searing her broken bones back together in only a few seconds. She smirked as she showed her now unbroken arm to him.

"_I don't believe it, Stella Vermillion just seared her broken back together! That's insane and she still did it!_" Naud announced in surprise.

"_And it seems Yumi wasn't going all out, but now she is. Could this be it?_" Titania announced in curiosity.

Meanwhile in the smoke, Bowser looked in shock at what happened before Sinon used another shot to strike him, this time getting him right in the chest.

"No, this is... I can't-" Bowser screamed as he vanished in blue light.

"_Lord Zephyr's Queen, retired!_" Naud announced.

"Alright Mine, get ready! We're winning this here!" Ineelana shouted.

The pinkette nodded and readied her Sacred Gear, the [Roman Artillery] as it began charging up from her mental energy. Ineelana jumps out of newly formed hole in the wall, using her ice to skate near the middle of the buildings. Once she was at the right position, she spun and blast giant chunks of purple ice at each building's upper areas, smashing holes in them.

Zephyrdor's Rooks showed shock while Tamara and Ophelia saw the hole form, Tamara smiled.

"Ophelia, looks like we're getting our chance now. Go for it!" Tamara exclaimed.

"Right." Ophelia replied, holding her hand out.

Hands of purple miasma form around Ophelia before they shot forward, soon creating a purple cloud of miasma hands that blinded Zephyrdor's rooks.

"I can't see!" Spike screamed.

"Damn it, my eyes!" Rex coughed.

Ineelana soon fell back, sliding downwards as she whistled, giving Mine her cue.

"[**PILE BUNKER!**]

Mine shouts as her Roman Artillery fired, blasting towards... her teammates!?

"_W-what is she doing!? Was that a misfire, or..._" Naud announced as the maneuver caught him off guard.

"_I think we're seeing their trump card._" Titania gasped.

Tamara soon motions her feet and jumps into the air, making the entire crowd gasp as she nears Mine's blast.

"Victory... is... ours!" Tamara screamed.

"[**TELOS KARMA!**]"

The mere announced of those two words caused everyone to shout out in shock.

Tamara's body becomes like a mirror, and she yells slightly as the attack hit her, but soon it focuses on the area of her body that it struck as she was blown back to the building, a shield defending the building ad their monolith while holding her in place while the attack pressed against her midair.

"GO!" Ineelana screamed loudly.

"Rebound!" Tamara exclaimed.

Mine's attack was reflected and shot forward, flying right at the Glasya-Labolas team's building as it hit Spike and Rex, retiring them instantly before smashing the monolith apart and setting off a buzzer.

"_The Telos Karma, the weakest of the Longinus, and yet still one of the most powerful Sacred Gears... that was her trump card all this time. Amazing! Oh, I think it's over Naud?_" Titania breathed, soon nudging Naud.

"_O-Oh, right! Zephyrdor's monolith has been shattered! I-It's over, the victory goes to Ineelana Leviathan!_" Naud announced excitedly.

The entire crowd cheers as Ineelana soon landed on the ground exhausted, Murasaki ran over to her, holding out a hand.

Ineelana looks at it before accepting it.

"Y-you did good today Ineelana." Murasaki smiled.

"...Not really, but I guess I'll believe you." Ineelana blushed, showing her insecurity complex a bit.

Everyone's cheering gets louder.

* * *

The members of the Hyoudou household all watch in shock as the replay of Tamara using the Telos Karma entered their sight. Yumina clears her throat, causing them to regain their focus from what they just saw.

"Ineelana had a Longinus user on her team? I can't believe this, that's... incredible!" Irina gasped.

"Telos Karma... the weakest of the Longinus, but still extremely powerful. It can make someone immune to attacks that strike them if they stay immobile, shield their allies from any harm, and by taking some pain they can send the attack back twice as strong towards anyone." Vali explained.

"Wow, and that's the weakest power among the Longinus? I wonder how this one was born." Yuuma wondered.

"I can answer that too, it was born from the soul of the Greek pantheon's Pandora upon her death. Telos is a Greek word meaning the ultimate purpose, and Pandora was known for unleashing many plagues and evils on mankind, you could say it was born from her own karma. So, the Sacred Gear's power is a representation receiving everything their karma owes them." Vali answered.

Yuuma goes unresponsive as stares at Vali in shock, her mouth dropping open. The heiress of Lucifer soon waved her hand over the former Fallen's face, soon snapping her fingers in an attempt to get a reaction.

"The eight members of Ineelana's peerage... they're all so powerful, and I bet we've only seen a little of what they can do. Anyone in B-Block has a dangerous opponent to fight, possibly either of us depending on who reaches the finals." Rias noted.

"Guess we've gotta step it up." Shirone stated.

"I agree, though I think for now at least you should focus on your match against Suzattin. He is your next opponent." Yumina replied.

"You've got your work cut out for you there, Suzattin might normally be lazy but when he's finally active... watch out. Seekvaira learned that the hard way." Vali chuckled.

Rias smirked a bit.

"I don't plan to go down that easy." Rias countered playfully.

* * *

Ineelana had a vein on her head as she and Murasaki were standing before Lilith and the Great Devils, having to file a report on the fact the Leviathan heiress had the Telos Karma user in her peerage and didn't report it.

'Tamara told me she sent the report in under the promise to have no one know until I had her reveal it, how did that little runt mess that up!?' Ineelana mentally seethed.

"Thank you for your time Ineelana, I do wish you had alerted us in advance so we knew the Telos Karma wielder was an ally to the alliance." Lilith replied, making a vein appear on the purple haired Leviathan's head.

"I DID! THE LITTLE RUNT MISSED IT UP, I BET YOU THREW IT AWAY TO EMBARRASS ME!" Ineelana roared in anger.

Murasaki panicked as she tried holding her back, the timid queen struggling to hold her back.

She struggled a bit until Serafall jumped over and grabbed her rebel outfit's color, making Ineelana flail in place.

"Calm down, just take a deep breath-" Serafall softly spoke.

"Oh, you think you can talk down to me because you're the placeholder Leviathan! Just cause you're using my family name doesn't mean you're a better Leviathan than me!" Ineelana shouted.

"...OK, I know the Leviathan represents envy, but Ineelana seems a bit worse. Is there a reason for this Murasaki?" Serafall asked, giving a small sweat drop.

"S-She has a... slight inferiority complex." Murasaki quietly replied.

"What crap are you talking about, I don't feel lower than everyone, I don't think everyone's always gonna be better than me!" Ineelana pouted, crossing her arms.

Everyone sweat dropped at that.

'She totally does.' They all thought in unison.

Serafall soon let Ineelana ago, and the Leviathan heiress left in a huff.

"S-See you all again soon... bye." Murasaki quietly said, soon following her King.

'Doesn't matter how far I get, I could never beat someone like Vali. I'll always be second in whatever I go for.' Ineelana thought as she continued walking.

As they ran by, the sight of a Low-Class Devil ran by as he stopped before the Devil leaders, all of them noticing his panic.

"I-I-I bring bad news Lady Lilith, we have a big problem!" The Devil explained in a panic.

"Calm down, tell us what it is?" Lilith asked.

"I-It's... it's... it's the worst! Many of our soldiers were attacked and slaughter by-"

* * *

Soon all the members of the Hyoudou Household were present at the Rating Game tournament arena, finally getting a chance to be directly in the audience for a match. This one was between the heiress of the Vassago house, Eneely Vassago and Vali's friend Esketanus.

"Pretty sweet we're getting to see this up close, pretty awesome of you Azazel, Lilith." Irina smiled.

"Not a problem, I'll be announcing the next few matches after the first tier's fights end. It was only fitting. Oh yeah, Hestia and Hephaestus wanted to know how your Excalibur DxD's been doing since they added Transparency and Nightmare into it?" Azazel asked.

"It's doing OK, little heavier than I'm used to, but I'll learn to handle it." Irina answered.

Soon they heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" Lilith asked.

"Lady Lilith, it's been a long time, hasn't it?"

Lilith showed surprise.

"...That voice, is that you Edelweiss?" Lilith asked.

"Not just me." Edelweiss smiled.

The door opened up and soon the sight of fifteen individuals were seen before they walked in. Vali and her group all showed shock at this, remembering hearing the rumors about them back when Vali first visiting Hell. The group known as... the legendary and ultimate peerage!

The first member was the Queen: Edelweiss, a beautiful voluptuous woman with an cold ice like stare in her crystal clear blue eyes. She had ice cold, snowy white hair, that reached down to her shoulders and long enough in the front to reach and cover her entire forehead, with her middle bang slanting down to the right, but then shifting slightly to the left as it goes down. She was currently in her casual outfit, a white shirt and blue jeans, rather than her battle outfit which was like a revealing version of Valkyrie armor.

The Bishops were next: Rinne Sonogami and Jasmine. Rinne was a woman with leg length pink hair with parts in the front having two braids, her eyes were intense pink, almost red color. Her current outfit was a white shirt with a sleeveless tan sweater, and blue skirt, but her usual wear was a mostly purple and slightly white empress like outfit with golden extensions covering it.

Jasmine was a woman with long black hair held by a white head band, with sunglasses resting under it. She had a red scarf with a yellow dress sleeveless top with white floral designs, white pants and black boots with a pair of black wrist guards. Kunou noticed she looked like a hippie with her outfit looked.

Then came the Knights: Heathcliff and Reinforce. Heathcliff was a muscular, tall, and physically strong looking man with sharp scholarly features and steel-gray hair that had a strand hanging over his forehead. He wore mostly red armor with white designs, and a large shield that held his sword within it.

Reinforce was woman with silvery white hair and red eyes that reflected no light, wearing a tight sleeveless black outfit and skirt with yellow threads, a pair of fingerless black gloves, and black stockings with her right leg's being longer and having armored black shoes.

Next were the Rooks: Esdeath and Kaido. Esdeath was a tall, beautiful and slender woman with long light blue hair and blue eyes. She wore a General's apparel with long sleeves, a blue scarf on her neck, and high-heeled boots. She also has a tattoo on her chest, which was the sign of a Sacred Gear in a manner similar to Gasper's being in his eyes and having no physical form.

Kaido was... well, it was hard to describe what he was, he looked human but had non-human features. He was abnormally large, extremely muscular, has a relatively small face with yellow bloodshot eyes underneath small eyebrows, a hooked nose, a long chin, long black hair that resembled a mane, a waist length mustache, a spiky goatee and a pair of horns curved on each side of his head.

On his right abdomen, he had cross-shaped scar, and on the left side he has a red and gold tattoo resembling reptilian scales, going from his chest down the front of his left arm to end with a white skull at the lower forearm. He wore a dark blue feather coat draped on his shoulders, an open long-sleeved dark purple shirt held by a light rope belt, dark pants and spiked bracelets.

Finally, all of the Pawns: Acnologia, Rei Ryghts, Uzume Tennouboshi, Meliodas, Chisato Hasegawa, the "Legendary Soul Bird" Ruhk, Medaka Kurokami, and a man with a similar appearance to Yumina and Grayfia.

While one couldn't tell right now, Acnologia was a Dragon, his current human form was a rather muscular young man with long, dark blue colored hair. His eyes had black circles around them, had dark skin with light blue markings from his true form, and wore a high collared black cloak with the same markings, sharp red claws around his neck, a sash around his waist and baggy pants decorated with the same markings.

Rei had long heather blue hair that became slightly more sky-blue as it went down. Her eyes are a bright diamond blue and had a hair accessory that looked like a cat ear and a horn, her outfit being some kind of revealing skin tight machine armor that greatly exposed her gifted bust and the top some of her thighs, starting a little over where the torso begins and little over the middle of her thigh. The outfit itself was primarily black with white sections.

Uzume was a fair-skinned girl with red-orange eyes and long, red hair worn in pigtails located near the bottom of her head, held by hair that has been knotted. She wore a small black tube top under an open white jacket with a mostly orange tie that had some black and white, a pair of pleated shorts with thin black suspenders, open to reveal her orange underwear, black fingerless gloves over orange and black sleeves, matching socks, black shoes and a pair of buttoned black leg warmers.

Meliodas looked like a child, being exceptionally short compared to the others, with messy blond hair and a pair of emerald eyes. Though he was relatively muscular, wearing an ordinary, clean white button-front shirt and a black sleeveless vest on top with a loosely worn tie, a green leather belt with gold-colored buckles, and a pair of black boots without any socks.

Chisato was a stunning woman with a voluptuous figure and very large breasts, hip length dark brown hair, aqua eyes with red glasses and a mole under her left eye. She wore a green sweater with a white robe on top, a short skirt and long brown tights. Ruhk was giant mostly golden bird similar to a phoenix with some dragon like traits across its feathers, mouth and talons, the tips of its feathers having black tints.

Medaka had very long purple hair that reached down to her waist and bangs that barely overlap her red eyes, as well as a semi-straight ahoge. She had especially large breasts, wearing a school uniform that displayed her impressive cleavage and a short skirt. Finally, the silver haired main seemed to be like Sirzechs in the sense he looked like an older version of Grayfia if she was a man.

"T-T-The legendary peerage!?" Rias gasped.

"I... I..." Sona stuttered, her normally calm self-fading as her hair frizzed.

"Uh... someone wanna explain to everyone who doesn't know these people? Like me for example." Issei asked, suddenly worried about everyone's reactions.

"Issei, these fifteen all make Hell's greatest peerage that ever lived. They're so powerful all of them have mutation pieces." Vali explained.

Issei's eyes widened.

"All of them!? OK, just who's the King of this peerage exactly?" Issei asked in surprise.

"I'm actually not sure, their King's unknown and they've never actually been in a Rating game. They're strength came from a battle to protect Hell long ago." Vali answered.

"...They were your father's Vali, their king was Satan." Lilith answered.

"WHAT!?" Everyone exclaimed.

"The Evil Piece system had a prototype that didn't use the reincarnation system Ajuka perfected, and that lead to this first peerage being created. Since it was a prototype, Satan managed to play around with the Devil he asked to help make it, we think that caused the Mutation Piece glitch. Either way... the fact is by Evil Piece registry, they are Satan's peerage." Lilith explained.

Vali blinked at that, still in shock.

"Wait, father? I thought Satan was her great grandpa?" Kunou wondered.

"Oh that, well... Vali's considered Lilith as her mother recently, so I decide to relinquish my parental status to her legally. That makes Satan her father by law." Azazel whispered.

"Oh, I see." Kunou whispered back.

"Ah, you must be Vali. I've wanted to meet you in person for a while." Edelweiss smiled, getting closer to Vali.

Vali shook heavily as Edelweiss got close, her aura feeling like it was grabbing her just by being in close proximity.

Vali soon shifted behind Issei.

"Vali?" Issei asked worriedly.

"Her aura's so overwhelming, I think I nearly wet myself!" Vali whimpered quietly.

Lilith chuckled as her daughter's reaction.

"So, what brings you all here?"

"Just thought we'd stop by, that time of year to pay respects again... that and we've been asked by Sirzechs to be the guest announcers and judges during the final match. They figured who better to judge the finalists?" Edelweiss smiled.

"I see, feel free to stop by every once in a while. I'm sure you'll be great announcers at the finals." Lilith smiled.

"Thank you, we'll see you again soon." Lilith smiled.

Soon all 15 of them left, and Lilith turned to see everyone all out of sorts from the visit.

"...Uh, let's go see how Esketanus is preparing himself, please!" Lilith begged while sweat dropping.

* * *

Esketanus was readying the gloves on his team uniform, soon seeing Lilith open the door as he and his peerage watched her and the others all came in. Esketanus smiled as Vali waved to him, making him stand up.

"Hey Vali, come to cheer me on?" Esketanus smirked.

"Yeah, something like that. Plus, I did wanna see some of your peerage members. You've never had the chance to introduce me to any of them." Vali admitted.

"Well of course, we Mammon's focus on business. Anyways, here's me-" Esketanus replied.

The sight of an auburn/pink haired girl with pale skin and red eyes was seen behind Vali, grabbing a lock of her hair. She wore a butterfly headphone accessory on her head. She was currently outside of her usual outfit, wearing the team uniform for the Mammon team, with the exception of her black leather below-the-knee boots. She also had a red lollipop in her mouth.

"Oh wow, Esketanus told me you were cute, but he didn't tell me you were adorable Vali!" Chelsea stated with a blush.

"Uh... can I help you?" Vali asked, feeling her personal space being invaded.

"Oh, excuse me, my name's Chelsea, I'm Esketanus' first Knight. Since we're going to be beating up people for the sake of your shared dream, I hope we get along. I think you've got a Nekomata friend who likes sweets?" Chelsea answered as she held a lollipop up.

Shirone's eyes widened as she grabs it from her.

"I like you." Shirone replied, making Chelsea giggle as Bikou and Saji stare blankly at the sight.

"I found her one day on a field of Hydrangea flowers. She got murdered for some reason because she's got a pretty nifty Sacred Gear called Phantasmagoria. That's all I'm saying about it though." Esketanus smirked, soon causing Chelsea's eyes to go blank and faint.

"Oh dear Esketanus, you keep forgetting she said, and I quote: 'don't mention how I died' when you revived her. How do you always forget that?" Kurumi giggled.

Esketanus sweat drops at that, coughing a bit.

"R-Right, my bad..." Esketanus chuckled nervously.

"Hey, anyone seen Eterna?" Sylvia asked.

Suddenly from behind the others, the door opened up to show a with long light brown hair, a curvy figure and extremely large breasts rush in, panting before looking up and having a few stands fall in front of her face as her cuteness made everyone blush a bit.

"I-I'm sorry I was late, I couldn't find the special shoes Esketanus made for helping me in Rating Games." Eterna apologized, her eyes sparkling.

'So adorable!' All the guys thought.

"Ah, here's a special face I should introduce. Everyone, this is Eterna Verdene, my Queen and also my girlfriend. She's shy but a hard worker and a cutie." Esketanus introduced as he nuzzled his cheek against hers, making her blush.

"Aw, that's so sweet. I'm happy for you." Vali smiled.

Lilith looked at her surprised, and Esketanus chuckled as he walked by Lilith and put his mouth near her ear.

"Oh yeah, she's the one I'm talking about. You'll see her true strength when the battle starts. Don't let her personality fool you, her powers work with it better than you think." Esketanus whispered with a smirk.

'No way, she's the one who possess the-' Lilith thought.

Soon a knock is heard.

"Esketanus, you're due in the arena for your match soon, you got 5 minutes to prepare!" A Devil called out from behind the door.

"Got it! Alright gang, time to show our trump card." Esketanus stated.

Soon after a fainted Chelsea woke up, the team of nine headed to the arena, and soon Vali and the others all headed to the arena stands to get ready to watch the match. One they did, a familiar announcer began.

"_Hello everyone! It's your usual announcer, Naud Gamigan here! Today I've got two guest announcers due to Titania having to return home on King Oberon's request, so... here's the strongest of Heaven's female Angels and the daughter of the Demon Queen! Gabriel and Mio Naruse!_" Naud announced.

"_Hi_!" Gabriel smiled and waved.

"_How's it going everyone?_" Mio replied.

Everyone cheered at that, especially fans of the two gorgeous ladies.

Mio chuckled embarrassingly while Gabriel didn't even notice the eyes ogling her.

"_So ladies, each of you have a familiarity with one of this match's participants, care to share your thoughts?_" Naud asked.

"_Oh yes, Eneely is a bit distant but she's quite the wonderful hard-working lady. She was clearly upset that the former Astaroth heir pulled the stunt he did, and she's actively making sure the clan doesn't fall apart. So sweet for the heiress of the 3rd clan of the 72 pillars to put all that effort into helping someone._" Gabriel smiled.

"_Esketanus? He's a tricky one, the guy's a Devil representing Greed, but is a strategic business sense, he's a real tactician yet his peerage supports him well and overall friendly. A good leader for his peerage._" Mio explained.

"_Ah, so a challenge between hard workers. It makes today's match type fitting and advantageous for both sides. Alright then, let's bring out our contestants!_" Naud announced, cheering loudly.

From the left side, a female Devil walked out with a peerage of 12 including herself, she brushed her hair slightly as she entered the field with a serious expression. Soon on the right side, Esketanus' group walked into view, giving a confident look with his group.

The two met in the middle of the field, Eneely sighed and held out a hand as a sign of sportsmanship, Esketanus took and shook as the crowd cheered.

"_And the two sides give a friendly handshake as a sign of sportsmanship! Alright everyone, time to begin today's match, the rule is... Hazard Battle! The entire field is covered in dangerous hazards and obstacles, you need to be smart or you could lose by having the hazards beat you!_" Naud announced excitedly.

"Hmm... so it's a battle of strategy and caution. Very well, I shall show everyone these rules won't slow me down." Eneely stated softly.

"Alright, let's do this!" Esketanus smirked.

Soon the group is teleported to the alternate space for the match while the crowd sees it through a bubble in the arena, all anticipated for what was to come next.

"_Let the match... BEGIN!_" Naud announced.

Eneely and Esketanus' peerages both rush forward from their home base areas, and the match truly started.

* * *

**So begins another Rating Game match against the heirs between two of the better-known Devil clans. Just what is this secret Esketanus is referring to in regards to Eterna? If a shy girl like her is a Queen and he claims she's a strong member of his peerage, then it's gotta be a pretty serious power, or is a Sacred Gear? Possess doesn't exactly say which :3**

**Before I say more, I'd like to offer an apology in advance, this Season might be a more out of place than the others since I'm focusing on the tournament, Loki's arrival, and the fact Akeno's going to be meeting with her father soon. It's an odd set up to work with, so the chapters and their flows might seem a little weird for a while.**

**Also, surprise! That legendary peerage is none other than Satan's! To be more specific, they're servants to a system that preludes the Evil Pieces and was used to form them, meaning they still register as one. Unfortunately, with their King's demise, they can't do much and no one's strong enough to handle them, not even Lilith because her husband was way more powerful than she's ever been.**

**Wow, Ineelana had the Telos Karma wielder in her ranks? Now that's a big accomplishment... if only she realized it was, that inferiority complex of hers ^^; *chuckles* Since the actual Sacred Gear's yet to appear, I had a lot of freedom in creating it, I chose Pandora as the soul inside it because Telos is a Greek term and I figured Pandora releasing every evil is something owing an ocean of karma.**

**Well, see you all next time when this fight between Eneely and Esketanus, Vassago vs Mammon, continues! Until then, stay awesome everyone ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Stella Vermillion, Edelweiss**

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki, Yumi, Sayuri/Jasmine**

**Akame ga Kill - Mine, Chelsea, Esdeath**

**Sword Art Online - Sinon, Heathcliff/Akihiko Kayaba**

**Asterisk War - Ophelia Landlufen**

**Date A Live - Kurumi Tokisaki, Rinne Sonogami**

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse, Chisato Hasegawa**

**One Piece - Kaido**

**Fairy Tail - Acnologia**

**Medaka Box - Medaka Kurokami**

**The Seven Deadly Sins - Meliodas**

**Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Reinforce Eins**

**Hyperdimension Neptunia - Rei Ryghts, Uzume Tennouboshi**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Valerie's kissed him, Gasper's reply still unknown  
Kiba/Yumi - Both showing signs of feelings  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona's heavily implied to have feelings  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	32. Chapter 32

**OK, before we begin, there's something I REALLY need to clear up. Some of you have been mentioning Vali has a bigger spotlight than Issei to me. There's a problem with this though, not a big one, but one I should explain to clear up a big misunderstanding. The answer is in the summary where the brackets are, and in them its stated [Protagonist Vali], and that's because this story focuses on Vali being the protagonist/main character.**

**Issei is the deuteragonist of the story, he's got his importance, but he's like Rias in canon where she tends to be overshadowed by Issei. Originally the plan before I began the story was to make the two more even, but I realized most DxD fanfics have Issei in the main role, so I asked myself: "How about something different where Issei's love interest is the main character?", and so I went for it.**

**This is why the Lucifer name tends to be important and pop up often in the story, things like Vali's goal for winning the tournament, why she entered the Juggernaut Drive instead of Issei and etc. were all to showcase Vali's bigger focus in the story. However, it seems a few people still think Issei is the protagonist in the story despite this.**

**I hope this has cleared some things up, this was my intent when I began this story and I apologize for causing this misunderstanding. Don't worry though, Issei will have moments to shine in this season, the next, and especially Season 6 for reasons I can't say due to spoilers, though since the seasons adapt 2 volumes at a time... I think most of you know what I'm talking about already ^^;**

**Well... I think that's all I really have to say, mostly cause anything else I say for the start notes would be spoilers to Eterna's powers. So, let's just begin ^^**

**A/N: Oh, I also edited the S3 finale slightly to remove Elsha's name from the past BG possessors' talk with Issei. You'll see why I did that soon enough, for now that'll stay a secret ;)**

**Also, the Telos Karma has another ability that Tamara didn't show last chapter because it was against the rules to use it, the power of suggestion. If the user says something while using it, what they say becomes a heavy suggestion in the affected being's mind. That ability is considering cheating in a Rating Game, hence it's a banned ability.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

**A/N: Today's Concept Talk will be a lot like the one about this story's Top 10 Strongest Beings, for today it's about the fanfic's version of...**

** -Spirits of the Longinus- **

**The 13 Longinus are the world's most powerful Sacred Gear, and the only ones that can use the Longinus Smasher, there is still another trait they all have in common that seems to be a requirement to become a Longinus. As some Sacred Gears seem to be weaker and either common and/or numerous versions of the Longinus, the requirement is... a consciousness.**

**Each Longinus has a being sealed inside of it, and regardless if said being is sealed inside by body, soul, other or a mixture of the following, that causes the Sacred Gear to manifest a consciousness within it. While Ddraig and Albion are the best known, each Longinus' spirit is known, and these are the spirits that have been registered as each Longinus' consciousness.**

**True Longinus: Will of God - Before St. Longinus stabbed Jesus Christ, he blessed the spear that would become the True Longinus with his will to allow the act, and that will manifested as a remnant of him. This will's power is also the source behind the True Longinus' ability, Truth Idea.**

**Zenith Tempest: Eye of Horus - Similar to the God's will, the Zenith Tempest's consciousness is an extension of another being, in this case being the eye Horus lost in a battle with Set. Due to being a God of the sky, and the various elements that it crossed through during its journey to becoming a sacred gear, the powerful eye gained the power over all the elements once it became a Sacred Gear, allowing it to manipulate them all via the weather.**

**Annihilation Maker: Echidna - How does the Annihilation make so many monster-like creatures? Simple, the mother of all monsters is the being sealed within it, and the same reason Typhon hasn't done much to the world in the last eternity. During the Great War, Echidna was brought to near death, and Typhon reluctantly agreed to ignore the world in order for God to save her soul as a Sacred Gear.**

**Dimension Lost: Nuada - The first king of the Tuatha Dé Danann, a race of supernatural beings from the Irish pantheon. After his death and his kind's subsequent change into the Aos Si, which would later become the various the fairy races of other folk lore, the magical mist of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the Féth fíada, would merge with the remnant of his spirit to create the Dimension Lost.**

**Boosted Gear: Ddraig - The Red Dragon Emperor, during the Great War he was too strong to defeat, so God had to use his power to have Ddraig's own left hand absorb him and turn into a Sacred Gear.**

**Divine Dividing: Albion - The White Dragon Emperor, during the Great War he was too strong to defeat, so God had to use his power to have Albion's own wings absorb him and turn into a Sacred Gear.**

**Regulus Nemea: Regulus - The legendary Nemean Lion killed by the original Heracles for the first of his 12 labors, when killed by the Greek Demi-God and his pelt worn as the hero's armor of sorts, the lion's soul became linked to his, and upon Heracles' eventual demise and his immortal half not burning, the Nemean Lion revived in the form of a Sacred Gear that could be partially independent at times.**

**Canis Lykaon: Inugami - A powerful Yokai linked to the night sky, it once found the remains of a shattered sword type Sacred Gear and possesses it, fusing it into its forehead and becoming part sacred gear as an independent type. Due to how it became one, the Canis Lykaon is always in its Balance Breaker state.**

**Sephiroth Graal: Sir Galahad - Also known as the Holy Grail, a cup once touched by Jesus giving it great powers, the Round Table knight known as Galahad would eventually discover it and due to his request for dying when he chose, his soul bonded to the Sephirot Graal**

**Incinerate Anthem: Heart of Jesus - When Jesus was stabbed on the cross, the act caused the morals of his heart to be stained into it, causing it to gain the power of purple flames imbued with a large amount of holy energy. This is what allows Incinerate Anthem to leave its wielder without killing them, and why it will find a new user if it deems its current one unworthy.**

**Absolute Demise: Yama-Uba - A Yokai associated with the winter, and sometimes known for having only one eye, she made the unfortunate mistake of trying to possess a sacred gear which caused her to get stuck. The Absolute Demise's avatar is believed to have eyes only one side of its head, and its disfigured appearance, reflect Yama-Uba's single eye and how she became trapped in the Sacred Gear.**

**Innovate Clear: Fraxinus - The Innovate Clear is unique as it is a collective consciousness that formed into one when it became a Sacred Gear, specifically the Meliae nymphs born of the blood of Ouranos that splattered onto Gaia, they were stated to be part of the ash tree that was believed to the Greek extension of Yggdrasil. The tree eventually became a Sacred Gear, uniting their souls into one and naming themselves "Fraxinus" after the tree.**

**Telos Karma: Pandora - The fabled maiden who opened Pandora's box, letting the plagues and evil sealed within ravage Greece. To atone for her act, she worked and succeeded in freeing hope from the box to counter it, but her act stained her with great karma despite her amends, a karma that caused her soul to become the Telos Karma.**

**Some of the spirits don't physically speak or reply to the user, while others are like a second personality connected to their wielder, but they can all be communicated with to deepen the bond with the Sacred Gear and its wielder.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Loki Arc: Chapter 2 - Fights and Families _ **

"_Let the match... BEGIN!_" Naud announced.

Eneely and Esketanus' peerages both rush forward from their home base areas, and the match truly started.

The first move is made by the Vassago heiress who rushes ahead, the hazard field presents its first threat as a devilish version of a Venus Fly Trap rises from the ground, lunging forward to chomp down on her.

"[**Cosmic Render!**]"

Suddenly waves of pink energy fling out from Eneely's body, and once they phase through the plant monster... the dimensions around it distort before its cut into ribbons and plant slime.

Eneely slightly whips her hair around, looking towards the camera's direction as the crowd goes wild for her.

"_Whoa! Naud, was that technique her clan ability?_" Mio asked.

"_Yep, that was the Vassago Clan's special ability. Cosmic Render is like the Agares clan's Chrono Break ability, but instead of manipulating time, this power distorts the space of a certain area._" Naud answered via his announcement.

"_I had the pleasure of seeing her practice with it, her father even mentioned her skill with it has already exceeded most of her household's._" Gabriel smiled as she clapped her hands together.

Meanwhile on Esketanus' side, the Mammon heir looked his sole Rook.

"Sounds like Eneely already made her first strike, where do you expect her to come from Claudia?" Esketanus asked.

"Looks like she's going for the straight forward approach. Are we gonna take them head on, or be a little... sneaky about it?" Claudia replied, her right eye glowing magenta and her left glowing teal as she held twin swords of the same colors, her Sacred Gear [Orga Flux].

"Hmm... Chelsea, how about you fake them out a little?" Esketanus smirked.

Chelsea giggled as she took out a trio of make-up brushes in her hand, and soon waved them over her as smoke went off.

* * *

Meanwhile on Eneely's side, she and four of her Pawns gathered around her for protection. One of the Pawns suddenly stopped, focusing her hand by her ears which briefly grew into a bat like shape through her Sacred Gear [Silent Sound] before reverting back.

"Master Eneely, I've detected the sound of something nearing us from straight ahead." Echo replied.

"Hmm... Corina, Trace, go with Echo and see if you can learn who it is. Stay by me in case of anything sneaky Hans." Eneely ordered, looking at each of them.

"Understood." Everyone replied.

Hans turned around to have his back face Eneely as his body suddenly grew large hands, his Sacred Gear [Gigante Smash], and cracked them in anticipation.

Meanwhile Echo, Trace and Corina all went into the trees ahead. Echo's ears became bat like again, while Corina's soon gained a binocular/mask like eye wear, her Sacred Gear [Searching Scope], as they zoomed out, with Trace gaining a bear like nose as he sniffed out any nearby scents, his Sacred Gear [Grizzly Hunter], and got something.

"Hmm... the scent is definitely male, can you confirm it Corina?" Trace asked.

"Oh yeah, looks like it's Esketanus. Though he's alone. We could be walking into a trap, you hear him saying anything Echo?" Corina asked.

"Let's see... _I bet Eneely's too afraid to make any moves because she sees me alone like this_, sounds more like the trap is tricking us into doing nothing. Let's try taking him out, even if there is one he is the King. Losing us won't hurt Master Eneely's chances as bad as the others." Echo replied.

The three nod, soon rushing forward and appearing before Esketanus.

"Oh? Well, it seems Eneely decided to send a few after me anyways, guess I was too reckless in trying to figure out who my opponent's peerage had." Esketanus sighed.

"Quite the cocky move, now you'll have to pay the consequences." Echo stated.

Echo opened her mouth and released a sonic scream, Esketanus quickly ran and got out of the way of the attack. Only for Corina's eye wear to fire off lasers, Esketanus quickly jumped up to the trees and panted.

Trace soon sprung after him, preparing to strike with his martial art skills when... he suddenly sniffed something strange from Esketanus' body.

"Wait a minute... is that perfume I smell!?" Trace shouted.

"What? Esketanus wouldn't wear that, then that would mean-" Corina gasped.

The person everyone thought was Esketanus suddenly giggled in her true voice, smoke puffing out as it was revealed to be Chelsea who had used her [Phantasmagoria] to transform into Esketanus and scout ahead.

"All yours Shizuku." Chelsea called.

"[**SHOUHA SUIREN!**]"

Blue and silver charms are thrown on the ground, forming a wave of water that sent out tendrils to attack the three Pawns, Echo releases a sound wave at Eneely to warn her. Back where Eneely was, she shifts her expression slightly.

"Hans, retreat maneuver." Eneely stated.

"Understood." Hans nodded.

Eneely used her [Cosmic Render] on herself, distorting herself enough that Hans' enlarged hands could grab and cover her entirely as he jumped away. Avoiding the wave of water nearing them.

Meanwhile with the rest of Eneely's pawns, Corina and Echo used their lasers and sonic scream respectively to hold the water tendrils back. Trace holding his hands out against the waves.

"You're not gonna stop us that easily!" Trace smirked.

"And that's true." Chelsea giggled.

This confused the trio, unaware of the Darkness magic that spurted behind them as one of the battleground's many hazards.

"She says that because that's my role." Kurumi's voice echoed behind them.

Using the power of her gun type Sacred Gear, [Showdown Shadows], a bunch of clones made from Kurumi's shadow appeared, all holding out their twin rifles as they breached through the waves. Trace gasped as one clone aimed right at him.

"Say goodnight." Kurumi smiled.

"...Crap." Trace gulped.

Kurumi fired, taking out Trace before the rest of her clones all shoot out of the waves, causing Corina and Echo to gasp before the shadows strike right through them. All three disappear in blue light as they were eliminated.

"_Three of Lady Eneely's Pawns, retired!_" Naud announced.

While Hans tried rushing himself and Eneely back to the rest of their team, he suddenly stopped as a rock Golem appeared before him. The sight of Zest on the creature's shoulder made him turn... only to get a slash mark on his shoulder as Claudia appeared.

"What? H-how did you know our path?" Hans asked surprised.

"My Orga Flux has a wondrous power, by storing up power, I can have up to 300 seconds of future sight to use when needed. We knew where you would go before you even decided it." Claudia revealed.

"Now it is time for our victory." Zest stated.

Zest motions the Golem to attack Hans, and Claudia rushes to attack him as well. Hans simply closed his eyes, the attacks sending him flying as he vanished in blue light.

"_One of Lady Eneely's Pawns, retired!_" Naud announced as her last pawn disappeared.

"_Oh dear, looks like Eneely's lost all her Pawns. That leaves her with only seven more of her team left against Esketanus who still has all eight of his teammates._" Gabriel commented.

"_Wait, hold up! Eneely was in Hans' palms, wasn't he? Where'd she go? Is she still in the game?_" Mio suddenly asked.

The whole crowd look confused at this, even Zest and Claudia weren't sure what happened.

However, they got their answer as pink slash marks sliced across their abdomens, with Eneely reappearing from the distortion she had used on herself.

"Nice try, but even time means nothing when the high gravity my power user distorts it." Eneely states as she saw them both vanish.

"_Whoa! Lord Esketanus' Rook and one of his Pawns, retired!_" Naud announced.

The crowd cheered, while Chelsea, Kurumi and Shizuku all heard surprise at their teammates being defeated.

"_Oh? What just happened, I'm a bit confused by what Eneely means?_" Gabriel asked.

"_From what I'm aware of, they say intense gravity can alter time and space. I think Eneely's power manipulates space via gravity, so when she used it on herself, she likely went outside the effect of the Orga Flux's future sight._" Mio answered.

"_Then that means Eneely wasn't just using Hans as a quick escape, she was preparing a counter to a possible trap. Genius!_" Naud announced excitedly.

* * *

Meanwhile in the crowd, everyone was watching the match and the latest event.

"Whoa, so a clan ability that defies time and space under the right circumstance. Is that what puts the Vassago clan as the third pillar?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, the Agares are only higher cause that doesn't work if a Chrono Break was used on a Vassago before they could use it." Vali answered.

Irina wondered for a moment.

"But wait, she cut that first monster up with her power, is she immune to her own ability?" Irina asked.

"Not at all, she simply chose how to distort space differently. The first time the distortion was like bending and cutting the area around that plant." Lilith explained.

"Oh man... kinda glad she's not in our bracket's, that ability's dangerous." Kunou sighed.

Azazel chuckled at that.

"Any ability's gonna be like that, just because one power's not that offensive doesn't mean it doesn't have a threat behind it. I think the [Creation Wave] ability Sona's used is a good example considering what she can make that water turn into." Azazel replied.

"Uh... Azazel, shouldn't you encourage us and not scare us?" Yuuma said while shaking.

* * *

Esketanus whistled, and soon Kurumi uses her clones to help Shizuku and Chelsea get back to the others, Eterna quickly using healing powers on the three to remove the few scrapes they had received against Eneely's Pawns.

"So, now what do we do? I doubt they'll fall for Chelsea again and Eneely's clan ability is gonna be a big pain in the ass." Eryn asked.

"Hmm... no choice then. Here's the plan." Esketanus answered.

Esketanus whispered to everyone, and soon their eyes widened a bit.

"Man, you make some insane ideas sometimes. Let's go for it!" Kurumi smirked.

"U-um... are you sure we'll be OK?" Eterna asked.

"Just trust me sweetie, we've got this." Esketanus said as he gave a thumb's up.

Eterna was silent for a moment, but soon nodded a bit with a weak smile.

Smoke puffed out and gained the attention of Eneely, who had since gotten back to her base area, and her remaining retainers in the battle.

"Hmm... strange they set that off, either those attackers from earlier retreated or I'm being baited... what to do here?" Eneely wondered.

A green haired High Elf that acted as Eneely's Queen walked up to her King.

"Eneely, I think they're coming at us. Be ready." Issweitt stated.

"Alright, then let's do this." Eneely replied as she readied pink energy in her hand.

Eneely's remaining forces, a Giant and Dwarf Rook, two Chienthrope **(A/N: Demi-Humans with dogs ears and a tail)** Knights, and a Fairy and Yuki-Onna Bishop all readied themselves.

* * *

The Chienthrope Knights, Yu and Ai, both rushed ahead of the others to scout the area.

"Picking up their scents yet?" Ai asked.

"Yeah, looks like some stayed at their base and the others went off to find us." Yu answered.

A bunch of flames burst from the ground, the two jumping over as they resumed their run and eventually saw the group of Chelsea, Eterna, Shizuku and Sylvia.

"So, a near even split? Let's strike them hard now!" Ai smirked.

Yu nodded, howling to alert the others before they rushed ahead.

"I've got this." Shizuku said as she walked ahead.

She drew her sword, which had somehow become a slightly red color as she held it forward.

At that moment, alongside her water, she also released intense flames alongside them. The Chienthrope Knights were both shocked as they dodged to the sides and avoided each element.

"What? That doesn't make sense, she was using fire and ice earlier. How is she also using fire?" Ai wondered.

"Hah! Didn't even see it coming, nice one partner!" Eryn spoke via the sword.

"The sword spoke?" Yu gasped as he sensed Eryn's presence within.

Suddenly the sound of singing reached their ears and they looked to see Sylvia was singing with a magic aura around her.

Unfortunately, before the two could do anything, her Sacred Gear [Miracle Muse] caused her magic to create binds around them, and she turned to Eterna before telling her what to do with just a wink.

"R-Right!" Eterna nodded.

"And here's a helping hand!" Chelsea replied as she tossed some needles into the air.

Eterna's eyes glow becoming a rainbow of colors within, she holds up her hand and a whitened rainbow of magic releases itself from her hands onto the needle. They morph into a rain of daggers that fire at the Chienthrope Knights and strike them.

Both Ai and Yu scream as the daggers cut through, making them both vanish in blue light.

"_Both of Lady Eneely's Knights, retired!_" Naud announced.

* * *

Issei showed surprise at that.

"Wait, what just happened?" Issei asked.

"That's not all, she was using healing abilities like Asia moments ago. Yet now she turned those metal needles into daggers just now... what kind of power is that?" Kuroka added.

Lilith thought for a moment.

"Healing... matter manipulation, those things don't make sense together... just what-" Lilith thought aloud, only to gasp as she realized it.

"No way, could it really be!?"

"What, what is it? Did you realize what she's doing?" Bikou asked.

Lilith paused before slowly nodding.

"I have a good idea, and it's better we see her confirm it then me telling you. If I'm right then you'll truly be amazed." Lilith answered.

"Really?" Le Fay gasped.

"Sounds like this is no ordinary power." Arthur noted.

Asia nodded, especially curious to its nature if healing was a part of it.

* * *

Eneely grit her teeth slightly.

"Crap, looks like they got Ai and Yu. Rundolf, Etegar, take the front guard. Glacia, Yinkia, the rear guard. Stay by me Issweitt." Eneely ordered.

"Understood." They all replied.

Eneely focused until the sight of Chelsea, Sylvia, Shizuku with Eryn still in her sword and Eterna all came into her view.

"Do it now rear guard!" Eneely shouted.

Glacia and Yinkia unleashed a rain of magical ice and energy from above. Scattering the group between Eterna and Chelsea, and Shizuku and Sylvia.

"Don't worry, I've got it." Sylvia smiled.

Sylvia began singing and it formed a barrier around her and Shizuku.

"_What exactly is Sylvia doing, that Sacred Gear seems kinda versatile to me._" Mio asked.

"_That's the Miracle Muse. It's a Sacred Gear that channels an endless amount of abilities by using song as a medium. Sylvia's using various songs to manifest her powers, but the downside is if there was no sound then she'd be a sitting duck._" Gabriel replied, having turned off the sound for the battlers.

"_Now that's a literal way to have music rock your world._" Naud announced.

"Rundolf, Etegar!" Eneely ordered.

The two Rooks rush forward, both brandishing their weapons, an axe and club respectively. Shizuku readied her sword and thrust forward, sending Eryn out as she closed in on Glacia and Yinkia.

"Uh oh!" Glacia shouted while sweating.

"I'll take these two on." Shizuku stated as she charged at the Rooks.

As Eryn and Shizuku prepare to take on their respective pieces, Eneely snaps her fingers, giving Issweitt the signal.

"At once Eneely." Issweitt replied.

Issweitt wrote markings in the air, Eterna gasped and knocked Chelsea to the ground as magic binds trap them all in place, both her teammates and Esketanus', though the former's peerage weren't surprised.

That meant this likely wasn't the first time they were involved in this tactic.

"I thank you all for understanding my friends, and I shall make sure we succeed in honor of your sacrifice in this battle. Now... [**Nebula Crush!**]" Eneely declared.

Suddenly her [Cosmic Render] manifested through Issweitt's binding threads pulling together and stretching as Eneely's energy traveled through them. However, right before the attack finished...

"If we're going out, so are you Queeny! [**Kamikaze Flame!**]" Eryn shouted.

Issweitt gasped before jumping high, the same binding threads suddenly set on fire and burned her, causing her to vanish in blue light alongside everyone.

"_One of Lord Esketanus' Knights, and two of his Bishops. Retired! Both of Lady Eneely's Knights, both of her Bishops, both of her Rooks and her Queen. Retired!_" Naud announced.

Eneely looked at Eterna and Chelsea.

"I may have lost most of my team, but this gives me the perfect chance to attack your King." Eneely stated.

Eneely prepared to run over, when...

"[**DRAINING ROBBER!**]"

Eneely suddenly gasped as she felt the energy hand attach to her and drain her, she turned to see Chelsea was the one using it, causing her eyes to widen.

"Surprised?" Chelsea asked, soon some smoke puffed around her to reveal she was really Esketanus.

"What!? No way, you used your other Knight's ability to hide yourself in plain sight?" Eneely gasped.

"As long as she only uses it on one person, her Sacred Gear can make you anyone else. The only ones who could have sniffed me out were taken out long before we got here. A risky strategy since if I lost then I'd have cost us the game, but it paid off." Esketanus said as he pulled his Draining Robber hand away.

"I can still take you out here, you're Queen's matter change ability isn't going to work against me." Eneely stated.

Esketanus scratched his head.

"Hmm... good point, that won't work. Though that isn't all she's got or even the main power of her Sacred Gear." Esketanus answered, answering with a smile.

"E-Esky... d-does that mean you want me to-" Eterna asked nervously.

"Go full out sweetie, don't hide it now. Show the entirety of Hell the power of your Longinus!" Esketanus exclaimed with a big grin.

Eneely, the entire crowd, Vali and the others and even the announcers all suddenly reacted with shock as he said that line, with Lilith's expression looking like someone who had a major theory of theirs proven right.

Eterna nods, and grabs Esketanus' hand as her eyes glowed their rainbow mixture again, her aura rumbling.

"[I-Innovate... Clear!] Rise up my garden, rise and bring victory!" Eterna exclaimed.

With a sudden quake, the whole battlefield began to rumble, leaving Eneely without any stability to stand from her drained body as the 10 kilometers around them suddenly had plant life spring up and swarm towards the Vassago heiress.

As she saw the army of plants near her, Eneely simply sighed, closing her eyes and smiling.

"To be defeated by a Longinus? Very well, that is a defeat I accept without hesitation." Eneely admitted.

The plants all strike, and the blue light marking Eneely had vanished was seen.

Naud gasped at the result, and soon held up the mic.

"_Lady Eneely has been defeated, the winner is Lord Esketanus!_" Naud announced with a joyous scream.

* * *

The crowd went wild at that moment, everyone cheering and shouting.

Vali smiled as started clapping.

"I knew it, the Innovate Clear... it's a Longinus known for a healing ability that's beyond even the Twilight Healing, the ability to innovate materials by shaping them into other forms, and controls a massive amount of plant life. It's one of the low-class Longinus, but it has a versatile set of powers." Lilith explained.

"So that was Esketanus' trump card, hard to believe such a shy and sweet girl had such power." Irina replied.

"The Longinus, they truly are the most powerful Sacred Gears. Ineelana and Esketanus just might have the means to defeat Sairaorg if they play their cards right." Rias smirked, impressed by the match.

Naud soon whistled to get everyone's attention.

"_Alright everyone, with that match we've finished this entire round of the tournament. Let's give ourselves a loud applause to the tournament's Top 16 who'll be competing for the grand prize... and here they are!_" Naud exclaimed loudly.

The faces of Rias, Vali, Sairaorg, Ineelana, Esketanus, Suzattin, Niruili, Gebedon, Riser and eight other Devils all appeared on the screen.

Once their faces were revealed, the crowd cheered.

"...Niruili and Gebedon are gonna be competing, and Esketanus is against Sairaorg now." Vali noted, realizing the following match ups that were coming.

"We've gotta deal with Riser, and if we beat him then we're facing Esketanus. As much as I respect your wish Vali... I think you know I'm not giving mine up and show everyone I'm a pushover. We're rivals right now." Rias smirked.

Vali looked back before smiling a bit.

"Alright then, just promise me this... Rias, you will be the one I face in the Semi-Finals. If we're rivals then I want to beat you. Consider it the compensation you owe me for busting you out of your marriage proposal." Vali replied.

"Oh, I can't ignore that after hearing you say that. You've got a deal Vali, and I'll be the one defeating you." Rias declared with a smile.

The two shook hands, their peerages all looking to each other as their fated battle was promised.

After saying their goodbyes to Esketanus and congratulating him on his victory, the Hyoudou Household members all headed back home through the train. While they were heading back, Kunou notices Gasper and Valerie resting against each other as they slept.

"Aw, that's adorable." Yuuma cooed while holding a trash can, her face green due to her train sickness.

"Took a while, but after that little kiss a while back, Gasper finally realized how he felt. They're mostly just showing puppy love right now but love is love." Yumi answered, blushing as she quickly looked towards Kiba.

'I wonder if I'll feel that way some day.' Yumi thought, feeling her heart beat faster as she looked at the Gremory Knight.

As everyone stared, Akeno soon looked at her reflection before turning to Azazel.

"Azazel, I have a request." Akeno asked.

"Hmm? What is it?" Azazel wondered.

"Do you think... it'll be possible for you to call my father over?" Akeno asked.

Azazel showed surprise at that.

"...You think you're ready to forgive him?" Azazel inquired.

"Not exactly, but I doubt anyone would truly be ready. That's why I feel it's time I take a step forward... even if it doesn't end up the best way, it's better to do something than do nothing, and... I'd like my mom to wake up and see things can resume where they left off, for the most part at least." Akeno admitted.

"You're really brave to admit you feels cared, I think things will turn out alright. Baraqiel's actually coming to be Odin's guide around Kuoh, so the timing works out." Azazel replied.

With that last lone, everyone feels a dark aura as Rossweisse's anger manifested and her eyes glow red.

"**Odin...** **Lord Odin, I still haven't forgotten what you did to me. I'm going to make sure you regret it.**" Rossweisse spoke darkly, her body twitching in a scary manner as she starts laughing.

"Uh... do you think we should hold Rossweisse down when Odin arrives, or let her take out her rage on the leader of the Norse Pantheon?" Saji asked in worry.

"No offense, but she scares me so much I don't want to even _attempt_ the former!" Issei gulped.

Vali, Rias and Sona all give shaky nods of agreement to Issei's reply.

* * *

Back at the Hyoudou Household, Akeno was in the shower, her hair covering her eyes as she felt fear enter her heart, terrified for what would happen soon.

'Mother, I need your strength. I want to be strong... for all of our sakes.' Akeno thought.

A memory of Akeno and Shuri during her childhood days flashes by her head, one where she was holding a ball and wearing a red kimono.

_"Hey mommy, do you think daddy is proud of me?" Akeno's voice echoed._

_"Yes, of course." Shuri's voice replied._

_"I'd like it better if he was always here with us." Akeno's voice echoed with a smile._

Akeno looked at the shower mirror, and another set of memories flash by.

* * *

-Flashback Start-

_"...Just forget I said anything, I don't want things to get weird between us. Based on what I told you, for all you know it was just a tactic to distract you. A mere facade to hide that I'm half Fallen Angel." Akeno replied._

_"Hey, there's no way you're convincing me that you're a bad person." Vali answered._

_"Oh, but it's true, you said it yourself... I'm a terrible woman." Akeno stated._

_At that moment, Vali saw it in her eyes, everything she had told her... it wasn't because she blamed her father or anything._

_The truth was... she hated herself._

_Vali soon stood up and walked up towards Akeno, and then... slapped her across the face to the Half-Fallen's surprise._

_"That's bullshit and you know it!" Vali declared loudly._

_Akeno gasped as she heard it._

_"Look at me, I'm Half Devil and I met so many rotten ones just by my family. By all means people should be asking me why don't I hate Devils? Why don't I hate that I'm a half one myself? It's because there's more to someone than what they are!" Vali exclaimed._

_Akeno kept staring, surprised by Vali's words._

_"You're one of the greatest people anyone could ever hope to meet! It doesn't if you were born a half-fallen, or that you're a reincarnated Devil now! You're still you Akeno, and you're someone I admire. You're smart, strong, refined, and beautiful enough any guy would be lucky to have you. Don't you get it Akeno, you're not just a great person, you're great at being one too!" Vali stated proudly._

_Akeno's opened mouth trembled, and soon Vali sees her crying._

_"Uh... Akeno?" Vali said worriedly._

_"...You can stop worrying, you said everything right." Akeno sniffled, and Vali saw her smiling despite shedding so many tears._

_"You say sweet things like that, and what's a person supposed to do except believe them?" Akeno asked._

-End Flashback-

* * *

Akeno breathes, doing her best to show a determined face.

'Vali said it herself, I can do this... I just need to trust myself, it's all I can do.' Akeno thought.

Meanwhile with the others downstairs, most of the group was struggling with Summer homework. The few who weren't were Rias, Sona, Tsubaki and Jeanne who were able to figure it out.

Some of the group had it even worse, completely lost and unable to process any of their homework. The Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou were both prime examples as Issei scratched his head with both hands while sweating, whereas Vali simply screamed and fell on her back.

"Damn it! Why doesn't Japan ignore homework during the Summer like America? That would make things so much easier!" Vali whined.

"This is so stupid... I barely understand even half this stuff!" Issei groaned.

The two blinked, soon looking at one of their hands, and...

**(Nope)**   
**[Uh uh]**

"Traitor!" Both shouted to their respective Dragon.

"It can't be that hard, can it?" Rossweisse asked.

Rossweisse kneeled by and checked their Summer homework, after looking at the problem, she takes a pencil and starts solving it for them to their surprise.

The others all watch as she soon finished it.

"There you go, 27 with a remainder of 1." Rossweisse smiled.

"H-How did you just... Rossweisse, you're around our ages, right?" Irina asked, sweating a bit.

"I am, although I've already finished college a long time ago." Rossweisse answered.

The two Dragon Emperors and Irina all went white eyed at that, shocked at that revelation.

"Oh, that's right, I guess I never mentioned it. She's ever going to be a teacher at Kuoh Academy for third years. Most of you will be in her class." Rias giggled, realizing her small goof up.

"S-s-s-she's completely c-c-c-college..." Irina muttered in shock.

"She's beautiful, intelligent and strong, you'd think she'd get the eyes of a lot of men by now?" Xenovia wondered.

"You're not the only one who's asked that, why haven't I ever managed to have a single lover?" Rossweisse replied, soon looking to side as a single tear shed from her eyes.

Asia rubbed her back, trying to comfort her.

Though quickly that ended as her dark look came back, which was a good indicator to a certain God having shown up, everyone backed away a bit.

"**I can feel it, you're here Odin. You're not running away this time.**" Rossweisse laughed darkly.

"Well, looks like old man Odin's arrived. Hope he comes out of this in one piece." Azazel replied with a sweat drop.

Rossweisse quickly runs out, and after a bit...

"I think I'll follow her just to be safe." Jeanne chuckled worriedly as she walked after her.

'...No turning back now.' Akeno thought.

* * *

Near an area full of love hotels (for reasons very few would probably understand), Odin was walking around on his own, having just visited what he called an afternoon delight for him due to his slightly perverted nature.

"Now that was a real treat." Odin stated.

"**LORD ODIN!**"

Odin suddenly sweated a bit, and the sight of Rossweisse behind him with her dark aura radiating off her went into his range of senses.

"Oh... Rossweisse, how are you?" Odin asked while his legs buckled a bit.

"**Oh, I'm fine, just peachy... since you left me behind on my own that is! Guess even I was too stuck up for you to keep around despite having a job as your guard the longest!**" Rossweisse replied darkly.

"**So... how about I show you have _thankful_ I am for your generosity!?**" Rossweisse asked in a demanding tone.

Odin sweated more, only for Jeanne hop out and try to restrain her.

"No, not in public! God or not you don't want to maul him here!" Jeanne grunted, struggling to hold her back as Rossweisse slowly dragged her forward.

"I kindly ask you not wander off on our own. Remember, I'm supposed to be your guide."

Jeanne turned to see none other than Baraqiel walk into view, the Fallen Angel cadre looking confused at the sight with Rossweisse.

"Eh... former employer abandonment situation, pay it little mind. You must be Baraqiel." Jeanne replied.

"Why yes, did Azazel tell you that." Baraqiel asked.

Jeanne motioned her eyes and shoulders to the left, and soon enough Baraqiel saw a face he didn't expect.

Rubbing her arm from a bit further away but still close by was Akeno.

"Akeno?" Baraqiel stated in surprise.

"How about we all go to the house, we'll talk things out over there." Jeanne said, her grip on Rossweisse starting to slip.

* * *

Everyone in Rias' peerage, alongside Vali and Issei, were waiting by the door and listening as Akeno and Baraqiel were in what was basically a tea ceremony room.

Both Akeno and Baraqiel had... just sat there, neither sure of what to say.

"Oh my god, this is just painful." Vali sighed.

Vali went to grab a cue card and then flicked a coin at part of the wall, getting Akeno's attention as her one eye drifted to where Vali was holding the cue card that said {Ask him how he's been!} towards her. Akeno gave a nervous breath, and soon faced her father.

"...So, how have you been?" Akeno asked.

"...I've been alright, and you?" Baraqiel asked in return.

"Yeah... I've been alright." Akeno answered.

Everyone listened, peaking without interrupting anything or giving Baraqiel an idea they were watching.

Things seemed like they weren't going anywhere for a while as neither did anymore, until... the damn finally broke and Akeno cried, catching Baraqiel's attention.

"Akeno?" Baraqiel said in surprise.

"...I'm sorry!" Akeno cried.

"All those years ago, that day... I... I said things I couldn't take back. I was so sure I needed to hate you for it, that's what I told myself... but it wasn't, I said that because if I hadn't then I might have gone insane! The truth was I hated myself, because I couldn't do anything... because everything I knew had disappeared. It wasn't until a friend worse off than me snapped me out of it that I finally understood it... I'm so sorry!" Akeno sobbed.

Vali watched for a moment, and soon Baraqiel noticed her, realizing this... she gave him a smile as she nodded.

As if on cue, Baraqiel moved over to his daughter and hugged her, holding her close as he teared up himself, and that made everyone watching smile as they watched Akeno's burden finally be lifted from her. Vali turned and rested her back on the door.

"Congratulations Akeno, that harsh road's finally over... I hope your mom wakes from her coma soon." Vali smiled, crying a bit.

"You OK?" Issei asked.

"Yeah... I guess it's just reminding me of her." Vali replied as she sniffled a bit.

Issei went silent as she realized Vali meant her birth mom, and stood up to pull Vali close, surprising the Lucifer heiress before she quietly cried into his chest.

After she had calmed down, everyone saw Akeno walk out.

"Vali... thank you, because of you I was finally able to come to terms with my past." Akeno smiled.

"I didn't do much, I just said a few things. It was all you in the end." Vali blushed as she scratched her cheek.

Everyone stared and gave a slight chuckle.

Soon a few hours passed and nightfall came, Lilith met with Baraqiel and Odin by the door... the Norse God a bit black and blue.

"I'd normally ask if you were OK, but you did kinda deserve this." Lilith playfully sighed.

"Guess I did a little, just make sure Rossweisse gets what she deserves. That Rias girl's lucky to have her on her side." Odin chuckled as he held an ice pack to his face.

"Odin sir, it's almost time." Baraqiel noted.

Soon Akeno opened the door, and Lilith smiled before motioning to leave with Odin.

"Akeno?" Baraqiel wondered.

"I thought you might want to take a bento, it's a long trip home." Akeno replied.

"I see, thank you." Baraqiel smiled.

"Let me know when mom wakes up, we'll welcome her back together." Akeno smiled back.

The two hugged before Akeno waved goodbye, Lilith watched from afar with misty eyes.

As she wiped her tears, she sighed as she wondered how things could have been.

"Satan... I wonder sometimes, how would have things changed if our son hadn't become such a monster. Though times like these, they're what tell me I have nothing to worry about." Lilith whispered with a smile.

"I wish others could accept the world the way it is now instead of clinging to the past and roles they don't need to." Lilith sighed.

Lilith recalled the news brought to her and the other Great Devils yesterday, opening a locket showing her and Satan on their wedding day.

"...I'll make sure that this future stays, you may not be here, but I'll watch Vali for both our sakes." Lilith whispered.

* * *

Loki teleports into part of Hell near the Rating Game stadium, the next match between Rias and Suzattin being prepared.

The Norse God of Mischief put out a finger as he prepares his next move.

"It is nearly ready, soon enough... you will reap the harvest of the choices you've sown Odin. Be prepared citizens of Hell, because Ragnarok is coming." Loki stated.

Underneath Loki, the sight of a large wolf is seen growling heavily.

* * *

**Surprise! I bet the Concept Talk gave you a hint, but Eterna's hidden power is the Longinus Innovate Clear, since neither it or Telos Karma have been revealed in canon, I really wanted to give them to characters to use... that weren't evil or formerly evil. I mean really, going by their possessors, 5 of the 11 Longinus started out in the hands of antagonists, and some like Sairaorg were asked to keep it a secret despite how it would have helped everyone else.**

**I also gave them both to girls because there's only three female Longinus users in canon, gotta keep the gender ratio sorta even. Well, anyways, Akeno and Baraqiel have finally found their closure and restored their bonds. Just as a reminder to anyone who's forgotten these facts, Vali helped Akeno past the worst back in Chapter 17. For another reminder, I also mentioned Akeno's mother was saved by being turned into a Fallen Angel but is still comatose.**

**Looks like Loki's beginning his plans, and it looks like he's gonna start them during a certain event... *looks towards the screen with a worried look* Rias, Suzattin... better be ready. Lilith and the others seem to be somewhat preparing, but you can only predict a God of Mischief so much when mischief is about chaos which is meant to be unpredictable.**

**Now you might be wondering why is there only a Top 16 now? Well, that's because I only made about 32 contestants in the tournament overall. This comes from how mostly the heirs are competing in the tournament. At the same time, it's mostly newer heirs, meaning experienced ones like Ruval (who's the 10th best in Rating Games) are too powerful.**

**Take that and the number of surviving 72 pillars alongside the Great Devil clans and 32 is the closest number I got. The last half of Season 4 will focus on some other loose ends and the remaining battles minus the final match. I think you'll especially like the Semi-Final matches, you probably know one of them, but the other one? Well, let's see if you can figure out who Sairaorg's fighting, because the opening showed the few that could be his opponent.**

**With that out of the way, that's it for today's chapter, see you next time everyone. Until then... stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Eneely's Peerage- **

**King - Eneely Vassago  
Queen - Issweitt (High Elf)  
Bishops - Yinkia (Fairy), Glacia (Yuki-Onna)  
Knights - Ai, Yu (Chienthropes)  
Rooks - Etegar (Giant), Rundolf (Dwarf)  
Pawns - Corina (x2), Trace (x2), Echo (x2), Hans (x2)**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse, Zest**

**Date A Live - Kurumi Tokisaki**

**Fairy fencer F - Eryn**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Shizuku Kurogane**

**Akame ga Kill - Chelsea**

**Asterisk War - Sylvia Lyynheym, Claudia Enfield**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating (Omake chapter planned to show how it happened)  
Kiba/Yumi - Both showing signs of feelings, especially Yumi  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona's heavily implied to have feelings  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	33. Chapter 33

**Oh boy, here we go everyone... the battle for Loki is here, and I'll tell you by the end that there's gonna be a shock that none of you could have seen coming, and depending on how long this fight takes it may be the end of S4's adaption of Volume 7. To be fair, I am kinda expecting this to be the shortest season I've made so far because I had most of the Baraqiel issue solved and only brought up the ending.**

**I'm going to try amending that by getting some couples more progress in the next arc, and show more growth with Irina's eventual acceptance that she needs to let go of having any chance with Issei. Also, there's the big Rating Game against the competitor that'll be Sairaorg's opponent in the semi-finals and a deeper look towards what Zekram and the Elders are planning. Not to mention, a surprise cameo from a certain character :3**

**And I'm happy to say to anyone who wants Issei to be doing a bit more that he's got an important role here, he's the only one aside from Thor who can wield Mjolnir because only Ddraig's boosts will gather enough power to make someone strong enough. Vali could do it, but... there's a problem there, she'd need to drain Thor of all his power plus extra, not the best idea against a God trying to murder everyone by starting Ragnarok 0_0**

**For another important thing, I'd like everyone to know that the planned side stories for ADHB have been semi-cancelled. You might be wondering, what do I mean by "semi-cancelled" exactly? Aside from me not knowing the official term if there is one, it's because they're still happening, but not in the way they were originally.**

**That's why I'm going to announce... that both stories are going to become part of the main story! That's right, Vali's training journey and the story about Satan and Lilith's backstory are going to happen here now! I'm likely gonna bring them up during the adaptions of Volume 13 and 15 due to all of the former and part of the latter being a collection of side stories.**

**Now with that out of the way... Loki's mischief can't be tolerated any longer, so it's time to give him the painfully brutal beat down that he deserves!**

**A/N: I'd like everyone to know that the beings sealed in each Longinus? Since they all exist in mythology or religion and aren't creations of mine, feel free to use the same beings for Longinus depictions in your stories. I don't mind since I mainly studied around to add them just to make sure each one had a consciousness when I made that Concept Talk, I don't really know if all of them are really gonna come up beyond a mention.**

**Oh, and for a second note, I'm considering on changing the story's name. Nothing concrete yet and it likely won't be a major change. It's more like, uh... *thinks* using different words to give the same meaning. I don't know how likely this will be, so right now, I'd take me saying this with a grain of salt.**

**The main reason I'm considering it is because the title feels like it's not matching with the summary, with "Dragon's" feeling too singular when despite Vali being the story's protagonist, the story's major theme is her _and_Issei fighting against the destiny of being Ddraig and Albion's current wielders.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Boosted Gear- **

**A mid-tier Longinus and one of the two strongest Sacred Gears among the mid-tier Longinus. The Boosted Gear holds the consciousness of Ddraig, the Red Dragon Emperor, inside of it and gives its wielder the title "Sekiryuutei" to differentiate them from Ddraig's titles and own power. Ddraig was turned into this Sacred Gear by God to stop him during the Great War by sealing most of himself into his left hand.**

**The Boosted Gear's main powers are extreme offense, gathering as much power as possible by doubling it every few seconds with the [Boost] ability and the eventual penetration of defenses through the [Penetrate] ability. When using the power gathered by the [Boost] ability, it normally stays within the body until the battle ends, but there are three special commands to use the power in other ways.**

**The [Transfer] command allows the wielder to give a set number of boosts to someone else, the [Explosion] command undoes a set or all of the boosts to amplify an attack or series of attacks within a minute with the [Explosion Maximum] being the same but only at the moment of contact for a mere second at the specific part of the body making said contact, and finally [Burst] which automatically uses every boost or transfers it to another person.**

**Additional abilities include the second-tier level of [Boost], an "Area of Effect" type attack known as Double Escalation. This ability works by hitting all nearby allies with a green aura that doubles their power at the cost of the wielder being unable to cast a [Boost] on themselves until dispelled, best used for when the Sekiryuutei has too many people to use Boost on and not enough time or power to give them a boost individually.**

**Then there's the third-tier level of [Boost] known as the Boosting Breaker, which works by channeling the maximum amount of boosts the wielder's body can handle, stressing it for a brief moment of power before it taxes them too much, then leaving them fatigued for a bit. After the wielder recovers, they can't use another [Boost] for some time.**

**Finally, the ultimate ability of the Boosted Gear allows the user to wield Ddraig's original power that made it a Longinus... [Blazing Inferno of Scorching Flames], a powerful fire that consumes everything, including souls and Gods.**

**In the present day, the Boosted Gear is possessed by Issei Hyoudou, a former human now reincarnated Devil that serves as the Queen in Vali Lucifer's peerage.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Loki Arc: Chapter 3 - Harbinger of Ragnarok _ **

The Gremory peerage was seen training against one another in preparation for their match, Rias against Akeno, with everyone else against the member sharing their respective piece with them. Rias shouted as she charged her Power of Destruction into five streams, giving it a swirling star shape before firing it off, Akeno soon took the attack before revealing herself in an incredibly revealing black outfit with six Fallen Angel wings and retaliating with lightning in the shape of an Asian Dragon.

With the Bishops, Gasper's eyes morph as he tries to stop time around Valerie, but the Vampiress uses the Sephiroth Graal to manipulate her soul and keep her movement, surprising Gasper as she splits off into many bats and swarms around him. Gasper's eyes morph slightly, and he manages to read statistics on her Sacred Gear before motioning his body slightly to counter the swarming bats that made up Valerie.

Not being outdone were the Knights, Kiba swiftly dodging the strikes from Xenovia's two Holy Swords while parrying and trying to strike where he could. Kiba spins before shifting his Cursed Holy sword's appearance, making it change colors to red and cyan, and thrusting it with fire and ice coming off the blade. Xenovia blocks with both blades before channeling her holy element to rebound his power as a counter strike.

Magical energy flooded out from the Rooks, Shirone assuming her "Shiro Mode" she used in the Rating Game match against Sona as she flung two Senjutsu wheels of white flames towards Rossweisse. The prodigious Valkyrie put up a strong barrier, completely negating the attack and the flames holy effects before crossing her arms, forming a magic circle for ice, fire, water, lightning, wind, thunder, light and explosive-based magic before firing it all off, forcing Koneko to mix Youjutsu and Touki to defend herself.

Finally, the Pawns showed their skills as Jeanne rushed ahead, holding out Hauteclere as she thrust it forward, spinning as she used her flower based magic and formed Holy swords from above to rain down on Yumi. The Gremory archer raised her hand, and multiple energy shields along with barrier formed around her, moving to give her an opening to fire Lumen Shekhinah at the current Maiden of Orleans who slapped her hands to the ground, forming her Stake Victim Dragon to block it as it tanked her arrow.

All of this went on as Vali and Sona's peerages were watching.

"Incredible, they're really leveling up, aren't they?" Saji noted.

"Definitely, I still can't believe my sister managed to hide that trick from me all this time. Although I get the feeling she didn't expect having to use to in the first round of the tournament. That's given me a few ideas of my own." Kuroka answered, giving a cat like smirk.

"Not just that either, if I recall correctly, Yumi couldn't form barriers and shields at the same time. That can only mean she's achieved the Adamant Will's Balance Breaker. An achievement like that gives her a great advantage." Arthur noted.

Jeanne spins, turned her Dragon into a bunch of armored knights.

"And then there's Jeanne who's created her own sub-species Balance Breaker. Those knights will do well if she doesn't need to promote into a Knight piece." Irina replied.

"Combine that with another new Power of Destruction attack, Akeno's new Fallen mode, Kiba learning to use sword of Betrayer with other elements and Xenovia developing a counter technique and Rossweisse's incredible and complex self-made magic system..." Vali admitted.

"...yeah, they're gonna be hard to beat, but I wouldn't sell Gasper's slight grapple style martial arts or Valerie working around a time freeze as something minor either. Shirone's probably still got some tricks her Shiro Mode hasn't exposed either." Issei added.

Vali groaned.

"Yeah, we need to step up our training too. I did promise her we'd meet at the Semi-Finals, so we need to level up ourselves." Vali sighed, scratching her head.

"I-If it helps Vali, I've been training for a while. T-the Cadre of Grigori have all been teaching me in their spare time." Yuuma admitted while blushing a bit.

"Whoa, you did that all without us noticing? Yuuma, that stealth is something to be proud of, show us all how it pays off during our next match. OK?" Vali smiled.

Yuuma gasps before smiling.

"R-Right!" Yuuma nodded.

"I see you're all focusing on training right now, that's good to see."

Everyone stopped and looked to see Lilith walking into the room.

"Although, I think right now you've probably got something more current to worry about then your next Rating Games." Lilith continued.

"Uh... like what?" Kunou asked confused.

"The fact that some of you are graduating soon and the ORC still hasn't chosen their successor President and VP, not to mention who in the current Student Council will be running for the same or newer positions." Lilith giggled.

Rias and Sona both go white for a moment after hearing that, realizing their error while their respective peerages sweat dropped.

Yumina looks at them for a moment before suddenly covering her mouth to laugh a little.

"Shoot, I completely forgot about that, Summer's ending fairly soon." Rias sighed, putting a hand on her head.

"I haven't considered who among the current council wants to run for a new or the same position as before, as the current council president I feel embarrassed." Sona lamented.

"Uh... I'm confused, why is this important?" Kunou asked.

"Well considering you aren't at that level of schooling yet, I don't blame you for not knowing Kunou. Because they're going to college, they need to make sure they choose the right successor for their club in Rias' sake since their choice takes over their role. While for Sona, it's considering who's recommended for the right role since the students vote for the council members." Vali explained.

"So, it's kinda like my mom eventually giving her role of Kyoto's Youkai leader to my big sister and the people of Japan choosing someone for a big role?" Kunou inquired.

Vali nodded.

"Yeah, pretty much like that. Though only for the school itself." Vali confirmed.

"OK, but then why doesn't your club need to do that?" Kunou asked.

"Because me and Vali are the club leaders and we're only Second Years, this isn't a worry for us because we're not graduating yet." Issei answered.

Rias looked at her peerage, wondering who she should consider.

'Valerie's graduating with us, so I can't choose her. Xenovia could work despite her gullibility if I choose the right VP, though Kiba's had the best experience. Gasper, Shirone and Yumi just don't have the experience... but maybe Jeanne might be a good candidate despite being a First Year.' Rias wondered.

'Saji could be a good candidate to run for Council Vice President, but he's grown a lot too. Maybe I could consider him for Council President, and Momo could also take that role if he goes for VP.' Sona thought.

Yumina clears her throat, getting everyone's attention.

"Before you start thinking too hard, I think we should consider if anyone in the ORC and MHC are considering a role in the Student Council?" Yumina suggested.

"Whoa, never considered that. Do any of you guys wanna try for council?" Vali asked.

No one in Vali's peerage said anything, Yuuma scratched her head slightly.

"Well... I would have liked to, but the thought of having to say something on stage is just too terrifying for me. Better it's someone who can actually handle crowds." Yuuma admitted, scratching her head.

Vali pets her head.

"Actually, I've considered running for the position of Vice President." Xenovia suddenly stated.

"What? Seriously!?" Irina gasped.

"I see, then I think you and I will be competing for the position." Momo smirked, acknowledging their soon to be short rivalry.

Sona looked at the others.

"Are any of you considering the same positions?" Sona asked.

Each gave their own response confirming it, but for Saji?

"Well... I've actually considered running for Student Council President. I've grown as a person and in confident, so I'd like to give back to the school that helped form it." Saji replied.

'I think he's serious about this. He has come a long away... if he's sure of himself, then who am I to stop him? He may just be the right man for the job.' Sona thought, smiling a bit once she finished.

"Sounds like everyone's got a good idea for a plan, I wish you all luck depending on where things go." Lilith smiled.

* * *

Meanwhile in Hell, the sight of the Belphegor household's castle was seen as the lazy heir himself was seen sleeping on bedding made of a bunch of junk food wrappers and crumbs left over from eating all of them.

While that was going on, his peerage was training for their match up against Rias in the next round, or at least something like it since most of the peerage was like their King in going at their own pace. His Queen, Saya Sasamiya, was firing at a field of moving targets her Sacred Gear, a large two-handed gun known as [Mach Gunner] in its Balance Breaker state known as [Mobile Gatling Catastrophe] which was essentially something like a Gundam as her armor and weapon.

"Burst." Saya stated.

The armor's weapons all fired off and obliterated the targets, while it left her armor non-functioning due to using it, she seemed proud of not missing any of her targets.

"Nice one Saya!" Yuuki cheered, turning after having just carved out a metal wall into a cube design using her Mother's Rosario technique.

"Of course, what else did you expect?" Saya replied.

Yuuki giggled at that, right as a man with spiky red hair and blue eyes wearing a dark blue undershirt with a black kimono over it tied with a belt, along with a blue scarf, tan pants, and long brown boots walked up by her.

"Hey Yuuki, your sword holding up alright?" Welf asked.

"Yep, probably the best one you've made for me so far." Yuuki smiled.

"Glad to know my swords are working for you." Welf chuckled.

Suzattin soon yawned as he woke up, scratching some of the scraps off him as he tried to get an itch on his side. He looked around and saw most of his peerage gathered in the area.

He got up, and soon using his Will of Creation, made a whistle before blowing on it and getting their attention.

"Hey everyone, gather around real quick... and where are Nanoha, Gowther and Leone at?" Suzattin stated.

"Right here boss!"

Everyone turned as hauled a large monster's corpse into view.

"Forgive our delay, we were asked to help deal with a troublesome chimera as our training. Leone insisted on bringing it back as dinner." Gowther explained.

"We don't all have to eat it, right?" Nanoha asked worriedly, sweat dropping a bit.

"Nah, Leone can have it all if she wants." Suzattin answered.

The Belphegor heir soon cleared his throat and they all focused.

"As you know, Rias Gremory's going to be our next opponent in the tournament. Like Vali, she's a member of the Rookies 4, so this isn't going to be a normal fight. We may be a bit more own paced compared to the others, but her peerage has faced some pretty nasty enemies. We gotta be serious for one like I would with Vali, or we'll lose to them." Suzattin explained.

"So, she's no different than facing your friend Vali or Sairaorg. Didn't think we'd deal with this after only two matches. Shows how tournament pairings can be unlucky. Well, we're in it to win so we can't complain." Saya noted.

Suzattin nodded.

"And I'd say each member of her peerage is as dangerous as she is, so we've all gotta be prepared under the context we can face any of them in the next match. Not to mention that's going with the thought of no special rules affecting it." Suzattin replied.

"Don't worry boss, we won't pull any punches here!" Leone smirked.

"Good, so let's make ourselves ready. For once... the Belphegor team will do the rare even of serious training." Suzattin declared.

* * *

Meanwhile in a secret area, Zekram Bael met up with a bunch of the Devil Elders as they began discussing the current situation of the tournament rankings. Many of them looking quite angry and furious.

"This is an outrage! Look at our standings! We had 32 competitors at the start and now look at this! Everyone we didn't want to progress got through. That stupid Lucifer heiress and her friends who want the same goal if they can obtain victory! Then there's Zekram's current descendant who has that also stupid goal that while not as detrimental, still is annoying to us!" The Paimon elder shouted.

"Not just that, the bastard from the Astaroth Clan didn't give us anything! We did all we could to hide his secret deals and even gave him more power! All we got were irreplaceable losses because of him!" The Zepar elder growled.

The Uvell Elder slammed his hands down.

"It wasn't just that, we've had so many of the Young Devils in the tournament who had goals that would aid us, but now we only have 9 brats of the remaining 16 competitors who don't have 'fix up Hell' wishes among them! At this point the Gremory heiress is the best chance we have at crushing that damn Lilith's goals!"

Zekram stomped the ground, getting their attention.

"This arguing and complaining won't get us anywhere, we'll simply have to be more indirect with what we do. I know the Gremory heiress would lose against the forces of the Belphegor heir... so I've called in someone that will amend that issue for us. Accidents are harder to blame anyone for after all, even when coincidence aims at a certain group of people." Zekram stated.

"How do you know it'll even work?" The Oriax Elder questioned.

"You doubt me? Remember who it was that cleaned up the mess with Cleria Belial and Masaomi? I think we all know I'm the one who's able to get dirty with his hands while keeping them clean." Zekram smirked darkly.

* * *

Meanwhile with Lilith, she entered the secret meeting room, with Mio, Azazel and Gabriel already there.

"You got everyone in contact and prepared for this emergency meeting?" Lilith asked.

"Demon Council in contact." Mio verified.

"I've got all of the cadre on board, just give me the signal and we're ready." Azazel confirmed.

"The Seraph are all ready." Gabriel replied.

Lilith nodded and soon formed a magic circle, the others do the same, showing the other Three Great Seraph, Cassiel and the Demon Council, and the cadre of Grigori.

"Everyone, sorry for the sudden meeting but... well there's not much time. I think you all recall how I reported Loki was sighted during an attack on Hell? Many are still grieving... and I've seen signs he's trying something else, but we can't predict it. Though I get a strong feeling Rias and Suzattin's match will be where he'll strike next due to the potential for chaos." Lilith explained.

"Oh my god, Loki!? That asshole! He, Hades and Indra... those three are the worst Gods we've got on this world. Loki is a brat that keeps trying to end the world after the Great War pretty much was every world ending scenario that became failures, Hades is a racist to anything that isn't 'good' like the Angels, and Indra? Oh, don't get me started, the guy's so vain he still won't accept Shiva's given up on trying to end the world-" Cassiel complained.

"Uh... mom?" Mio interrupted.

"Oops, sorry for the rant there. Continue Lilith." Cassiel chuckled embarrassingly.

Lilith clears her throat.

"That's not what worries me most though... a lot of timing for events in Hell have been quite scary. The attack on the summit, Sieg invading the Shadow Realm's party, the plan Diodora set up and now the possibility of Loki invading during a Rating Game? Well... while some gave excuses that implied something else happened, I had Ajuka do a little research because I didn't feel right about them mentioning their plans near the end so easily... Ajuka?" Lilith explained.

"Right Lady Lilith. The Devil Elders have been acting shadier and shiftier than usual, I hate to say it... but I get the feeling they were involved in each instance that was just mentioned. The Elders are so serious about getting what they want that they'll betray us without swapping sides. Vali Lucifer being someone they want dead at any cost? That's just the tip of the iceberg." Ajuka revealed.

The various leaders all looked around worriedly.

"Actually... I've noticed some strange Demon groups forming, ones we've been unable to get any info on." Leliel noted.

"I've noticed a few Angels moving around at times they normally wouldn't, but I've failed to see anything wrong. Though Metatron and Sandalphon have both told me they don't think they're overworked since they and the other Seraphs haven't been getting any reports about it." Uriel added.

"Hmm... I have been a little worried with some of the members of Grigori, I can't figure out what most of them are doing. It was bad enough when Kokabiel's plans were in motion, but now..." Shemhazai added.

Everyone began to worry, only for Mio to whistle loudly with her fingers, making everyone cover their ears.

"Guys, let's not jump the gun. Lilith's only been able to tell the Elders are traitors since they've been ruining Hell long before this. We can't just say the rest of you have traitors too. Everything's a mess cause of the Khaos Brigade, so I'd say it's possible they're worried about potential traitors when there may not be any, or at least a large number. If we fall to paranoia, we play into the KB's hands." Mio explained.

"She's right, we can't let fear get to us. Right now, we focus on the ones we know are rotten, the Devil Elders and how they may be linked to Loki. Lilith, do you have a reason to believe they are involved at a deeper level than before?" Penemue asked.

"I do... but first I ask what I tell you doesn't leave this room, the only ones I could say this to are those close to me in this household. For you though? Well... the Elders could easily murder any non-leaders that learned this and I'd be unable to do anything without them using it as an excuse to overthrow me." Lilith said, a grim look on her face.

Everyone suddenly gave a surprised reaction to this, however Michael seemed to be aware of what she was talking about.

"Lilith, by chance is this related to-" Michael asked.

"Masaomi and Cleria Bell? It is, in fact... it's actually the real reason why the ultimate fate between them was to kill them both. If only... I had managed to keep Cleria from discovering it, neither of them would have been killed." Lilith said, shaking with regret.

Lilith breathes.

"It's because of..." Lilith began.

* * *

The next day, everyone was gathered at the Tournament arena for the first match of the Tournament's Top 16. Issei and Vali were sitting in an area that had been reserved for the various Devil heirs, Sona having already arrived and sat down with them among a few others like Seekvaira and Zephyrdor.

"It feels kinda weird that we have a place like this reserved today, doesn't it? I mean why am I here anyways when I'm not an heir myself?" Issei wondered.

"I'm not sure, and that's what worries me." Vali answered.

"I agree... something's not right, but if no one's told us anything either they're not sure... or it's-" Sona replied.

"Vali!"

Sona stopped as Niruili jumped ahead and gave a tackle hug to Vali, making the Lucifer heiress chuckle.

"Hey Niruili, guess you're excited for this match, aren't you?" Vali asked.

"Yep, Rias and Suzattin are both unconventional but amazing in battle because of it. I'd be happy regardless of who wins it." Niruili nodded.

Soon enough, every heir not competing in today's match or that had been eliminated by defeat was gathered in the seating area, and soon Naud Gamigin took his seat before clearing his throat.

"_Alright everyone, it's time for the second tier of the Rating Game tournament! I'm your announcer, Naud Gamigin, here to give you the play by play as usual! Now, I'd like to introduce today's guest announcer, the leader of Grigori... Azazel!_" Naud announced.

"_Yo!_" Azazel stated.

The crowd cheered loudly at that moment, with Ineelana covering her ears in annoyance.

'Ignore, just ignore it!' Ineelana mentally growled.

"_Alright everyone, normally we announce our competitors and then the match up, but today's match rule has the reverse! Everyone, today's rule is (Call of the Cavalry)! Each King starts the battle alone, and every minute they may call one of the rest of their peerage! Therefore, each King needs to be smart by who they bring in! So here our today's fighters!_" Naud announced.

The doors open, and starting from the West gate.

"_She's got crimson red hair and among her many names, I'd say her most lethal one is the Empress of Annihilation! We welcome to the field... RIAS GREMORY!_" Naud announced.

Rias entered from the West waved at everyone as the crowd cheers, the East gate's fighter had his silhouette appear in it moments after.

"_And he's the definition of a sloth, lazy and sleepy, but he's also the very symbol of 'brilliant, but lazy' and you better hope you don't wake him up to face his serious side! The slow paced warrior... Suzattin Belphegor!_"

Suzattin yawned as he walked in, cracking his knuckles as more cheers sounded off. Rias and Suzattin soon stared each other down.

"Rias Gremory, know this... I'm not holding back for once. By all means I'm already _awake_ like was just announced." Suzattin stated with a smirk.

"I don't plan to hold back, so I'm glad you won't either Suzattin." Rias replied.

Both fighters got ready.

"_Now, let the match... begin-_" Naud announced.

Right before he could finish, a magic circle appears to the surprise of everyone. In moments, the sight of a giant wolf with ash greyish-blue fur and two big yellow horns coming out of its shoulders, standing at about 10 meters appeared.

It roared loudly causing everyone to go into a panic as the crowd quickly rushed to get away.

"_W-what is this!?_" Naud exclaimed.

"_Trouble, everyone evacuate now! To both Kings' peerages, help the evacuation now, hurry!_" Azazel shouted.

As everyone ran, the heirs all looked at the field.

"That's Fenrir of the Norse pantheon! If he's here... shit, no wonder we all got called into this spot." Esketanus stated, biting his lip a bit.

"Come on, we've gotta stop this thing!" Issei declared.

"Yeah, come on everyone!" Vali shouted.

The heirs all jumped onto the field at that moment, with Fenrir rushing at the heirs on the field. Rias blasted her Power of Destruction, only for Fenrir's god killing fangs to chomp down and rip it to pieces.

Suzattin looked around trying to figure out where evacuation was less focused, realizing the field was advantageous to the wolf who was faster and could use it to move around even faster.

"Dang it... which side is safer?" Suzattin wondered.

"[**INVADER SENSE!]**"

Suzattin turned to see Gebedon with the other heirs, the Asmodeus heir checking the two gates and realizing evacuation was focused towards the East gate.

"Suzattin, the West is pretty clear, if you wanna get this mutt out of here then toss him that way!" Gebedon shouted.

"Right, thank you." Suzattin nodded.

Fenrir rushed at them, only for Suzattin to raise his arms and create springs form the ground, sending Fenrir flying outside towards to West gate area, the monstrous wolf slammed across its top and out of the arena.

"Quick, before it gets back inside the arena!" Sona shouted.

Everyone ran out of the West gate, where Fenrir soon got up and roared at them, it rushed at them before suddenly stopping, the landmass suddenly changing and lifting everyone up into a mountainous field in the sky.

Right after it stopped, the sight of a diamond like magic symbol appeared, showing the same magic circle markings as the one that summoned Fenrir. After a moment, the familiar face of Loki showed up, surprising the young Devils.

"I am the Norse God Loki, greetings." Loki smirked.

"Oh great, it's one of the three shit heads among the Gods, and we just had to get Whiny former Nordic Giant no less!" Ineelana complained.

Loki had a vein form on his head from that comment, but ignored it for now.

"Why are you here? You might be a god of mischief but that only gives you the right to cause problems in the Nordic lands, why bother us here in Hell?" Sona asked.

"Because seeing our great all father mingle with lesser mythologies, courtesy if what your pantheon did no less, makes me suffer indescribable torment. If he continues this alliance then it'll be that much harder for me to put Ragnarok into motion." Loki answered.

"Ragnarok? Damn it, you should know very well that Ragnarok was the Great War long ago. It's already happened and failed, stop dragging the rest of the world into your temper tantrum!" Rias stated.

"You shut up and shove your logic Devil bitch, I'm the one in control now! I've already had you meet my son, so how about I introduce my grandchildren and friends who decided to aid me in this endeavor?" Loki smirked with a cackle.

Soon a pair of lights formed, revealing two smaller Fenrir's with fur that lacked their father's bluish tint, and while they had the same horn growths, each only had one of their father's. Hati on the left, and Skoll on the right.

Many lights on the ground flash as a Gogmagog army formed, and then finally... slithering from underneath the ground, a giant serpentine Dragon that was larger than even Great Red and Ophis in their Dragon forms appeared... the Midgard Serpent, better known as the Dragon King Midgardsormr.

"Fenrir, Hati and Skoll, a whole Gogmagog army alongside Loki was bad enough... but-" Vali noted.

**"(Midgardsormr, how dare you side with Loki! I thought you gave up on causing Ragnarok after your awakening, why aid this mad god now?)"** Albion exclaimed angrily.

"**I'm a Dragon, we live as we please. Nothing says I can't lie. Not to mention, like father like son!**" Midgardsormr hissed.

Albion growled.

Vali looked at everyone, and it became clear... each heir without their peerage and likely cut off form aid due to the field. They alone were what stood against Loki and victory, she took a deep breath.

"Everyone, I know it looks bad but right now... our families and all of Hell are counting on us to keep Loki from destroying everything. So, let that be exactly what we do! We will fight and will we win!" Vali exclaimed.

"Right!" Everyone exclaimed.

* * *

As everyone got themselves ready on Loki's battlefield, the sight Georg, Leo and Sieg from Cao Cao's team looking at it from afar was seen.

"So it begins, to think we'd be asked to help Loki with this." Georg sighed.

"Yeah, so boring! I'd rather kill the guy considering he's an Evil God. That's what we're supposed to be doing aren't we? Killing evil?" Sieg replied, going 'tch' for a moment.

Leo yawned, not really caring.

"I feel you Leo, what was the point of you coming with us? They didn't even ask you to do anything other than create an opening to let Loki escape if needed... wait, Georg. Nothing says we actually have to help Loki escape, right?" Sieg smirked.

"So you're suggesting we just abandon Loki? Nothing's keeping him from destroying us, I guess nothing wrong with having karma owe him for that." Georg replied.

A mist appears and makes the three vanish.

Back on the battlefield's top area, the three monstrous wolves, Midgardsormr and the Gogmagog army all sprang into action.

"Let's go!" Issei shouted.

"**BALANCE BREAKER!**"

Issei and Vali spring up into the air, equipping their scale mail armors.

"Trying to be flashy, well then how about I kill you both right here and-" Loki shouted, preparing a spell.

"I don't think so, in fact let's put you in time out! [**DOMINEERING WILL**]!" Issei screamed.

Loki felt his body frozen as a red aura pressed down against his body.

"What the hell is this!?" Loki demanded.

"You think I'm that stupid to tell you? No, I'm just gonna hold you down until we deal the rest of your little buddies!" Issei smirked.

"I don't think so, go get him!" Loki ordered.

Fenrir lunged up to try and bite Issei, but Vali blasted ice at the beast, knocking it to the side. Soon her wings expanded out.

**(HALF DIMENSION!)**

Loki shouted even more as his resistance to Issei's Domineering Will was shaved in half.

"Sorry, but this trick comes with the bodyguard bonus. Hey guys, I'll guard Issei while we hold Loki down as long as we can! Think you can all handle the rest of these bastards he brought with him?" Vali asked loudly.

"This will be no problem at all!" Zephyrdor chuckled.

"Just leave these beasts to us." Eneely nodded.

Fenrir roared at the two, bearing its fangs before lunging at them. The two readied themselves.

"[**COSMIC RENDER!**]"

"[**PUNK ROCKET!**]"

Zephyrdor rocketed forward, smashing Fenrir from his sides unseen, catching the beast off guard before jumping up, letting Eneely's pink energy flood out and smashed into Fenrir, damaging the beast but not killing it.

The Gogmagog army opened up to release laser blasts at everyone, but Niruili scurried into their paths and opened her mouth wide, gulping all of it in.

"Tasty! I'd say I'll be able to keep this magic ability for a while. Now, time for some payback!" Niruili giggled.

Niruili's cheeks swelled before belching out their laser blasts at them, continuing to fire due to the mass amount of magic she got to eat through them.

A male devil named Iolova grabs Hati by the neck before jumping up into the air and hardening his body into burning metal through his [**Hardened Guard**] ability, dropping down with 10 times his original weight,

"Down you go doggy!" Iolova shouted, slamming hard on Hati's skull and shattering a few of his teeth.

"[**ETERNAL... COFFIN!**]"

Ineelana blasted her dark ice at the world's largest Dragon, but its eyes glow as he breathed flames that were powerful enough to melt and shatter it, surprising the Leviathan heiress as she flew out of the way.

Suzattin creates a wall to defend Ineelana from the flames.

"Damn it, I've never seen anyone use flames against my ability like that. This is bad!" Ineelana said with worry.

"Hey Esketanus, try sapping some juice from it!" Suzattin shouted.

"You got it!" Esketanus smirked, giving a thumb's up.

Esketanus sends out an energy hand, beginning to drain any power he could from the Dragon King... only for Midgardsormr to turn and make his eyes glow, a huge surge of power shot through Esketanus' energy hand, more than his body could handle... and he screamed as the power overload caused his body to bleed as the overcharge shot out of his body.

"Esketanus!" Suzattin exclaimed, only to gasp and push Ineelana away from him.

"What the hell are you-" Ineelana demanded, only to gasp at what she saw.

Skoll had attempted to ram the spot they were in, and try to sink his fangs into the two of them. While he failed to chomp down on either of them, the fangs grazed him enough for a large wound to form across his arm and abdomen.

"No!" Ineelana screamed.

Both heirs were about to be killed by their respective beasts, only for a water serpent made from Sona's [**Creation Wave**] to constrict and force Midgardsormr away from Esketanus, while Riser's flames burned Skoll away from Suzattin.

Riser glanced at the two.

"Don't worry, I know wounds and neither of those are fatal! Unfortunately, we don't have anyone with healing powers here and I can only heal myself, get them to safety!" Riser exclaimed.

"I've got it." Seekvaira stated from afar.

Seekvaira activated her [**Chrono Break**] and used the effect on time to grab the two, moving them both to a safe spot. Time resumed as she stayed with them.

"No choice, I'll have to focus less on fighting and making sure anyone injured stays alive." Seekvaira sighed.

The heiress of Agares kneeled down to inspect the two heirs' wounds, only for her to see a bunch of Gogmagog's aiming laser point at her. She closed her eyes expecting to be blasted when...

A large grunt is heard, and Sairaorg flew through the air before smashing the ground with his fist, rupturing it in a manner that ripped it apart and destroyed all the nearby Gogmagogs swarming Seekvaira.

"Sairaorg... thank you." Seekvaira sighed in relief.

"I'll help you keep them safe, we're not letting anyone die today." Sairaorg smiled.

Issei and Vali look at the others fighting, the latter barely able to keep herself together after seeing two of her friends badly injured like they were.

"Damn it... Esketanus, Suzattin!" Vali growled, looking at Loki angrily.

"It's already too late, the Twilight of the Gods is fast approaching... Ragnarok is coming!" Loki cackled, soon managing to shake off Issei's willpower.

"Oh no, everyone look out!" Issei warned.

Soon Loki's aura burst out, creating a strong blizzard that pelted everyone hard while ignoring Loki's allies.

The Norse God of Mischief cackled loudly before aiming his hands up, forming multiple magic circles before the blizzard was blown away by a rain of magic laser blasts raining down across the entire field.

Everyone tried to defend or get away, using their powers to negate, dodge or defend themselves and those close by from the attack. Others just managed to reach parts of the field that gave them cover against it.

"Damn it!" Issei screamed.

"Come on, just try and hold up!" Vali said as she struggled to use her (Reflect) against the attacks.

After a minute, the attack ended.

Everyone who still made it all came out of cover as they checked to see how bad it was.

"How many? No one died right, how many are injured!?" Issei called out.

"One sec Issei!" Gebedon replied.

Gebedon used his Invader sight to get the info on everyone's status, and the results...

"No deaths, but... all except 12 of us have been severely injured or knocked unconscious!" Gebedon exclaimed in horror.

The results were clear, the only ones who were still in fighting condition and not badly hurt or outright KOd had been whittled down to Issei, Vali, Sairaorg, Rias, Sona, Seekvaira, Niruili, Ineelana, Gebedon, Eneely and two other Devils.

Everyone else was stretched across the field and injured to Issei's horror.

"With just one attack..." Issei breathed.

Loki laughed loudly, and the rest of his allies all gathered by him as the remaining fighters all stared, worried about what was about to happen next.

* * *

**Holy shit... Loki just smacked around an army of 30+ easily, and now only 12 are left to stand against him. I think you've noticed that many including Esketanus and Suzattin were badly hurt, so... does that mean you're probably thinking? Well, you'll find that out next chapter. This is also to show that while Vali and Issei are both very powerful, they're still not strong enough to defeat Gods just yet, so consider it a wakeup call... and foreshadowing :3**

**Now some of you might be wondering, with me mentioning Rias and Sona are about to graduate, does that mean they're going to start appearing less in the story from this point? The answer is yes. However, before I do that, I intend to have both peerages fully level up and clear any loose ends between them. The story is mainly focused on the Heavenly Dragons, so this helps give Vali's peerage more focus from here on.**

**I'm going to say this now in case anyone mentions it to me, I actually am aware that the Japanese school year actually ends on March, the problem is I didn't look that up until I needed to know that for a different story of mine, by that point... I had already planned this out and there wasn't any way for me to change it without making enough edits that you'd need to reread the story. So, for this story at least, the end of Summer is when graduation occurs.**

**Well, that's it for now, next time we'll be seeing the fight end and Issei dealing the finish blow with Mjolnir, but the way it happens might just surprise you :3 *giggles* Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Asterisk War - Saya Sasamiya**

**Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Nanoha Takamachi**

**Is it wrong to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon - Welf Crozzo**

**Sword Art Online - Yuuki Konno**

**Akame ga Kill - Leone**

**Seven Deadly Sins - Gowther**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Both showing signs of feelings, especially Yumi  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona's heavily implied to have feelings  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	34. Chapter 34

**Before we begin, big announcement everyone, as of Chapter 33's publication on FFN... this story's finally hit the 100,000 view mark! Thank you all for the support in getting the story this far in only 3 months since its release! Oh, that... and as you've likely just noticed, I actually did rename the story. So, as of now, the story's name is "Legend of the Heavenly Dragons"!**

**OK, now with that small milestone mentioned, here's the actual start notes. The fight with Loki's taken a turn for the worst and while no one died, now they're forced to deal with a god killing wolf, its two sons, a traitorous Midgardsormr and a large amount of the Gogmagog army with only 12 of the initial 30+ still in fighting condition. To make it worse? Sairaorg and Seekvaira can't fight because they gotta protect the injured.**

**It'll take a miracle to beat Loki now and luckily there is one, but the problem is knowing when it'll come and the fact none of them are aware Mjolnir's coming. They might if Rossweisse could tell them, but right now she can't exactly give Rias the message or use a magic circle to deliver it. Basically, things look like the worst to them and they can only hold out, but are fighting like they have to win or they did. Not very ideal ^^;**

**Not to mention I'm about to pull a mighty twist with Loki, though I think it's one most of you would do as well since Loki's not exactly the most liked god, especially due to some depictions of him, like his Marvel counterpart. Not the main point though, so now... time for this battle to come to an epic finale, will Ragnarok commence or will our heroes pull a Ragnarok on Ragnarok?**

**Let's find out now!**

**EDIT - 7/22/2016: Due to new info revealed a few days after I submitted the chapter, the scene with the Hero Faction was edited to match with this new information.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Divine Dividing- **

**A mid-tier Longinus and one of the two strongest Sacred Gears among the mid-tier Longinus. The Divine Dividing holds the consciousness of Albion, the White Dragon Emperor, inside of it and gives its wielder the title "Hakuryuukou" to differentiate them from Albion's titles and own power. Albion was turned into this Sacred Gear by God to stop him during the Great War by sealing most of himself into both of his wings.**

**The Divine Dividing's main powers are defending and calculating, stealing power from an enemy by dividing it every few seconds with the [Divide] ability and the eventual reflection of attacks through the [Reflect] ability. When using the power gathered by the [Divide] ability, it's normally released through the Divine Dividing's wings so the user isn't harmed by the excess power. It can be used all at once through the [Release] command.**

**Additional abilities include the second-tier level of [Divide], an "Area of Effect" type attack known as Half Dimension. This ability works by hitting all nearby enemies with a blue aura field that warps the dimensions around the Hakuryuukou and halves their power at the cost of the wielder being unable to cast a [Divide] on themselves until dispelled, best used for when the Hakuryuukou is against a group of enemies.**

**Then there's the third-tier level of [Divide] known as the Compression Divider, which works by channeling a massive amount of divides that can heavily weaken an enemy to the point their body can destabilize or be erased from existence, but stresses the wielder's body until it finally taxes them too much, leaving them fatigued for a bit. After the wielder recovers, they can't use another [Divide] for some time.**

**Finally, the ultimate ability of the Divine Dividing allows the user to wield Albion's original power that made it a Longinus... [Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom], a powerful icy mist imbued with intense venom that rots everything it touches, including souls and Gods.**

**In the present day, the Divine Dividing is possessed by Vali Lucifer, a Devil/Human hybrid who's been adopted by her great granddaughter Lilith Lucifer and was formerly the adoptive daughter of Azazel.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Loki Arc: Chapter 4 - Destroyer of Ragnarok _ **

"It's already too late, the Twilight of the Gods is fast approaching... Ragnarok is coming!" Loki cackled, soon managing to shake off Issei's willpower.

"Oh no, everyone look out!" Issei warned.

Soon Loki's aura burst out, creating a strong blizzard that pelted everyone hard while ignoring Loki's allies.

The Norse God of Mischief cackled loudly before aiming his hands up, forming multiple magic circles before the blizzard was blown away by a rain of magic laser blasts raining down across the entire field.

Everyone tried to defend or get away, using their powers to negate, dodge or defend themselves and those close by from the attack. Others just managed to reach parts of the field that gave them cover against it.

"Damn it!" Issei screamed.

"Come on, just try and hold up!" Vali said as she struggled to use her (Reflect) against the attacks.

After a minute, the attack ended.

Everyone who still made it all came out of cover as they checked to see how bad it was.

"How many? No one died right, how many are injured!?" Issei called out.

"One sec Issei!" Gebedon replied.

Gebedon used his Invader sight to get the info on everyone's status, and the results...

"No deaths, but... all except 12 of us have been severely injured or knocked unconscious!" Gebedon exclaimed in horror.

The results were clear, the only ones who were still in fighting condition and not badly hurt or outright KOd had been whittled down to Issei, Vali, Sairaorg, Rias, Sona, Seekvaira, Niruili, Ineelana, Gebedon, Eneely and two other Devils.

Everyone else was stretched across the field and injured to Issei's horror.

"With just one attack..." Issei breathed.

"How fitting for you to Ragnarok's many sacrifices, I bet you all feel honored." Loki smirked.

"Damn it, how are we supposed to fight a God? He throws out attack like cheat codes!" Seekvaira growled.

"We've gotta keep the injured safe, we're all that's left standing against the end of the world." Sairaorg sighed.

Seekvaira and Sairaorg gather the injured and keep Loki's forces from nearing them, while the remaining 10 all prepare to stand against Loki and his forces, the Nose God smirked before snapping his fingers.

"Fenrir, Hati, Skoll! Go and make these mortals your chew toys!" Loki smirked.

The three monstrous dogs all rush forward, ready to charge the group.

However, they'd never even get the chance to get near them, because Issei screamed with incredible rage as his Domineering Will burst out, pushing everyone back slightly including the three Nordic mutts.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS LOKI! GO, ASCALON!" Issei screamed.

**[BLADE!]**

Swing swung his arm as Ascalon extended out, and in mere moments... all three of the giant wolves were slashed right through. Hati and Skoll died instantly, while Fenrir whimpered in pain, collapsing on his side, still alive but in agony.

For once, the Norse God of Mischief was actually shocked, even Midgardsormr had been caught off guard.

"**This power... it can't be!**" Midgardsormr exclaimed.

"Just... just one attack?" Rias gasped.

"I've heard of this, if a Dragon's pushed to point of extreme anger, they access a temporary state that channels that rage into even more power. The [Outrage] mode is what they call it. Also, I bet if the Issei's using it..." Sona explained.

Everyone looked and saw the field slowly freezing as Vali's own rage spiked out.

"LOKI! PREPARE YOURSELF, YOU'RE GONNA DIE YOU BASTARD!" Vali screamed.

Issei and Vali rush at Loki, smashing into the Norse God as he put up a barrier, now only the Gogmagog army and Midgardsormr stood between the others.

"Alright, let's not have them take all the glory! I need to pay these guys back for what they did to my friends! [**ETERNAL COFFIN!**]" Ineelana screamed.

Ineelana slammed the ground, forming her dark ice and freezing most of the Gogmagog army.

"If you're feeling a bit generous, let me lend a hand. [**COSMIC RENDER!**]" Eneely shouted.

"[**EXTINGUISHED STAR!**]"

A mixture of pink and black/red energy stormed the field, ripping and annihilating the frozen Gogmagog army to scraps and shreds in almost no time at all. Midgardsormr roared as he lunged at the group.

Niruili inhaled before blasting out beams from her mouth, using the eaten magic she still had against the gigantic Dragon. Gebedon's eyes shook and focused, noticing some weak spots.

"Sona, mark the area around its nape, throat and forehead! I found its weak spots!" Gebedon shouted.

"Right." Sona nodded.

Sona created water needles and fired them, making the large Dragon roar as it had needles of water embedded into the three areas Gebedon just mentioned.

"**That won't stop me! Knowing where I get hurt most won't help you at all, especially when I kill you!**" Midgardsormr mocked as he lunged forward.

"Say that after you beat us, which you won't!" Ineelana yelled.

Ineelana and Rias both blasted him on his nape and throat with their clan abilities' using all the magic they could muster, making the Dragon roar before Eneely used hers on his forehead. An explosion goes off, but the humongous Dragon just shrugged it off and stared at them.

Meanwhile with the two Heavenly Dragons, Issei and Vali flew around Loki as he tried blasting them, and soon the Sekiryuutei charged for a flaming punch as she put up more shields.

"It won't help you at all, when the Red Dragon's power faces any barrier..." Issei shouted.

**[PENETRATE!]  
[BLADE!]**

"IT DEVOURS THEM FOR BREAKFAST!" Issei screamed.

Issei threw his fist forward, and Ascalon extended out again, but now it was on fire! All of Loki's shields shattered instantly before the flaming sword stabbed right through his gut, making him scream in pain before coughing out blood.

"How dare you!" Loki roared, aiming a blast at him.

"Look at the pot calling the kettle black!" Vali countered angrily.

**(REFLECT!)**

Vali formed a white shield and lung the attack right back at Loki, smashing into his face and sending him flying into the ground. The Hakuryuukou panted, and soon she turned to Issei before they both looked at Midgardsormr.

"Let's silence that Dragon, you with me!?" Issei asked.

"Like you even had to ask!" Vali replied.

"Move out of the way you guys!" Both exclaimed.

Hearing them, the group ran near Sairaorg and Seekvaira as the gigantic Dragon notice the two doing something.

"**What are those two up to?**" Midgardsormr asked him.

Soon the two started moving their hands, creating magic symbols in the air, and it didn't take long for Rias and Sona to recognize them.

"Are they about to fire off their custom spells?" Eneely gasped.

"Oh yeah, that's definitely them! No wonder they wanted us to move." Niruili nodded.

"**Frozen tundra, give me your breath! Let your freezing be more silent than death, roaring like a blizzard, and make all stop. I desire a world of white, and desire for a zero that freezes over even Hell!**" Vali chanted.

"**Burning magma, lend me your blaze! Creating a hellfire that burns so brightly its burns pitch black, devour the life you have ignited, and flare beyond even the heat of the sun. I demand a world of black, and desire for a furious end that smashes the earth like a meteor!**" Issei chanted.

Soon Midgardsormr realized what they were doing.

"**No you don't, I'll destroy you before you can ever cast those spells!**" Midgardsormr roared.

"**Now, come frozen prison of the Underworld...**"

"**Appear, flames that burn below Hell itself...**"

The magic circles appear right as Midgardsormr nears the two with his fangs.

"**COCYTUS!**"  
"**PURGATORY!**"

And in that single moment, the gigantic Dragon roared as he suffered the searing flames and frigid ice of the two spells at point blank, being hit with every possible ounce of power each spell had before he fell to his side, alive but now unconscious.

Everyone stared in shock, especially Loki.

"That's impossible! How could you have taken both my sons down, this is an outrage!" Loki growled.

"Perhaps you should have had higher expectations of us mortals, your own arrogance was what made you weak." Eneely said with a smug smirk.

"How dare you, that's it... I don't care if it kills me! I'll destroy all of you before Ragnarok ever begins!" Loki screamed, holding out his hand to show a familiar symbol.

Everyone gasped as it was the Trihexa symbol.

"Oh no, what's he about to do!?" Vali gasped.

Trihexa's power stretched out and swallowed Hati, Skoll, Midgardsormr and Fenrir before enveloping himself, the mass of energy and power all condensed together before contracted and bursting out to reveal a white scaled dragon with blue fur on some of his body, four horns jutting out of his four leg joints, and a total of 10 eyes, with Loki's forehead gem now embedded into his skull, the connected veins pulsing.

"He just... what is he... oh my god!" Gebedon gasped.

"**YES, THE POWER! I feel so strong... like I could rip the world apart multiple times just by screaming at the top of my lungs if I wanted to! Oh yes, it's so intoxicating, but first I'll murder you all and devour your corpses to mock your kind before I kill them as well!**" Loki cackled loudly.

By this point, Loki had completely lost all his sanity from the fusion of four foreign minds merging with his own.

Loki roared before rushing forward, sending everyone flying before he breathed out an intense blaze, Eneely and Seekvaira barely getting their respective groups away with their clan abilities before Loki jumped up high and breathed a focused beam across the landscape.

"How can he use so much power!?" Niruili asked scared.

"Just how strong is he now? How can we even beat someone like this!?" Rias wondered worriedly.

"Come on, try hitting him with everything, if we don't do anything we'll die!" Gebedon shouted.

Everyone nodded.

"Let me give you all a little juice then!" Issei smirked.

"I'll give Loki a little sedative myself." Vali added.

**[DOUBLE ESCALATION!]**

**(HALF DIMENSION!)**

Loki's power was severed in half through Vali's aura, while everyone else felt their power double from Issei's own power.

Sairaorg prepared to jump while Sona began forming a water creature, and Seekvaira stopped Loki using her [**Chrono Break**] to slow his movement to nearly nothing while charging a magic spell in her hand.

"Longinus..." Issei began.

"...Smasher!" Vali finished.

"[**Ruin the Extinct!**]" Rias shouted.

"[**Full Devour Burst!**]" Niruili yelled, opening her mouth.

"[**Absolute Zero Shadow!**]" Ineelana screamed.

"[**Falling Cluster!**]" Eneely exclaimed.

"[**Mental Invader!**]" Gebedon growled, his eyes becoming slit briefly.

All 12 Devils' attacks strike Loki, converging into one massive burst that had its energy fling out and strike the battlefield's imprisonment barrier, causing all of them to duck as it condensed and burst out from striking Loki.

When it ended... Loki simply shifted his body to blow away the smoke, he was completely unharmed.

"No way!" Issei exclaimed.

"We didn't even leave a scratch!" Vali gasped.

"HAH! I told you, nothing can stop me now!' Loki laughed.

Rias growled, and soon a magic circle appeared, catching her attention.

"Rias, do you read me?" Rossweisse's voice replied.

"Rossweisse? Yeah, I'm here. We're dealing with Loki and nearly everyone's down, while he's used Trihexa's power to fuse and mutate with Midgardsormr, Fenrir and his two mutts, we need help!" Rias answered.

"Don't worry, I've got good news. Since we expected this, Odin left a magic transport circle, he left for Valhalla so he could have Thor send you some aid. It should be coming your way any second now." Rossweisse answered.

Soon everyone turned to see that magic circle, and what appeared from it was... the mighty hammer Mjolnir!

"Mjolnir? No, no you don't!" Loki roared as he tried to fly after it.

Seekvaira used her power to hold him in time again, but she was starting to run low on magic.

"Rias, another thing Odin needed me to tell you. Give Mjolnir to Issei, he's the only one who'll be able to become strong enough to lift it, please hurry!" Rossweisse replied.

The magic circle fizzled right after that.

"Alright then... no holding back, let's end this!" Issei declared.

Issei flew to Mjolnir, grabbing the hammer, but soon feeling it fall onto the ground as he lacked the strength he needed.

"Shit, it's too heavy! I've got no choice... I'll need to use it!" Issei grunted.

**"[Everyone, my partner will need some time! Keep Loki busy!]"** Ddraig ordered.

"Understood!" Everyone replied.

**"(Vali, we'll need to use my counterpart of the same power, it's the only way we'll have the right opening.)"** Albion explained.

"Right." Vali nodded.

Loki smashed free of the Chrono Break's hold, soon roaring as he flew at Issei.

"DIE!" Loki screamed.

"Everyone, attack!" Rias yelled.

Everyone began firing off every remnant of magic they had for a quick and rapid flurry of attacks, throwing Loki off as smoke blinded him, and Sairaorg's fist knocked him away.

"You... meddling kids!" Loki screamed.

"VALI! DO IT NOW!" Issei shouted.

"RIGHT!" Vali shouted back.

Vali flew up, and soon felt a blue and white aura attack her body.

**(COMPRESSION DIVIDER!)**

Loki was suddenly hit by the aura, screaming in pain as his body shook like it was fading from existence, Vali cried out in pain.

"It hurts, but I need to bear it! I WILL bear it!" Vali winced.

"Here goes nothing!" Issei declared loudly.

**[BOOSTING BREAKER!]**

A red and green aura began attacking Issei's body, and at that moment...

**[BOOST! BOOST! BOOST!] x?**

Issei screamed in agony as his body poured out the absolute limit of its boosting ability, he screamed as he soon managed to raise Mjolnir, green markings lightning up across it as it multiplied in size.

"This... is... it! Prepare Loki, because it's time to get hammered!" Issei shouted.

"Do it Issei!" Everyone exclaimed.

Issei roared like a Dragon as he swung Mjolnir back, a crimson flame forming around it.

"**[Crimson... Flaming... Dragon... Lightning Hammer!]**" Issei screamed loudly.

Issei slammed Mjolnir forward, and the electricity from Mjolnir turned red and gained fiery flares before taking the shape of a Dragon and rushing towards at lightning speed Loki with a mighty howl.

Before Loki could react, the attack slammed through his body and made him scream as it cracked apart, starting to smash into his soul itself.

"Damn you Sekiryuutei, damn you Hakuryuukou, damn you Thor, damn you Odin... and damn you world!" Loki screamed.

"And that... is game over for you." Issei stated.

"...You think this is over? It's far from it, you may have destroyed me, but... he will destroy you! Suffer greatly before your deaths!" Loki roared before screaming again.

Soon the Norse God of Mischief gave one last scream before he exploded, and everyone lowered to the ground, holding onto the field as the battlefield crumbled.

* * *

Back on the ground level, everyone saw the collapsing structure, surprising everyone in worry before it fully diminished back onto the surface. As the dust started to clear, everyone got closer... and soon they saw Issei and Vali walk out before the others follow.

"They all made it!" Yuuma cheered.

"Yes!" Saji shouted.

Everyone cheered, causing each young Devil to give an expected reaction, the exception being Ineelana who just blushed embarrassingly at the whole thing.

"Quick, a lot of us are injured, they need medical attention." Sona quickly stated.

"Right, you heard her! Get the medics here stat!" Alanira exclaimed.

Lilith hugged Vali close, with her peerage and Issei gathering around her, relieved and smiling.

"Hey mom, I think I need to sleep for the next few days. My whole body aches." Vali joked with a small chuckle.

"We'll see how things go." Lilith joked back.

* * *

Soon the next day, everyone was back in the Hyoudou household, with both Dragon Emperors having a few bandages wrapped around them as they nursed their wounds from the fight against Loki.

Luckily, Odin had finally felt Loki had pushed things one time too many, so none of the Norse Pantheon blamed Issei for taking the Norse God's life with Mjolnir. That was particularly satisfying for the Sekiryuutei to hear.

Yumina was currently changing the bandages on each of them and just finished Vali's last roll.

"You should both recover fully by tomorrow, so this won't impede your upcoming matches in the tournament." Yumina stated.

"Glad to hear it, and thanks for the aid Yumina." Vali smiled.

"I'm only doing my job as your manager, no thanks are necessary." Yumina replied.

Lilith soon came into the room, and whistled to the surprise of the trio.

"Hey everyone, come down! They're just announced news about what happened with the Rating Game tournament!" Lilith shouted.

"Alright, we're coming!" Saji groaned.

Everyone came down, and Lilith turned on the TV right after.

Naud Gamigin soon appeared on screen with a somewhat saddened look.

"Hello everyone, I'm Naud Gamigin. I'm here to provide information on how the Rating Game tournament will proceed after the attack by Loki. The tournament is not cancelled in any manner, but... I'm afraid during the fight, half of the competitors were severely injured. With a heavy heart, they were all forced to withdraw... so the Top 16 is now the Top 8." Naud explained.

"What!?" Kunou gasped.

"The remaining competitors have all been moved up into the Quarter-Finals, so the tournament has now lost an entire round. I wish sincere apologies for those who lost their chance to win the tournament due to Loki's unfortunate attack. As an apology, Asgard will be paying for each competitor's medical cost as thanks for protecting us all. That will be all, thank you for listening." Naud explained.

Lilith turned it off, sighing a bit.

"I can't believe it... Esketanus and Suzattin... they've both been eliminated. This isn't fair!" Vali screamed, smashing her fist against the wall.

"So, I technically won my match, but... I don't feel like it was a victory. Not one bit." Rias sighed.

Lilith looked at everyone, both peerages didn't seem happy despite being closer to their change to win the tournament at all. Even Sona's group couldn't feel happy for their friends either.

Lilith sighed, knowing she was about to drop a few bombs that would enrage Vali but crush Rias and Sona, but she had to or this feeling would grow worse for all of them.

"Everyone, there's something you should know. Loki's attack on Hell? Well... it was no coincidence, someone let Loki invade." Lilith suddenly revealed.

"What!? Who was it... tell me!" Vali exclaimed angrily.

Lilith just gave a sad stare, and Vali gaped as she gripped her hands tightly.

"Damn those Elders!" Vali shouted as she slammed her fist on the couch.

"What? But... why would they do this?" Rias asked.

"...Look at who got eliminated, remember what Vali's wish is? Recall what the other Great Devil heirs said about sharing that wish? It's simple... they want them and Vali to lose so badly they were willing to let Loki sabotage the tournament in their favor. Then again that's nothing new, they already manipulate the Top 10 ranked in the Rating Games." Lilith answered, glaring at the ground.

That suddenly got Rias and Sona's attention, while Vali looked away sadly, knowing what they were about to hear was going to hit them hard.

Lilith turned to them, giving a look of sympathy.

"Let me ask you an honest question, do you know why there is no King Piece in any Evil Piece set?" Lilith asked.

"Uh... well..." Rias trailed off.

"To be honest, I've always wondered that myself." Sona replied.

"Well get ready for a mind blower, and one you can only here because I'm telling you, and in Rias' case because offing you would be bad for the Elders at this stage... there actually are King Pieces." Lilith revealed.

This surprised both heiresses and most of all three peerages.

Vali just nodded, confirming Lilith's story.

"Back when the Evil Piece system was being developed, we made King based pieces. They made the Queen pieces look pathetic with their boosts. However, that was the problem... they enhanced one's power by too large a number, some got tenfold, but some could reach a hundredfold. Ajuka and I quickly agreed we had to axe the entire King Piece concept which lead to the King Monument Evil Pieces are created by." Lilith explained.

"But not every piece was able to be reclaimed by us in time, the Elders managed to keep a few for themselves and gave some of the Top 10 ranked fighters in the Rating Game so they could keep the players they wanted for their benefit. The 2-6th best players are all using King Pieces to cheat."

Upon hearing that, Sona collapsed to the ground, her glasses falling off as she shook at what she had just heard.

No one could blame her, Sona's love for the Rating Games was big, to hear the truth behind the whole system had the Elders cheating everyone? It broke into her hard. She began crying and Saji hugged her, attempting to comfort her.

"...I'm just a pawn for them, me winning only helps their goals. Worse is mine may not even matter. They're... they're that manipulative, and to our entire race?" Rias gasped out, barely processing the truth herself.

"I'm sorry, but be lucky you heard it from me. Most people who learn this... disappear." Lilith continued.

"Disappear?" Le Fay asked worriedly.

"As in they're killed, murdered, anything that means their lives end. For that same reason, I can't even try to expose this. If I did... the Elders would spin it in their favor, make the people stand against me, and then have a justified reason to kill me. They already killed Cleria Belial for learning about the King Piece." Lilith admitted.

Rias gasped.

"What!? But... I thought she was killed for her affair with the one exorcist, that can't be-" Rias breathed in horror.

"Rias, the truth is we were considering making peace through their relationship. Unfortunately, at one point she told her cousin Diehauser about the King Piece, gossip that got her and the exorcist killed under the excuse it was for their relationship. Worse is the first Bael, better known as Zekram Bael, he... he chose you to take Cleria's place because he knew you wouldn't ask questions." Lilith explained.

"...Just how long has this been going on?" Sona asked.

"Since... since before the Great War, my husband wanted to stop it but died before he got the chance. It's all because of Zekram Bael, and Sairaorg's father in the present, it's gotten so bad. I remember Diehauser's tears when he learned why Cleria was really murdered. Eventually he told me breaking the law was the only way to expose the truth, however I couldn't ask him to do that. However, his words gave me and the others the answer on how to expose it." Lilith explained.

Rias and Sona gasped.

"That's why you made the tournament and that claim, a wish no laws or authoritative power could block. With such an open end, you wouldn't have favored anyone either, anyone could win as much as anyone could lose." Sona realized.

"That's right Sona, and it's exactly why they want my daughter dead now. Her dream is the ultimate threat to them. I know how much this is a shock to you and how much it's shaken you, but... Rias, I need you to continue trying to win. If you dropped out now, the Elders would raise eyes, and soon enough they may target your life, not even Sirzechs being your brother would save you." Lilith confirmed, soon looking deep into Rias' eyes.

Rias nods.

"I understand, I won't hold back. I promised Vali we'd meet in the Semi-Finals anyways." Rias stated.

"Good, just know that the Elders will keep trying to make Vali lose. To change Hell... we must all work together, even if it risks Vali losing. Once we remove this corrupt system, things like your dream and Sona's will be able to become a reality." Vali answered.

Everyone gives looks of determination, and Lilith smiles. Despite the shocking revelation... she had a good feeling that things would end up working out. She was going to believe, just like Satan made her believe long ago.

* * *

Inside of Hell's hospitals, Suzattin was laying on a bed with an oxygen mask on his face as he stared at the ceiling, soon hearing the door open.

"Mr. Belphegor, you have visitors. Your peerage has come to see you." A nurse stated.

"...Let them in." Suzattin replied.

He shifted slightly to see his peerage all come inside, and soon they all looked at him.

"Hey there champ, you doing alright?" Welf asked.

"Well... as fine as someone who can't move any body part without searing pain can feel. I'll live and no permanent damage to worry about." Suzattin said tiredly.

"Glad you'll be making it out of this OK." Nanoha replied, wiping her tears.

Of course, something like this isn't enough to take our little Suzu here." Leone chuckled.

As everyone chuckled a bit, Saya noticed Suzattin turning his head away from them.

"What's wrong?" Saya asked.

"...I'm sorry you guys, this is my fault." Suzattin sighed.

"No it isn't, you couldn't have known you'd get so badly injured-" Yuuki tried to interject.

"Yuuki, don't bother. I did... Gowther, I think you know why?" Suzattin asked.

"Hmm... it seems like your injuries could have been avoided. But I feel you should tell us rather than me probing your mind for answers." Gowther stated.

Everyone looks at Suzattin confused.

"...I saved Ineelana from an injury, but I did it by pushing her away. That was why it's my fault... I could have just made a wall with my clan ability, but I didn't... Esketanus was caught off guard so he's excusable. It's why I told Eterna not to heal me. I need to bear the pain of my idiocy, because we're out of the tournament now." Suzattin answered, turning before shedding a few tears.

Soon enough, he feels his peerage hug him.

"...It's OK, even if things could have changed, we're all still proud of you. I'm sure Ineelana is too." Yuuki smiled.

"Yuuki... everyone..." Suzattin cried.

Near the hall, Ineelana's face began shedding tears, and Murasaki looked at her.

"Ineelana?" Murasaki asked.

"Murasaki... tell everyone we're training twice as hard and for twice as long starting tomorrow. I'm... I'm going to win this tournament for Suzattin's sake!" Ineelana declared, her fist shaking as her vow.

Murasaki showed surprise, for once... her King didn't show envy to something. She wasn't settling for second, she was going to strive for first.

'Ineelana... I know you wouldn't believe me if I said it, but right now I'm so proud of you.' Murasaki smiled.

* * *

Cao Cao sat somewhere as he noticed Georg, Leo and Sieg come back.

"I see you left our client, thought you'd like to know they actually killed Loki." Cao Cao smirked.

"What, seriously? Damn it! If I knew that was gonna happen, I'd have had us stay to watch!" Sieg whined.

"Oh dear, complaining as always I see."

Sieg has a vein form on his head, soon seeing a dirty blonde-haired boy who put a hand through his hair, making a few sparkles come off.

"Shut up Perseus! You've been off on your own the last few months, you don't have the right to say crap like that!" Sieg shouted with anger.

"Dear god, both of you are annoying."

The two turned to see a mass of shadows appear, showing a boy with shaggy gray hair and brown skin. He was Menes, the descendant of the Pharaoh Menes.

"Ah, nice to see you Menes." Leo noted.

"Nice to see you Leo, and look who else got their missions done early."

Cao Cao looked to see three more silhouettes, two females and a man, walk out from the shadow. The shadows soon disappeared to reveal a teenage boy hidden underneath a armor of shadows. The one in the armor was Connla, descendant of Cú Chulainn's son Connla.

The other man had dirty blonde hair that reached past his shoulders, wearing a casual Italian outfit and a beanie on his head. He was Marsilio, descendant of the Italian philosopher Marsilio Ficino.

The first of the two women had green hair and and was sighing a bit at Sieg and Perseus' mini-argument, wearing a Chinese kimono styled like a warrior's outfit. She was Mulan, descendant of Hua Mulan.

Finally, the second girl had pale skin and faded brown hair, shivering a bit and wearing a short white toga and flat sandals. Despite her appearance she was _very_ dangerous. She was Morgiana, descendant of the Morgiana who fooled the 40 thieves.

"We've all gathered again, and just as the hour of our plans are at hand." Cao Cao smirked, standing up and looking at them.

"So, what do we need to d-do?" Morgiana asked.

"Not to worry, the answers will come in time. For now... let us wait for what we've set into motion." Georg stated.

* * *

Vali looked at the sky from the roof of her house, and as she did, she felt the breeze blow through her hair.

"The sky's so pretty, I hope one day this feeling can truly spread to Hell." Vali said to herself.

"And we'll make sure it does."

** _ \- (*Asterisk War - Brave New World*) - _ **

Vali turned in surprise, seeing Issei walk up to her, and the rest of her peerage following behind him shortly after.

"Everyone." Vali blinked in surprise.

"You're forgetting we're fighting for your wish too, and we'll do whatever it takes to win this tournament." Issei smirked.

"If we did anything less, than we wouldn't be able to look ourselves with a straight face." Bikou chuckled.

"We are at your ready, as your sword ad shields." Arthur stated.

"Yeah, my wand is at your side." Le Fay winked.

"And when we win, our victory party with be purr-fect." Kuroka giggled.

"I... I'll learn to fight to, I'll do the best I can!" Asia declared.

"Yeah, we'll do whatever it takes, because we believe in you all the way." Yuuma smiled.

"I'm still not handing Issei to you, but this is the fight to change the land your father loved into what he wanted it to be, right? Issei's not part of that. That's all you, and I'll fight if that's the case." Irina grinned.

"Never give up, that's what we'll do!" Kunou said raising a fist into the air.

Vali stared before tearing up, smiling at her peerage members and best friends.

"Thank you everyone, and I swear the Rating Game champion title will be mine for the sake of my wish and every Devil!" Vali said, giving a confident look.

"YEAH!" Everyone cheered.

* * *

The following day, the reorganized tournament matches were shown. In the following order it was Vali Lucifer, Keteline Beleth, Jesteca Naberois, Rias Gremory, Ineelana Leviathan, Gebedon Asmodeus, Niruili Beelzebub and Sairaorg Bael.

On the field, Keteline showed surprise as her peerage was quickly overwhelmed by Vali's.

"Come on, don't give in!" Keteline sweated.

Yuuma swung her hand down, sending a storm of dark light orbs at Keteline's Queen, knocking her back for Bikou to slam the Ruyi Jingu Bang on, making her disappear.

"_Lady Keteline's Queen, retired!_" Naud announced.

Irina and Arthur both rushed forward, clashing blades across Keteline's Knights and quickly overpowering them. Le Fay gave a boost to Kuroka as she unleashed a storm of Hinotama towards her Bishops.

Asia and Kunou both rush at one of Keteline's Rooks as he jumped up and prepared to slam at them.

"Asia!" Kunou called out.

"R-Right!" Asia replied.

Asia formed a barrier that the Rook clashed against, and Kunou did a spin as she became a moving fireball to tackle the Rook. The other Rook jumped at Asia from behind, but she held up another barrier and struggled to hold the Rook back.

Vali soon fly by and grabbed the second Rook, tossing him towards all of Keteline's Pawns.

"[**Primal Abyss!**]" Vali shouted.

The steams of darkness stretch out and trap all nine pieces within a dark cage before using the vortex to fling them around like ring toss rings.

Keteline panicked and soon saw Issei land by her.

"Sorry, but it's game over for you! [**DRAGON SHOT!**]" Issei shouted, firing the sphere off his hand.

"Why'd I have to lose here!?" Keteline complained.

The red blast explodes eliminating Keteline from the match as she vanished in blue light.

"_Lady Keteline has been defeated, the winner is Lady Vali!_" Naud announced.

"_Look at that motivation, they went guns blazing in this match and it paid off!_" Cassiel stated loudly from the guest announcer seat.

The crowd cheers, and the Devil Elders all show their annoyance and discontent while Vali and her group all cheer at their victory.

Lilith smiled while Esketanus and Suzattin in their wheelchair and crutches respectively show both grin, showing their support to the heiress of Lucifer. As Vali turned, the sight of Sairaorg looking at her from afar reached her.

** _ \- (*Insert song end*) - _ **

"Vali, give it all you've got! Cause right now you're the one I wanna meet in the finals!" Sairaorg announced.

"You've got it, and I'll promise this now to all my friends... victory will be mine!" Vali replied with a smirk.

* * *

Meanwhile at Mount Meru, deep within the Hindu pantheon's territory, a certain Governor General walked to the residence of a man with a buzz-cut hairstyle, wearing circular sunglasses, an aloha shirt and a jewel around his neck.

He was one of the three deities considered to be called the "Worst Gods" by most of the mythological world, but among those three he was the worst, the deity who refuses to accept Shiva had long since given up his role of bringing the world to destruction... Indra, or Sakra as he was sometimes called.

"Indra." Azazel stated.

"Oh? Hey, if it isn't the Fallen Angel brother of justice! I saw that fight with Loki and all those Devils, that last move the Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou pulled off together was smoking hot, especially when that Red Dragon boy swung Mjolnir down with all that power! It was good he made that joker kick the bucket, right?"

Azazel scowled slightly, Indra was speaking with sarcasm like always. Where Loki was spoiled and stubborn, and Hades was very racist... he was a huge snob and arrogant man who let his power make him look down on everyone.

"I came to talk, about conditions with the Hindu Pantheon joining the alliance?" Azazel asked.

"Oh yeah, speaking of which... there was something I want to tell you. I'll gladly get Brahma over if you let me say it." Indra said with a smirk.

Azazel sighed, and Indra took that as a sign to go ahead and speak.

"Those two are getting quite powerful, and fairly dangerous. A Hakuryuukou born of the Lucifer bloodline, and a Sekiryuutei with a power to use his will that once stopped two Juggernaut Drives, not to mention the accomplishment of destroying the curse that created that power for good... I don't think I like those signs. Especially now that the Red Dragon's killed a god." Indra chuckled with a sinister tone to it.

"Indra, just what are you implying!?" Azazel sweated.

Indra got close, putting his face up against Azazel's.

"Simple, let me give you a clear answer to that. There's only one person who truly has the right to the name of Heaven and that's me. If the Heavenly Dragons' hosts become too big a threat, then I'll make it clear... I'll kill them both myself." Indra answered.

"What!? Are you crazy, doing that invites Lilith's wrath and the entire Christian Pantheon!" Azazel shouted.

"And I don't care, I'll just crush them! Let me tell you something you young fool... all of the factions that are saying 'Peace' and 'Negotiation'? That's just a front, because within their minds they're thinking that 'Our mythology is the strongest! Other mythologies should just be wiped out like the shits they are!', with few exceptions. Those exceptions? Simple, the shitty-geezer Odin, and shitty-old man Zeus, the reason they don't think that way now is because they're such old farts now that they've become naïve." Indra chuckled, making Azazel sweat.

"After all, it's easy to gather the thoughts of humans if the God they believe in doesn't exist! It's common sense to think that other religions can just rot, you know? Just how many Gods do you think exist that fell so low because their religion invaded another's territory and took away their believers and lowered the beliefs they had towards them by making them turn into myths? You should just look back on each mythology. Gods are beings who are more honest with their grudges and hard feelings than humans, you know?"

Azazel sweated more, and Indra cackled at his face, still failing to realize how cruel and malicious he sounded. Indra's vanity trouble showed no boundaries. He backed off from Azazel and slumped back into his chair.

The Fallen Angel leader only knew one thought right now, Indra didn't even consider how likely he'd drag the Human world into whatever mess he'd made, even if he had to make all of Hell an enemy by killing Vali. However, what terrified Azazel the most? One simple fact...

...Issei and Vali in were danger, and he couldn't do anything to help them.

* * *

**And that's a wrap, Issei gets the honor of sending Loki to the grave with a massive Ddraig enhanced Mjolnir swing, if that's not overkill for a legendary weapon attack then I have no idea what is! And yikes, Indra just showed us he doesn't give a damn about what he could stir up if her targets our two dragon lovebirds.**

**The victory didn't come without a cost though, a lot of their allies got badly injured, instantly forcing half the Tournament's fighters to drop out, including poor Esketanus and Suzattin. The guilt it brought everyone left Lilith no choice but to reveal the truth, and restore Rias' spirit enough to keep going on her efforts in the tournament. She might want Vali to win, but Lilith also wants each young Devil to truly get a chance to shine.**

**Looks like Cao Cao's got some more faces in the Hero Faction too. Menes, Morgiana and Mulan, are expansions on some of faction's unnamed members, while Perseus, Connla and Marsilio are related to spoilers for DX Volume 4, so if you wanna know about them, then just ask me.**

**Things are gonna start escalating here from now on though. I hope you all enjoyed the Loki arc, the next arc will be known as the "Journey to the Finals Arc" as we build up to the Semi-Final matches, and ultimately decide the finals that will occur after the Kyoto arc. At the same time, we'll showcase some growth between Vali's peerage, some couples will happen, the ORC and Council's successors, and so much more :3**

**That's all for now, see you next time everyone. Until then... stay awesome ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Asterisk War - Saya Sasamiya**

**Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Nanoha Takamachi**

**Is it wrong to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon - Welf Crozzo**

**Sword Art Online - Yuuki Konno**

**Akame ga Kill - Leone**

**Seven Deadly Sins - Gowther**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Both showing signs of feelings, especially Yumi  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Saji has obvious feelings, Sona's heavily implied to have feelings  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	35. Chapter 35

**And we're back for arc 8 of this story! For this particular chapter, we'll be focusing on who Rias and Akeno chose as the new President and VP of the ORC while also seeing the results of the Student Council elections. There's also the reactions to Indra being shared by Azazel to the other faction leaders, and we'll be seeing a bit of Gebedon and his peerage since he and Ineelana are gonna have a match soon to decide who Sairaorg's gonna face off against.**

**Don't worry, Vali's group is still getting their focus, since Asia's decided to learn a little offense we'll be seeing Issei teaching her a bit of martial arts, which some of you may remember he was mentioned to have learned from the first few chapters of the story, until I can think of way for her to fit that fits her personality and abilities. (If anyone has ideas on Asia's possible offensive skills, feel free the offer them, I'm really struggling to think of anything ^^;)**

**Oh, and as a little bonus to peak your interests without revealing something, in this arc I've got a few things planned that you'll probably be surprised to see but will really get your blood pumping upon seeing it... I think, I'm not sure how well that works when it comes to writing ^^; *chuckles oddly* There's something unexpected you'll see Sairaorg do in his Semi-Final match... and something to reveal about why Issei has his Domineering Will ability.**

**For the last bit of today's start notes, I need to tell you all last chapter's scene with the Hero Faction has been edited. See, when I made that scene, DX Vol 4 had just come out, and at the time, I didn't see any new info about the Hero Faction aside from the whole Perseus thing... but then it turns out that two previously unnamed members had their names revealed. As a result, I've made Menes, Morgiana and Mulan into the unnamed Hero Faction from Vol 7.**

**Without further ado, let us begin today's chapter.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -The King Piece- **

**A very dark stain on the history of the Devils and the Evil Pieces, back when the Evil Piece system was being finalized off the system that allowed Satan to create the first peerage, Ajuka made a type of piece for the King alongside the other 5 types of pieces. Since the Evil Pieces and the Rating Game were meant to be based off a shaken up game of Chess, he made the King Piece a lot stronger than the Queen piece.**

**Unfortunately, as Lilith and Ajuka would quickly discover... this had been a REALLY bad idea. Where the Queen Piece gave the boosts of a Knight, Bishop and Rook, the King Piece did the same at a massively larger scale, offering boosts as small as 10 times the Queen piece, but as high as 100 depending on the Devil using it. Rating Games quickly became unfair, and Lilith forcibly banned their usage, having Sirzechs state the order.**

**The current Great Devils gathered all the pieces they could, and Sirzechs destroyed them all, setting up the rule that the King Pieces could never be talked about and leading to Ajuka forming the King Monument to give the other types of pieces to Devils by having the monument assign their status as a King, but despite this... a few King Pieces escaped destruction and fell into the Great Devils' hands.**

**Using them, the Devil Elders manipulate the games to their advantage, leading to the 2nd to 6th best players in the Rating Game rankings having one in their possession. When Lilith tried to steal them back, they managed to force her into a situation where she couldn't act without putting her life at risk forcing her to only keep them at bay... but she was forced to deal with those who learned of the King Piece other than from herself or the Great Devils being murdered by the Elders, notably Cleria Belial.**

**The number of King Pieces that still exist are nine. Aside from the 5 Top 10 Rating Game players who have one, three of them are in the possession of the Elder Devils as spares for their shady plans, while one is in Diehauser's hands as a reminder to avenge Cleria's death and to have him act as Lilith's double agent by making the Elders think he's using it to be earn his spot as the Rating Game champion.**

**The King Pieces are also the only Evil Pieces that aren't absorbed into the owner, and therefore must be carried on hand to be used.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Journey to the Finals Arc: Chapter 1 - The Next Stage _ **

The various faction leaders were gathered in the meeting room, a grim looking Azazel sat with the new addition of Brahma who had since joined the alliance's ranks. Not just him either, the Egyptian deity Aten was also present, as was the Celtic God Lugh. Finally, representing the Buddha sat Sun Wukong.

Everyone was showing signs of worry, especially Lilith whose expression went dark, what she had just heard? Normally she'd be showing rage, but not this time... it was fear, all because of who made the threat on her daughter's life.

"Are you serious? Indra actually made that kind of threat, to kill Issei and Vali simply if they get too strong!?" Cassiel shouted, slamming her hands on the table.

"I'm afraid so, Azazel told me as such after he ran into Indra personally." Brahma answered.

The Hindu pantheon's leader sighed.

"I'm afraid there's no one to blame but my pantheon's strength, we've been built up so high... and it doesn't help Indra put Vritra into a Sacred Gear. To take on someone alone leagues above him and technically win? He has every reason to believe he's more than he really is."

"Yeah, I see why he'd think that. Vritra wasn't too far from Bahamut in strength, if he hadn't been insane from becoming an Evil Dragon, he could have possibly been a Black Dragon Emperor. Though I'd only praise a victory like that if Vritra had been slain, he's singing over false praise." Lugh sighed.

"His threat's still too real, and we can't risk acting on it. Indra wouldn't hesitate to cause discord among our factions if he needed to, it's his lack of fear and his strange morality that terrifies me most." Ra added.

Lilith grit her teeth.

"Lilith, if Indra has one weakness it's his extreme vanity, since he's still sure that he wants to destroy the world one day, I'll have Shiva move around and divert his focus. It won't work forever, but... it's a good way to limit what he'll find out." Brahma assured.

"Thanks Brahma, but I can't lose my worry unless Issei and Vali could somehow use those abilities." Lilith answered.

The various Gods all showed extreme worry and paranoia upon that, there was a reason Ddraig and Albion's original abilities were called God Slayers, and one ancient pantheon's demise was the evidence.

"You're not suggesting training them to use it, are you?" Zeus asked.

"Doubt I could even if I wanted to Zeus, we all know while it can happen, no past Sekiryuutei or Hakuryuukou has succeeded in managed to use those powers outside of a Juggernaut Drive. I just hope... that I never have to see Indra strike my daughter down." Lilith said, her arms shaking a bit.

Soon enough, the meeting ended. Lilith breathed as she stood in a nearby hall and looked down at the ground.

The sound of footsteps nearing her soon got her attention, and she moved her gaze up to see none other than Izanagi walk into view.

"Do you need something Izanagi?" Lilith inquired.

"Sort of, I didn't hear about this at first due to my faction joining the alliance after the battle he revealed it, but the Sekiryuutei... is it true what they said about him having a power called Domineering Will?" Izanagi wondered.

"It is, why do you ask?" Lilith asked.

"Well..." Izanagi answered.

* * *

Rias was gathered in the Hyoudou Household's living room as she was about to make her announcement, Akeno at her side.

"Everyone, after long consideration, I've made my decision on who will be the next president of the Occult Research Club." Rias announced.

'Oh boy!' Gasper thought.

'So, who is it?' Yumi wondered.

Rias took a sip of her tea before smiling and looking at everyone.

"Lead the club well Jeanne, because I've chosen you." Ria smiled.

"What? Me!?" Jeanne asked in surprise, pointing at herself.

"You've grown a lot during your time in the church, and a lot as your time since becoming a Devil. You used to shield yourself through a bubbly act but have grown in your confidence. With how far you've come, I don't think I can pick anyone better." Rias admitted.

Jeanne stared in shock.

"And for the new VP, I've chosen Kiba." Akeno stated.

"I'll do my best." Kiba replied.

Yumi giggles a bit.

"I guess the Yuuto siblings are leading us next year." Yumi smiled.

"Guess the apple doesn't fall to far from the tree, first we had best friends leading us, now we have siblings." Shirone chuckled.

The two blushed at that, while Yumi smiles and blushes at Kiba.

Shirone noticed this and got closer.

"Why are you blushing?" Shirone asked.

"Huh!?" Yumi exclaimed in surprise, blushing more.

"Are you saying Yumi has a crush on Kiba?" Xenovia bluntly revealed.

Yumi went white as everyone else freeze in place, and Kiba suddenly looked like someone sniped him while his guard was down.

After a few seconds, Yumi's ears teared up before she ran upstairs hid in her room, locking the door. Jeanne face palmed as she looked towards Xenovia.

"Oh my god Xenovia, how are you so dense!?" Jeanne asked.

"What? What did I do?" Xenovia wondered.

Rias slowly turns to the still vulnerable looking Kiba.

"...Kiba, you should probably go and talk with her before things get awkward over this." Rias stated.

"Huh? U-Uh... oh, right. I'll go do that right now, yeah..." Kiba answered.

Kiba went to head upstairs, and only to trip over the couch. As he tried to head up the stairs, he bumped into the wall.

Everyone sweat dropped at this.

"This is the first time I've seen Kiba like this, it's actually a bit worrisome." Akeno said with a sweat drop.

"He's totally in love with her... at least I think, I've never had any interest in a boy before." Jeanne replied.

* * *

Issei stood next to Asia, the blonde haired ex-nun sweating a bit as she tried to avoid moving, letting Issei guide the movement of her arms.

"One key factor of martial arts is that it means excellence one self, treating what you've learned like an extension of your body. It isn't meant to be used as a weapon, but to protect others. Essentially, it's not a sword, but a shield." Issei explained.

"O-OK" Asia replied, a bit nervous.

"Huh, I didn't realize Issei knew martial arts. Though that explains why he punches with such finesse." Kunou commented.

Vali chuckles a bit.

"I remember seeing some awards for them in his room back when I returned from my training journey, I guess it slipped my mind when he unlocked he Boosted Gear... which is a bit ironic since he's more of a direct close combat fighter." Vali admitted.

"I'm a bit more surprised Asia actually considered learning any offensive techniques." Irina remarked.

"Actually, it makes perfect sense to me. Remember what happened with Diodora, and then getting sent to the Dimensional Gap, and seeing what happened to everyone after Loki rampaged through Hell? All of that happening such a short period of time likely made her feel she needed to learn how to protect herself, and even more than that... I don't think she wanted to see her friends get hurt, especially if she could actually do something about it." Yuuma replied.

Everyone stared at Yuuma in surprise, making the former Fallen give a worried look.

"What? Did I say something bad?" Yuuma asked.

"Oh no, it was just surprising to hear you say something so wish like that. Usually you're the one who's nervous... Yuuma, I think you've grown up a bit." Vali smiled.

"S-stop, you're making me blush." Yuuma giggled with a small blush.

"Ironic you say that since you still won't accept I'm not giving up on Issei." Irina chuckles.

"Excuse me!?" Vali exclaimed.

The familiar old stare down between the two happened to her peerage's dismay.

"Oh, come on! I thought we finally got past that stage?" Bikou groaned.

"Guess there's still some roadblocks to cross in that area." Le fay said with a sweat drop.

Issei soon lowered Asia's body back into a normal position, soon grabbing two strike pads.

"Alright Asia, now try that move on me." Issei requested.

"Uh..." Asia replied nervously.

"Don't worry Asia, just take it slow. Focus more on doing it then how forceful it is. This particular style might not be what you're looking for." Issei reassured.

Asia nodded, and took a deep breath before slowly trying the technique that Issei just taught her.

Issei held up the strike pads, getting a feel for Asia's hits as they hit.

'Hmm...' Issei wondered as he analyzed the results he was getting.

'This is strange, despite she's serious about learning to fight with us... something's still holding her back. I wonder what it could-' Issei thought.

His eyes soon widened, realizing exactly it was.

_'One day I ended up finding an injured Devil without knowing he was a Devil... and when I healed him, everything changed. They said... to be able to heal Devils, they aid anyone with such a power was a heretic.' Asia's voice echoed._

'Of course, I should have realized it. She was sure she had gotten past that... but then Diodora told her he had it happen on purpose and knew that's how they would react, I bet she's tried to keep a strong face since then, but it's clearly still affecting her now.' Issei thought.

Issei put the strike guards down, making Asia nearly trip a bit before he caught her.

"Hey Vali, mind if I tell you something in secret?" Issei asked.

The two childhood friends stopped their stare down as Vali turned and walked over to him.

"Sure, what is it?" Vali asked.

"Well..." Issei began, soon whispering the rest.

* * *

Yumi was in her room, tears streaming down her face as she had gone white eyed, covering her head as she hid under a blanket.

"I can't believe Xenovia said that in front of Kiba, and that I was that transparent no less! I'm so embarrassed... please, someone just kill me." Yumi whimpered.

"Uh... Yumi?"

Yumi yelped in surprise, and slightly turned to see Kiba at the door.

"Mind if I come in-Whoa!"

Yumi closed her eyes as she heard Kiba trip over and fall on the floor, soon opening her eyes to see him getting up from...

...tripping over his untied shoe laces?

'How did he not notice that!?' Yumi thought in surprise.

Yumi blushed a bit more, soon covering herself under the covers more.

"...No, please go." Yumi whimpered.

"Look Yumi, I don't know why Xenovia said that, but you don't need to get embarrassed over a simple guess-" Kiba remarked.

"YOU CAN BE SO DENSE!" Yumi screamed.

Kiba froze in shock.

It took a moment for Yumi to realize what she just did, and now that she said it... there was no turning back, she pulled the covers off her and turned so Kiba saw the tears flowing down her face.

"If it was just a guess... then tell me, why... why did I run away?" Yumi sniffled.

"It's because... she was right! Damn it, I don't even know how you didn't see it whenever I blushed for god's sake! I love you Kiba!" Yumi admitted loudly.

Kiba silently gasped at that.

"Yumi..." Kiba breathed.

"Hell, it wasn't even just recently... that was just when it finally sunk into me. I fell in love with you back when we were still in the Holy Sword project together. Now you know, and now... just... just get out of here, OK!?" Yumi sniffled.

Yumi turned away from Kiba and cried more, covering her eyes as she continued her sobbing.

Only a few moments after, she suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her. She turned to see Kiba hugging her with his eyes closed.

"I apologize, I guess... I'm not very good with understanding how girls feel." Kiba apologized.

"Maybe that's why I try to be careful with what I say to them, so I can avoid hurting their feelings, I never thought it would hurt one of my closest friends. Maybe... I just didn't understand where I stood, I had thought you were dead for so long, that I didn't know how to react." Kiba theorized, looking a bit guilty.

"Though, if you really think we might be something more, then... I'm willing to try. Though that's only if you want, I don't want to force anything." Kiba assured.

Yumi's eyes got all misty, looking at Kiba as her lip quivered.

And then she did it... she threw herself onto Kiba and slammed her lips against his, giving him her first kiss.

Nearby the door, Jeanne stared in shock as she blushed a bit towards how forward Yumi had just been.

'She's so bold!' Jeanne thought.

* * *

Vali's face shows surprise as she fully registered what Issei had told her.

"You really think so?" Vali wondered.

"I do, in fact I wonder if this has been the case before. I can't really prove before it but..." Issei answered.

"Yeah, Diodora would have been a sore spot considering everything. It didn't help that I heard Asia tell me before that she didn't regret Diodora back then... how would you feel when you learn what you thought was saving a life was really an act to ruin your life for nothing but personal selfishness?" Vali nodded.

Unknown to them, Irina had been listening nearby and showed surprise.

'Hey, wait a second. While me, Xenovia and Jeanne never actually got to see her there due to our constant missions, the church Asia was assigned to was the Vatican. Then that would mean...' Irina thought.

Irina gasped as she bopped her fist into her hand.

'Yeah, he might be able to help, just like he helped Yumi get here!' Irina thought with a smile.

"Hey Issei, Vali?" Irina called out.

The two turned as they saw Irina walk towards them.

"Sorry for eavesdropping, but I think I know someone who might be able to help out with the Asia issue." Irina revealed.

"Really?" Vali asked surprised.

"Yeah, it's-" Irina answered.

The trio heard their phones all have an alarm go off, they soon check them and see what it was about.

"...I'll continue after we deal with this." Irina chuckled embarrassingly.

"And I thought this kind of thing only happened on TV." Issei joked slightly.

* * *

Despite school being out, many of Kuoh Academy's students were currently gathered at the school for a single reason. To hear the speeches of those who were currently running for members of the Student Council.

Currently on the stage where those running for the position of Student Council President, and the last nominee giving their speech was none other than Saji.

"-that's why I want to leave something behind at this school. I've grown a lot in the time I've been here and under the Student Council, so I don't just want to leave behind proof that I was once here, but proof that I've helped this school continue to thrive after I graduate and look back on it years leader. Everyone, if you vote for me, let's make Kuoh Academy an even greater school together!" Saji announced.

As his speech ended, everyone clapped before he walked off the stand and a teacher took his place.

"Alright everyone, we've had all out candidates given their thoughts, reasons and goals as possible council members. Now it's time for all of you to cast your votes and decide who will earn those positions for the Kuoh Academy's next year of education." The teacher announced.

"With the sheets you were given in advance, punch out the circle of your chosen nominee and then place it tallying machine." The teacher explained.

Soon everyone looked at the choices before them, starting to make their choices.

'Well this is it, Saji... Xenovia... know you've got my votes.' Issei thought, punching out near their names before choosing the others.

After a few minutes, everyone had finished punching out their choices and brought them to the tally machine. Once it was clear everyone had vote, the teacher turned the machine on and the votes were all decided. A paper was printing showing the winners.

"Alright, here we go. For the three positions of Student Council Treasurer we have..." The teacher announced.

"Reya Kusaka!"

Reya sighed in relief before smiling.

"Ruruko Nimura!"

Ruruko give a smile with a gasp before showing a toothy grin.

"And Miraka Vordenburg!"

An unknown female first year student smirks, almost as if she expected her victory was guaranteed.

"Next up, for the three positions of Student Council Secretary we have..." The teacher continued.

"Tomoe Meguri!"

Tomoe gave a silent fist pump, mouthing a 'yes' in response.

"Tadami Kado!"

A female second year student looks surprised before smiling.

"And Ryuuta Nakiri!"

A male first year smiles, not expressing himself any further than said smile.

"Now for the main event, the new Student Council Vice President is..." The teacher announced.

Xenovia and Momo both sweat a bit, it was either one of them, or neither.

"...Xenovia Quarta!" The teacher revealed.

Xenovia showed shock before smiling in relief, Momo sighed as she admitted her loss. Irina and Jeanne shoot their friend a thumb's up from the crowd.

"And now, last but not least, the new Student Council President is..."

'Did he do it?' Sona wondered.

'Is it Saji, or is it someone else?' Issei thought.

Everyone stared as the tension grew from the silence, and then the teacher finally shattered it.

"...by a narrow margin, it's Saji Genshirou!"

Saji showed some shock.

"I... I won." Saji whispered to himself.

With that, everyone soon began clapping to congratulate the chosen members of the new Student Council.

'Good work Saji, nicely done.' Sona thought with a smile.

"Yeah, you rocked it Xenovia!" Irina cheered.

After the applause died down, Saji sat down and grabbed a drink, mentally exhausted from the whole ordeal.

As he took a sip of said drink, Sona walked up to him.

"A big relief for it to be over, not to mention you were able to win Council President." Sona said in a joking manner.

"Hey, I'm not filling your shoes just yet. Though you're right about being relieved. Who knew something that wasn't a form of physical combat could be so brutal?" Saji sighed tiredly.

Sona chuckled slightly at that.

"Well, to celebrate this victory, how about you and I go out later." Sona asked.

"Yeah, sure thing." Saji replied.

"Alright, I'll meet with you around 7 then. Oh, and as a small heads up, I don't kiss until at least the second date." Sona added before walking off.

"I'll keep that in mind." Saji nodded.

After Sona had left the building, Saji began sipping his drink again...

...only to spray it out through a spit take once he realized a few seconds later what Sona had actually said to him.

"Wait... WHAT!?" Saji exclaimed in shock.

* * *

Back at the Hyoudou Household, Irina finally got to explaining to what the elections had delayed prior.

"Vasco Strada?" Vali repeated.

"That's right, he's a very old but still active member of the Church. In fact, he was the one who taught how to user Durandal since he used to be its previous wielder, Yumi even mentioned that he was the reason she was able to get to Kuoh Town in the first place." Irina explained.

"And you're thinking he might be able to help with Asia?" Issei asked.

Irina nods.

"I can't guarantee anything, but I figure if anyone could help her out with the issue you mentioned, it would be him." Irina stated.

"Well, I guess it's better than nothing. I'll go find Gabriel and see if she can clear a trip to the Vatican for us." Vali replied.

"Issei, I'll need to keep focus on anything that goes on here due to the tournament, so think you can go over there with Asia for me?" Vali asked.

"Sure thing Vali." Issei nodded.

"Alright, then I'll find Gabriel right now." Vali smiled, leaving the room.

Once they did, Irina twiddled her fingers before looking at Issei.

"Hey... Issei?" Irina asked.

"Yeah, what is-" Issei answered.

Suddenly, before Issei could react, Irina kissed him on the lips.

"I-Irina!?" Issei shouted in surprise.

"Sorry, I just... wanted to be selfish at least once." Irina admitted.

"There's nothing wrong with that, right?" Irina asked.

Issei stared as Irina shed a tear before turning around and leaving, and Issei sighed a bit as he watched her leave.

'I get it... you know us being together will never happen, but you just weren't ready to let go of that dream. I'm sorry Irina, if things had been different, then maybe you and I could have ended up together... I hope that one day you find someone who's lucky to have you.' Issei thought.

Vali soon came back in, looking a bit concerned.

"I just talked to Gabriel and she's getting things set up, though... I just saw Irina crying a bit. Anything I should know about?" Vali asked.

"Well..." Issei began.

"Vali, I know you and Irina tend to clash over me, but... I think she's admitted defeat long ago. She just couldn't bring herself to let go of that dream, not until now anyways." Issei answered.

Vali blinked confused, and soon realized what Issei meant.

The heiress of Lucifer turned back to the door, giving a sympathetic look as she did.

"Hey Issei, excuse me for a bit."

Vali quickly runs out of the room, following the direction Irina went.

* * *

After looking around for a bit, Vali soon found Irina on the roof of the Hyoudou Household, still looking teary eyed. Vali slowly walked closer to her and then...

"Irina?" Vali said softly.

Irina's body jumped at that, and she turned to see Vali behind her.

"N-No, please don't misunderstand Vali! It was just a-" Irina panicked.

"Irina, calm down. I'm not here to do anything like that." Vali said as she waved her hands up.

Irina breathed a bit, soon turning back towards the sky.

Vali looked forward before turning her head a bit, wondering what she should say... and then spoke.

"Irina, during that brief moment I went to find Gabriel, you kissed Issei, didn't you?"

Irina tensed up a bit.

"Calm down Irina, I'm not mad this time... how can I be when what I saw didn't make sense if you had done that. I saw you as you left the room crying, and Issei mentioned you letting go of a dream." Vali explained.

"Irina... please tell me, you truly do love Issei, don't you?" Vali asked.

"...Yes, I've never been more certain about anything." Irina nodded.

"When I first met Issei, I hadn't even felt comfortable being around other kids my age, I was just too afraid due to being half-Angel. That if people saw what I really was... everything would change. Then I met this boy who seemed just as lonely as I was, I found myself unable to leave him like that, and I was drawn towards him. We became friends, and soon enough... something more began to form." Irina explained, smiling a bit.

"Unfortunately, then my family had to move away when an incident happened with the church. I knew how badly Issei felt and... I think that's when I slowly realized it as I grew older... that I had fallen in love with Issei." Irina said somberly.

Vali gave a sympathetic look as she walked closer, putting a hand on Irina's shoulder.

"Now I get why you seemed so upset when you and I first met. I came into Issei's life after you left, and while we both left from dome time, I left by choice and came back by choice, but... you didn't leave or come back of your own will." Vali realized.

"It felt like I was replaced, it really hurt... and because of that, when I got excommunicated... I used that chance and forced you to make me your Knight." Irina nodded.

Vali sweat dropped as she recalled that incident.

* * *

_Vali gave an annoyed look towards Irina._

_"Seriously, you think I'm just going to give you an Evil Piece just because you asked me. I'm sure more than anything this is just you trying to get close to my Issei. I'm saving my remaining Knight for someone else." Vali answered._

_"Well, you leave me no choice then... no choice but to use my trump card to give me that Knight." Irina smirked._

_Vali sweat a bit at that._

_"What trump card?" Vali asked worriedly._

_"Oh, just a little bit of... this!" Irina giggled._

_Irina revealed her Angel wings and a halo, making Vali blink before chuckling at her._

_"Really, you think revealing to me you're an Angel-" Vali replied._

_"Half-Angel." Irina corrected._

_"Fine, Half-Angel is enough to make worry me?" Vali asked._

_"Nope, I think it'll make you drop your guard for this." Irina said with a glint in her eye._

_"Oh lord, please have mercy on this kind soul. Even if she is a Devil."_

_Vali suddenly screamed as the prayer hurt her._

_"You didn't!" Vali exclaimed._

_"I did, in fact... oh lord, please have mercy on this kind soul. Even if she is a Devil." Irina repeated._

_Vali screamed in pain again, holding her head in pain._

_This continued on for a few minutes until finally..._

_"Alright fine! I'll make you my knight, just stop praying!" Vali shouted with teary eyes._

_"Hand me the Knight piece first." Irina smiled._

_Vali growled and crawled over to her pieces to grab her Knight, soon tossing it near Irina._

* * *

Irina blushed a bit over that.

"Sorry I pulled that on you back then, it was kinda mean." Irina apologized.

Vali waved her hand at that.

"It's in the past now." Vali shrugged off.

"However, after I joined you... slowly but surely I realized it. The bond you two have was as genuine as mine, and it was your own. I couldn't take the truth... not until Hestia herself ended up telling me about the kind of pride I should really have. By then, I had to accept it, I had become your knight and needed to really be serious about it, and in the end... I resolved to just get a single kiss from Issei, then I'd give up for good." Irina continued.

"And now... I've done just that, but that doesn't mean it doesn't still hurt." Irina admitted.

Irina soon began to tear up, trying not to cry... only for feel Vali hug her.

"Don't hold it in, just let it go. I won't say a thing or tell anyone." Vali smiled.

"Vali..." Irina whimpered.

And with that, the dam finally broke as Irina began crying loudly, her tears flooding out of her eyes.

Vali rubbed her back, trying to comfort her best she could.

"It may not be the same, but I know what it's like to have a loved one stolen from you." Vali said sadly.

"...Your birth mom?" Irina asked.

"Yeah, even today I know I could have saved her, but my grandpa's hold was too strong on me back then. I froze up at the worst moment and he took her life. Even now, while I've broken free of his hold... I haven't stopped fearing him." Vali admitted.

"The day I may have to face him? I'm mortified of it, and even hope it never comes, that's why when it does... I'm counting on the people I trust most to be there for me, people like you Irina." Vali smiled.

Irina gasped at that.

"...You, really trust me?" Irina asked.

Vali nodded.

"Regardless of how it happened, you're my Knight... and my friend." Vali stated.

Irina sniffed before she hugged Vali, a look of newfound determination on her face.

"I'll do my best... to be your knight, that's a promise." Irina declared.

* * *

In one of the Forests of Hell, Gebedon was currently meditating under a waterfall in nothing but swim trunks, his eyes glowing as he focused his Invader Sight without stopping as the waterfall's constant barrage and the water's cold temperature intended to impede him.

He soon sensed something from a nearby bush and dodge, avoiding a gun shot.

"Aw shoot, you still saw that one coming."

"Nice try Yoko, but you've still got some ways to go before you can actually hit me." Gebedon chuckled.

Gebedon's red haired queen walked into view, carrying her rifle on her shoulders.

"Say, shouldn't you be getting out from there by now? Your body temperature's gotta be getting dangerously low." Yoko asked concerned.

"Not at all, I'm still nice and..." Gebedon replied.

"...Yoko, go get Fate immediately."

The Asmodeus heir fell forward, finally collapsing from how cold his body had become.

He soon suddenly shot up as he felt an electric shock focused over where his heart was, gasping for air as he saw Yoko and his sole blonde-haired bishop standing before him.

"Seriously Gebedon, what made you think it was a good idea to be under that waterfall for that long? You might be a Devil but that was still dangerous." Fate berated.

Gebedon chuckled sheepishly.

"Uh... oops?" Gebedon replied.

The two girls face palmed at their King's carelessness.

"And yet he wonders how he only got two women on his peerage." Yoko groaned.

"What, I'm not that bad, am I?" Gebedon.

The two didn't reply to that comment.

"Hey everyone, food's ready!"

"Oh, looks like Sanji's gotten lunch ready. Nice." Gebedon remarked.

"You do realize he only gives his best meals to me and Yoko, don't you?" Fate asked.

Gebedon shrugged.

"Hey, it's not like he's trying to poison us. I can respect his dedication to the ladies." Gebedon replied, his face sparkling a bit.

"It'd be a miracle for this guy to get married." Yoko said under her breath.

The trio soon headed over to see Sanji pouring the stew he prepared for the group into bowls, saving two bowls special for the girls. Gebedon sat down as Fate and Yoko walked up, making Sanji's eyes become hearts.

"Fate and Yoko my darlings! I've saved your bowls specially, here you go!" Sanji said passionately.

"Thank you Sanji." Fate smiled.

"Now this is a real man's meal!" Elfman shouted was devouring it.

"Slow down Elfman, it isn't going anywhere." Ayato chuckled.

Elfman didn't hear him, too busy eating everything.

"I don't think he's listening." Ikki chuckled.

"Neither am I but for completely different reasons." Lubbock added.

Ayato and Ikki sighed as they noticed Lubbock staring at Yoko's incredibly revealing outfit, with a nosebleed on his face.

Guiche soon walked by the two, holding a pair of napkins in each hand.

"A pair of napkins for the lovely ladies?" Guiche inquired.

"Thank you Guiche." Yoko said gratefully.

Gebedon took a few more spoonfuls of stew before clearing his throat, giving a rare serious look to the others.

"Everyone, I think it's time I talk with you all about our strategy in our next Rating Game. You know who we're going up against now, correct?" Gebedon asked.

"Your friend Ineelana, right? Due to my morals that match up is a problem." Sanji replied.

"Yeah, you won't hit a girl, but her peerage is nothing but ladies... you'd still kick to parry a blow, right?" Gebedon asked.

"If you're asking about me being able to at least play a defensive role, I can definitely do that much." Sanji nodded.

Gebedon smiled before turning to the others.

"The main worry about Ineelana's peerage is almost all her members have either a hidden aces or dangerous powers. For the hidden ace wielders, there's Stella who we saw firsthand is willing to break a bone since she can just melt it back and heal it. Yumi's got that Ice Queen mode of sorts, and Tamara's got the Telos Karma so she can make her ace any of our own." Gebedon explained.

"For the rest, their strong abilities are clear. Ophelia's got control over powerful poison magic in the form of miasma, I've never seen the control she has on anyone else. Then with Sinon, she almost never misses, and I'm pretty sure that rifle's not her only sniper tool. As for Mine... I get the feeling her Sacred Gear hasn't used its true power just yet, she might already have her Balance Breaker." Yoko considered.

Gebedon thought on that for a bit.

"What about her Queen though? I don't think we've even seen what she can do just yet." Lubbock noted.

"...I have." Gebedon admitted.

This got his peerage's attention.

"Well, I've kinda seen it. One time I saw Murasaki get a bit unstable... and then she emitted this dark energy, Ineelana warned me to never let that happen in a large crowd and said something to me..." Gebedon explained.

"That's just how dangerous the [Catastrophe Core] is."

"Catastrophe Core? That's no normal Sacred Gear name, how powerful do you think it is?" Fate wondered.

"If she's had Murasaki avoid fighting for all this time, it may very well be a last resort to her team." Gebedon answered.

Everyone thought on that for a bit.

"Then what's the general plan?" Ikki asked.

"Yeah, seems like this match isn't in our favor." Ayato noted.

"I guess it'll be this. If the match type doesn't have an instant win condition, then our first priority is trying to eliminate her without her realizing it, otherwise we might lose. If we do have an instant win condition, then we gotta keep her and Ineelana separated at all costs." Gebedon answered.

"Sounds like a plan then." Guiche nodded.

"Yeah, we'll win this fight!" Elfman smirked.

Gebedon chuckled a bit.

"First, let's win this fight against our empty stomachs." Gebedon mentioned.

Everyone remembered their stews and laughed a little.

* * *

The following day, Issei and Asia both had their packs packed and ready.

"Alright you two, are you ready to go?" Gabriel asked.

"Yep, we're ready." Issei confirmed.

He turned to Asia, who was a little nervous looking.

"You scared?" Issei asked.

"Terrified, I... I don't know what'll happen." Asia admitted.

"It's alright to be afraid, I'd be more worried if you weren't." Issei said.

Issei pat her head.

"Let me give you a bit of advice Asia, even if the situation makes you feel alone and helpless, know there's always one thing that makes prevents that." Gabriel assured.

Gabriel pointed to Asia's hands.

"You've got your Sacred Gear, that's a friend you always have no matter what." Gabriel smiled.

"O-OK." Asia nodded.

"OK, now good luck you two." Gabriel smiled.

She waved her hand as they were transported by the magic circle to the Vatican.

Another magic circle appeared behind the Seraph, and she turned to see Lilith appear from it with a bit of a shocked look on her face.

"What's wrong Lilith? You seem so nervous, it's kinda worrisome." Gabriel asked.

"Well... let's just say Brahma and Azazel revealed a shocker during the meeting, one I'm not sure if I should tell Issei and Vali about just yet." Lilith admitted.

"Though Izanagi mentioned something else that's even more shocking... where's Issei right now?" Lilith asked.

"Oh, you just missed them, he and Asia went to the Vatican because he feels she needs to go there to overcome a mental barrier. Is it urgent?" Gabriel asked.

Lilith shook her head.

"No, I was just gonna tell him Amaterasu will be visiting soon to tell him something. Don't ask me what it is... I promised I wouldn't." Lilith answered.

"OK." Gabriel nodded.

Lilith soon walked towards the kitchen, seeing Seiji and Hana sitting down at the table together.

The two noticed Lilith take a seat and looked at her.

"Mr. and Mrs. Hyoudou... we need to talk about something urgent." Lilith stated.

* * *

**And that's a wrap on this chapter. I think you may have noticed that this chapter seems to be focuses less on story progression and more on wrapping some things up. I'll assure you that the story isn't ending anytime soon, I'd say it's more like I've got multiple sagas for the story. The first 6 seasons are the first saga, and since we're getting close to that, not to mention what Season 5 and Season 6 are mostly about, I'm making sure I clear up the loose ends.**

**As a result, pairings I've shown will happen below but haven't really gotten chances to make happen are finally doing so, as are certain side plots like with Irina's love rivalry with Vali, and the one I just introduced here with Asia. I will admit for Irina's, I planned to wait until Season 5 and have that replace he Raynare curse plot point, but I don't think I can really draw it out any longer without forcing it, so this seemed liked a good time to settle it.**

**Congratulations to Saji for winning the role of Council President, and to Jeanne for being named the new ORC President. To explain my choices on that, like what Rias said to her, Jeanne has already spent time as a leader and has heavily grown since reuniting with her brother, so I honestly felt she was the best to be named the new president.**

**I had Saji go for president for a simpler reason, he's got more confidence in this story, so he was willing to go a step higher than Vice President because of it. Likewise, since it happened earlier in the story, Xenovia doesn't have as much confidence yet and only went for VP. Momo only went for VP because she has a crush on Saji like in canon, and because Sona let him go for President.**

**Well, that's it for now. Next chapter's focused on Asia at the Vatican, Rias' match, the match between Ineelana & Gebedon, Saji and Sona's date, and then finally... the reason why Izanagi has Amaterasu coming to see Issei soon.**

**A/N: Oh yeah... a bit of a minor detail, but I forgot to say that for crossover characters Nanoha and Fate, they're both in their StrikerS age and appearances.**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Gurren Lagann - Yoko Littner**

**Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Fate Testarossa**

**One Piece - Sanji**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Ikki Kurogane**

**Familiar of Zero - Guiche**

**Fairy Tail - Elfman**

**Asterisk War - Ayato Amagiri**

**Akame ga Kill - Lubbock**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - About to go on first date  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	36. Chapter 36

**Alright, I'm glad how things went last chapter went I was admittedly a bit worried how off the flow might feel because of the chapter's focus on clearing those loose ends, and luckily those worries ended up being unfounded. As a friendly reminder, this chapter's focuses are on: Asia's visit to the Vatican, Rias' match, the beginning of the Ineelana vs Gebedon match, the start of Saji and Sona's date, and Amaterasu visiting Issei to reveal a shocking truth.**

**Now for any curious about where I'm currently going in regards to Asia's development on her offensive skills? I've made my decision on the martial arts area that Issei's been teaching her, though magic is still developing a bit.**

**For the physical area, I've decided to make her like her daughter Airi from the EX novel since without Issei having a child with her, Airi can't exist. Not to mention Airi's style is of a bare-fisted monk, and monks tend to be a bit pacifistic due to their teachings, so I figured it's the best style she can learn that doesn't fully go against her kind nature.**

**This also relates to Asia's more defensive magic. Earlier in the story (around Ch 7), Tiamat said Asia didn't seem like she could handle defensive spells at the time, but now that's going to slowly change around now. I find this aids the monk style because she could use those defensive spells not only to empower her blows if she needs to, but use small focused defensive spells on her hands and feet so her blows could be used to defend.**

**For offense magic on the other hand? I'm still not sure on that end, and that's the most important part since Asia is a bishop and needs to have a few offensive spells. I've gotten a few suggestions so far, and I thank everyone who's given me them, though if anyone else has some offensive magic you think fits Asia's nature that I could give her, that would be appreciated. No need to rush on it either, I won't need Asia to definitely know offensive magic in-story until next season.**

**And... that's it for today's start notes I guess, so let's get this all started and get these next two Rating Games started!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Sakra Indra- **

**The God of War, Storms, and Rainfall in the Hindu Pantheon, as well as the Leader of the Deva _and_ one of the three deities known as "The Worst Gods" alongside Hades and the now deceased Loki. Indra is a very sarcastic, arrogant, somewhat racist and vain God who seems to only care about what he thinks and thinks is right and/or the truth to the point its nearly unanimous he is truly the worst of the trio, including his own faction's leaders.**

**Indra's vanity is shown to be so strong, he will only justify something if it fits his view, such examples being how he believes Shiva is hiding the fact he will still fulfill his role and using his claim he will no longer cause Destruction as of the Great War to hide this fact. His arrogance is also enough he's claimed the factions would rather murder each other than try to make peace despite evidence to the contrary.**

**Brahma and Vishnu believe Indra fully sank into the state he's become when he split Vritra's soul into what would one day become four Sacred Gears, even though he didn't win or actually kill the Evil Dragon who was even stronger than him. He's too willing to risk a conflict, possibly even _wanting_ to cause one, that they have no ways to keep him at bay and not cause chaos within their own pantheon.**

**He's currently revealed if Issei and Vali become too powerful, he'll kill them under the reasoning that only he has the right to the name of Heaven.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Journey to the Finals Arc: Chapter 2 - Truths and Tribulations _ **

Another magic circle appeared behind the Seraph, and she turned to see Lilith appear from it with a bit of a shocked look on her face.

"What's wrong Lilith? You seem so nervous, it's kinda worrisome." Gabriel asked.

"Well... let's just say Brahma and Azazel revealed a shocker during the meeting, one I'm not sure if I should tell Issei and Vali about just yet." Lilith admitted.

"Though Izanagi mentioned something else that's even more shocking... where's Issei right now?" Lilith asked.

"Oh, you just missed them, he and Asia went to the Vatican because he feels she needs to go there to overcome a mental barrier. Is it urgent?" Gabriel asked.

Lilith shook her head.

"No, I was just gonna tell him Amaterasu will be visiting soon to tell him something. Don't ask me what it is... I promised I wouldn't." Lilith answered.

"OK." Gabriel nodded.

Lilith soon walked towards the kitchen, seeing Seiji and Hana sitting down at the table together.

The two noticed Lilith take a seat and looked at her.

"Mr. and Mrs. Hyoudou... we need to talk about something urgent." Lilith stated.

"Uh... sure, about what?" Hana asked.

Lilith sighs.

"Stop playing dumb. You had to have noticed something off when you got this new home and all these people moved in, a normal human would have been shocked or suspicious by this development." Lilith stated with a somewhat annoyed look.

"I... I'm not sure what you're talking-" Seiji replied.

"I said stop playing dumb, it won't work. I'm pretty sure you two aren't even as old as you look but you can't let your son find out. Tell me how long the two of you have known about the supernatural world?" Lilith asked.

And with that, the air frozen in place... and no denial from either Hyoudou parent were heard.

* * *

Issei and Asia soon appear from a magic circle as they found themselves in the country that was home to the Vatican church and based on Asia's backstory, the country she was born in as a baby.

Standing before them was the very church they were preparing to enter.

"So... this is the Vatican church?" Issei wondered.

"Yeah..." Asia replied.

Issei turned to Asia, noticing she was clearly nervous. He took her hand to help calm her down, making her look at him as he smiled.

At that moment, a familiar old man walked into view.

"Ah, you must be the Sekiryuutei, Issei Hyoudou." Vasco greeted.

The two turned to face the elderly exorcist.

"I'm guessing you're the Vasco Strada my friend Irina told me about?" Issei asked.

"Indeed I am, it's good to know she, Xenovia and Jeanne are doing well." Vasco answered.

Vasco soon turned to Asia and kneeled down a bit to look her in the face.

"Ah, if it isn't Sister Asia. Do you remember me?" Vasco asked.

"Uh... yes, though I think we only greeted each other the one time." Asia nodded.

Vasco smiled a bit.

"You are not only a truly devout believer, yet also a gentle girl. I still regret the act of that Devil who took you away from us, especially now that we've learned he did so intentionally." Vasco said with slight anger.

"I'm guessing you didn't find her excommunication fair?" Issei asked.

Vasco nodded as Asia showed some surprise.

"When I heard that you were going to be excommunicated, I wanted to search for where you would be as soon as possible... but, I did not make it in time. I am very sorry for that." Vasco apologized.

Asia welled up with some tears at that.

Issei smiled a bit. However, he knew that this wasn't enough... Asia needed to go into the Vatican directly. She wouldn't be able to face her demons unless she went inside and faced the possible reactions were lurking within the church's walls.

"Asia... it's time now." Issei said.

Asia gave a worried look, but Vasco pat her on the back.

"Be strong, you have Issei with you." Vasco smiled.

"...O-OK." Asia nodded.

"OK, here we go." Issei declared.

* * *

Meanwhile in Hell, the Gremory team had just made their way to the Rating Game arena as they prepared to begin their next match.

"_Welcome everyone, I'm you're host and announcer... Naud Gamigin! Welcome to today's second quarter final match is between Rias Gremory and Jesteca Naberois!_" Naud announced.

The entire stadium's crowd cheered at that, meanwhile at the Hyoudou Household, all of Vali's peerage minus Issei and Asia, and all of Sona's minus Sona and Saji, were watching a live recording of the match.

"Good luck Rias, cause if you win this then you and I are facing off in the finals." Vali remarked.

"_And for today's guest announcer, I give you to one of the eldest of Devils... Mephisto Pheles!_" Naud announced.

"_Hi everyone!_" Mephisto grinned.

"_Now... let's bring in this round's competitors!_" Naud exclaimed.

Rias and her team came in from the left gate while Jesteca's came from the right, the latter's peerage including himself and only 5 members, meaning every on his peerage required every piece for all five types of pieces.

Soon they stood at the arena's center.

"_Hey Naud, If I recall correctly, Jesteca's peerage is known for the strength it took to have all of his pieces be used. Almost like he intentionally looked for such retainers to add to his team. Think that means Rias' is in trouble?_" Mephisto asked.

"_Truth be told, I think Jesteca's actually found an opponent that'll end his winning streak. Remember, Rias is one of the Rookies 4. Even if he faced Loki, Rias had more experience than he does because she's faced much more._" Naud replied.

Naud soon drew from a box and grabbed a sphere, and soon saw it was blank.

"_Ah, this is a surprise. For today's match up we have... a "No Rule" battle! That means it's your everyday normal Rating Game!_" Naud announced.

"_Now, with that decided, let the match... **BEGIN**!_" Naud exclaimed.

* * *

The field soon took the two peerages into a desert like battlefield with the glaring sun hitting the opposing side.

Jesteca cracked his head and smirked.

"Let's take her down, hit them hard boys!" Jesteca ordered.

Each of Jesteca's pieces scattered as they rushed towards Rias' team.

"Looks like he's in a hurry, let's show a thing or two. Oh, and Yumi? Let's surprise him with the one ace you've still got saved." Rias mentioned.

"Really?" Yumi asked.

Rias nodded.

"I mean it." Rias smiled.

"Akeno and Shirone, go after his Queen. Jeanne and Kiba, you'll take his Knight. Rossweisse and Xenovia, you'll go for his Bishop. Gasper and Valerie, go after his Pawn. I'll deal with his Rook." Rias ordered.

"You got it Rias!" Everyone replied.

They all scattered off to stop Jesteca's pieces in their tracks, Rias turned to Yumi after they left.

"I think you know what to do Yumi?" Rias asked.

"Yeah." Yumi nodded.

Yumi manifests the Lumen Shekhinah and readies her bow while creating a barrier around her with the Adamant Will.

Akeno and Shirone soon run into Jesteca's Queen.

"Get ready for this!" The queen shouted.

He held out his hands and charged a large energy sphere, soon launching the magic without moving like he was a living cannon.

"He sure has a lot of confidence in himself." Akeno giggled.

"Time we break him down a few." Shirone replied.

Akeno and Shirone rose their hands, changing into their Fallen Angel and Shiro mode respectively. Most of the crowd showed surprise at the former's transformation.

"_Whoa! I've heard Rias' queen was the daughter of Baraqiel and that looks like the definitive evidence to me!_" Mephisto announced.

"_I don't think any of us saw that one coming, I wonder what else the Gremory Team's got?_" Naud smirked.

Akeno held out her hand, making a mass of electricity form a shield of sorts that dispersed the energy sphere's magic apart, shocking the Queen.

Akeno soon swirled the lightning before firing it forward, and Shirone formed her flaming Senjutsu wheels and flung them into the electricity. Akeno's Lightning Dragons formed before splitting apart, raining down as a storm of dragons.

"Shit!" The Queen gasped.

The Queen tried to run away, but the storm of attacks proved to be too much and one dragon zapped through him.

"No... way..." The queen muttered.

The queen's body vanished in blue light.

"_Lord Jesteca's Queen, retired!_" Naud announced.

"What!?" Jesteca gasped.

* * *

Jesteca's Knight saw some storm kick up near her, and she looked to see Kiba and Jeanne both staring at her confidently.

She gave them a cocky smirk in return.

"Hah! You think a duo of sibling sword users is enough to handle me? Well then, let me show you both a world of pain!" The Knight stated.

The knight created a water and wind spell in each hand.

"I recall you can make swords that deal with certain elements Blondie, but you'll be vulnerable against a duo of them!" The Knight shouted.

She threw the spells forward, making a tidal wave and mini-cyclone, but Kiba smirk and shifted his sword into a green and blue one, and soon held it forward and it evaporated the water and swallowed up all the air.

"What!? How's this possible!?" The Knight shouted.

"I believe you've heard of my Cursed Holy Sword? Well a little bit of advice I should give you, it was made by my Balance Breaker, Sword of Betrayer! My swords can now have two properties, not just one! Hence the Betrayer!" Kiba smirked.

"Impossible!" The Knight sweated.

She prepared to run, however Jeanne wasn't having that.

"Balance Breaker... [**Blade Knight Mass!**]" Jeanne exclaimed.

Suddenly the Knight was surrounded as a bunch of golden armors holding artificial holy swords surrounded her.

"No way!" The Knight gasped.

"And to make sure you can't get away... [**Dancing Daisy!**]" Jeanne shouted.

Soon a spiral of petals spins around the Knight and the armors, trapping her within.

Kiba swoon switched his sword into one with fire and wind attributes.

"And that's game, set..." Kiba began.

"...and match for you!" Jeanne finished.

Kiba swung his sword down as the armors charged at the Knight, she soon felt the fire burn the area within the flowery spiral as the sand was glassed and the knights slashed down with their holy swords.

The Knight was flung into the air by an explosion as she vanished in blue light.

"_Lord Jesteca's Knight, retired!_" Mephisto announced.

Jesteca's eyes shook.

"My peerage, it's being beaten... so easily?" Jesteca breathed.

"What's going on here!?" Jesteca screamed.

"_Oh my, looks like Lord Jesteca's begun losing his cool, that could work against him._" Mephisto noted.

* * *

Hearing the announcement, Jesteca's Pawn sweated before she turned around and began to run away, unfortunately for her... she was quickly frozen in time.

Gasper was seen from a distance with his eyes in their Sacred Gear state.

"Valerie, do it now!" Gasper shouted.

"Right!"

Valerie was revealed to be hiding within the frozen field of time, using her Sephiroth Graal to make her immune to the time field as she quickly swarmed the Pawn and began drinking its blood.

After said Pawn was drained, time resumed as she stumbled a bit.

"What... happened?" The Pawn asked.

She fell over, and being KOd caused her to vanish in blue light as she was retired.

"_Lord Jesteca's Pawn has fallen unconscious!_" Naud announced.

"No way, already!" The Bishop breathed worriedly.

"Ahem."

The Bishop turned her head to see Xenovia standing before her and Rossweisse floating overhead.

Reacting instantly, the Naberois Bishop opened her palms to fire a magical beam from them and all her fingers at once, raining them across the area as Rossweisse formed a barrier against the barrage and Xenovia used her Knight Speed to dodge them.

"Let's go Rossweisse!" Xenovia exclaimed.

"Understood!" Rossweisse replied.

The Devil Valkyrie raised her hands up to form a magic circle of four different elements, soon firing into the sky as a rain of fiery red beams, rocky sandy yellow beams, windy green beams and freezing blue beams fired down from the sky.

The Naberois Bishop gasped and tried to dodge them best she could, soon being cornered as she had her movements locked and Xenovia crossed her blades.

"Oh no!" The Bishop screamed.

"[**Cross... CRISIS!**]"

Xenovia swung forward, making an X shaped wave of pure energy before it slammed into the enemy Bishop, causing her to be struck by the attack and fly into the rain of elemental beams.

She stood there as it ended, some smoke coming off her body.

"...I'm so sorry Master Jesteca, I've failed." The Bishop breathed.

"_Lord Jesteca's Bishop, retired!_" Naud announced.

Mephisto smirked at that.

"_I hate to say it, but I think this match's winner is already decided, I doubt Jesteca's gonna accept that and surrender though._" Mephisto announced.

Jesteca hearing Mephisto's announcement growled a bit.

Also annoyed was his Rook who leaped high and landed before the Gremory Heiress, cracking his knuckles a bit.

"I'm not letting my teammates' sacrifices be in vain! Prepare to lose Rias Gremory!" The Rook declared.

The Rook soon smashed the ground with both his fist, causing the earth to shift as he revealed his Geokinesis powers and then pushing his palms forward to launch them at the crimson-haired Gremory en mass.

Rias however only smirked and held out a hand, simply touching and vaporizing the stones coming at her with a Power of Destruction coated palm.

"What!?" The Rook gasped.

"That was definitely impressive and quite the powerful attack, but I promised someone that I'd meet her in the finals. So, I swallowed my pride enough to do something I was always too ashamed of... I asked my brother and sister and law to teach me a few things." Rias admitted.

The crowd gasped at that.

"_Ooh! I did not just hear that, Rias Gremory asked her brother that embarrasses her and the Ultimate Queen she fears for a favor!_" Naud exclaimed excitedly.

Rias blushed embarrassingly while frowning a bit at Naud's comment.

"_Sounds like she's serious about winning this tournament, and look how far her peerage has come since their first match. I think it's clear... she's definitely earning a spot in the Semi-Finals._" Mephisto announced.

"[**Maelstrom the Cataclysm!**]"

The Rook suddenly widened his eyes as a wave of Rias' signature power rose into the air before washing over him. He was pummeled by it for a few seconds before it forced him to retire from the intense force.

"_Lord Jesteca's Rook, retired!_" Mephisto announced.

"No... my entire team... eliminated?" Jesteca gasped.

The Naberois heir growled as his aura exploded out.

"No, I won't let this end here! I will crush Rias' dream right here! I will not lose, not when I made it this far!" Jesteca roared

"[**Violent Masquerade!**]"

Jesteca rushed ahead, and as he did his magic made his body distort before a whole swarm of himself multiplied onto the field. Counting the original, there was soon a total of 100 Jesteca copies on the battlefield, and the entire crowd was surprised by this.

"_Whoa! OK, anyone know what this is!?_" Naud asked in surprise.

"_I think it's his clan ability, but I've never seen a Naberois create so many copies of themselves! Just how much magic power does he have on hand!?_" Mephisto wondered.

From some of the higher stands, Ajuka noticed something odd.

"You've noticed it too Ajuka?" Alanira asked.

"I have... his power isn't his own, but it isn't a King Piece enhancement either. In fact, now that I think about it..." Ajuka answered.

"Agreed, Jesteca's not acting like himself, I don't like what that's implying." Sirzechs replied.

Rias saw the various Jesteca and his copies neared Rias' field of view, and at that moment...

...she turned to Yumi.

"Do it Yumi, unleash your Balance Breaker." Rias ordered.

"Alright, Balance Breaker..." Yumi stated.

Yumi intertwined all five of her fingers onto the bow string, soon giving a mighty pull as her eyes glowed and the bow contracted a bit, spreading out to split into a six-pronged star shape, the middle four-star points creating extends that branched out horizontally.

"[**Infinita Lumen Inlustrem!**]"

"_Wait... I don't believe it, it's the Lumen Shekhinah's Balance Breaker! If I recall right, this Sacred Gear's never had any user achieve it, am I right Mephisto?_" Naud asked.

"_Based on the Grigori's research, you are correct. Though that brings us question... what can it do?_" Mephisto announced.

Yumi pulls back on the strings more, an arrow of light forming.

"Now fly, endless arrows of the luminous starlight... fly!" Yumi announced.

"FIRE!"

Yumi released the arrow, and soon that one arrow multiplied into the equivalent of an entire army of archers firing off at once. The Jesteca copies all begin to part from the spot they'd land.

"Hah! Those arrows do squat if they'll miss!" Jesteca mocked.

"They won't miss, because they're guided like the stars in the sky." Yumi smirked.

Yumi soon motioned her pointer finger, and the various arrows speed up as they moved according to the movements of the other three fingers.

Before most of them knew it, many of the Jesteca copies had an arrow pierce right through them, making them burst apart into magical sparkles. The remainder all went wide eyed while the crowd gasped.

"_Holy depths of Hell... either I'm blind, or she's using her pointer finger to guide their movements and the rest to have them strike individually!_" Naud gasped.

"_A Balance Breaker like that requires precise precision, Yumi is some archer. Maybe that's why no one else has never accessed it before. Even if they can fire an arrow, this kind of control is another level altogether._" Mephisto announced.

The real Jesteca saw his copies slowly taken out one by one, until finally... an arrow aimed at him!

"NOOOOOOOO!" Jesteca screamed.

The arrow hit, and he vanished in blue light as he was retired.

Naud waited for the dust to clear and then...

"_Lord Jesteca has been retired! It's... it's all over! In a landslide victory, Lady Rias wins!_" Naud announced.

The entire crowd cheers loudly.

Rias breathes in relief, and looks at Yumi who smiles and gives a thumb's up towards her.

* * *

Back at the Hyoudou Household, Vali's entire peerage showed shock at what they had seen.

"Holy... guacamole!" Yuuma exclaimed.

"That's a powerful Balance Breaker, I've never seen anything like it. Not to mention we have to beat that?" Le Fay remarked.

"Yes, it seems so. Don't forget Asia and Issei weren't here to see it like we were." Arthur mentioned.

Vali sweated a bit.

"No doubt, no matter who we're facing in the final match, Rias is going to make our Semi-Final just as difficult... we definitely need to train our assess off. Especially if Rias uses that same attack she beat Jesteca's rook with." Vali stated.

"Yeah, it's a good thing I'm set to have my Excalibur upgraded again soon." Irina gulped.

The Lucifer peerage all got into a focused state, knowing their toughest fights in the tournament began the next time they stepped on that arena.

* * *

Issei, Asia and Vasco all had walked inside the Vatican, and to the surprise of the former two, they saw none other than Dulio from the Summit within the church, sharing some food with the church orphans living there.

At that moment, the Brave Saint known as Michael's Joker turned to see them.

"Ah, hello there Asia, Issei! I didn't know you'd be here." Dulio greeted.

"Likewise." Issei chuckled.

"Kids, that man over there is the Sekiryuutei, why don't you all go say hi?" Dulio suggested.

The kids all turned to see Issei, and soon gave excited smiles as they ran up to him.

"Wow, you're so cool mister!"

"I wanna be like you when I grow up!"

"Is there really a Dragon inside you?

Issei chuckled at the kids swarming around him and smiled, he remembered how Dulio mention in the summit how the orphans taken in by the church were like his brothers and sisters and how he wanted to share the joys of the world with them.

Looks like he was doing a good job there, because these kids were all happy and full of life.

"Oh, forgive my rudeness. Is there a reason you're visiting?" Dulio asked.

"Yeah..." Issei answered.

Issei got closer to whisper it into his ear.

"We're here because Asia wants to try learning how to fight a bit for Vali's sake and to protect herself, but... due to what happened with Diodora, it seems like she's being held back by her time here." Issei whispered.

Dulio's eyes widened.

"So, you're here because..." Dulio whispered.

Issei nodded.

"Yeah, she's here to face her demons and try finding peace. She seems fine now... but I think she's crying on the inside." Issei whispered.

"I see, I wish you luck then." Dulio replied.

Issei smiled.

"Thanks." Issei replied back.

* * *

Saji looked a bit nervous as he looked at his outfit again, sweating a bit as he waited outside the Hyoudou household for Sona for their date.

**"{Man, you look like you're about to blow a gasket kid, ain't getting a date with your dream girl what you wanted?}"** Vritra asked.

"Being mentally prepared for a date and wanting one are two different things Vritra!" Saji replied loudly.

**"{Really? Man, you humans are so complicated at times, it can't be that hard.}"** Vritra sighed.

"Then how many Dragons did you get a chance to romantically bond with?" Saji asked.

Vritra went silent at that.

**"{Oh look, that bird flock looks like a V!}"** Vritra suddenly stated.

'That's what I thought.' Saji thought.

"Saji."

Saji flinched a bit, and soon turned to see Sona without her glasses and wearing a simply blue dress. Saji had a slightly nose blood at the sight.

**'{Wow... smooth there partner, _real_ smooth...}'** Vritra sighed.

Sona looked away a bit, blushing bashfully from Saji's staring.

"What's wrong, does it look bad?" Sona asked.

"Huh? Oh, no, no it looks fine! It's... it's just so pretty I couldn't find the words, I... I mean... oh god." Saji replied.

Sona sighed before smiling.

"So, shall we go then?" Sona offered.

"Uh... y-yeah, let's do that." Saji laughed a bit.

Sona took Saji's hand, making the host of Vritra's face go red as steam started to come off his face.

**'{I'm gonna get a ton of laughs from this date by the time it ends, bring it on Sona Sitri!}'** Vritra thought with a smirk.

* * *

Asia looked nervous as she and Issei walked into a room with Vasco watching from the doorway, she saw various nuns and priests she remembered and on the day she was excommunicated, including those who called her a witch.

At one point, Asia tried to turn away, but Issei held onto her hand tightly.

"We've made it this far Asia, don't turn back now. If you do you might not even be able to come here again... and you might regret it." Issei stated.

"B-But... what if they-" Asia asked with a whimper.

"Asia, it doesn't matter what they think. What matters is that me, all our friends, the people that are you family know the real you. So please... try for me, and for Vali. You're like my sister, and as your big brother... I can't bare seeing you put up a fake smile." Issei answered.

Asia silently gasped at that, and after shaking a bit more, held Issei's hand tighter.

The two of them walked forward, and soon many of them noticed the two, especially Asia. At first, no one was willing to say a thing, until...

"Asia." A nun suddenly said.

Asia tensed up, squeezing Issei's hand a bit.

"...It's been a long time, hasn't it? I'm surprised you came back here." The nun stated.

"Huh?" Asia said.

She obvious hadn't been expecting that reaction at all.

Issei however had a good feeling why they said that, when Asia had been excommunicated, no one knew God was dead. However, that wasn't the case anymore, which likely meant Michael had told them the truth.

"We... treated you very badly, and I doubt an apology is enough. Though we did save something that should have been given to you long ago." The nun continued.

"Huh?" Asia repeated.

Vasco soon took that as his cue and brought over a stack of letters.

"W-what are these?" Asia asked.

"Read them and find out." Vasco replied.

Asia starts opening them from the top, and with the first one she gasped as she realized what they were...

...letters of thanks from the people that she cured with her power.

"This is..." Asia gasped, tearing up a bit.

"That's right, everyone you ever helped, and the letters didn't stop even after you left the church." Vasco smiled.

As Asia kept going, eventually some asked where she was when she was forced to leave, and soon... then came the clincher. There wasn't a letter after that didn't mention the same thing, the people she helped and wanted her help?

Not a single one agreed that she was a witch, even before she had met Issei, there were people who understood her kindness and didn't care what her power could do, only that it helped others.

"Look at that Asia, and if you didn't come here, you'd have never known." Issei smiled.

And with those words, Asia's eyes fully welled up with tears before she fell on her knees and began to cry. Strada stroked Asia's head as she did, the Lucifer Bishop trying to not make any noise as she continued sobbing.

For so long, Asia had felt guilt and regret, even a bit of doubt. Diodora's subsequent reveal didn't do her ever favors. But now, right at this moment? Asia finally knew what she did in the Church to save those lives hadn't been in vain.

'It can be scary to face our pasts, and to accept our futures... but as long as we're in the preset, we need to do our best to move forward. Even if just one step at a time.' Issei thought with a smile.

* * *

Vali sat on the couch and soon noticed the flier in her pocket react a bit.

"Whoa, already? I didn't think they'd be back this soon." Vali remarked.

Vali tossed the flier onto the floor as both Issei and Asia reappear from it.

"Hey, glad to be back!" Issei greeted.

"How was the trip?" Vali asked.

Issei chuckled, looking towards Asia.

Vali looked to see Asia was smiling brightly, and the Lucifer heiress gave a smile in return. Looks like it all worked out.

"That's good, we saw Rias' Rating game and she's as big a threat as Sairaorg could be. We need to train and be ready when we finally face her." Vali stated.

"Whoa, sounds like we missed something big from that Rating Game. Looks like we've gotta do overtime Ddraig." Issei chuckled.

**"[You're telling me.]"** Ddraig replied.

The sound of a throat clearing entering the room was heard, and soon the trio turned to see Lilith at the doorway.

"Issei, you have a guest... mind following me real quick?" Lilith asked.

"Uh... OK. I guess I'll catch up with you guys later." Issei replied.

Vali and Asia watched Issei leave the room, and the silver haired Lucifer showed a look of worry.

'Why do I feel this isn't just some ordinary guest and something big is gonna happen?' Vali worried.

* * *

Issei soon followed Lilith into the kitchen where he saw his parents standing nearby on the wall, and a familiar red-haired Goddess to Kunou. Unlike the formal dress she wore at the party, she was now wearing a casual light blue shirt with a light white colored vest and some faded jean shorts.

"Issei, this is Amaterasu, the Shinto Goddess of the sun. I believe Kunou's mentioned to you and the others about their meeting during the party where I announced the tournament?" Lilith introduced.

"O-Oh! It's a pleasure to make your Amaterasu." Issei replied.

"Nice to meet you young Sekiryuutei, or I guess Issei Hyoudou in this particular case.

"Huh? Hey wait, should you really say that with my parents-" Issei asked.

Lilith puts her hand on his shoulder.

"This is... related to that." Lilith answered.

"Uh... OK?" Issei replied worriedly.

Issei sat down, noticing his parents faces seem kinda worried as Amaterasu sighed, ready to reveal what she had to.

"Issei, I believe you're aware of your special power, the Domineering Will?" Amaterasu asked.

"Yeah, after that battle, Lilith told me what she learned from Zeus. What about it?" Issei answered.

Amaterasu went silent for a moment, soon looking at Issei's left arm.

"Ddraig?" Amaterasu stated.

**"What is it?"** Ddraig inquired.

"An ability that can be passed down like that should have its traces in one of the child's parents, even if they don't know it... do you sense that in either of Issei's parents?" Amaterasu asked.

The Red Dragon Emperor went silent, he hadn't ever really checked on that, but now he had a bad feeling behind being asked that question.

He sensed both of Issei's parents' auras, and then he saw it...

...or rather, didn't see what he should have seen.

**"There's... no trace in either of them?"** Ddraig gasped.

"Huh?" Issei blinked.

Amaterasu soon motioned her eyes towards Issei's parents.

"Well, first off... your parents know of the supernatural, since you were only just a baby. I'm the reason they know of it. They're actually a lot younger than they look, but by my request I've had them appear older so you'd never think they didn't know. Now, they're going to tell you why, and why Ddraig doesn't see any trace of your Domineering Will in either of them." Amaterasu revealed.

Issei stared in shock before Seiji began.

"Well son, you see... everything happens a certain way, and... well we kept this hidden because-" Seiji said nervously.

"Oh, for the love of, I'll do it honey." Hana sighed.

"Son, it's time I tell you something we should have told you a long time ago. Issei, the truth is you were... a... a... adopted." Hana revealed.

Issei's eyes widened in shock.

"...What?" Issei breathed.

"Your father and I tried to have children before, twice... but doctora told me that while not impossible, the chances of me successfully having children were low. Even with everything we did to be careful and enhance our chances, I had a miscarriage both times." Hana explained.

"So eventually, we went to pray, and hoped maybe the third time we could do it, if not... then we'd give up." Seiji added.

"How we adopted you starts from there." Seiji continued.

A certain memory began to ripple through his mind as he continued his tale.

* * *

_Seiji and Hana were both seen heading towards the Ise Grand Shrine, and soon walked up the stairs to pray. Once arriving at the top, the two kneeled and made praying motions._

_"Goddess Amaterasu, please... I ask you to bless us with a child." Hana prayed._

_"We ask you to please humble this one request, it's the only thing we want." Seiji prayed._

_At that moment, they heard the sound of crying._

"We had gone up to pray, hoping Amaterasu would give us a blessing for our third try to succeed. However, neither of us expected to hear a baby crying, or for to us to see that baby being held by the very God we were praying who by chance had come to that particular shrine."

_The couple soon stood up, trying to find the source of the crying, and then..._

_"Shh... it's OK little one, don't cry. Don't cry."_

_They soon looked behind one part of the shrine, seeing the red-haired Goddess herself holding a year old Issei in her arms._

_Her words did nothing, she couldn't comfort her child the same way his mother could._

_"Excuse me?" Hana called out._

_Amaterasu flinched in shock, turning to see the two as they looked at her._

_"Are you alright, is your child?" Seiji asked._

_"Oh, actually... this baby isn't mine. His mother left him with me, because she couldn't keep him safe." Amaterasu said sadly._

_The Hyoudou couple showed surprise before looking a bit sad._

_"That's terrible, the poor boy... I bet he's crying because he misses her." Seiji replied._

_"What's your name miss?" Hana asked._

_Normally Amaterasu wouldn't give off her real name, but considering the nature of the child she held..._

_"You might think this is crazy, but... I'm Amaterasu, as in the very Goddess this shrine honors." Amaterasu admitted._

_"What?" Hana gasped._

_"You're not crazy, I'm an actual Goddess. In fact, all myths and supernatural and real, and they're hiding form Humanity, every day without notice." Amaterasu continued._

_The two stared in shock, and to prove it, Amaterasu showed the signature flames she possessed. Any doubts were crushed right there._

_She soon looked down at the young Issei and gave a sad smile._

_"Though we have our own share of problems... ones that forced this child's mother to leave him, so he wouldn't be killed in the dangers he endured. I can't raise him though, I need to find him a home, at least until the day the danger has past and his real parents can return to him." Amaterasu stated._

_"...Would it be alright if we took him in as our son?" Seiji asked._

_"Huh?" Amaterasu blinked._

_"You see... the truth is we came her to pray for a child, we've tried twice and failed. Maybe this was meant to be?" Hana explained._

_The Shinto Sun Goddess stared before smiling._

_"Hmm... maybe it was. Alright, I shall let you raise him as your own son." Amaterasu nodded._

_"but I ask you this... until the child learns of it on his own, never tell him of the supernatural. Understood?" Amaterasu asked._

_The two nodded._

_Amaterasu soon handing the child to them, and while he still cried, he young Issei_

* * *

Issei's eyes shook at he stared at his adoptive parents, his body trembling a bit.

Unknown to anyone, Vali had followed and listened behind the closed kitchen door, a hand to her mouth as she learned the same truth.

"...and ever since then, we've raised you as our own son." Hana replied.

Issei didn't say anything for a bit, and soon looked at Amaterasu.

"Wait a minute, you said my birth parents would come back when the danger was gone, are you saying... they're gone?" Issei asked.

"No, they're both still alive, but the danger they faced took so long to disappear... you had already grown up so much. They didn't think you'd believe them, not to mention the didn't think they still had the right to be in your life now." Amaterasu answered.

Issei looked down, and the Sun Goddess soon walked near her.

"Issei, I have an ability that can show you the memory of the day that led to your mother leaving you in my care. Just know, you might not like it and may regret seeing it... at the same time, if you want to see your birth parents, I'll take you to them. After all you just had to learn... the choice should be yours for both." Amaterasu stated.

"...Show me, I have to... no, I need to know. I thought I always knew where I came from, but I always felt something deep down in me that something didn't feel right, now I know... I wanted to know where I am, where I come from. If I don't, I don't think I'll ever truly feel I know my place in the world." Issei answered.

Amaterasu nods.

"Alright, close your eyes then." Amaterasu replied.

Issei does, and soon the red-haired tapped his forehead, a light glowing before Issei's eyes suddenly shot open without their light.

* * *

_The sight of a village suddenly being set on fire was heard, and a baby Issei cried as he looked around confused and scared, not sure what was happening aside from the fire and everyone else in the village running._

_In the distance, the sight of some shady looking figures of various shapes were seen, but among them there was one that Issei's view could see more detail on. A small goatee, and... dark silver hair._

_The man standing in the flames was none other than Rizevim Livan Lucifer._

_"Kill them all!" Rizevim declared with a smirk._

_Some of the other shadowed figures rushed towards Issei, and despite his young age, he clearly knew he was in danger and his life was being threatened._

_Luckily, help arrived at that moment as a man with brown hair rushed in front of him and attacked the figures going after him, sending them flying back and knocking Rizevim over as they crashed into him._

_"Take our son, and run away!" Issei's father ordered._

_"But dear-" Issei's mother replied._

_"I SAID GO!" Issei's father demanded._

_She didn't try to argue and grabbed their son, soon fleeing their home with the survivors._

* * *

_Issei's mother managed to keep outrunning and get away from the ones chasing them, but they would always find her later because of Issei's crying. It became clear to her after a while... she couldn't stay with her child._

_She had no choice, she needed to find someone to give him too and run away, and survive another day until she and his father could return to him._

_After running for a bit, she soon managed to find a temple that was none other than the home of Amaterasu, and soon rushed up it, the guards didn't stop her as they noticed the child and soon, the Sun Goddess saw her._

_"Hey, are you alright? What's wrong?" Amaterasu asked._

_"Our home... our home was attacked, our people slaughtered. I've ran, but... my son's cries keep drawing them back. I beg of you... find him a good home, keep him safe until the day I can return to him." Issei's mother begged._

_"...I, I'll try my best." Amaterasu said sadly._

_Issei's mother soon gave her son to Amaterasu, and soon rubbed his head with a teary look. Issei reached out to her before she kissed his forehead._

_"I'm so sorry Issei, please... forgive me one day. Goodbye," Issei's mother sniffled._

_She soon ran away from the temple, and soon Issei cried as he saw his mother disappear from view, only getting louder as she got further away._

_The Sun Goddess tried to calm him down, but... it didn't work._

* * *

Issei's eyes regained their light, and soon his felt tears from them as he panted.

"What was it, what did you see?" Amaterasu asked.

"...I saw someone, he had the same hair as Vali, but he was cruel and took pleasure in pain. He was the one behind it all!" Issei cried.

Lilith soon smashed a vase off a stand in anger, breathing a bit.

"Damn it, damn that bastard! Not only did you ruin Vali's life... but Issei's!? Just how much suffering do you have to give Rizevim!?" Lilith screamed.

Behind the door, Vali's eyes teared up as she heard that, and she had to use every bit of willpower to make her crying silent.

"...Rizevim, that's the Devil that you disowned as your son, the devil that's Vali's grandfather." Issei stated.

"Yes... he's the one true evil thing Satan and I ever brought into this world. True I got Vali because he was born, but he's only brought harm otherwise, even to his own family. To think he's taken even more than even I know." Lilith cried.

"I'm so sorry Issei."

Issei put a hand on her arm, letting her know he didn't blame her.

As Issei got a bit more teary eyed himself, Amaterasu put a hand on his shoulder.

"Issei, your life may not have had the happiest memories or the fairest of actions, but... that doesn't mean anything. The past doesn't make you who you are, it is your whole life, who you chose to be and who you will become. So tell me, who are you?" Amaterasu asked.

Issei's eyes slowly widened.

He remembered his early years with his adoptive parents, meeting Irina, and then meeting with Vali.

The day Vali came back from her training journey, meeting Motohama and Matsuda, meeting Ddraig for the first time.

Meeting Vali's peerage, his first encounter with Asia, the date with Yuuma, seeing Irina again, unlocking his Balance Breaker.

Being introduced to Kunou, the finishing move he and Vali made against Riser.

Saving Vali from the Juggernaut Drive, using the Domineering Will, and then finally his most precious memory...

...his first kiss with Vali.

Issei closed his eyes and stood up, looking at the Shinto Goddess.

"I'm Issei Hyoudou, but there's one thing left for me to do before I can truly know who I am. Amaterasu... I need to see them, my birth parents." Issei stated.

Issei looked at Hana and Seiji.

"And I just want both of you to know, even though you didn't bring me into this world, you raised me... so no matter what, I'll always be your son." Issei cried.

Lilith soon smiled as the Hyoudou couple began to cry in return, and they all hugged each other.

Vali cried happy tears as she soon walked away from the door.

"Alright, I'll take you to them now." Amaterasu smiled.

Amaterasu puts her hand on Issei, and takes him to another part of Japan.

* * *

The next day, everyone was at the Rating Game tournament's arena, where the B-Block's first match was about to begin.

"_Welcome everyone, I'm your host Naud Gamigin and we're about to see a big match up today! Two of the Great Devil clan heirs are duking it out, and they happen to be Ineelana Leviathan vs Gebedon Asmodeus!_" Naud announced.

The entire stadium cheers loudly.

"_And now to announce today's guest judge, I've got a surprise. Say hello to the Rating Game champion himself!_" Naud revealed.

"_A pleasure to be here Naud._" Diehauser greeted.

The entire stadium screams in excitement, especially Diehauser's fan girls.

Soon enough, the two gates open as Ineelana and her team enter from the West gate and Gebedon and his team came from the East gate.

"_Now, it's time to decide the match type! And it's..._" Naud announced.

Diehauser took a sphere and showed it in the air to reveal the symbol was a sacred gear.

"_Alright, it's a_ "_Sacred Battle!", anyone with a Sacred Gear can only use their Sacred Gears' powers and abilities through the arena locking your other powers. How's that for a twist?_" Naud asked.

"_Quite the interesting one, anyone that has a sacred gear which lacks any offensive ability can't attack, while it also takes away some of the defensive skills they might have in the same vein._" Diehauser answered.

Soon the two heirs stare each other down.

"I hope after this battle ends, I can treat you to a nice-" Gebedon stated while flipping a hand through his hair.

"Shut up before I rip out your hair and make you eat it!" Ineelana shouted.

Gebedon held up his arms defensively.

"_Now, let the match... Begin!_" Naud announced.

The arena turns the field into a large grassy field, and the two Devils instantly rushed ahead, both of them prepared to claim victory.

* * *

**Alright, the battle between Ineelana and Gebedon has finally begun, and next chapter we're gonna see who's gonna make it to the Semi-Finals! Now don't worry about the date with Saji and Sona, I'll show how that went next chapter. I just felt like initiating it here to have finished next chapter like Asia, as with Issei going to meet his birth parents.**

**Speaking of which, that was definitely a huge bomb Issei just had dropped on him. As you can see... Rizevim screwed up his childhood to, just not as directly, guess Issei's got a reason to break that bastard's face in later on. The reason I chose to have Issei's birth parents alive is because of one thing mainly, having them dead makes his story too identical to Vali's, and I'd rather not do that.**

**Glad to see Asia's finally come to terms with herself, and we even got to see an appearance from Dulio who hasn't been in the fanfic since Season 2, glad I got the chance to add him in. Not to mention Rias' peerage has become a big blockade for Vali's team, unlike the tournament's beginning... they've heavily leveled up and are now a large threat. It'll take more than having both Dragon Emperors to bear her at this stage.**

**See you all next time when we see how Saji and Sona's date concluded, the fateful meeting between Issei and his birth parents, and most of all... the epic fight between Ineelana and Gebedon!**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**N/A**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Currently on their first date  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	37. Chapter 37

**Alright everyone, time to kick things into overdrive because we've got a Rating Game between Ineelana and Gebedon to see, the reveal of Issei's birth parents as he finally meets them for the first time, and a date between Saji and Sona to finish! *exclaims excitedly* Sorry about that, I think I had too many donuts earlier ^^; *clears throat***

**Oh yeah, I've finally made my decision about Asia's offensive, magic, you all gave me good suggestions but it was too hard to pick... and then I remembered something based on one of the suggestions I was told and something I did earlier in the story. To explain that, back when Asia was reborn as a Devil, I mentioned one clear difference in the story that I won't blame anyone if they forgot due to how long it's been.**

**When reincarnated by an Evil Piece, certain objects that could normally harm a Devil can stay on them and be an exception from the rule, but only for that item or similar item. To give an example of this? Asia, Xenovia, Jeanne and Irina can all still wear a cross, and their crosses won't hurt another Devil on contact, but only if they're wearing them and these crosses in particular, other crosses can _still_ hurt them.**

**So, since while Yuuma can make weapons of light, she can't use actual holy element spells... I figured that I should make Asia's magic affinity be the light and holy elements since she's the purest of the Church Quartet. Also, similar to how she eventually finds a method to heal her allies without healing her enemies by developing a way to shot Twilight Healing energy that disperses if it hits an enemy, her spells can work in a similar manner. In fact, I might make that the in-story reason she learns to do that with Twilight Healing.**

**Also, to top it all off, we're gonna see a bit of Sairaorg and Niruili's peerages in this chapter as their Rating Game match starts slowly closing in on us :3**

**So, with that done... let's begin!**

**A/N: I had trouble figuring out the specific origin point of the Shinto Gods, and based on a bit of wording I saw, what it led me to made it seem like Mie Prefecture, where the Ise Grand Shrine is located, is their origin point. So, if I'm wrong about this, feel free to correct me so I can edit the chapter and put the correct location in.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Prison Dragon Vritra- **

**The most powerful of the Evil Dragons and the only one to earn the title of Dragon King, while also being known for his various cursed abilities. Long ago, Vritra was a powerful normal Dragon, but ended up receiving a plethora of curses. However, rather than the curses destroying him like intended, he actually managed to have his body devour them and make them his own power... at the cost becoming insane.**

**With his newfound power, he had become an Evil Dragon and quickly managed to prove himself superior to even the deadliest three Evil Dragons at the time, Azi Dahaka, Apophis, and even Crom Cruach who at the time was the world's 8th strongest Being. Eventually, he became the 5th strongest being in the world and the 6th most powerful Dragon, just below Ddraig and Albion, Bahamut, and Ophis and Great Red.**

**Eventually, he located the Hindu God known as Indra and tried to murder him, the battle was so one-sided that for Indra to win, he had to seal Vritra by splitting his soul into four and causing him to eventually become four Sacred Gears. In the process of this act, Vritra regained his sanity, and has since come to be alright with the arrangement since he can think again, even if he's a little more... foul mouthed than his fellow top tiered Dragons.**

**Unfortunately, this victory caused Indra to become the horrible god he is in the present, something he regrets because he can't fight Indra at his full power with his full sanity this time unless his host can get strong enough to do that. While Saji is a great host due to combining the four Vritra gears into one, he admits that Saji's not at that level of strength just yet.**

**Despite his story, Vritra's still a noble Dragon and a great mentor to his hosts.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Journey to the Finals Arc: Chapter 3 - Brawls, Dates and Family _ **

Soon the two heirs stare each other down.

"I hope after this battle ends, I can treat you to a nice-" Gebedon stated while flipping a hand through his hair.

"Shut up before I rip out your hair and make you eat it!" Ineelana shouted.

Gebedon held up his arms defensively.

"Now, let the match... Begin!" Naud announced.

The arena turns the field into a large grassy field, and the two Devils instantly rushed ahead.

"**ETERNAL COFFIN!**" Ineelana screamed.

Ineelana slams the ground, freezing most of the grassland area in the process.

Gebedon and his peerage all move out of the way, and soon his eyes glow.

"**INVADER SIGHT!**" Gebedon declared.

Gebedon tried to get an insight on Ineelana's plans, but...

...he felt his vision sizzle a bit, surprising him.

"Ah shit, the only way my Invader Sight can fall is if user has a strong will or... heavily distrusts me. Aw man!" Gebedon groaned.

"_Ooh! That's gotta sting, looks like Gebedon's flirting with Ineelana has made one of his best weapons useless! Against the other Great Devil heirs, that might have actually worked!_" Naud announced with a chuckle.

"_A weakness he should have done well to remember, it was the discovery of this weakness that lead to the original Asmodeus' death in the Great War._" Diehauser added.

Gebedon blushed embarrassingly at that.

At that moment, his thoughts were distracted as Ophelia's miasma launched out of the ground as a swarm of hands.

"...**Ereshkigal.**" Ophelia said softly.

The miasma hands all lurched forward, ready to grab Gebedon's peerage in their grasp.

"Lubbock!" Gebedon ordered/

"On it!" Lubbock replied.

Soon Lubbock held out a hand as he formed an attachment to his glove and revealed his sacred gear: the [**Eternal Crossing Thread**], and extended his hands.

The thread holder soon spun as his glove attachment fired off a multitude of threads, soon causing a flash of wires to form in front of the group as a wall and shred the miasma hands apart, making them disperse.

"No way..." Ophelia breathed.

"_Whoa! Look at that Sacred Gear, do we have any info from Grigori here?_" Naud asked.

A nearby Fallen Angel checks and hands him something.

"_Ah! Here we go, the Eternal Crossing Thread, a trap type sacred gear that makes razor sharp threads that have multiple of uses, a primary one being that it can cut through nearly anything. Also, as the eternal part implies, these threads don't have a limit!_" Naud announced.

"_It's perfect for someone like Gebedon who can usually predict enemy plans. He could have Lubbock move those threads into an enemy line without them noticing. Not to mention from what I notice Gebedon clearly thought about this advantage when choosing his peerage._" Diehauser noted.

Ineelana grits her teeth.

"Freeze it cold Yumi! Mine, follow it up after!" Ineelana ordered.

"At once." Yumi replied.

With the simple swing of her fan, the wires are all frozen in place.

Using the moment, Mine charged a shot and fired it off, smashing the frozen wires apart.

"Aw crap!" Lubbock replied as he recalled the threads.

"I'm here to win Gebedon, and I'll have great pleasure kicking your perverted ass!" Ineelana declared.

Gebedon gulped a bit.

* * *

Issei stood at the door to a home in Ise City of Mie Prefecture, the area where the Ise Grand Shrine was located. The current residence of his birth mother. His father wasn't currently living in the house because Amaterasu mentioned he was healing in the hospital.

"You completely sure my dad's alright?" Issei asked.

"Don't worry Issei, it was just a few wounds he gathered over the years taking their toll on his body. The doctor's say while they don't know when, he'll be fully healed by the end of this year." Amaterasu answered.

Amaterasu soon walked near the door.

"Now come on, are you ready to see your mom or are you having second thoughts now?" Amaterasu asked.

"I'm coming, though mind if you do it like this?" Issei requested.

Amaterasu hears Issei whisper something to her, and soon nods a bit.

"Sure, I can do that." Amaterasu replied.

Amaterasu and Issei soon come inside, and the former knocks on a door she felt the aura of Issei's mother in.

"Huh? Who is it?" A young airy sounding voice asked.

"It's me, Amaterasu." Amaterasu greeted.

"Oh, hey there Ami! Come on in!" Issei's mother greeted.

Amaterasu opens the door, and Issei hides behind her. He took a brief pink through the few openings to get the first look at his birth mother.

She looked quite young for her age, though based on how Issei's adoptive parents were actually younger looking due to supernatural influence, Issei started to think if you had any kinda magical ability then your lifespan was larger than the average lifespan of a normal human.

She had sparkling crystal colored eyes, and pure white hair that was waist length that had the frontal section of her hair tied up in rainbow colored hair bands, and a pair of pink ribbons tied on the sides of her hair that gathered her hair like a ponytail, but only slightly upwards with the area of her hair tied between the rear side of her head.

She wore a light blue shirt with a sleeveless white sweater and jean shorts similar in style to the casual shorts on Vali's clothing, a black string necklace with a diamond carved into the shape of a heart. She was without shoes currently, but wore brown boots with white socks underneath.

"It's been a while, hasn't it Homura?" Amaterasu smiled.

"Yes, it has. Though what brings you hear so suddenly?" Homura asked.

"Well, I brought a guest." Amaterasu replied.

Amaterasu soon moved aside, letting Issei walk in. Homura looked at Issei as he did, closing the door behind him.

"Oh, hello there. Who are you?" Homura asked.

Issei breathed, trying to keep himself together as he saw his birth mother up close for the first time that he could remember.

Homura noticed this and looked a bit worried.

"I-Is something wrong?" Homura asked.

"...Hello again, mom." Issei replied.

Homura's expression suddenly changed from one of worry to surprise, and soon her mouth slightly opened up as tears welled her eyes.

"It can't be... Issei?" Homura asked quietly.

Issei slowly nodded, tears starting to drip down his face, and soon he soon walked closer before falling to his knees and crying. Amaterasu got a little misty eyed herself as Homura soon walked near Issei before hugging him, and he hugged her in return.

'The first step... is always the hardest!' Issei thought, still crying.

* * *

Stella swings her sword forward.

"**Katharterio Salamandra!**" Stella shouted loudly.

From her sword came a flaming dragon like creature which flew towards Elfman.

"Man Beast: **LIZARDMAN!**" Elfman exclaimed.

Elfman's body shifts into that of a Lizardman, and soon he rushes through the flames with his incredibly thick scales, still taking damage from the 3000°C degree flames.

Once he phases through, Stella gasped before Elfman punched her... only to hit a dress of magical flames.

"What the!?" Elfman gasped.

"I'll admit, handling my flames is impressive, but it'll take a little more than that to go against my **Empress Dress.**" Stella smirked.

"_Whoa, and there's another surprise by Ineelana's fiery Knight!_" Naud announced.

"And now it's time for me to roast you myself!" Stella exclaimed.

"Oh crap... no, a real man takes these challenges head on! Manbeast: **WERETIGER**!" Elfman stated.

Elfman shifts into a bipedal tiger like form and rushes out of the way with fast speeds, avoiding the slam of Stella's flames.

Guiche removes the rose he was carrying and swipes it forward, a petal flies out before turning into an armored creature similar to a Valkyrie. Yumi shows some surprise to this ability of his.

"A sacred gear?" Yumi wondered.

"Yes, it is known as the [Bronze Battalion], I'd say it's quite similar to the abilities of those swordsman siblings of the Gremory peerage, but mine creates bronze constructs instead. Let this Bronze Valkyrie be your opponent." Guiche smirked.

Guiche snaps and the Valkyrie rushes at Yumi. However, a mere moment later...

*SLASH*

Guiche suddenly gasped as Yumi was suddenly holding a sword made of ice, her hair now light blue and her eyes red.

"That's the transformation you use din the fight with Zephyrdor, what is this?" Guiche gasped.

"You aren't the only one with a Sacred Gear, I possess the [**Tundra Queen**], the spirit of a Yuki-Onna lives within my fan. When I access my Balance Breaker, I turn into this form, it is known as..." Yumi answered.

Yumi motions herself and soon a powerful storm of ice encompasses Guiche within it.

"...The [**Harbinger of the Black Ice Blizzard**]"

Yumi rushes forward incredibly fast, the ground below her freezing as she did, Guiche was suddenly slashed through, soon falling backwards.

"To be defeated by such a beautiful and powerful maiden, I can accept this kind of loss." Guiche breathed before vanishing.

"_One of Lord Gebedon's Rooks, retired!_" Naud announced.

Gebedon flinched at that.

"Crap..." Gebedon said to himself.

Meanwhile, Ikki heard the news and soon readied his sword a certain way before breathing.

"Alright, here goes [**Intetsu**]... Balance Breaker! Come to me [**Ittou Shura!**]" Ikki exclaimed.

Ikki's body gives a strange glow that outlines him, getting Sinon's attention.

"Better take him down now." Sinon stated, readying her bow.

"Sorry, but with my weakest... I'll defeat your strongest!" Ikki declared.

Ikki rushes forward, dodging all her bow strikes, she puts her bow behind her before taking out her sniper rifle and firing... only for Ikki to cut through the shot as the shell halves explode behind him.

"No way!" Sinon gasped.

Before she could react, Ikki cut through Sinon, making her vanish.

"_One of Lady Ineelana's Rooks, retired!_" Naud announced.

"It seems I must step in."

Ikki turns to see Ophelia appear with her miasma hands rushing at him, he quickly dodges before unleashing more power.

"I've gotta go beyond this, time for my Sub-Species Balance Breaker! Go... [**Ittou Rasetsu!**]" Ikki screamed.

Ikki's begin starts to bleed in a few pieces as his body's full muscle mass starts being used, ripping a few of the fibers apart, but staying intact due to his nature as a devil. He rushed forward, cutting through the miasma in a minute.

Ophelia stood in place before falling over and vanishing.

"_Lady Ineelana's Pawn, retired!_" Naud announced.

Ineelana soon saw Ikki nearing her, getting ready to use her clan ability until... Tamara landed in front of her.

"I've got this one! Now go... **Telos Karma, Karmic Barrier Break!**"

Tamara held out her barrier the moment Ikki's attack, and while she screamed from a bit of pain to her arm which broke from the force, a barrier reflected Ikki's attack back at him, flinging him across the ground as he vanished.

"Looks like you're weakest... beat my weakest." Ikki stated with a smile, disappearing right after.

"_One of Lord Gebedon's Knights, retired._" Diehauser announced.

The crowd cheered loudly, incredibly pumped up by the intensity of this match not being as one-sided like the previous two Quarter-Final matches before it.

Meanwhile each side stared at the other. Both had lost two of their of their peerage members, and Ineelana had a disadvantage in numbers that was balance by Sanji refusing to attack woman which was all her peerage had.

This battle was far from over.

* * *

Saji and Sona were currently seen at a small restaurant, with Saji sweating a bit.

Sona noticed this and decided to poke a little fun at him.

"You can't calm down?" Sona asked.

"A little... this is the first date I've ever been on." Saji admitted.

That surprised Sona a bit.

"...Honestly? This is also my first, so I guess we're both greenhorns when it comes to dates." Sona replied.

"Wait, really? You've never been on a date before?" Saji asked.

"Nope." Sona confirmed.

"But weren't you engaged like Rias at one point?" Saji asked.

"Doesn't mean I dated my former fiancé, just like Rias didn't date Riser." Sona stated.

Saji blinked at that.

"Good point." Saji chuckled embarrassingly.

**{If it makes you feel better, I wouldn't have thought of that either Saji, fiancé isn't a term we Dragons use.}** Vritra stated with a sweat drop.

'Good to know' Saji mentally replied.

Soon the two had their food brought, and they began eating. Saji tried his best to relax as he ate... but it was clear to Sona that he was trembling when she saw the fork.

And yet... she saw something cute in it.

'He's trying so hard, I can't help but respect that.' Sona thought with a smile.

'She's staring at me, please don't tell me that's bad sign!' Saji thought, failing to notice the smile.

After about 30-minutes, Sona and Saji finished their food and left then left the restaurant. The two currently sitting on a nearby bench to the restaurant.

"Uh... so how was the date?" Saji asked nervously.

"Hmm... how should I answer that?" Sona wondered.

Saji sweated as Sona smiled a bit.

"I'd like a second date when you feel ready for it." Sona answered with a smile.

"H-Huh? Second!? Hey, wait a minute, if you mentioned a second date then that would mean..." Saji gasped.

"Sheesh, you have to make me say it? Alright, but only this once. I officially consider you my boyfriend now." Sona admitted.

Saji suddenly went silent in shock.

"You just... I'm your... I... oh my goodness." Saji replied.

Sona watched as he slumped on the bench, she poked his shoulder to see if he'd react.

**'{Oh boy... Saji-Exe has gone offline, please reboot the system!}'** Vritra thought.

"...Maybe I should have waited until we got back to the house?" Sona said worriedly.

* * *

After a long period of hugging, Issei and Homura were both seated in the main area of the house as they began talking to each other, Amaterasu came in after bringing some tea for the three of them. She grabbed her and sipped a bit as she watched the two talk.

"-I've heard all the news about you. I can't believe you're dating the princess of Hell, not to mention you being the Sekiryuutei. I don't think I could be any prouder to have given birth to you... and I'm still shocked but happy you wanted to see me." Homura said as her eyes teared up.

"Of course I would, you're the reason I was born. You and my adoptive mother are both my moms... and I'd like you to be in my life somehow. You had to give me up just to protect me, I wanna try giving you back all the time you lost." Issei smiled.

Homura sniffled and wiped her eyes.

"You truly are your name Issei, full of sincerity and honesty." Homura smiled.

"With how many people live at your house Issei, I don't think it would be too hard to have your birth parents transferred over." Amaterasu remarked.

Issei chuckled a bit.

"Oh yeah, something that isn't as public knowledge Homura? He's managed to awaken your power, even if just the one time." Amaterasu revealed.

Homura's eyes widened.

"You used the Domineering Will? I don't believe it, after I had to leave you... I didn't think you'd ever be able to use it." Homura breathed.

Issei looked at the Shinto Goddess of the Sun in surprise.

"So, my mom's the one I get it from?" Issei asked.

"Yep, your mother is a descendant of the Hero Clan, and the hero that stopped the two Juggernaut Drives long ago." Amaterasu answered.

"Your father learned of the supernatural after they fell in love. Though I wouldn't sell him short either, I think you made the Purgatory spell so fast because of his blood." Amaterasu joked.

"True, that magical enhancement of his is incredible. Oh, by chance has Issei used that too?" Homura asked.

Amaterasu thought a bit on that.

"Issei, by chance did you ever have an instant where your hair got all red and your eyes began to glow?" Amaterasu asked.

"Yeah, when I used the Domineering Will. Is that it?" Issei asked.

Amaterasu nodded.

"Pretty much, think of it like using your will to enhance your strength, that's probably why you must have unknowingly used it when used Domineering Will the one time. Though it was probably just an aesthetic in that case because you didn't know all the workings." Amaterasu explained.

"Whoa... I wonder what would happen if I could use either at will." Issei wondered.

"I can teach you the former, and while your father isn't in the best shape to teach you his trick, I think he can at least tell you how." Homura smiled.

"Oh yeah, I think I should go meet him now." Issei replied.

Amaterasu giggled.

"Had a feeling you'd say that after we talked about him enough here." Amaterasu remarked.

* * *

"DRAGON STOMP" Stella shouted.

Stella stomped the ground, causing a burst of fire to form under Elfman, the muscular Rook screamed before he vanished.

"_One of Lord Gebedon's Rooks, retired!_" Naud shouted.

With Yoko, Fate and Ayato, the first of the three gives a slight sweat to that.

"This is bad, we're gonna get created at this rate." Yoko stated.

"Hmm... wait a minute, remember part of Gebedon's plan? If Ineelana's queen is as dangerous as she is, then we should deal with Ineelana directly." Ayato stated.

"Then let's take her down and quick." Fate agreed.

"We'll need to distract her and the rest of her pieces, what should we do?" Yoko wondered.

"I have an idea." Fate mentioned.

Fate whispered to the both of them.

"_Hmm? Oh my, looks like Gebedon's Queen, Bishop and remaining Pawn have got something up their sleeves._" Naud announced with a smirk.

"I don't like the sound of that!" Mine exclaimed.

"Quick, we gotta get to her now!" Stella shouted.

"Agreed."

As the three prepared to go after the trio, Ayato suddenly rushed in their way.

Ayato soon smiled at them.

"Sorry ladies, but I'm afraid I can't let that happen." Ayato smiled.

"What, trying to sweet talk us into a surrender? It ain't gonna happen." Mine stated.

"No, I'm just saying I'll be fighting all of you at once. First let me call out my Sacred Gear." Ayato replied.

"No you don't, I'll take you out first!" Stella shouted.

Sanji soon rushed into view, crossing into Stella's path to her surprise.

"I might not hit girls, but I don't mind shielding my team mate." Sanji shouted.

Sanji raised his leg to block Stella's sword right as it was about to strike Ayato, causing the sword's flames to burn him. At that moment, Saji vanished in blue light.

Surprised by the sacrifice, Ayato finished a certain motion with his hand as Naud made his next announcement.

"_One of Lord Gebedon's Knights, retired!_"

Now a bit vulnerable, Gebedon began running away as fast as he could to avoid the others taking the chance to attack him.

'Gotta stay clear for a while. Come on guys, make this work!' Gebedon thought.

Soon a small sword handle appeared in Ayato's hands.

"Alright, let's go [**Serrated Raze!**]" Ayato exclaimed.

Soon Ayato swung the blade, revealing a fiery black blade of plasma.

"Now time for a Balance Breaker..." Ayato stated.

"Oh no, be on guard girls!" Mine declared.

"Right." Yumi nodded, readying her ice blade.

Ayato's body glowed as chains formed around him, starting to shake.

"With my soul sword... break the celestial bonds, release the savage force within to be seen! Balance Breaker: [**Soul Crush!**]" Ayato screamed.

The chains broke, and Ayato screamed in pain as his veins turned visible before fading away, his body glowing with a deep dark red aura.

"_Hey Diehauser, what is that he just did?_" Naud asked.

"_Based on the pain, it seems like he's forced a limiter on his body to be shattered. Think of it like doping combined with the risk of muscle damage from using beyond 20-25% of the human body's normal muscle strength. My Rook has a similar ability he uses in emergency situations._" Diehauser answered.

Ayato zipped forward, cutting right through Yumi to Stella and Mine's surprise.

Luckily, instead of vanishing, Yumi broke into ice shards and reformed in another spot of ice near Stella's feet.

"That was close, if I had been even just a second late..." Yumi panted.

"I'm glad you can admit the honestly of how close I was to retiring you, so I'll be kind enough to know that this isn't like most timed powers. It can last 5 minutes normally, possibly most if I can push it." Ayato revealed.

"No way!" Stella gasped.

Mine grunts before removing her twin tails, soon making a serious stare.

"Then we'll have to fight a Balance Breaker with another Balance Breaker! Now go Roman Artillery... Balance Breaker: [**Death Blade Gun!**]" Mine shouted.

Mine's eyes lose their light and the Roman Artillery changes form, shifting its rifle tip and opening to reveal a blade made of mental energy. She reels it back, and soon shouts as she swung it forward.

Ayato parried the blade of energy, and pressed across the ground.

"Special Move, Second Sword: **Nine Fangs**!" Ayato shouted.

Ayato rushed by, cutting through the attack, and soon sprinting past Yumi and Stella, all three of them freeze up before they were all forcibly retired.

The entire crowd gasped in shock, right as Ayato suddenly widened his eyes and looked at his side... some of Yumi's ice blade and struck him and was freezing him in place to his surprise.

"Dang it... I was careless." Ayato stated.

"Ayato!" Sanji shouted.

"_One of Lord Gebedon's Pawns, retired. Lady Ineelana's Knight, one of her Bishops, and one of her Rooks. Retired._" Diehauser announced.

"_Whoa! Four retirements in only a few seconds, and now Gebedon's peerage has the lead!_" Naud announced.

Ineelana sweated as most of her team just got wiped out in an instant.

"Oh no..." Ineelana mumbled.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you! Tamara stated.

Murasaki soon got close by.

"I... I'm here too, just in case." Murasaki stated.

"Thanks you two." Ineelana smiled.

Soon the sight of Fate and Yoko rushing at the trio was seen, and Tamara readied herself to defend her king when...

"Now Lubbock!" Yoko shouted.

'Oh shit, I forgot about him!' Ineelana gasped.

Suddenly a field of threads wrap around Tamara's body, locking her movements in place to her shock.

"Oh no!" Tamara gasped.

The threads all tightened, and Tamara screamed as she was retired instantly.

"_One of Lady Ineelana's Bishops, retired!_" Naud announced!

"_Only herself and her Queen remain, she's outnumbered and possible outmatched._" Diehauser mentioned.

Lubbock chuckled as he shows himself hidden from the trees.

"It's a good thing you were close enough to message me Fate." Lubbock said with a thumb's up.

"Of course, now it's time to finish this. Go, [**Sonic Blitzkrieg!**]" Fate shouted.

Lightning hits Fate's body before she zooms at speeds faster than lightning, making Ineelana shield herself in an ice dome before it was smashed and she was pushed back. Skidding across the ground as she formed an ice slide to skate across.

Fate followed as she zapped across the sky.

"You can't escape!" Fate stated.

"Watch me!" Ineelana countered.

Lubbock prepared more of his threads, but Ineelana slammed down on her ice slide to form a large ice pillar right as the threads hit. In mere moments, the threads froze too and began traveling towards Lubbock.

"Aw crap-" Lubbock screamed.

Lubbock froze before he vanished from the ice containing him.

"_One of Lord Gebedon's Pawns, retired._" Diehauser announced.

"That kind of attack will leave you wide open. Yoko, do it now!" Fate shouted.

"Right!" Yoko exclaimed.

Fate charged lightning in her hands and Yoko took out a rifle that she charged with magical power. Murasaki gasped as she noticed this and ran forward.

"Ineelana!" Murasaki shouted.

Ineelana soon emerged from the ice pillar, only for Murasaki to knocked her to the side right as both Yoko and Fate unleashed their attacks, while the latter's attack was evaded... Murasaki was shot in the shoulder.

Upon seeing that, Ineelana's face showed fear... but what people didn't realize? It wasn't fear that Murasaki got hurt, it was something much worse.

"Oh god... they've done it now." Ineelana breathed.

"You... you hurt me..." Murasaki mumbled.

Fate and Yoko suddenly felt a dark feeling ebb out of Murasaki's body, and soon noticed her turn at them... with her eyes two dark purple pools of darkness. She slowly took a step, smashing a crater into the ground as she did.

"_W-what just happened!?_" Naud gasped.

"_I had a feeling, she rarely let her Queen do much during this tournament for a reason. She has a power... one that shouldn't be used freely. Well, looks like we're about to see what that power is._" Diehauser replied.

Murasaki pants a bit, her body trembling.

And if to show just how bad it was, Ineelana had used her powers to use an ice slide to get far away from the area, without either Yoko or Fate noticing.

Then it happened... Murasaki's powers hit their limit, and she snapped.

"HOW DARE YOU! I'LL MAKE YOU FEEL MY WRATH, YOU BROUGHT THIS ON YOURSELVES!" Murasaki screamed furiously.

"**CATASTROPHE CORE!**"

Fate and Yoko's eyes go wide as they remember the Sacred Gear that Gebedon warmed them about right as a dark aura sphere surrounded Murasaki's body.

"Hey Yoko?" Fate asked.

"...Yeah?" Yoko replied fearfully.

"I think... maybe we should have had you stay instead of Ayato." Fate answered.

"I hate to say it, but I think you're right." Yoko agreed.

Murasaki soon formed dark claws from her hair, and moved past the two of them so fast, it was almost like she had teleported. Both had claw markings appear on them before they were both retired.

"_L-Lord Gebedon's Bishop and Queen, retired!_" Naud announced in fear.

From afar, Gebedon tried to find a hiding spot, only for Murasaki to appear in front of him.

"...I'm dead, I'm so freaking dead." Gebedon whispered to himself.

Murasaki screamed before unleashing her Sacred Gear's full power on the Asmodeus heir, he was flung into the air, shocking the crowd as h quickly fell to the ground, vanishing as he was retired.

Naud took a while to find his voice and speak via the microphone.

"_L-Lord Gebedon has been retired, the winner is... Lady Ineelana!_" Naud announced.

After some silence, the crowd cheered in response to Ineelana's victory.

Murasaki's mind soon found itself as she shook her power off and Ineelana finally neared her again.

"O-Oh no, it happened again! I'm so sorry Ineelana. I... I didn't permanently hurt anyone, did I?" Murasaki asked.

"Calm down Murasaki, everyone's alright. Be glad we were in a Rating Game." Ineelana assured.

* * *

Meanwhile at the Hyoudou household, the Lucifer team all showed shock at what they had just scene.

"Holy crap! Ineelana's Queen is that powerful!?" Irina asked.

"Oh man... no wonder she wasn't fighting before now, it didn't seem like Ineelana felt safe being near her in that state. I wonder if Azazel knows what Sacred Gear that was?" Yuuma wondered.

Vali and the others all looked at Azazel.

"Hmm... well I don't really know, but it matches one I've heard about. A sacred gear that empowers itself on mental power in the form of explosions, making the wielder's body several times stronger, but only with high levels of negative emotional states. A name like Catastrophe Core seems to fit that." Azazel replied.

"So, it's quite similar to Tomoe's Sacred Gear, it's a powerful Sacred Gear with a downside. I bet the poor girl must have developed her current personality from the traumatic experience of first using it long ago." Arthur mentioned.

"Well, this much we do know... so far the Semi-Finalists include ourselves, Rias and Ineelana's peerages. As of seeing this fight, both Ineelana and Rias are just as dangerous of opponents as Sairaorg is." Vali replied.

Irina blinked at that.

"Wait... so you don't think Niruili could be one of our opponents?" Irina asked.

"Sorry, but not with who she's about to fight. I'm not trying to say Niruili's weak, but... I think even she would agree with me her chances to beat Sairaorg are incredibly low, especially since he has little magic for her clan ability to consume." Vali answered.

"Hmm... yeah, that makes sense. She's got a huge disadvantage in that area." Le Fay agreed.

Vali breathes and pumps her fist in the air.

"Come on guys, we're not wasting any time on training, we're gonna push ourselves past the limit. Also, hopefully when Issei gets back from his small trip with Amaterasu, he'll have some new tricks to add in as well!" Vali said determined.

"Speaking of which, where did they go?" Irina asked.

"...Sorry, but out of respect, I can't tell any of you. That's something only Issei himself should tell you." Vali answered.

"Oh... alright then." Irina replied worried.

* * *

In a hospital located in Ise City of Mie Prefecture, the group of Issei, Homura and Amaterasu were all present as Homura registered a visit to see Issei's birth father. After getting it set up, she looked at Issei.

"Are you ready to meet your father Issei?" Homura asked.

Issei nodded.

"Yeah, no point turning back after making it this far." Issei answered.

"Good luck." Amaterasu smiled.

Homura and Issei walked to the room his father was in, and Amaterasu waited b the wall as Homura opened the door. Upon hearing it open, Issei's father turned to see his wife walk in, getting his attention. He was a tall and incredibly muscular man with brown hair, though with a reddish, possibly maroon tint to it, with a small beard on his chin and currently wearing gown.

"Homura, I didn't expect you today." The man said in a deep-pitched and smooth voice, opposite from wife's high-pitched and airy one.

"That's because there's someone who'd like to meet you Ayumu, someone we haven't seen in a long time." Homura smiled.

Ayumu's eyes shifted slightly at that, and soon enough, he saw Issei walk in.

Like before, Issei didn't immediately say anything, and then...

"My son, Issei... is it really you?"

"...Hey there dad, it's me." Issei greeted with misty eyes.

* * *

Niruili was seen watching the recording between Ineelana and Gebedon's match, having been unable to watch the live broadcast, snacking on some sandwiches as she did with extreme speed and without chewing.

"So Gebedon's out of the running and Ineelana's in the Semi-Finals, I had a feeling she'd get the farthest out of all of us." Niruili stated.

"Unfortunately, I'm fighting Sairaorg... so I don't think I'll be progressing past here." Niruili sighed.

Niruili soon walked into her clan's mansion and found herself in one of the many kitchens they owned, the sight of her peerage all present within it.

Most of the group was eating, while her sole Knight Akame was cooking food... and occasionally sampling it, especially whenever there was any meat in the food she made. Niruili chuckled at her antics before nudging her.

"Hmm? Oh, I'm guessing you're hungry as well?" Akame asked.

"For more than a snack, a little. I gotta talk about our Rating Game plan. I expect us to lose but... there's something I wanna at least do through this game."

One of her Pawns, Natsu Dragneel, smirks at that.

"That's what I'm talking about! Go big, or go home!" Natsu declared.

"If that's what you say, then this is fair game." Lina smirked.

Natsu gasped as Lina stole some of his food, but before she could bite on it, Niruili's sole Rook Tohka ended up biting it off her fork.

"NO!" Lina exclaimed.

"Tasty." Tohka smiled.

"Grr... fine, I'll just take-" Lina replied, going after the food on Fang and Orihime's, Niruili's remaining two Pawns, plates.

"Ah!" Orihime yelped, moving her plate into the air.

"No." Fang replied, smacking her fork with his knife.

Lina sweats before looked at Reina's plate, dashing her arm forward she attempted to grab something from her plate.

Reina noticed and inhaled, vacuuming all her food into her stomach in seconds.

"Sorry Lina." Reina apologized.

"...Fine, I've still got my food-Ah!" Lina replied.

Lina saw her plate was empty, and then turned to see Akame wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"You need to pay attention better, also your food was delicious." Akame stated.

"...Damn it." Lina groaned.

She slammed her face onto the table.

"You did kinda have that one coming Lina, no offense." Niruili chuckled embarrassingly.

"Oh yes, what was it that you wanted to mention about the Rating Game?" Akame asked.

"Well, I don't know why, but Sairaorg feels like..." Niruili answered.

* * *

In the Dragon Mountains, the sight of Sairaorg and his peerage was seen as the heir of Bael himself and Kirin who had her Impact Tyrant active.

**"=Now Kirin!="** Bahamut exclaimed.

"Right!" Kirin replied.

Kirin rushed ahead, and soon she and Sairaorg were matching each other blow to blow with a flurry of punches, causing the rest of his peerage to feel an intense whirlwind from their attacks' recoil blowing towards them.

"Holy shit, do you feel that!?" Beruka asked.

"I do... I don't think we can even get near them like this!" Kuisha answered, grunting a bit.

They go even faster with their punches.

"I'm impressed Kirin, but you'll need to go even further than this!" Sairaorg shouted.

"Alright, if you want me to go further than this! If 100% isn't enough than I'll go beyond that!" Kirin shouted back.

Sairaorg feels himself being pushed back as Kirin punches even harder, and soon he's skidded back a few feet, only for Kirin to scream in pain as she feels her right arm in pain, getting Coriana's attention.

"Hold up, something's wrong!" Coriana stated.

Coriana took a look at Kirin's arm, and pressed a spot making Kirin cry out louder.

"...I knew it, you overdid it Kirin! You broke your arm with what you did!" Coriana stated.

"...I don't care if it's broken, I'll keep going!" Kirin panted, barely able to ignore the pain.

This surprised most of the peerage.

"Kirin, don't be stupid, destroying yourself isn't going to help-" Kuisha replied.

"I won't let what happened to me happen again to anyone else!" Kirin screamed.

Kuisha went silent at that.

"Sairaorg... he saved me, and didn't even need to. I lost everything and he gave me a new home, a new family, a new purpose... I'll grow stronger for him, and for everyone in the world so they never have to fear the death of everything they loved!" Kirin stated.

"For that reason alone, I'll bare all the pain of this training and grow stronger! I'll do it all not just for him, but for myself!" Kirin exclaimed.

Kuisha stared in shock, giving a silent gasp.

'Kirin... you really do love him, don't you? To push yourself so far, even though you don't need to, I don't know what pushes you other than it does.' Kuisha thought.

Kirin soon readied herself to go again, nodding at Sairaorg who nodded in return, and soon the two jumped into the air as they clashed once more.

'...Someone with that level of faith and dedication? I can't beat it, none of us can beat it... Kirin, I hope your heart finds what it desires. If you truly love him that much, then do whatever you can to be worthy of him, because only I think you can do it.' Kuisha thought.

Kirin yelled loudly as she and Sairaorg smash fists in midair, a large shock wave forming from the force of their clashing recoil.

'I will fight, I promise!' Kirin thought.

* * *

**And there you have it, another Rating Game and related events finished! Ineelana's earned the third spot in the Semi-Finals, and now the last spot is either going to Sairaorg or Niruili, although it seems at this point most people including Niruili are all pretty sure that Sairaorg's gonna win the match since the match up isn't in Niruili's favor due to Sairaorg being a Fighter-type opponent, and her clan power works better against Wizard-types.**

**Now we've got what I personally consider my favorite part of the chapter, Issei meeting his birth parents! Oh, since I didn't mention it in chapter and in case anyone asks, their last name is "Akane" which means deep red, it relates to the power Issei's dad has. There's his mom: Homura, a Hero Clan descendant and the one Issei inherited his Domineering Will ability from, and his father Ayumu who's a human who learned of the supernatural.**

**I'll reveal a bit more info about Issei's father next chapter, but I don't wanna put everything into a single chapter and make it feel cramped ^^; *chuckles* Also, Sona just broke Saji's brain! Better hope he recovers sometime this century, because I don't think Sona wants to carry him home, though she did kinda make it happen so... good luck there girl.**

**Well, that's all for today's chapter everyone. Next time we'll finish up with Issei meeting his parents as he prepares to learn from them and Amaterasu sets up some planning to get them over to Kuoh Town, the Vali team's training regimen, and more insight on the Sairaorg and Niruili peerages before they have their fated Rating Game.**

**From there, most of what's left is the Semi-Finals, and once the Rias vs Vali and Ineelana Vs [SECRET], and after that... the crossover story will soon begin! Oh, speaking of the crossover, since I feel I might finish up this season way before Re:Live's ends, I might slow down on updates for this story to let them finish them around the same time, that way I don't have to give this story mini-hiatus until the crossover begins.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki, Yumi**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Stella Vermillion, Ikki Kurogane**

**Sword Art Online - Sinon**

**Gurren Lagann - Yoko Littner**

**Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Fate Testarossa**

**One Piece - Sanji**

**Familiar of Zero - Guiche**

**Fairy Tail - Elfman, Natsu Dragneel**

**Asterisk War - Ayato Amagiri, Ophelia Landlufen**

**Akame ga Kill - Mine, Lubbock, Akame**

**Date A Live - Tohka Yatogami**

**Myriad Colors Phantom World - Reina Izumi**

**Slayers - Lina Inverse**

**Bleach - Orihime**

**Fairy Fencer F - Fang**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	38. Chapter 38

**Before I say anything else... *bows* I'd like to apologize for how long it took to update! While it was partially due to what I said about temporarily slowing the updates so I could finish Season 4 around the same time I finished Season 3 of Date A Re:Live, I wanted to update another story of mine first. Though unfortunately, that story ended up... facing some issues, and as such, I need to restart it. I figured before anything else, I should use the latest update of that story to tell all the readers about what's going on.**

**Don't worry though, this isn't going to affect this story in any way. If anything, the problem I ended up with in my other story was due to not doing what I did for this one and DAR:L, and that's... using my seasonal planning format, alongside a few other additional problems ^^; *chuckles embarrassingly* I didn't expect it to be as long, so I didn't really plan it the same way, but now, I'm starting to think that may have backfired on me. If there's any good news to this, it's the fact this happened early in the planned story.**

**Though admittedly, that wasn't the only issue. Something I've noticed is that I've gotten a bit overzealous with some planned story ideas, and with some parts of the story. Adding onto that, recently, I've realized my writing style is kinda "fast", and I've missed out on potential scenes, like showing Yuuma joining Vali during Chapter 5, not the first Omake. As a result, what happened has taught me to be more careful, especially in regards to avoiding the overzealous issue overwhelming me.**

**But I promise you all, I won't let any of them keep me from continuing this story! That being said, I've now become a bit more aware of some of my weaknesses in writing, and luckily, a good friend of mine gave me a few things to practice on, pointed out where my writing's weak and strong, and helped me regain my confidence when it was shaken. Slowly but surely, I'm gonna be improving my writing, and finalize my writing style, but for now? For right now at least, I'm going to focus on finishing this half of the story.**

**That's right, I said half :3 *giggles excitedly* This is as good of a time as any, so I guess I'll make this announcement. For a while, I've been wondering about how long this story should go on for, and where I should end it. To be honest with all of you, I actually considered making Season 6 this story's final season recently, mainly because what happened made me worry I might repeat the "crash" I've had a few times before, and because I feel to truly use my untapped writing potential... I need to finish one of my Full Stories.**

**However, that's when it hit me, how I could end this story but still continue to the events beyond Volume 12... make this story the first of at least two stories! Once we reach Season 6, this story will end, but then there's gonna be a sequel that continues it, so, I guess you could say Legend of the Heavenly Dragons is just the first saga (The Khaos Brigade saga in a sense) of the story line, with the next one being about Rizevim and Qlippoth taking the spotlight for what counts as this story's Season 7.**

**Sorry for the lengthy start notes, but since the last update was weeks ago and I had intended to only take a few days, not to mention the big news with the story, I felt it was only right you all knew about the future of this story. With that all cleared up, let's finally resume this story!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Eternal Frozen Prison: Cocytus- **

**Sometimes, death isn't enough of a punishment for some, and when someone in the supernatural world manages to push themselves far enough to qualify for this... the only suitable punishment is to give them a fate worse than death, by eternally freezing them inside one of the many ice pillars creating the most insufferable of prisons: Cocytus.**

**Cocytus was created shortly after the founding of Hell, with the original Leviathan overcharging all her magic into her Eternal Coffin ability, and then releasing it all at once to create an unbreakable version of her ability. The ice that made Cocytus would then be altered so it could grow new pillars of ice, making sure there would always be an open spot for a new criminal.**

**Cocytus would eventually become part of the Underworld, with every faction and mythology throwing their worst into it, leaving only a select few who could remove prisoners from the ice. Some of the beings currently imprisoned in Cocytus mainly include dangerous creatures like the horses of the Four Horsemen (sans the Pale Horse), but the most famous prisoner is the first one ever put inside, Dragon-Eater: Samael.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Journey to the Finals Arc: Chapter 4 - Hungry for Battle _ **

Standing on a destroyed area of the Dragon Mountains, the sight of Kirin lying on the ground, panting heavily from exhaustion, was witnessed by the members of Sairaorg's peerage.

Each of their faces had an expression of shock, not a single one of them was able to fully register what they had just witnessed.

"I... I can't believe it." Liban stuttered.

The sight before them, right now? It was Sairaorg on his knees, holding part of his rib... his rib that had been slightly broken by one of Kirin's punches!

What was the most shocking part though? When Kirin broke said rib, it had been with the arm she had broken, and therefore couldn't punch at full strength.

"Neither can I, we've never seen anyone leave that kind of damage on Sairaorg before." Gandoma replied.

"That's just the tip of the iceberg. Kirin didn't just break one of his ribs, she broke it with her broken arm, so imagine how strong that punch would have been if it wasn't?" Beruka remarked.

As the Bael peerage continued to stare, Sairaorg looked up a bit, and chuckled before giving a jovial laugh.

"I don't even remember the last time a regular punch did this kind of damage to me, it's exciting!" He confessed, a big smile on his face.

"Kirin may still lack the same experience we have, but after what we just saw, I think it's clear that she's one of the strongest among us." Kuisha admitted.

Kirin coughed a bit, and soon turned Kuisha.

She rose her broken arm into the air before she clenched it into a fist, smirking with pride.

"Did you see that, I'm... I'm still standing." Kirin declared.

"...Yeah, that you are." Kuisha smiled, feeling equally proud.

Ladora soon felt his ear twitch, his more sensitive hearing picking up the sound of wings flapping.

That sound's source soon presented itself as Tannin landed, making everyone turn to face Lilith's Queen as he looked towards them.

"I didn't see the fight, but the damage to this part of the mountain speaks how intense it was." Tannin stated.

"Sorry about that, we didn't mean to go overboard." Ladora apologized.

"Don't worry yourselves over the damage, this wouldn't be the first time I've seen such an intense battle, I'll simply have some Earth Dragons come refill the damages later." Tannin replied.

"Right now, what interests me more is the potential that Bahamut's wielder showed just now, what would you say about her progress old friend?" He asked.

The unofficial Blue Dragon Emperor pondered over the thought briefly.

**"=Hmm... if I were to be honest, her technique is quite flawed, and that lack of finesse in using it was clearly why she broke her arm. Not only that, but she still focuses too much on my adaptation power, and she seems to prefer only using physical force without understanding how. However, that doesn't mean she has no potential, if anything she has a great amount of it, she just needs help guiding it.="**

"Are you talking about how she managed to damage Sairaorg with her broken arm?" Coriana asked.

**"=Such an achievement? You can't just pull that off with mere luck, it would be suicidal to try, that was the result of Kirin's own actions. Sairaorg, raise my current host well, because if you do... then she may finally awaken my Balance Breaker.="**

Everyone, Tannin included, gasped at that claim.

"The Impact Tyrant's Balance Breaker, no one's ever managed to unlock it, could Kirin really do it?" Misteeta wondered aloud.

"That's a promise Bahamut, one day you'll see Kirin use your true power." Sairaorg declared.

Bahamut gave an unseen smirk within the Impact Tyrant, the future was looking promising to him.

* * *

Ayumu kept staring at Issei, shocked by the words he had just said... that his son had just said.

"...Issei, I don't believe this, you're really here." Ayumu gasped.

"Yeah, it's nice-" Issei replied.

Before Issei could react, Ayumu's right arm locked around his head, surprising Homura and Amaterasu as Ayumu chuckled heartily.

"I was hoping you'd show up one day, but it took you long enough, kid! What's with keeping your old man waiting?" Ayumu asked, chuckling a bit.

"Uh... well I-" Issei replied, or at least tried to.

"Now come on, tell me everything! I've heard about your dragon and little Juliet, so give me all the-" Ayumu exclaimed.

Ayumu suddenly screamed, a rush of pain flaring through his body.

Noticing this, Homura's crystal eyes shifted a bit before becoming iridescent, and her pupils went white. Issei felt a familiar power as his father let go, his mother laying him back on the bed.

"Ayumu, you know very well that you're still injured! Do you want to make your recovery harder!?" Homura scolded.

"...Right, I'm sorry sweetie." Ayumu apologized, whimpering a bit.

While Homura berated her husband for his foolishness, Issei's eyes shook as she realized what his mom had just done, there was only one time he felt a power similar to what she had just used.

"I know what you're thinking about right now, Issei. What your mother just did, that was indeed the Domineering Will, or rather, that was a _trained_ version of Domineering Will." Amaterasu explained.

"Incredible, that felt leagues above when I used it against Vali's Juggernaut Drive, how strong is she?" Issei asked, trembling in awe.

"Well, I don't know their exact power, so how should I put this?" Amaterasu wondered.

The Shinto Sun Goddess pondered for a bit, and then finally...

"Your mom managed to Domineering Will to terrify an entire Devil army that chased her, while your father punched Rizevim so hard that the Devil's had lasting damage on his chest ever since." Amaterasu answered.

"What!?" Issei exclaimed.

"Ami, don't make me sound that great, the fight I had to pull that off in is why I'm even on this hospital bed." Ayumu groaned.

Issei's eyes shook before looking towards his birth parents.

Issei knew his Homura's power was mostly linked to her Domineering Will, yet his Ayumu did something that left some lasting damage to Rizevim, just what power did he inherit from him?

"Hey dad, just what kind of power did I get from you?" Issei asked.

"Hmm?"

Amaterasu giggles a bit.

"It seems he got your little trick where dye your hair my color." Amaterasu snickered.

Homura and Ayumu gasped.

"What, are you serious?" Homura asked.

"He can use the [Force Crystallization]?" Ayumu questioned.

"Force... Crystallization?" Issei repeated.

Ayumu looked at his son.

"My signature ability, it lets me use my magical power to use all 100% of my body's muscle power, ignoring the usual risk of muscle tearing that would result from using that power." Ayumu explained.

"You mean you can ignore ripping your tendons?" Issei gasped.

Ayumu nods, smirking slightly.

"No way, I remember Tiamat telling me that even the supernatural have that limitation, and you can ignore it? Amazing." Issei replied, awestruck by what he heard.

"Yeah, my only downside is that I'm limited by the magic I have, I only just barely managed to cheat death when I fought Rizevim." Ayumu answered.

He made a grim looking face right after.

"But, I was honestly lucky, there's no way I could have been him."

Hearing his father admit that, a trickle of sweat came down Issei's face, wondering how dangerous Rizevim truly was.

Amaterasu then noticed the Sekiryuutei deep in thought, but before she could say anything...

**"(Hey Issei, what's wrong?)"** Ddraig asked.

"...I was just wondering, which path should I choose. Learn how to use Domineering Will, or Force Crystallization, which power that I've inherited would truly fit someone like me? The one with your power.

Ddraig went silent, for once he had no answers to give, and, how could he?

He never faced something like that, he only had his flames, even his strongest possessor relied on nothing more than his own power.

"So, you don't know the best way to move forward?" Homura asked.

"...Yeah." He replied.

Homura looked at the window, out towards the sky.

"Domineering Will is a manifestation of one's mental and emotional strength, while Force Crystallization is the same for one's physical strength, and each could work well with the Boosted Gear in some manner." She explained.

"Then, what do you-" Issei asked.

Issei suddenly paused, seeing a smile from Homura that somehow left him speechless.

"But while you inherited both powers from us, your father created his power on his own." Homura answered.

"What?" Issei said.

"That's right. I met your father as a normal nobody human, but despite he had no power, I believed in his potential, next thing I knew... he created his own power and he somehow stole my heart." Homura admitted.

Issei stared at his mom, surprised at the revelation.

**'(...Just like most of my powers, I don't believe.)'** Ddraig thought.

"You aren't gonna tell the full story right now, are you?" Amaterasu joked.

Homura turned to Amaterasu, giving her a playful pout, and then turned back to her son and pat his head.

"Dad made his own power, I don't believe it." Issei said softly.

"You have our powers, Ddraig's, and your own. So, don't limit yourself to one path, because you are more than the sum of your parts." Homura encouraged.

"That's right, forge your own road Issei, you can use all of these powers to make your own strength, and when you do... I hope I'm there to see it." Ayumu smiled.

Issei blinked before closing his eyes, then opening them again as he smiled.

Amaterasu wiped a few happy tears from her eyes and soon walked up to the three.

"Before any of that, he needs to learn how to use that potential you've passed onto him, and it'll be hard for Issei to do that if he needs to come here and back." Amaterasu mentioned.

The Shinto Sun Goddess soon gave a toothy grin.

"So, I think it's time we have Issei have all of his parents in his life." Amaterasu remarked.

* * *

** _~The next day_ **

Akame rushed forward, drawing her sword as she cut down a training dummy, the slash she made didn't just cut the dummy, but completely shred it apart.

Niruili looked at the doom, examining the damage.

"Wow Akame, I think you just broke your last damage record." Niruili praised.

"Thank you, but I felt a bit sloppy, I'll have to work to truly use that new power correctly." Akame replied.

Magic was seen on Akame's blade, taking the form of serrated edges before it vanished.

"Who cares how you did it, that was awesome! Set me up next!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Uh... I'm not sure that's a good idea Natsu, right everyone?" Tohka asked worriedly.

Natsu sees everyone look away, a nervous sweat on their faces.

"Oh, come on, I'm not that bad!" Natsu grumbled.

"You kinda are." Orihime commented.

"Uh huh." Fang agreed.

"You broke a whole wing of the mansion." Reina reminded.

Natsu flinched at that memory.

"U-Uh, well I..." Natsu stuttered.

"And boom, you've been countered." Lina snickered.

"You're not much better Lina." Tohka replied.

"Huh!?" Lina exclaimed in shock.

Niruili giggled at her peerage's antics, and soon downed a chicken wing she had in her pocket, once she swallowed it...

"Here's an idea, how about all of you test out your skills by seeing how much magic I can eat from them?" Niruili suggested.

"The old feast fight, eh? I'm in!" Natsu grinned.

Everyone with weapons brings them out, and everyone with magic readies it, Niruili smiles before opening her mouth in preparation.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Hyoudou Household's training room, the sight of Tiamat breathing out her signature flames was seen as everyone in Vali's peerage dodged it.

Seeing an opening, Irina jumped up and shouted, swinging the Excalibur DxD at the Dragon King.

"I don't think so!" Tiamat shouted.

Tiamat unfolded one of her wings, making it clash with the Holy Sword, but to Tiamat's surprise, Irina held her ground as she was pushed against the floor.

"Sorry Tiamat, but you'll have to do better than that!" Irina smirked.

"Impressive, you can actually parry against my strength now." Tiamat praised.

Le Fay brought out a large magic circle, showing the symbols for a water spell.

"Tidal Wave!" Le Fay exclaimed.

Three geysers blasted at Tiamat, pushing the Dragon King back as she felt them strike, giving Irina the opening to break free.

Irina soon used the chance to turn invisible as she swiped her sword.

"Really Irina, are you trying to be sneak-" Tiamat sighed.

Suddenly a Holy wave strikes her the Dragoness from behind, causing Tiamat to grunt in pain from the slight damage she received, and turned to see Arthur was behind her, having been the attacker.

"No, I believe we were trying a tag-team feint, do you approve?" Arthur asked.

"You sneaky bastards, to think you were all whiny brats when you first did my training." Tiamat smirked.

Tiamat breathed out her fire again, and Bikou jumped behind Asia as she formed a barrier.

"Bikou, d-do it now." Asia whispered.

"Right." Bikou replied.

Asia shifted her body slightly, forming a hole in her barrier, instantly cuing Bikou to thrust his signature staff forward.

"Extend!" Bikou yelled.

The Ruyi Jingu Bang replica lengthened, rocketing its tip through the hole and smacking the blue dragon in the muzzle, unaware of it nearing her through the cover of her flames.

The force knocked Tiamat back, causing her to rub her muzzle before looking at them.

"Kuroka, Kunou, Raynare!" Vali signaled.

"Right!"

Kuroka jumped and twirled in the air, forming three Senjutsu wheels of black fire, followed by Kunou thrusting her fox fire in the shape of a cross.

Yuuma finished up by creating a large light spear, throwing it forward and through the tree rings, causing them to latch on before the lance hits Tiamat, sending the blue Dragoness back from the force.

Once she regained her bearings, Tiamat chuckled before looking at the group.

"Dang, I haven't had to try this hard training for a long time, now let's-" Tiamat shouted.

However, the blue Dragon King soon noticed that among the group, minus the absent Issei who she knew wasn't present...

"Wait a second, where's Vali!?" Tiamat screamed.

"Above you!"

Tiamat looked up, only to realize Vali lied and was actually _behind_ her, her scale mail armor shining as a black mass began forming in her right hand!

"**[Abyssal Whirlwind!]**"

Tiamat's eyes widened as she recognized Vali's clan ability fire off, but this time as a new technique, launching her into the wall before the rest of the attack slammed her.

Vali panted before landing on the ground, looking towards where Tiamat crashed, and soon the dragoness got up, shifting into her human form.

"Damn, while that ain't enough to kill me if you wanted to, I'm not exaggerating when I say you all kept me on my toes." Tiamat acknowledged.

"Then, does that mean..." Kunou asked.

Tiamat smiled.

"Yep, by all means you won that battle, and without one of your team's best two members." Tiamat confirmed.

Vali and her peerage all smiled, cheering as they celebrated their pseudo-victory against Tiamat.

Lilith soon came in via a magic circle, stretching a bit as everyone looked at the leader of Hell.

"Hey mom, what's up?" Vali asked.

"Just came to bring you some news, but before that... how'd they do Tiamat?" Lilith asked.

"I approved." Tiamat answered.

Lilith gave a face of surprise, soon closing her eyes as she gave a toothy smile.

"Nice!"

"Uh... mom?" Vali reminded.

"Oh right, sorry." Lilith replied.

Lilith cleared her throat.

"Thought I'd let you all know Issei just came back, and he's got some guests I think you might be interested in meeting." Lilith said, giving a wink by the end.

"Issei's back!?" Vali exclaimed.

As expected, the Hakuryuukou rushed out of the room through a magic circle, wanting to see her boyfriend ASAP.

"Guests... hey wait, is this what Vali wouldn't tell me about earlier?" Irina asked.

"Why yes, yes it does Irina." Lilith answered.

'She actually answered that?' Irina thought in surprise.

* * *

Vali soon came out of the magic circle, tripping a bit as she landed, and soon rushed into the main entrance.

Upon arriving, she saw the sight of Amaterasu waving goodbye to Issei as two figures stood beside him, one of which had a wheeled support beam to keep themselves on their feet.

"Good luck Issei, and let Kunou know if we find anything about her mom, I'll let you know first." Amaterasu winked.

"I will." Issei replied.

And with that, the Shinto Goddess vanished through magic circle.

"Issei..." Vali said softly.

Issei turned and soon noticed his girlfriend looking at him teary eyed, smiling at the sight of him.

"ISSEI!"

Issei went wide eyed as Vali tackle hugged him to the ground, surprising his birth parents.

"Issei, I'm so glad you're back!" Vali cried happily.

"What the... Vali, I was gone for like a day, why are you so clingy over my absence this time?" Issei asked, confused by Vali's action.

"How couldn't I be? Because of why you left, I was so worried about how you might feel when you came back!" Vali cried, hugging him tighter.

Issei blushed as Vali's large breasts pressed onto him.

'Did they end up growing again? Man, what exactly is in her family's genes to make them... hey, wait a second.' Issei thought.

"Vali, quick question... did you just imply you knew why I left?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, why?" Vali wondered.

Issei lightly tapped her forehead.

"Because the only ones who should have known that were your mother who swore not to tell, Amaterasu, and my parents... so how do you know?" Issei asked.

Vali began to sweat at his question. Issei already had a good idea of how she found out, but wanted to see if she'd spill the beans.

"U-Uh... well, the thing is-" Vali mumbled.

"You were spying on us, weren't you?" He stated.

"...Yes." She admitted.

Issei sighed, and soon kissed Vali on the lips, making her face go red.

"Consider that may way of saying I forgive you." Issei smiled.

"...That was a very nice way of saying it." Vali replied, blushing bright red.

**"(Not to mention, it's a nice way of telling you to shut up.)"** Albion snickered.

"ALBION!" Vali exclaimed.

The White Dragon Emperor chuckled a bit before Vali blushed in embarrassment.

"You must be Vali Lucifer, it's nice to finally see my son's special sweetheart." Homura squeed.

Vali blushed as Homura light grabbed her cheek, but gentle enough to avoid hurting her.

Follow that, the others finally caught up to their King, with Tiamat and Lilith following close behind. Needless to say, everyone was more than a bit confused over seeing the two new faces in the Hyoudou Household.

"Issei, who are these two?" Irina asked.

"Well..." Issei began.

"I'm Ayumu Akane, nice to meet you." Ayumu introduced.

"And I'm his wife Homura Akane, we're Issei's parents, or more specifically, his _birth_ parents." Homura greeted.

Everyone minus Vali and Lilith blinked.

"Huh?" They all said.

"Oh, uh... you know how Amaterasu came to see me the other day? Turns out I'm adopted." Issei revealed.

It took about 5 seconds for that to register in everyone's minds, and the moment it did, the expected reaction was unleashed.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAT!?" Everyone exclaimed.

Homura smiles while Ayumu chuckles.

"Seiji and Hana knew of the supernatural the whole time, Amaterasu is even a good friend of theirs, the whole story's pretty long, but I can at least say that... well, Vali's not the only Longinus wielder who had their life ruined by my son." Lilith explained.

"Then they're... but Issei's... and so Issei's adoptive... birth..." Yuuma muttered.

The Pawn of Lucifer screamed and ran her hands through her head, her brain nearly overloaded by the crisscross of information

"I'm so confused!" Yuuma exclaimed.

"You're not the only one." Irina said, sweat dropping slightly.

Vali soon saw her familiar pop up, flying by her as it whispered something, making her eyes widen.

"Wait, right now!?" Vali exclaimed.

"What is it Vali?" Issei asked.

"The last Quarterfinal match is about to start, and I got stadium reservations for this one, we gotta go right now!" Vali exclaimed.

Everyone's eyes widened.

"Aw crud, let's jump over now, you guys go ahead while I get Hana and Seiji." Lilith stated.

Lilith formed the magic circle, and everyone jumped into it, Lilith turned to the Akane's shortly after.

"You can follow if you'd like." Lilith stated.

"Why thank you." Homura smiled.

* * *

Everyone managed to rush to their seats, barely managing to make it in time to keep Vali's reserved area.

"Holy... that was a close one, to make it with only a second left was terrifying!" Irina panted.

"I can't feel my lungs!" Kunou wheezed.

"I don't think you have it as bad as Issei's dad though." Yuuma mentioned.

Everyone looks to see Ayumu coughing as Homura carried him over to his seat, Bikou and Kuroka helping her carry him while Le Fay pushed his support beam over.

"Is he alright Mrs. Akane?" Asia asked.

"Ayumu's fine, he's just recovering from injuries, although aside from it being this year we don't know when he'll actually heal from them." Homura explained.

Soon a mic tap sound was heard.

"Oh, looks like it's starting." Vali stated.

Everyone went silent, and soon an all too familiar announcer took the stage.

"_Welcome everyone, to the last match of the Quarterfinals! As usual, I'm your announcer, Naud Gamigin!_" Naud announced.

Everyone cheered, Homura looked around, surprised at the excitement she sensed.

"Quite the spectacle, I guess we'll see what these Rating Games are like firsthand." Ayumu remarked.

"The match hasn't even started and they're already excited." Homura replied.

Naud motioned to his side, showing a tiny dragon flapping.

"_And now, time to introduce this match's guest judge, say hello to the Queen of Hell's Leader himself... Blaze Meteor Tannin!_" Naud announced.

"_Glad to be here Naud, it's an honor to be invited as a guest judge for this match._" Tannin replied.

Everyone cheered again, and soon Naud snapped his fingers as he pointed it forward.

"_Alright everyone, let's introduce today's competitors!_" Naud announced.

The west and east gates open up at that moment, Niruili's team coming in from the former, and Sairaorg's from the latter.

Niruili waved at the cheering audience, while Naud soon noticed some bandages around Kirin's broken arm.

"_Huh? Wait a second, it looks like Sairaorg's one Pawn has an injury, will she be alright?_" Naud wondered.

"_I saw her obtain that injury, it's a broken arm, and she insisted on not letting it heal for this match as a good luck charm of sorts._" Tannin answered.

"_Uh, what exactly makes a broken bone count as a lucky charm?_" Naud asked.

Tannin only gave a light smirk, leaving Naud guessing as he grabbed a sphere to decide today's match type, and the one he grabbed showed a division symbol on it.

"_And today's matchup is a "Division Battle", when the match starts, each peerage's members will be split up into two, and sent to separate areas of the battlefield!_" Naud announced.

Niruili had a color failure at that moment, and even some of the crowd winced, realizing her misfortune.

"Aw snap, luck's not in our favor today." Natsu sighed.

"Well, we did come in knowing our chances were bad if not zero, so let's just give it our all." Reina smiled.

Niruili soon turned at her queen, giving her a smile.

"Yeah, if we're gonna lose, let's show everyone we at least gave it our all, and celebrate if we end up winning." Niruili agreed.

Kirin looked at Sairaorg, and felt something off when her gaze met his backside.

**=Is there something wrong Kirin?=** Bahamut asked.

"_Yeah, I don't know why, but I've gotten this feeling that Sairaorg hasn't actually gone full out against me... something feels wrong._" Kirin mentally replied.

Bahamut sighed a bit.

**=Unfortunately, you're right about that, you see...=** Bahamut answered.

Kirin's eyes widen at what she heard, and Niruili briefly noticed this, but before she could think about it anymore...

"_Alright, let the game... begin!_" Naud announced.

Soon the dimensional field forms, sending both peerages across it in two groups.

* * *

The two peerages soon found themselves on their battleground, a forest with incredibly large trees, and quickly realized how they had been split up.

** Northern Side ** **  
~Beelzebub Team: Niruili, Tohka, Natsu, and Akame**   
**~Bael Team: Sairaorg, Kirin, Gandoma, Coriana, and the Enigmatic Pawn**

** Southern Side ** **  
~Beelzebub Team: Orihime, Fang, Lina, and Reina**   
**~Bael Team: Liban, Beruka, Ladora, Misteeta, and Kuisha**

Trying to figure out where they were, Niruili looks at Natsu.

"Natsu, can you smell out where everyone is?" Niruili asked.

"Let me see." Natsu replied.

Natsu sniffed around a bit, and soon he gave a worried look.

"Oh boy... the others are far away from us as is half of Sairaorg's team, but unfortunately, the half he ended up is ended up being closest to us." Natsu answered.

"And... who's with me exactly?" Niruili asked, sweating a bit.

Natsu sniffs again.

"Looks like he's got both his pawns, one of his bishops and one of his rooks. The others are with the rest of our team." Natsu answered.

"But her queen's got that whole [Power of Hole] thing, so can't she reunite their split team in no time?" Tohka mentioned.

"Not as easily as you think Tohka, she'd need to know where there are first, but their one knight's horse can let her accomplish that quickly if we're unlucky."

Niruili breathes.

"Well, we've already got all of these odds staked against us, so let's take this to the end." Niruili stated.

"Right!" Everyone agreed.

* * *

Kuisha's eyes dart around the area her group was located.

"Just as I thought, Sairaorg and the others are too far for us to notice." Kuisha noted.

The Queen of Bael turns to her fellow Rook.

"Can you picki up anything, Ladora?" Kuisha asked.

"I think I'm getting a whiff of Sairaorg far to the North, and it seems Niruili got dropped near him." Ladora answered.

Kuisha thinks for a bit.

"Then theoretically, that should mean the other half of her peerage is by us." Kuisha stated.

"I think we should go with this plan then, I'll help you get North and we'll use your Power of Hole to get us over to the others, then we'll all storm Niruili's group." Beruka suggested.

Kuisha thought about all the details, and then she nodded.

"Then we'll deal with the rest of Niruili's forces, and make sure they can't help her." Liban declared.

"We're all set then, here goes." Beruka declared.

Beruka walked forward and his armor materialized around him, and then he motioned his hands to his armor's mouth area, whistling loudly.

"Come to me, Altobrau!" Beruka called.

A loud horse's whinny was heard, and the group turned as a pale horse emitting blue-white flames, the famous Pale Horse that the Knight of Bael had managed to tame.

He jumped up, and mounted on Altobrau's back, grabbing Kuisha and pulling her on as he passed by, galloping towards the North of the forest.

"Good luck to you all!" Beruka shouted from afar.

"You got it!" Ladora replied with a smirk.

* * *

Homura gasped at seeing Altobrau.

"Wait, was that..." Homura asked.

"That's right, you just saw the Pale Horse, the result of Furcas clan's ability [Horse Rider] which lets them tame any creature considered an equine." Vali answered.

Homura sweated a bit after hearing that, remembering the stories about the monstrous horse and its fellow brethren.

'That horse was once a prisoner of Cocytus, I wonder what kind of power this Knight has.' Ayumu thought.

* * *

Once they were out of view, Ladora breathed.

"On standby guys, I'm gonna draw out their attention." Ladora stated.

Ladora's eyes close before opening again, but now as dragon eyes, and he slowly begins transforming into his dragon form.

"_There it is! We're seeing the [**Heart of the Drake**] ability's power firsthand, one of the many abilities that still survives among the extinct clans!_" Naud announced.

"_So, this is the power to temporarily become a dragon._" Tannin noted.

From nearby, Orihime notices the black western dragon, and pales a bit.

"Uh... guys, I think we've got company!" Orihime said shakily.

"Looks like they want to take us down, so let's return the favor to them, right here, right now." Fang replied.

Lina giggles as she cracks her knuckles.

"If there's one thing I can handle, Dragons would be one of them!" Lina stated.

"This could get hairy..." Reina quietly told herself.

The group all rushed to where Ladora was, making the transformed Devil smirk as they came into view.

"**It seems you came, get ready to some takeout!**" Ladora shouted.

Ladora's claws dug into the ground as he blazed fire at them, Reina took the lead and began inhaling, swallowing up the flames as they neared the group.

Lina soon began charging a magic sphere.

"Alright, time for this Dragon to be-" Lina shouted.

"[**Trick Vanish!**]" Misteeta yelled.

Lina suddenly noticed a mass of light surround her, quickly embedding onto Lina's body as disgusting markings as her spell was sealed off, damaging her slightly. On Ladora's back, Misteeta was seen on his knees, panting heavily as he used the staff that was his sacred gear to support himself.

"I got her Ladora, but she made me use too much stamina, that's all I can do." Misteeta breathed.

"**Don't worry, it's good enough, the time I have left in this form should be enough.**" Ladora replied.

Fang and Orihime sweat a bit, looking at Ladora's dragon form.

"No choice, we gotta take him down, now!" Fang shouted.

"Yeah, I'll get a defense up, ready your-" Orihime stated.

Suddenly all four of the Beelzebub team felt their bodies forced onto the ground by intense pressure, Liban walking into view, and whistling as his eyes took a form like Gasper's did when using his sacred gear.

"Sorry, but I'm afraid you've been grounded, and literally." Liban joked.

Taking the chance, Ladora inhaled before breathing out another burst of flame, and all of the opposing team's members were caught in the blaze.

"_Two of Lady Niruili's Pawns, her Bishop, and her Queen. Retired!_" Naud announced.

Ladora pants a bit before reverting back to his original form, he and Misteeta showing signs of fatigue.

"Rest for a while you two, I'll make sure no one tries anything funny until Kuisha comes to get us." Liban assured.

* * *

Asia trembled a bit at the sight of what just happened, with Issei sweating slightly.

"They were annihilated, damn... so this is the peerage owned by the strongest of the young Devils?" Issei stated.

"Yeah, and not only is Niruili dealing with a team that's the right counter to her main power, coupled with having less members, but the match type isn't in her favor either." Vali answered.

Vali thought for a bit.

'Although, it feels like too much was stacked against her, and maybe it is... the Devil Elders likely placed her against Sairaorg because they knew she'd have a good chance of losing against him.' Vali mentally sighed.

"Just how strong is everyone on this guy's peerage?" Bikou questioned.

Vali wondered on that, and soon found an answer.

"The best answer I can give you, had Coriana been in Ladora's place, you would have seen Niruili's peerage be halved by his weakest members, and that's only because their powers are more of support types." Vali answered.

"And we might have to fight him in the Finals? I'm suddenly not as confident about our result with Tiamat anymore..." Kuroka shuddered.

* * *

Niruili sweated, the announcement about her remaining teammates heaving just reached her.

"Damn it, they already got the rest of us!" Natsu screamed.

"No choice, if we don't reach Sairaorg and stop him now, we're gonna be creamed by the rest of his team rejoining him!" Tohka exclaimed.

Akame soon shifted as she heard something, and quickly rushed forward, slashing her sword forward as Coriana barely dodged her attack.

'How'd she spot me!?' Coriana mentally gasped.

The Bishop of Bael soon held her side, seeing she still got slightly struck, but her skin had been torn more than simply cut.

"That sword, is that a-" Coriana gasped.

"The Sacred Gear known as [**Magic Tearing Murasame**], the serrated blade it manifests will shred anything that had magic imbued into it." Akame stated.

Akame rushed at Coriana again, forcing the latter to make spears of ice, giving her the moment to get away as Akame cut them down.

"After them!" Akame shouted.

Natsu rushed forward, while Tohka grabbed Niruili, making the latter fly behind her.

Eventually, Akame slowed down as the ground burst, the sight of Sairaorg punching it entering her view.

"...It seems I was too hasty, but we found who we wanted." Akame stated.

The rest of her team caught up with her.

"Looks like it'll be all or nothing here Niruili, so I hope you don't mind me going all out." Sairaorg remarked.

"That's why we're both here, isn't it?" Niruili smiled.

Sairaorg chuckled a bit, and looked at his cloaked Pawn, causing him to nod before he moved away and waited by the branches.

'Something about that Pawn and Sairaorg's look feels off, is that related to Kirin's reaction before the match?' Niruili thought.

Natsu summoned fire to his hand.

"Let's do this, I'm all fired up!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Mission, begin." Akame replied.

Gandoma ran ahead, and Natsu smirked before doing the same, their fists colliding before Natsu pushed Gandoma back a bit.

However, Natsu sees the Rook of Bael barely taking a hit, and soon snickers a bit.

"Alright, guess I need to really let lose for this!" Natsu screamed excitedly.

Natsu crosses his arms before shouting, revealing horns of fire and Demon wings as dragon like scales appear on him, surprising Gandoma.

"You're a Demon?" Gandoma asked.

"Let's do this!" Natsu exclaimed.

This time when Natsu punched Gandoma, the Bael Rook was shot forward, crashing through some of the trees and smashing them, knowingly getting the attention of Beruka.

"Kuisha, that's..." Beruka realized.

"Go aid them Beruka, I'll get the others." Kuisha replied.

Kuisha dismounted, and soon formed a black portal before walking through it. In response to the Bael Queen's action, Beruka whipped Altobrau's reins as the Pale Horse whinnied, and soon ran faster.

"Multiply Mirage!" Beruka shouted.

Multiple duplicates of Beruka and his steed form as they continued their charge.

Akame swiftly rushed through the field of Coriana's ice spears made by her [Battle Festival] ability, making the latter sweat as she did her best to avoid the destructive force in the Beelzebub Knight's sword.

"I'll take down all of your attack at once." Akame declared.

"Pretty confident, but try this!" Coriana stated.

Soon a group of electric chakrams fly out of Coriana's palms, making Akame evade as she tried to circle her.

"Take this!" Kirin screamed.

Kirin smashed the ground with her bad arm, wincing as Tohka barely dodged it, soon slamming the ground to pull out a two-handed sword, but only holding it with one.

"Something like that means absolutely nothing to me!" Tohka shouted.

Tohka swings her sword down, creating a powerful shock wave that pushed the host of Bahamut back, she grunted as she walked forward from the force.

As all of that happened, Niruili inhaled all the magic she could from the nearby attacks, with Sairaorg rushing forward and punching the ground she stood moments prior, ripping it to shreds.

"Alright, take this Sairaorg! [**Stockpile Feast!**]" Niruili shouted.

Niruili blasted all the collected magic she devoured before spitting it all out at once, creating a storm of magic.

Sairaorg slammed his foot down, smirking before he used all his might into a punch, clashing against the force of magic, and after a few second of striking it, shattered it apart!

"Uh oh!" Niruili sweated.

Niruili jumped up to avoid Sairaorg's punch, grabbing the nearest tree branch she could.

"[**Phantom Lunge!**]"

Niruili soon noticed a group of spears fly out towards, and she dropped the branch as a group of lances ripped some of the tree apart.

"Hope you excuse how late we are."

Sairaorg and his group looked as he saw Beruka gallop into view, Altobrau whinnying loudly, and quickly after his arrival, a power of Hole portal appeared showing Kuisha walking in with Misteeta, Ladora and Liban.

"But as of now, we're here." Kuisha smiled.

"Oh snap..." Niruili sighed.

Natsu and Tohka jump back and guard Niruili as Sairaorg's entire peerage stood before them.

"This is bad, so how should we handle this?" Natsu wondered.

"Well, we could always-" Tohka answered.

Niruili put a hand on each of their shoulders, making the both of them look as Niruili shook her head.

"We did our best guys, but it's clear, we hit our limit, there's no way we can win with the odds standing before us." Niruili apologized.

The two looked at their King, sighing before they stood down, with Niruili raising her hand in resignation.

"We resign this match."

"_Lady Niruili's resignation is recognized, Lord Sairaorg wins!_" Naud announced.

* * *

Everyone cheers at that, with Vali sighing a bit.

"I had a good feeling this would be the outcome, but I'm still said Niruili lost this match." Vali admitted.

Ayumu pat her shoulder.

"There's always someone who can overcome you, nothing is truly absolute, I think you should be proud that Niruili was able to accept when she lost what was just a simple game." Ayumu stated.

"Yeah, I guess it takes guts to admit you can't win." Vali smiled.

Kunou soon noticed Kirin and Niruili both had an odd expression towards Sairaorg.

"Hey guys, why are those two looking at Sairaorg all funny?" Kunou asked.

"Huh?" Issei inquired.

Back on the field, Niruili looked at Sairaorg, a pondering look on her face.

'Sairaorg, you didn't use your full strength, but why?' Niruili wondered.

As Sairaorg as he team prepared to leave, he noticed Kirin had a sour, and angry looking expression on her face.

"Is something wrong Kirin?" Sairaorg asked.

"...Don't talk to me." Kirin replied, scowling a bit.

Sairaorg showed surprise at that.

"How dare you claim you were going full out, that was a complete lie!" Kirin exclaimed angrily.

Kirin walked out of the arena on her own, surprising most of the crowd by her small outburst.

"_Uh... oh my, does anyone know what just happened there?_" Naud asked, confused to the situation.

"_I don't know, and perhaps we shouldn't try to pry into it._" Tannin answered.

The cloaked figure of Sairaorg's peerage walked by him, sighing before he spoke up to his King.

"It seems like Bahamut knows who I really am, that's the only reason she could suddenly think that." He stated, one of his eyes showing a sad expression.

The scene ends with Kirin leaving the arena, a disappointed yet saddened look on her face.

* * *

**Well, Niruili got creamed by Sairaorg, though I guess that isn't too surprising since I did have her, and Vali, both mention last Chapter that they expected him to win. Though unfortunately, it seems now Sairaorg's got some trouble in paradise, because thanks to Bahamut, Kirin's aware of the secret behind his last pawn's identity.**

**And now you know the power Issei got from his father, the "Force Crystallization", I wanted to make Ayumu's power opposite to his wife's, not to mention it fits with how despite not actually using it, Issei was able to handle the strain from using Domineering Will to use Ddraig's original power to save Vali back in Season 3.**

**Oh, and in case anyone asks about the damage that Ayumu left on Rizevim, it won't make him any weaker in canon. The reason I decided to do that is because in canon, I never understood why Rizevim needed that Sacred Gear Canceler of his since he never really had the heart to do anything before learning of Trihexa, but then I wondered if he had some kind of bad experience that made him worried about Sacred Gears, one that the Penetrate ability justified.**

**So, I decided to give him a reason to obtain it through Ayumu leaving some lasting damage, because if someone without a Sacred Gear could do that kind of damage to him... then what about someone _with_ one? Especially if that Sacred Gear was a Longinus, one of which he knows Vali has under her possession. Rizevim is sometimes foolish like Apophis and Azi Dahaka outright stated to him, but he's not entirely dumb either.**

**Well, that's all I have to say for now, most of the chapter pretty much spoke for me. For next chapter, I don't wanna say too much about it, but I can tell you that for those of you who've wanted to see more romantic development between Issei and Vali, which I admit I've neglected due to the tournament focus... you don't have to wait much longer :3**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Fairy Tail - Natsu Dragneel**

**Akame ga Kill - Akame**

**Date A Live - Tohka Yatogami**

**Myriad Colors Phantom World - Reina Izumi**

**Slayers - Lina Inverse**

**Bleach - Orihime**

**Fairy Fencer F - Fang**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	39. Chapter 39

**After the previous chapter, I think I've finally started to get back into my writing flow a bit, and I'm glad the chapter came out so well despite that unexpected break between it and the one before it. Not to mention, while I'm still waiting to finish this half of the story before I slow down my writing style (if I did it now, I worry it would look too odd compared to the rest of the story), I also feel good with how I made the last chapter from the improvements to my grammar.**

**Speaking of which, before I begin the actual start notes, I have something to say that's related to the story I mentioned I need to restart last chapter. While how I planned it compared to this story did play a big role, another big thing was how I tried to do the harem in the story. The relationships Issei had with the girls went too fast, like one chapter and she's smitten fast, I only had one or two girls who had a justified pace, and the funny part?**

**For one arc, I didn't even intend for romance, but I forgot this by the arc's third chapter ^^; *chuckles* So, to everyone who hoped this story wouldn't be a harem when it first began, you have my thanks and gratitude. If your words hadn't convinced me to only have Issei be with Vali, and later made me decide to remove the unwanted harem idea shortly after, I worry this story could have met a very similar fate long ago.**

**Now, with that little message of thanks being said, it's time for the actual start notes. Like I said in the last chapter's end notes, we're about to see a return of Issei and Vali spending some actual couple time, and how are they gonna do it? Well, here's the only hint I'll give you, even though they're boyfriend and girlfriend, there's still one thing they haven't done together despite they've done almost everything else, and it's probably the one thing you should do before two people start a relationship :3**

**Once they've done all of that, there's only one thing left to do since we're down to the wire with this Season, and that's finish the last two Rating Games, then follow it up by beginning the crossover with Date A Re:Live! I hope you enjoy these Rating Games, because I don't intend to hold anything back with either of the Semi-Final matches ^^**

**There's one last thing I have to say before anything else, Volume 17 of Date A Live had its release a few days ago... and thanks to the illustration of one of the characters, I finally have a good reference to show you all what the Female Vali of my story looks like! It was really hard to find a place with the image, yet also was an allowed link, so go check my profile if you'd like to see it.**

**Now with all of that said... time to let this chapter begin!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Mutation Piece- **

**A special type of Evil Piece that's said to only appear in one of every 10 sets of peerage pieces, and an even bigger rarity should someone manage to get more than one. The Mutation Pieces are a "glitch" in the Evil Piece system that was kept because of the beneficial nature, with some even theorizing that it was formed because of the creation of Satan's peerage, which lacked restrictions, and was a precursor to the final model.**

**Mutation Pieces ignore the usual restrictions that Evil Pieces develop, but not even Ajuka Beelzebub fully understands how they work, the common theory is they at least double the value of whatever Evil Piece type they become, but some claim they can revive anyone that an Evil Piece can work on. Due to how removing an Evil Piece results in death, no one can study them for proof.**

**What's most surprising about Mutation Pieces is some normal pieces can transform into one, these pieces are classified as "Mutated Pieces" to reflect that they didn't start out with the mutation properties. If one was revived by multiple Evil Pieces, all of their pieces can mutate, either one by one or simultaneously, furthering the mystery behind them.**

**The most notable Devil with a Mutation Piece is Kuroka, who was formerly 2 Bishops under her previous master, and Gasper Vladi, who is an example of a Mutated Piece due to his Sacred Gear's extreme growth. In the case of Gasper, due to the Forbidden Balor View's possibility of evolving into an Longinus, Ajuka has requested that Rias bring him in on occasion to examine his Mutated Piece.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Journey to the Finals Arc: Chapter 5 - Red, White, and Red _ **

Ineelana and her peerage see the recording end from the Leviathan clan's mansion, soon closing it.

"I knew it, there was too much working against Niruili for her to be our opponent in the Semi-Finals, now we've gotta fight the strongest of the rookie Devils." Ineelana sighed.

"So, what's our plan now?" Stella asked.

Ineelana got up, cracking her knuckles a bit.

"Until the day before our match, all our time will be focused on training, that's the only way we'll have any chance against Sairaorg." Ineelana declared.

"R-right, if we work hard enough, we can do it." Murasaki agreed.

"Alright then, let's get this started!" Tamara exclaimed.

Everyone walked towards the training grounds, though before she followed, Ineelana looked at the sky.

"Vali, you're the one I want to beat, so I'll never forgive you if Rias defeats you." Ineelana stated.

* * *

** _~The Next Day, 3 days before the Vali vs Rias Game_ **

Vali and her peerage soon returned home, and Vali sighed as she tried planning for the next rating game, but only felt like her brain was turning to mush.

"There's so much to factor for both our sides, and I still don't know if Issei's learned anything new, this is too much!" Vali exclaimed, grabbing her head.

"Hey Vali."

The silver-haired Lucifer screamed in surprise, nearly making Issei drop the tray of food he was bringing in, Vali panted and turned to look at him.

"Oh, sorry about that Issei, I think I'm a bit on edge with planning our next match." Vali apologized.

"On edge? Vali, that reaction was more like being in a dog-eat-dog type of business, you're really stressed out right now." Issei replied.

Vali chuckled embarrassingly.

"And for that reason, I'm gonna pull you away for a day to clear your head." Issei stated.

"Uh... OK, but how?" Vali wondered.

"Simple, the two of us haven't really been spending too much boyfriend and girlfriend time lately, have we?" Issei answered.

"We are trying to win a tournament, I don't think it's that weird we've been too busy to do that." Vali replied.

**"(She has a point there.)"** Albion noted.

**"[Agreed, it's like fighting a war, but in sport form.]"** Ddraig

Issei sweat dropped at his Dragon's comparison.

"...Anyways, because we haven't, I'm fixing that now in a way that eases your mind, and is actual fun for people in a relationship. Vali, we're gonna go on a date." Issei explained.

Vali's cheeks went a bit red at that.

"A-a date... oh my goodness, we haven't gone on one since we became a couple!" Vali replied, panicking a bit.

"Hey, relax, I've been on one, so we aren't going in blind." Issei reassured.

"Wait, when did you go on a date!?" Vali asked.

**"(...Uh, Vali? That was the date Yuuma was protect Issei from her sister, where you had to make her Queen, remember?)"** Albion sighed.

Vali goes a bit red at that, Issei tried not to snicker a bit, while Ddraig had no such restraint and laughed like a hyena.

* * *

Issei was seen waiting by the gates to the shrine that Akeno used to live at, waiting for Vali to show up for their date, and currently dressed in a red shirt, a gray jacket, and some jeans held by a black belt.

"She's running a bit late, I wonder what the reason is?" Issei wondered.

**"(Let's see, you have a girl, a date, and it being her first time, so my best guess is she's lost track of time finding the right outfit)"** Ddraig suggested.

"You really think it's that?" Issei asked.

**"(Considering you're already dating her, I don't think anything else could really apply in this scenario, though I have been wrong before.)"** Ddraig answered.

Issei went silent, unsure how he should take that last part.

"Sorry for the wait!"

Hearing his girlfriend's voice, Issei turned to see Vali as she walked into view, and he soon found himself unable to project his voice.

Vali was wearing a light blue dress shirt **(A/N: Think Akeno's date dress from the novels)** with a few black star designs on the sides, and on the chest area, but enlarged. There were black shorts under the dress with a single vertical white stripe on each side, a pair of black boots on her feet, a string necklace with a white crystal charm hanging from it, and a light blue cap on her head.

**'(Called it, definitely her outfit.)'** Ddraig thought.

"Whoa..." Issei whispered.

Vali blushes a bit.

"Is my outfit OK?" Vali asked nervously.

"Of course, you look awe-I mean sexy, no wait I meant cute... aw crud." Issei answered.

Vali blushed a bit, turning away briefly as she smiled, Issei looks at her happily as he saw that smile.

'She's looks so beautiful with that smile.' Issei thought.

"So, you ready to go have some fun?" He asked.

Vali soon takes Issei's hand.

"Yeah, I just hope I do this right." Vali replied, blushing a bit.

* * *

To start off their date, Issei took Vali to Kuoh Park, and the two enjoyed a nice walk through the lush greenery. As they continued their stroll, a Monarch Butterfly ended up flying by them, soon settling itself on Vali's nose.

"Oh my." Vali blushed.

"Aw, I think it likes you, hold still for a moment." Issei whispered.

Vali blushed more as Issei slowly moved his finger to her nose, letting the Butterfly onto his hand.

"Here, hold out your hands." Issei requested.

"OK." Vali agreed.

She held out her open palms, and Issei lowered her finger onto them, causing the butterfly to walk onto them. Vali looked at it closely, and the butterfly looked back, only choosing to fly off after a minute in her hands.

As Vali smiled happily towards the small creature, Issei looked at her.

"Irina told me something once, Butterflies are said to symbolize the soul and resurrection in Christianity." Issei suddenly stated.

"Really?" Vali asked.

"Well, I don't know how true it is, but say that every butterfly is someone given new life after their death. Call me crazy, but... that butterfly could have been your birth mother, and I bet she's happy to know you're doing OK." Issei smiled.

Vali gasped at that, looking at the same butterfly again, and she could have sworn she saw her mother's face smiling down on her.

She sniffled a bit, wiping a tear from each eye.

'Mom, if Issei's right and that really was you, then thank you for giving that moment together.' Vali smiled.

* * *

Vali looked in awe at all the fish she saw inside an aquarium, a sea turtle passing by, making her smile as she saw it.

"I was worried this might be too simple considering everything we've seen, glad I was wrong there" Issei chuckled.

"It might sound cheesy, but... sometimes the simplest of things can be the best gifts of all, in fact, you could say everything starts from it." Vali smiled.

As she turned back to the glass, Vali shrieked as a shark swam towards them before turning away, the Hakuryuukou grabbing her boyfriend's arm as the predatory fish left their view.

"After everything we've seen, it's a shark that ends up scaring you?" Issei joked.

"It was swimming right towards us, it would have eaten us!" Vali replied, shivering a bit.

"Well, so can a Dragon, and ironically I think we've eaten a pair ourselves." Issei snickered.

**(Hey!)/[Hey!]**

"Mu... Issei." Vali replied, giving a playful pout.

Suddenly, Vali blushed a bit as the Sekiryuutei laid her head on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'll keep you safe from that shark." Issei assured.

Vali blushed a bit more, and then smiled as she closed her eyes, enjoying the brief moment.

* * *

Issei soon bought the two some ice cream, giving Vali a vanilla and strawberry swirl while he enjoyed a simple chocolate cone. Before long, the sun began to set on the day, and their date, with the two sitting by the park fountain.

"It's kinda interesting that chose to end the date here, is there some hidden meaning to it?" Vali implied.

Issei chuckled.

"The mean's definitely not a hidden one, if anything, it's a look to that fateful day and now." Issei answered.

"Wait, you don't mean..." Vali gasped.

Issei chuckled.

"Yep, I do." He answered.

The day he went on a date with Yuuma, got killed by Raynare, and was reincarnated as Vali's Queen.

* * *

-**Flashback Start**-

_"Finally, I wondered when that little brat would leave the two of us alone."_

_Issei suddenly gasped upon hearing that, becoming more alert, and motioning his arms into a defensive stance as he tried to find the voice's source. Unfortunately, it meant little when someone suddenly dropped down before him, causing him to him fall over. Looking up, he saw someone standing in front of the fountain, and to his surprise she looked a lot like Yuuma, but he could tell it wasn't._

_The few clue details that told the two of them apart were her older looking facial features and body structure, purple eyes of a slightly darker shade, and an outfit that Issei could best describe as a mix of a stripperific and dominatrix theme, leaving very little to the imagination. However, the defining factor? She had two Crow-like wings on her back._

_"Who are you?" Issei asked, feeling something dangerous from her._

_"You can call me Raynare, I see you had some fun with my younger sister, she was always so innocent... and unfortunately, you'll have to pay the price for that naivety of hers!" Raynare answered._

_Issei showed some surprise at her words._

_'Sister? I admit it, this chick does look like Yuuma, but...' Issei thought._

_He didn't have much time left to dwell on that fact, and his focus soon shifted as he saw some kind of glowing spear form in her hands, glowing with purple light, yet having a... dark appearance to it._

_Issei prepared to move and block her strike, however..._

_"Time to die!" Raynare shouted._

_Issei gasped loudly, coughing up blood as the spear burned past his hands, piercing right through his stomach. He reached for the weapon of light, only for it to quickly vanished, the now unclogged wound bleeding freely as he fell to the ground._

* * *

_Grabbing the flier she had just found, Yuuma instantly thinks of the heiress of Lucifer, causing it to glow as a magic circle formed on the ground. The silver-haired Lucifer's feet soon landed on the ground, and she opened her eyes to see the horror before her._

_"Oh, my god, what happened!?" Vali asked._

_"I... I don't know, I never got the chance to stop it, I'm sorry!" Yuuma apologized._

_Vali put a hand on the Fallen Angel's shoulder, surprising her as she shook her head._

_"Don't apologize, the fact you summoned me means it isn't too late to save him." Vali replied._

_Summoning her Evil Pieces, Vali quickly grabbed one of her Pawns, but soon saw it didn't glow, meaning it was enough. She switched to a Knight, and then more of her Pawns as none of them glowed, and soon her hands grabbed her Queen piece._

_Holding it next to Issei, she sighed in relief as it began to glow, confirming it could reincarnate her childhood friend._

_"To think he's worth 9 pieces, it's incredible." Vali commented._

_Vali turned towards Issei, kneeling to him._

_"Don't worry Issei, you're not gonna die, I just hope you'll understand this when I get the chance to finally tell you." Vali whispered._

_Yuuma walking back a bit, watching as Vali put the Queen on Issei's chest._

** _"In the name of Vali Lucifer, I call to Issei Hyoudou, hear my command! Return thy soul from the shadows of death to the human realm, rise once more as my Devil's servant! Rejoice, for you have been given new life! Wake as my trusty aid, and queen!"_ **

_Soon the Evil Piece sinks into Issei's body, making it give off a bright red glow, and indirectly awakening a latent power sleeping deep within him._

-**End Flashback**-

* * *

As he finished thinking back on that day, he chuckled a bit, soon turning to Vali.

"Sometimes I wonder, if that didn't happen, what would have changed?" He wondered aloud.

"Would we still have become a couple, would I have ever met my birth parents, or awaken Ddraig's power?"

Vali smiled a bit.

"I guess no one ever knows what could have been, and that's why... we need to keep moving forward." Vali answered.

"Yeah, and that's why I'm gonna make this vow, right now." Issei replied.

Issei took Vali's hands, making her blush a bit.

"I promise to make sure your dream happens, and that we'll win the finals to make it possible, so you can bet I'll get us a victory against Rias!" Issei declared.

"Issei..." Vali breathed, blushing a bit.

"Also, when this tournament's over, I have something I want to tell you, so until then... do you think you can wait a bit longer?" Issei asked.

Vali blinked.

"I'm not sure what you'd have to wait to tell me, but I will." Vali answered.

Vali takes Issei's hand, and lays her head on his shoulder.

"For now, can we stay like this, just a little longer?" Vali asked.

"...Yeah, of course we can." Issei answered.

* * *

With Rias and her peerage, everyone was scattered across the ground, lying or sitting against it in some shape, way, or form. Rias herself was standing on her knees, panting after the intense workout everyone had just done.

"Phew... alright everyone, I think we've done enough training for at least today, we'll rest up before resuming the rest tomorrow and the day after." Rias announced.

"I think I'm gonna puke..." Yumi groaned.

"Oh, come on Yumi, it's not that-"

Before Jeanne could finish, she hears her stomach rumble as she turns a bit green, and forces herself to swallow before anything happened.

"...Never mind, I'll be a hypocrite if I say that now." Jeanne sighed.

Akeno giggles at that, and soon notices a Fallen Angel magic circle appear by her ear, which meant it was a message from her father.

"Oh, hello dad, what is it?" Akeno asked.

"...WHAT!?" She gasped.

The others all looked towards her as she heard her father's words, shaking a bit before she finally found her voice.

"Alright, I'll come over right now." Akeno replied.

The magic circle disappeared, and the Gremory Queen turned towards Rias.

"Rias, I need to go to the Underworld, and right now, I'm sorry if this is a problem." Akeno requested.

"Not at all, but why do... you..." Rias asked.

Her question mattered little, but it didn't take long for her to realize why Baraqiel calling, and Akeno saying she needed to visit the Underworld, actually linked together.

"No way, you mean..." Rias gasped.

Akeno nods.

"Then get over there immediately, don't let me keep you here any longer!" Rias shouted.

"Right, thank you Rias!" Akeno thanked, running ahead as she headed for the nearest transportation to the Underworld.

Rias smiled a bit, closing her eyes.

'Right before the Semi-Finals too, it's almost like the world's way of giving us just a small bit of luck.' Rias thought.

* * *

Akeno soon got off a train, and began rushing through the dark blue sky and gray land of the Underworld, surprising a few Fallen Angels as she ran by. Eventually, she located the Grigori headquarters, and a whistle sounded off to her as Penemue waved at her.

"Penemue!" Akeno shouted.

Akeno ran over to her.

"Where is she, please, I need to see her now!" Akeno cried out.

"Calm down a bit, and just breathe Akeno, I'll take you right to her, save your tears for then and not now." Penemue replied, smiling to ease her worries.

Akeno took a deep breathe, and nodded a bit.

Penemue put her hands on Akeno's shoulders, and soon lead Akeno to a certain room, one with: "Shuri Himejima" labeled under the room number. Taking another deep breath, Akeno walked through the door as Akeno opened it.

Inside the room, a curtain hid the occupant within, one who was standing straight up and looking at the window based on her silhouette, and then Akeno moved it away... revealing her mother behind it, her hair untied as she stared at the sight outside.

"...Mom." Akeno said, her voice shaking a little.

Despite having trouble making out the words, her sight and ears still not fully readjusted due to waking up from a long coma, she slowly turned to see someone, and despite her current state, she recognized who it was without any trouble.

"Akeno." Shuri smiled.

Akeno began to tear up, soon rushing over and hugging her, and Penemue sniffled a bit as she saw the reunion between mother and daughter.

"I can't believe this, after so long... I finally get to hold you again!" Akeno cried.

"You'll have to forgive me, I still can't hear well yet, but... I think I know what you're trying to tell me, and I'm happy to hold you again too!" Shuri answered, soon tearing up.

Penemue smiled, walking away to leave the family alone, knowing Baraqiel would be coming soon.

"Welcome back, Shuri." Penemue sniffled happily, rubbing her eyes dry.

* * *

** _~3 days later_ **

After the next few days passed by, everyone was gathered in the stadium as the first match of the Semi-Finals was about to begin. Unlike matches before, the Semi-Finals were taking place in a much different and larger stadium.

People from everyone pantheon alike were seen in the crowd, already looking excited for the coming fight, as both sets of Issei's parents followed Lilith, the ORC/MHC advisors, and the Sitri peerage into their reserved spots.

"Damn, you'd think with such a large crowd that they would have done a better job on letting everyone get to their seats, wouldn't you?" Seiji complained.

"We tried, but trying to get everything right for dozens of supernatural races isn't exactly as easy as putting glue on something, bumps were unavoidable." Lilith said, slightly apologizing to him.

Mio hurries over with some popcorn, handing a few buckets to everyone.

"So, who seems to have the advantage in this match?" Ruruko asked, taking a bite of popcorn.

"Hmm... good question, Lilith?" Mio asked.

"Well, I know Issei and Vali went on a date a few days ago, so they had a clear mind for training." Lilith recalled.

"Aside from that, the only other thing I know is that they were training hard with Tiamat, and that Issei has a surprise he refused to reveal unless he needed it." She answered, showing interest with her last few words.

Azazel chuckled a bit.

"I think Rias and Akeno have a similar clear mindset, the latter's mom finally woke from her coma and Rias was really relieved her best friend didn't have that weighing on her, in all honest..." Azazel remarked.

"The two seem just about equal." Azazel and Lilith stated simultaneously.

"In other words, this match can go either way depending on the match type, and who honestly wants it more." Mio mentioned to herself.

After saying that, everyone hears the mic being tapped, and their attention is focused forward as Naud takes the announcer stand.

"_Good morning everyone, and welcome to the Rating Game Tournament's Semi-Finals!_" Naud announced.

Everyone cheered, the applause nearly shaking the stadium.

"_As usual, I'm your announcer, Naud Gamigin!_" Naud announced.

"_With me as the guest announcer of today's match, the radiant sun of the Shinto Pantheon... give a hand for Amaterasu!_" He shouted excitedly.

Amaterasu waved from her spot.

"_Hi everyone._" Amaterasu smiled, giggling a bit.

"_If I recall correctly, it was recently revealed you are somewhat familiar with the Sekiryuutei, so I think most of the fans are dying to ask, are you excited to be here for this battle?_" Naud asked.

Amaterasu nodded.

"_Issei has come a long way, and recently found answers he didn't even know he had questions to, I've already heard some rumors about something he's got up his sleeve, so being the guest announcer for today's match is exciting for me._" Amaterasu admitted.

"_Interesting, well then... let's bring out this match's semi-finalists!_" Naud announced.

From the west gate, Vali and her peerage walk in view, everyone cheering as they all waved to the crowd. Rias and her peerage soon enter from the east gate, garnering the same reaction as they waved to the crowd as well, and soon both sides meet in the middle.

"Rias, today's finally the day, isn't it?" Vali remarked.

"Yeah, I guess it is, to think we'd be here after what you did for me in beating Riser all those months ago." Rias mentioned.

Vali chuckled, looking at Rias.

"Neither of us had a full set, but we still gave a veteran player a run for his money, and now we're here finally facing off each other." Vali smiled.

"Now we both have a full peerage, and plenty of experience, so it's time for us to see which one of us is truly the stronger King!" Rias exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah, let's do this!" Vali agreed.

The two shook hands, and everyone cheered at that.

"_And our competitors give a friendly handshake, this is the true friendship between rivals we're seeing, and that makes the chosen match type even more fitting!_" Naud announced loudly.

Naud moves to a set of orbs on a stand, one representing the first and second semi-final match, and the finals. He picks up the orb assigned to the match, and soon shows it says: "One for All" on it.

"_And it's called One for All, now that does this mean? Well, I think I'll let my guest announcer explain that._" Naud announced.

"_Thank you Naud._" Amaterasu thanked.

Amaterasu cleared her throat.

"_The special rules about the One for All match type is this time, the arena will not have an environmental change, the dimension will simply an enlarged version of this one. Many restrictions in most matches don't exist, basically defined as you can use anything that's not a cheat-like ability, and to truly add to the excitement? All pawns will automatically be promoted to Queen, and here's the most shocking addition, one I don't think any Rating Game has ever used before now..._"

"_Defeating the King... will NOT give you an automatic win!_" Naud revealed.

Everyone gasped, and this included Lilith and the others, if the King's defeat didn't guarantee a victory, then that meant...

"_To anyone who's thinking what I think they are, you're right, to win this fight, one team must have all of their members defeated!_" Naud announced excitedly.

'So, defeating the king doesn't end the fight, I can't tell if the Elders are doing this for an advantage considering the particular match up, but this kinda rule still shakes most strategies apart... I hope Vali's hasn't taken a hit.' Lilith thought.

Vali and Rias both show shock, surprised by the match rules.

'Whoa, so a full-on fight against everyone? It's a good thing we didn't focus on taking out Rias after seeing her new abilities in the Quarterfinals.' Vali wondered.

'It looks like we'll just have to be more conservative than I expected, but we can still pull this off.' Rias thought.

Both sides get ready, and soon Naud readies himself.

"_Due to the different nature of this fight, you have a 10-minute grace period to prepare yourselves due to the field, and need to possibly change your strategies, so let the game... begin!_" Naud exclaimed.

Soon the dimensional field went up, and both peerages found the arena around then expanding while those watching saw the illusion. Both sides quickly hurried to their respective base areas, getting ready for some last-minute planning.

* * *

**~Rias' Side**

Rias held out a mapping of the arena layout, looking at it to see how close the battles could be, and soon went into thought.

"The battles seem like they'll be spread out, and if I know Vali's style from her first Rating Game, she plans ahead so everyone on her team will be able to fight alone and adapt if needed, so we'll likely have to rely on our own choices and figure out who we should face."

"I think I should take on Irina, my knights should be able to limit her usage of some of her Excaliburs' powers." Jeanne suggested.

Rias nods, looking at the others.

"What about everyone else?" Rias inquired.

"If anyone knows my sister best, it's me, so I'll try going after her." Shirone offered.

"Since Arthur knows what Jeanne can do, but hasn't truly fought me before, I should have more success if we draw swords." Xenovia stated.

Yumi thinks a bit.

"Kunou's got better senses for detecting than Kuroka or Shirone due to being a Kyuubi, so she'll likely find me if I try to hide, I think I should let her do that since it'll be hard for her to dodge my Balance Breaker's arrows." Yumi answered.

"As for everyone else, I think it wouldn't matter who we try to face from there." Rossweisse noted.

Rias put a finger near her chin in thought, and Akeno soon spoke up.

"Rias, I think Vali will likely keep Issei close since their powers will be a dangerous tag team, it might be best that we do the same." Akeno suggested.

"You're right, I saw it firsthand when they used their Custom Spells in unison, I think this is the best opening move we can make right now." Rias agreed.

Rias stood up.

"Alright everyone, that's our game plan, so be ready for the fight signal to start.

* * *

**~Vali's Side**

Vali had the same map layout, and began tapping her finger on the ground.

"Alright, what does everyone think about this?" Vali asked.

"The field seems large enough we could be having one on one fights but be too far for immediate aid, so that gives us a slight advantage if we can keep strong." Le Fay remarked.

"Now I think we just need to know who on Rias' team will go after us?" Yuuma mentioned.

Irina hummed a bit.

"I'd say either Xenovia or Jeanne would try to face me, I've had a few bouts with Xenovia in the past, and Jeanne's got some magic to help try and trick me if she needs to." Irina stated.

"I have no doubts that Shirone will go after me, and I haven't had managed to create something to truly counter her "Shiro Mode", so there's a chance she might be able to challenge me there." Kuroka answered.

"Kiba may go after me, predicting his movements will be harder due to his Sacred Gear." Arthur noted.

Vali nodded, looking at Issei.

"Issei, I think you and I should stay together and teamed up, that's the one formation I know Rias will have trouble on regardless of who faces us." Vali suggested.

"Sounds good to me, always have wanted to try a tag team with you during a match." Issei agreed.

Vali stood up.

"This is it, time to buckle up!" Vali cheered.

* * *

As both sides finished up planning, both Kings heard the bell toll, and with it, the signal that the fight would finally begin.

"Here we go!" Both exclaimed.

The crowd cheered as both sides launch into view, and quickly, the first bout began as Jeanne rushed ahead and clashed with Irina, both Hauteclere and Excalibur DxD crossing against one another.

"I knew I'd get either you or Xenovia, so, are you ready to lose?" Irina asked, smiling a bit.

"Me lose? Sorry Irina, but I'm the one that'll be winning this battle!" Jeanne smirked.

The two push each other back, and Jeanne swipes Hauteclere to the side, assuming her battle wear.

"Then show me what you've got!" Irina smirked back.

Irina soon vanished from view, and Jeanne stayed on guard, realizing she was using Excalibur Transparency.

"I guess it's time to cover up this facade, go **[Sakura Storm!]**"

Jeanne spun and thrust Hauteclere forward, and a storm of cherry blossom petals swirled around, a few were seen hitting against something, allowing Jeanne to thrust and parry against Irina's surprise attack. Realizing her trick wouldn't work, Irina back flipped away from her fellow ex-exorcist.

"As usual, your flower magic is both beautiful and dangerous." Irina complimented.

"Thank you, and that's exactly why your tricks won't work on me." Jeanne replied.

"Then how about this one!?" Irina questioned.

Irina rushed forward, combining her speed as a knight with Excalibur Rapidly to move at speeds almost too fast for the naked eye to see. Jeanne tried her best to look as Irina zipped around her.

"Damn, looks like I've gotta use it now, go **[Blade Knight Mass!]**"

Golden armors formed around Jeanne, and soon they all rushed forward in an attempt to strike Irina, the Lucifer knight smirked before activating Excalibur Nightmare's power and making illusions of herself.

"Don't be fooled, just attack until you hit the real one!" Jeanne ordered.

As the knights all swung their artificial holy swords, Irina rushed forward, and suddenly... all of them were cut apart, shocking Jeanne.

"_W-What was that!?_" Naud announced.

"_She cut them all simultaneously, but how?_" Amaterasu answered, wondering how she did it herself.

Jeanne shook, looking at Irina as not one, not two, but six of her stopped and smiled at her.

"H-How did you just do that!?" Jeanne asked.

"The story's fairly simple, you see..." Irina explained.

A brief flashback to Irina using Excalibur Rapidly, and Nightmare's powers against a training match with Tiamat, where she somehow attacked Tiamat in two places was seen. Leading to Irina visiting a church figure at the Vatican.

"...During a small match with Tiamat, I tried using two of Excalibur DxD's powers at once, and in the process of that, I ended up dealing two strikes. Tiamat stopped the match to point it out, and then suggested I see the only one who ever wielded multiple Excaliburs."

"Ewald Cristaldi, of course, he was able to wield three Excaliburs when he was training us" Jeanne replied.

Soon she gasped, realizing something.

"Wait, are you saying-" She asked.

"That's right, he showed me that some Excalibur abilities could be merged, and I had unknowingly done that against Tiamat. Due to the time before the match, I didn't get that much time, but she showed me the basics and taught me one." Irina verified.

Irina held Excalibur out.

"This is my new technique born of fusing Excalibur Rapidly's speed and the illusions of Excalibur Nightmare to make actual copies myself, I call it... **[Excalibur Replicator!]**" Irina exclaimed with pride.

"_Holy shit! Did you all just hear that, Irina Shidou managed to find a way to make Excalibur make clones of herself!_" Naud announced, clearly flabbergasted.

"_Impressive, no wonder the original Excalibur had been so powerful, and to think she's only a sword away from reforging the original blade._" Amaterasu smirked.

Jeanne sighed, soon forming more golden armors.

"Alright Irina, you showed me an ace you were hiding, now it's time I counter you with my own!" Jeanne declared.

Irina and her five copies rushed at Jeanne, and soon she slammed the ground.

"**[Stake Victim Dragon!]**"

Irina was soon knocked back, skidding across the ground as her copies tumbled and disappeared, and she panted as she looked at the Dragon made of holy swords.

"Now, time to bring these two powers together." Jeanne stated.

"Go, Sub-Species Balance Breaker: **[Glory... Drag... Trooper!]**" She exclaimed.

Soon each gold armor rushed at the dragon, smashing their swords onto it, and breaking it apart as Jeanne dismounted. Irina, and the entire crowd, all watched in silent shock as the golden armors became as large as the dragon, and took more dragon-like appearances.

Irina slightly loosened her grip on Excalibur DxD, nearly dropping it entirely, as the armors all turn at her.

"...You have got to be kidding me." Irina whimpered quietly.

"_Whoa, and to think after I was just shocked by Irina's trick, Jeanne manages to pull an equally surprising one, this match type was made for this battle!_" Naud announced loudly.

* * *

Issei and Vali looked before them, the sight of Rias and Akeno on the opposite side of the field, staring straight at them.

Both team's King and Queen look at one another, a strange feeling in the air surrounding them.

"I knew it, you and Issei not teaming up here was as likely as a pig learning to fly naturally." Rias joked.

"Guess so, and I guess this means you'll be the ones trying to fight us, well..." Vali replied.

Vali and Issei summon their Sacred Gears.

"...I'm honored to face you Rias Gremory, the "Crimson Princess of Ruin", and "Priestess of Thunder" Akeno!" Vali exclaimed.

"Me too!" Issei agreed.

Rias smiled at that.

"Akeno!" Rias ordered.

"On it!" Akeno replied.

Akeno took to the sky, and soon twirled as she transformed into her Fallen Angel mode, with Rias' body flaring with her Power of Destruction.

Seeing this, Issei and Vali looked at each other, nodding.

"Ddraig!"

"Albion!"

**"(Right)"/"[Right!]"**

Their Sacred Gears glow brightly, surprising everyone, opponents, their fellow peerage members, and the crowd alike.

"Boosted Gear..." Issei began.

"Divine Dividing..." Vali added.

**"([...SECOND LIBERATION!])"** Both Heavenly Dragons said in unison.

Issei's Boosted Gear had part of its front extend out, then the rest began to extend and spread, new yellow spikes jutting out from holes that revealed themselves, as more near the bottom, and a third green gem manifested from within the extended area.

Vali's Divine Dividing had the blue light panels spread out a bit, creating smaller ones between the originals, with the insides becoming more like Albion's actual wings, the spikes at the end of the "limbs" jut out slightly, a single blue wing panel on them to look like mini-wings, while near her back, two smaller limbs and wing panels grew.

"_Whoa, this is... what was that!?_" Naud gasped.

"_I'm not sure, someone get contact with Azazel!_" Amaterasu shouted.

Soon a magic circle appeared, and Naud listened to it.

"Uh huh, alright then, thank you." Naud nodded.

"_Everyone, we just got answers on what this is, this is the Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing's next levels, their Second Liberation!_" Naud announced.

"_It seems that after enough training, the wielder of either Longinus can access a stronger level of power, but only via physical training... and we're about to see the results of this!_" He continued.

Rias stared a bit, soon smiling.

'So, that means I'm the first that gets to face this new level of theirs, then I better show them proper respect fighting against them.' Rias thought, her determination building.

"**BALANCE BREAKER!**"

The two are enveloped in their respective Dragon's colors, this time their aura s spreading out and becoming their dragons as they 'ate' them, by the time their scale mails formed, the difference was evident.

While mostly the same, each scale mail now had more resemblance to their respective Dragon's original bodies, almost like they overlaid their forms onto the armor.

"_Whoa, looks like their balance breakers have gotten refurbished, loving the new looks on them!_" Naud announced.

Issei looked at Vali.

"Ready Vali?" Issei asked.

"You know I am, let's go!" Vali answered.

The two flew forward, with Akeno doing the same, and Rias following as she brought out her wings and fired at them.

The scene froze in place as the four rushed at one another, this battle had just gotten started.

* * *

**The fight between Lucifer and Gremory has begun, and both sides have already revealed some powerful new abilities, while Issei and Vali have revealed they've achieved their Second Liberation. This is something I decided to do after realizing I never had Issei unlock his during Vali & Riser's match back in Season 1, and then I figured that Albion might have the same thing, so I decided to bring it here. This is a relatively minor power up, as it just ups their scale mails power and defense, and enhances their non-stacking powers like [Boost] & [Divide].**

**For the date with Issei and Vali, I feel it went pretty well, I'm most proud about the scene with the butterfly since it felt fitting for Vali since her birth mother was the one light she had during her dark days under Rizevim's care. Consider it Vali's birth mom having come to tell her that she's proud of her daughter finally escaping the hold he had on her for all those years.**

**Also, welcome back to the waking world Shuri, your husband and daughter are glad to have you! ^^ I did consider having Baraqiel show up, but since he stays in Grigori, I felt that I should only focus on Akeno seeing her awake and just implying that Baraqiel was on the way. That, and scenes with Akeno and Baraqiel making up are in a lot of DxD fanfics, so it felt a bit repetitive to me ^^;**

**Now things are really heating up, this battle's only in its beginning stages, and I can assure you when we continue things next chapter, you'll see even more new tricks and most of all... just as Amaterasu hinted (or maybe she already does and just won't reveal it), Issei's gonna reveal a new trick soon enough. Let's just say for this Rating Game, I've given Issei a bigger role since I feel he's been lagging a bit as the deuteragonist.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**N/A**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	40. Chapter 40

**Time to resume this Semi-Final match everyone, and before we begin, here's a small celebratory milestone I need to share... as of this chapter, Season 4 has become the longest season of the entire story! *small cheer clap* Guess it's a fitting milestone since the crossover's gonna be happening soon, now let's actually get to the start notes. *chuckles***

**Last chapter, we got to see the fight with Irina and Jeanne begin, and the start of our favorite Dragons against the power duo of the Gremory team, not to mention the scale mails evolved due to the Second Liberation, giving them a big edge right off the bat. That doesn't seem to be what the match's highlight will be since Amaterasu seems to have heard a few rumors about Issei have an ace up his sleeve.**

**Now, time to show this Rating Game in all of its glory, and then we'll see just who wins in the match between the champion Sairaorg, and the Leviathan heiress Ineelana. *giggles* Also, for those who've been waiting for it, we'll finally be seeing some romantic development between Sairaorg and Kirin once the preparations for their match begin... hopefully the latter isn't still too ticked off about the whole Regulus thing ^^;**

**Alright then, it's time to begin!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Second Liberation- **

**A level of power exclusive to the Boosted Gear and the Divine Dividing, when the user's physical level increases (as in strengthening their body and muscles) to a high enough state, the Sacred Gear assumes its true form and grants a massive boost to all of its non-stockpiling powers. It also evolves the Balance Breaker's scale mail to resemble Ddraig and Albion more. As such, this power can only be unlocked after achieving it.**

**It's said that only 30% of all past wielders have ever managed to reach this stage, with most either dying in battle, of age, being unaware they have the Sacred Gear, or for activating the now destroyed Juggernaut Drive curse. As a result of this, Grigori has admitted their studies of the Second Liberation have been very limited, and there may be more strength to them than has actually been recorded.**

**Ddraig and Albion have both stated that the Second Liberation is when their hosts' final boundaries on the long road to achieving the power they had during their prime, implying that there is something that can only be achieved and/or unlocked upon achieving it. However, as of right now, neither Dragon has told this to Issei and Vali, preferring that the both of them discover this on their own.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Journey to the Finals Arc: Chapter 6 - Blaze of my Soul _ **

Issei looked at Vali.

"Ready Vali?" Issei asked.

"You know I am, let's go!" Vali answered.

The two flew forward, with Akeno doing the same, and Rias following as she brought out her wings and fired at them.

A huge burst explodes as the four unleash their initial attacks, causing a huge flash, and making the audience all scream as the recoil of wind blows through the dimensional barrier they were fighting in.

"_Holy shit!_" Amaterasu shouted.

"_Quick, someone find Ajuka Beelzebub fast, and tell him use his Kankara Formula to strengthen the barrier!_" Naud ordered worriedly.

As the wind died down, the crowd regained their visage.

"Damn, just how much power did they emit there!?" Lilith asked in shock.

"I don't know, but I can definitely confirm that my son isn't using my power, at least not yet." Ayumu answered.

"If you don't mind me asking, what does your power do exactly?" Saji asked.

"It's called Force Crystallization, and it basically removes all restraints your body subconsciously forms to avoid ripping itself apart." Ayumu answered, smirking a bit.

Saji flinches at that, gulping from shock.

"So, a reinforcement based ability, combining that with the power to manifest his will, he could be dangerous." Rugal noted.

"We did train him the basics at least, but I'm not sure how much Issei's fully applied them, not to mention he spent time on his own for something secret." Homura replied.

Homura turned back to watch the dimensional field's viewing portal, seeing the smoke clear.

* * *

Irina back flipped slightly, dodging the Glory Drag Trooper's sword strikes, and the occasional claw slash. Jeanne rushed forward, thrusting Hauteclere at Irina as she did her best to parry against the various strikes, dodging the rest.

"Come on Irina, is that all you have!?" Jeanne asked, smirking a bit.

"Far from it!" Irina shouted.

Irina soon jumped back a bit, using one of the Glory Drag Trooper's arms to launch herself into the sky, and turning as she tossed a few holy light rings onto the ground, making some smoke form to blind the group.

As she saw the smoke build up, the Knight of Lucifer sighed at the sight before her.

"...I was hoping not to show this until the final match, but now I don't have a choice, otherwise we might not even make it to them." Irina said quietly.

Irina breathes in deeply, and soon a slight glow surrounds her as one of the dragon armors punches through the smoke, with Jeanne standing on his arm.

"Alright Irina, prepare to-" Jeanne declared.

Suddenly, the Maiden of Orleans went silent as she saw the sight before her, the dragon armors all looking at her due to her silence.

Floating in the air before her, Irina had three pairs of Angel wings, the middle and bottom pair slightly smaller due to their age in comparison with her original pair.

"_Whoa, there is it, Irina Shidou's shown us her heritage as a Miracle Child... and she's got six wings!_" Naud announced.

"No way, I never ever saw gain your second set, since when did you gain a third!?" Jeanne asked.

"Let's just say that Tiamat is a really good teacher, and now you'll see how this power truly shines!" Irina shouted.

Irina held out Excalibur, channeling her holy element through the sword, and then swinging forward at dragon armor before her. Jeanne gasped as the armor began to shatter and break, forcing her to jump towards the next.

"Oh, no you don't, **[Excalibur Flash!]**"

Irina vanishes from view, only to reappear before Jeanne in the air, shocking the latter.

'Oh no, I can't position my sword correctly in the air, I'm wide open!' Jeanne thought.

Using Excalibur Mimic's power, Jeanne was suddenly wrapped by the Excalibur's blade as it became rope light, and she soon felt herself swung around. The Glory Dragon Troopers were all suddenly hit with their own creator's body as Irina swung her, and soon they all fall over.

"One, two, and... three!" Irina exclaimed.

Irina uses Excalibur Mimic's power to send tendrils from the blade, and they soon rain down before using Excalibur Destruction's power to smash against the dragon armors. During this, Jeanne was launched into the air, soon landing on her feet, but very weak.

The Maiden of Orleans pants before looking at Irina, soon seeing her draw Excalibur Blessing's power as she summoned a ring of light.

"...Looks like I lose." Jeanne admitted, closing her eyes to accept her loss.

"If it's any consolation, you did well Jeanne." Irina smiled.

And with that cue, the Knight of Lucifer threw her holy ring, causing it to hit Jeanne before she vanished in blue light.

"_One of Lady Rias' Pawns, retired!_" Naud announced.

"_And there you have it everyone, Vali's side drew first blood by taking out the first player!_" Amaterasu announced.

Irina soon landed, and then fell to her knees before folding her wings away, panting slightly.

"That fight took more out of me than I thought, guess I'll need to recharge before I go help the others." She told herself.

* * *

Kuroka unleashed some hinotama forward as her sister dashed through them, and soon threw a punch that the former had to block.

"I'm impressed Shirone, you've become so strong in such a short amount of time!" Kuroka grunted.

"I had a good teacher, and to a degree, I wanted the chance to face you." Shirone admitted.

Soon the two broke off from one another, with Shirone back flipping onto her feet, and the Nekoshou sisters staring each other down.

"I spent all those years without you, and then you came back, I learned the truth... I felt I had to show you how much I've grown, so let this fight we have today show you that you can have faith in me when you can't be there." Shirone stated.

"To hear you say something like that, my little sister's growing up so fast." Kuroka smiled, sniffling slightly.

Kuroka wrote some symbols in Youjutsu, forming a field of trees around them, and upon seeing this...

"Here I go then, **[Shiro Mode!]**" Shirone shouted.

Shirone's form slightly aged up as a white kimono formed on her.

'There it is, I better be careful now.' Kuroka thought.

Kuroka prepared to make a Senjutsu ring, but before she could even react, Shirone had zoomed in front of her.

'I didn't even see her move; just how fast did she just go!?' Kuroka gasped.

"**[White Palm Strike!]**"

Shirone slapped her hand on Kuroka's stomach, pushing her back a bit before she stopped, but now unable to move.

"_Hmm? Hey Ami, is it just me, or did Kuroka just get paralyzed?_" Naud asked.

"_I think she was, Shirone must have combined Touki, and Youjutsu, so she could strike the latter into Kuroka in a concentrated form._" Amaterasu suggested.

"_Ah, of course, the only thing I know Youjutsu's effects have little effect on are Dragons, and worse is fellow Youkai are good targets for it._" Naud realized.

Kuroka grunted.

"Damn it... I'm wide open." Kuroka muttered.

"Sorry sis, but this is my win!" Shirone shouted.

Shirone forms a pair of white fire wheels, and soon launched them at Kuroka, the elder Nekomata sister was struck by them and vanished.

"_One of Lady Vali's Rooks, retired!_" Naud announced.

* * *

Homura blinks a bit, soon gasping slightly, and getting the attention of those around her.

"What is it, something wrong?" Ruruko asked.

"No, that attack... I recognize it, there was a Nekomata I knew once who had an attack just like that, though she died a long time ago." Homura explained.

"Actually, yeah, that girl looks so much alike her its uncanny!" She realized.

Mio thought for a bit, and soon had an idea.

"Hey, maybe that's Shirone and Kuroka's mother, she died a long time ago as well." Mio suggested.

"Did either of them ever mention how she died?" Homura questioned.

"Hmm... yeah, I think Kuroka said their mom was killed while protecting Master Nurarihyon about a decade ago, the rumors about the assassin are still flying even now." Mio replied.

Lilith flinched upon hearing that, but luckily, everyone failed to notice due the match distracting them.

'Master... Nurarihyon, but that's...' Lilith gasped.

_A scene showing Vali tell Lilith about the people Rizevim had forced her to kill, shaking and tearing up as Lilith looks at her with sympathy for her, but rage for her disowned son, while rubbing Vali's back to try calming her slightly._

'Oh, my god... Vali, I have a bad feeling about the immediate future, Kuroka's going to discover the truth... I just hope you'll be ready for that.' Lilith thought, gulping a bit.

* * *

Kiba swung his Sword of Betrayer towards the ground, soon stabbing into it.

"**[SWORD... BURST!]**"

The Sword Birth's ultimate attack launched out, sending a wave of blades at Yuuma, but the former Fallen raised up her hands and formed a shield of dark light, blocking the attack from hitting her.

Despite being pushed back slightly, Yuuma regained her footing and jumped ahead.

"Sorry Kiba, but that i-isn't enough to stop me!" Yuuma shouted.

"Maybe, but victory is achieved beyond merely defeating an enemy." Kiba replied.

Yuuma sweated slightly.

'That's right, he knows that better than anyone, he's trying to wear me out, worse...' Yuuma thought.

_A brief image of Kiba's Holy Eraser eating the light sword Freed held was seen, followed by the Flame Delete and Replenish Calm countering Karlamine's magical sword attacks in succession._

'He has the right counter to my strongest weapon, and I have no idea what types of magic he has swords to counter either.' Yuuma thought, a trickle of sweat falling down her right cheek.

"_This is odd, Yuuma doesn't look like she's fighting back, why is that?_" Amaterasu wondered.

"_It's Kiba's Sword Birth, you've seen how he can make swords that counter certain properties, especially ones that use two elements at once, one of them happens to devour light._" Naud explained.

"_In other words, Yuuma's being faced with one of the worst match ups she could be._" Amaterasu realized.

As Yuuma dodged another few sword slashes, she noticed a few of Kiba's swords left over from her attack... and suddenly had an idea.

'_Wait a second, the only thing I've never seen him counter is... yes, this is it!_' Yuuma thought.

Yuuma grabbed two of the swords and parried against Kiba, soon channeling her dark holy element through them, and knocking him back.

The crowd gasped in shock at the sight, Kiba pulled out his Holy Eraser as they clashed again, but the Knight of Gremory soon noticed that he couldn't devour Yuuma's light while it was linked to the swords she borrowed.

"I knew it, there's only one Sword Birth, so you couldn't have ever tested this before now, but I theorized your swords' powers don't work against other swords you make!" Yuuma smiled, holding her ground.

"I can't believe my own swords would be used against me like this, you'd probably be a good tactician for Vali if you actually wanted to be." Kiba admitted.

Yuuma blushes at that.

"D-Don't flirt with me on the battlefield!" Yuuma screamed in embarrassment.

The two pushed each other apart, and the Pawn of Lucifer breathed before swinging the swords behind her, letting her wings unfold, and revealing six black wings similar to Akeno's Fallen Angel mode.

'She's got six wings like Akeno, this won't be easy.' Kiba thought.

'He won't let me get more swords now that he's seen me use this trick, I can't let these swords break!'

Kiba reformed his Sword of Betrayer, and the two rushed as they clashed once more, the entire crowd cheering at the sudden intensity of their fight.

* * *

Yumi's eyes darted on her position, and then noticed the sight of Kunou rushing towards her, using her hands to run on all fours quickly.

"There she is, better take care of her now." Yumi thought, pulling on her bow's strings.

Activating the Balance Breaker of Lumen Shekhinah, the Gremory Archer fired off her bow, raining down the arrows of light towards her as she guided them towards Kunou.

However, Kunou saw them and smiled.

"**[Fox Fire!]**"

Kunou's body suddenly enveloped itself with flames, and the arrows that neared her all burned away before they even touched her, surprising Yumi.

"What!?" Yumi gasped.

"_Whoa, the arrows burned away before they could even touch Kunou, this is definitely your area Amaterasu, what can you tell us about that fire?_" Naud announced, turning to ask his guest announcer.

"_The fires created by Kyuubi are the hottest natural flames in the world, they're so powerful that Kunou's mother, Yasaka, could create hers to a degree that I honestly believe she could rival the Vritra's black flames at his prime._" Amaterasu answered.

"_Then... what you're basically saying is that fire's so hot that even someone young and untrained like Kunou can burn those attacks away!?_" Naud gasped.

Amaterasu chuckled, rubbing her head slightly.

"_Well, to a degree, I'd say if Yumi's arrows were able to compress into one as big as a Fallen cadre's light spears, Kunou wouldn't be as lucky, so it's only working because Yumi's arrows can only be at that small size._" Amaterasu admitted.

Kunou soon got near Yumi, and the archer held out her hand, forming a barrier to block Kunou's flames.

"Dang it!" Kunou pouted.

"Let's see you try taking an arrow at close range!" Yumi shouted.

Kunou's eyes widened as Yumi prepared to fire another arrow at her, but it was suddenly blocked by a barrier of light, surprising Yumi as she noticed Asia casting the spell from nearby.

"Asia!?" Yumi remarked.

"I-I can fight too!" Asia said, trying to look determined.

Unfortunately, Asia's shaking legs destroyed that illusion before it even began.

"Either way, I can't let your healing abilities stick around."

Yumi shot some arrows at her, and Asia held up her hand, causing a shield spell to form and block them.

Kunou took the chance, and soon grabbed Yumi before she could form a barrier.

"Hey, let me go!" Yumi panicked, knowing she was wide open.

"Go Asia!" Kunou cheered.

Asia nodded, and soon she ran towards Yumi, and then... just punched her to the audience's confusion.

However, that punch had more power than anyone expected, and Yumi flew back a bit, barely tumbling back to her feet upon landing. When everyone got a look, they noticed Asia had put a shield on her fists, which soon faded.

"_No freaking way, Asia Argento didn't just punch her opponent, but applied a shield for an offensive purpose!_" Naud announced, completely flabbergasted.

"_That surprised me too, I didn't know she had any offensive ability, looks like any strategies our other Semi-Finalists based on her lacking any offensive skills have just been thrown out the window._" Amaterasu replied.

Yumi shakily readied another arrow, trying to keep it steady.

"I can't give up... just yet!" Yumi declared loudly.

"Bring it Yumi, we'll take you both on!" Kunou replied, smiling excitedly.

* * *

"**[Ruin the Extinct!]**"

Rias blasted spheres of her signature ability towards the two, but Issei flew in front of them, reeling his fist back for a punch.

**[Penetrate!]**

"**[Crimson Domination Fist!]**" Issei screamed.

Issei smashed his fist forward, smashing the orbs of deadly energy without taking any damage, and ripping the field apart before Rias took to the air and flew away.

At the same time, Akeno gathered an orb of fire, lightning, and ice into one spot, as Vali flew near her, she finally acted and held her hand out. Vali, noticing what she was about to do, stopped in place before getting into a defensive stance.

"**[Holy Lightning Dragon,] [Ice Dragon,] [Hellfire Dragon!]**"

The attacks all hit Vali, causing an explosion of smoke to cover the area she was floating at, and as Akeno watched to see the damage she had done...

"Impressive Akeno, unfortunately..."

Akeno gasped as she saw Vali had been shielded by her own Devil wings, but there was one major difference this time...

Vali now had 10 wings!

"You... grew your fifth pair of wings..." Akeno breathed.

"And just in time for a match like this one." Vali smirked, dispelling them quickly after.

"_I CAN'T BELIEVE I JUST SAW THAT!_" Naud exclaimed.

"_Everyone, the princess of Hell has grown another pair of wings, this is incredible!_" He continued, shaking his fists up and down vigorously.

Akeno sweats slightly, and soon Issei flies near Vali.

"Vali, let's do it now!" Issei exclaimed.

"Right!" Vali agreed.

They each charged an attack, leading to Rias, and Akeno, to do the same.

"**[Raging Fire!]**"

"**[Extinguished Star!]**"

"**[Nightmare Lightning!]**"

"**[Abyssal Whirlwind!]**"

A mighty fire expelled from Issei's hands like a beam, and Akeno unleashed a black discharge of lightning, while their Kings each used their familiar techniques against the opposing side, and soon making the four attacks collide with one another.

As another explosion of force is set off, each team's strongest two slid back across the ground, and soon came to a stop as they stared each other down. Rias gave a determined look, staring at the two Heavenly Dragon before her.

"It looks like it won't be that easy to win just like this, I think it's time... Akeno?" Rias stated.

"I'm on it." Akeno replied.

Akeno made motions with her hands, and soon raised them into the air, causing a few magic circles to horizontally hover in the air.

Vali looked at them, slightly remembering the time she did the same during the attempt to rescue Asia, but this time... something about them felt different to her.

"Issei, stay on guard, I've seen Akeno do this before, but I think it's a variation on it." Vali stated.

"What do you mean, what did the old one do?" Issei asked.

"The last one was a barrier that she used to trap the rogue Fallen that worked with Raynare, and while it's still a barrier, I don't think it's meant to cage something inside." Vali replied, sweating underneath her scale mail.

Rias smirked, looking at the two.

"That's right, this barrier only works on me, and now you'll see why!" Rias announced.

Rias' body glows red, surprising the two.

"This feels like the Gremory clan's Aura Break ability, but I thought Rias wasn't born with her clan ability?" Vali questioned.

"Uh oh, I think we just realized what this barrier's doing!" Issei realized.

Rias charges her signature ability into her hands, and soon smiles, giving a dark look like she was the boss of a video game about to reveal she wasn't trying before now.

"You're right Vali, I didn't inherit my clan's power, only the power of my mother, but... with some hard work, and Akeno's help, I've found a way around that problem so I could design this little trick after one of my brother's." Rias revealed.

"Your brother, no way, you mean this is-" Vali gasped.

Rias soon coated the Power of Destruction around her body, and soon it glows a dangerous black/red mixture as if her body itself was made of it.

"This is my new technique, **[Crimson Equip!]**" Rias announced.

The crowd gasps in shock, with only a few confused by this reaction.

"_T-t-that move, I don't believe it, Rias Gremory's mimicked the "true form" that Sirzechs created by merging the two clan abilities he inherited!_" Naud announced, getting Amaterasu's attention.

"_What do you mean?_" Amaterasu asked.

"_The Great Devil Lucifer has an ability called "Aura of Destruction", and when he uses it, his Aura Break is consumed with his Power of Destruction, due to his Human shape and the fusion of abilities, its nicknamed as his true form, especially since that's when he's using his true and full power!_" Naud announced.

Amaterasu showed shock at that.

'To think he's been holding back all this time, just what could make Sirzechs actually use that power!?'

"Uh... hey Vali, mind explaining how big of this problem might become for us?" Issei asked.

"Issei, I can only sum this situation up in seven words..." Vali answered.

Vali takes a deep breath.

"Rias has mastered the Power of Destruction!"

"Are you kidding me!?" Issei shouted.

Rias crosses her arms outward, forming multiple layers of magical circles over her hands.

"**[Cataclysm Wave!]**"

"Now bring out Thunder!" Akeno announced.

Rias creates a flood of her Power of Destruction, and it starts rampaging erratically as Akeno charged it with her lightning, which also doubled its speed.

"Get back Issei, this could get messy!" Vali warned.

Issei nods, and Vali thrust her hands out.

"**[Primal Abyss!]**"

The signature dark streams escape from Vali's hands, and try to swallow up all of Rias' attack, but to everyone's surprise, the Cataclysm Wave attack starts to push against the void faster than it was devoured.

"Oh no!" Vali gasped.

**(REFLECT!)**

Vali threw out her Reflect barrier, but was still heavily hit and launched back, her scale mail shattered as she skids across the battlefield. Issei gasped as he saw the result before him.

"Vali!" Issei screamed.

"_I... I don't believe it... Vali's Primal Abyss wasn't enough, Rias Gremory actually managed to overpower it!_" Naud announced.

* * *

Xenovia swings Joyeuse, and Durandal, against Arthur as he blocks with Caliburn.

"**[Cross Crisis!]**"

'Here it comes!' Arthur thought.

The force of Arthur's attack smashed against him, pushing him back a bit, but unfortunately, it didn't prepare him Xenovia rushing near his blind spot.

"Sorry Arthur, but you forgot that Joyeuse's ability is!" Xenovia stated.

'No choice, I have to bring it out!' Arthur thought.

Arthur swings Caliburn down, and Xenovia moves out of the way... only for a dimensional slash to open, and then Arthur grabbing something within, pulling it out to reveal Excalibur Ruler!

The Knight of Gremory gasped as she slides back, seeing Arthur hold both swords in hand.

"I don't often intend to use a sword other than Caliburn, but I will not let my team lose because I refused to." Arthur declared.

* * *

Le Fay flew around as Valerie, and Gasper, chased after her, but quickly noticed Gasper's eyes shift.

"**[Protection!]**"

Le Fay cast a protection spell, causing her to negate the time stopping effect on herself, only to see Valerie swarm her in her bat flock form.

"You can run, but you can't hide, we see you everywhere." Valerie chuckled.

"Oh really, how about now?" Le Fay asked, smiling a bit.

Suddenly Le Fay's wand unleashed a burst of smoke, causing both Gasper and Valerie to be blinded by it.

"Well... that taunt backfired." Valerie sighed, a sweat drop on her face.

A suddenly blizzard blows near the two, and Gasper notices it before freezing it.

"We're sitting ducks in here!" Gasper shouted.

"Don't worry Gaspy, we're not out of this game yet, don't give up." Valerie stated.

* * *

Bikou flew on the Flying Nimbus, dodging a volley of magic spells fired by Rossweisse as the Rook of Gremory chased him from behind, and soon turned with his staff in hand.

"**Ruyi Jingu Bang!**" Bikou shouted.

"[**Layered Castle!**]"

Bikou's staff smashed into a thick barrier, causing him to lose his balance as Rossweisse crosses her arms inward, forming twelve magic circles around her, soon firing off twelve different types of magic.

Seeing the danger he was in, Bikou purposely fell, and then whistled to have the Nimbus fly down and catch him mid-fall.

"I'm impressed, the power of Sun Wukong's lineage is evident through your skills." Rossweisse admitted.

"Well, charm and grace do run in my family." Bikou chuckled.

'That... wasn't what I meant.' Rossweisse mentally sighed, sweat dropping slightly.

Bikou readied himself.

"Now, let me show you what I can really do since you've got me pumped up now!" Bikou announced, flying forward.

"Be prepared!" Rossweisse replied.

* * *

Issei stared at Vali before turning to face Rias and Akeno, the two having gotten closer to them, and gave a serious look underneath his scale mail armor.

"To think you'd be able to overcome Vali's clan ability, and she's much stronger than I am, Rias... your group really did train hard for this match, didn't you?" Issei stated, never moving his gaze from them.

"We did, so I guess I should thank you for acknowledging that, but I'm afraid that despite how much I think Vali's dream is nice... I also don't want to give up my chance to achieve my own." Rias replied.

Rias held up her hand, charging her Power of Destruction.

"I'm sorry, but this match's winner will be me, and I'll start by taking her out." She sighed, readying to make Vali retire.

"No... it's not over, you haven't even gotten close to winning yet." Issei stated.

A thick pressure suddenly rippled across the area the four stood, with Vali, Rias and Akeno all feeling it push down on them.

"W-what is this?" Akeno asked, barely able to breath.

"I've felt this before, back when I was..." Vali gasped, recognizing it.

It was Issei's Domineering Will.

"Mom, I still remember what you told me." Issei said to himself.

* * *

_"Domineering Will is a manifestation of one's mental and emotional strength, while Force Crystallization is the same for one's physical strength, and each could work well with the Boosted Gear in some manner." She explained._

_"Then, what do you-" Issei asked._

_Issei suddenly paused, seeing a smile from Homura that somehow left him speechless._

_"But while you inherited both powers from us, your father created his power on his own." Homura answered._

_"I met your father as a normal nobody human, but despite he had no power, I believed in his potential, next thing I knew... he created his own power and he somehow stole my heart." Homura admitted._

_Issei stared at his mom, surprised at the revelation._

_"You have our powers, Ddraig's, and your own. So, don't limit yourself to one path, because you are more than the sum of your parts." Homura encouraged._

* * *

Issei's body began to flash red, and Ayumu quickly took notice.

"He's using my power now, what do you think he's about to do?" Ayumu wondered.

"I don't know, but he's definitely using my Domineering Will..." Homura replied.

At that moment, Issei's birth mother gave out a loud gasp, getting the attention of those who heard it.

"Wait, could it be?" Homura realized.

"Could... what be?" Lilith asked.

"...Could he have taken my advice, and actually achieved it?" Homura wondered.

Back on the field, Issei stood in place as he took a deep breath.

** _ \- (*Perfect Dark Gaia - Sonic Unleashed*) - _ **

"...Ddraig, it's time, you ready?" Issei asked.

**"[Yeah, show all of Hell the fruits of your labor, your new power!]"**

Issei nods, and soon begins to grunt, generating power.

Everyone watches silently, confused by what Issei was doing, and then... Ddraig's armor begins cracking, as red colored light forms from the cracks and the eye lenses shine like Homura's when she uses her Domineering Will.

"_W-what the, is his armor cracking!?_" Naud announced in shock.

"_Issei... this must be it, the ability he was working on, but what is it?_" Amaterasu realized.

Issei continues grunting, and soon he screams as his armor breaks, creating a powerful light across the battlefield, breaking through the dimensional field's limits and causing the entire crowd to cover their eyes.

"That power!" Lilith gasped.

"This doesn't feel like just one source of magic, or power, he had to have stacked a few together!" Mio stated, shielding her eyes with her arms.

Homura stared in shock, but even more awe.

"He actually did it... my [Domineering Will], Ayumu's [Force Crystallization], and Ddraig's power... he combined them into one!" Homura exclaimed.

Back in the field, Akeno was blown away slightly, struggling to hold her ground as Vali and Rias watched the sight directly.

"My mother told me to find my own strength, I had three different sources of power, so I knew my strength... would be achieving a method to bring the three together!" Issei shouted.

The red light slowly faded, and as it did, the sight of Issei's current form was slowly revealed to the shock of many.

His skin was now heavily tinted red like he was either doping or it was burning from within (the latter being more likely due to Ddraig's power), his eyes had become more dragon-like, with the iridescent coloration and white pupils of his mom's Domineering Will, and his hair had become slightly longer as it was red and moved like it was a burning fire.

"No way..." Rias gasped.

"These three powers have become one through me, this is my new power, my **[Blazing Soul!]**" Issei announced loudly, smiling brightly to show his sharpened teeth.

The entire crowd had become silent, as if the sight was too grand to say anything to, until...

"YES, THAT'S IT ISSEI!"

Everyone saw Ayumu stand up, making the crowd turn to him.

"You've finally found your path, now walk it with pride, show everyone you can pave the future that you choose, win this match, and take that last step into the Finals!" Ayumu exclaimed proudly.

"_Uh... well, it looks like Issei's father just shouted... some encouraging words, that's one excited father!_" Naud announced, still shocked from Issei's reveal.

Vali smiles, realizing just how hard Issei had worked for this match.

"Amazing!" Vali breathed.

"Vali?" He said.

Vali soon regained her focus and looked at him.

"Time for me to turn this tide and give us victory, but what I do is gonna be pretty risky and doesn't consider friendly fire, so... create all the ice you can and trust in me, can you do that?" Issei requested.

"Yeah, I can do that." Vali replied.

Vali breathes, and soon focuses all her magic into one place, soon causing huge slabs of ice to expand from her current standing, making Rias suddenly act.

"Akeno, don't let that ice get near us!" Rias shouted, blasting out her **[Ruin of Extinct]** attack.

"Right, I've got you covered!" Akeno shouted, charging some lightning.

Issei rushed forward at incredible speeds, his body now without restraint and boosted by his will and strengthened by Ddraig's energy, he followed the ice as it rushed forward at Rias, and Akeno.

The two soon move out of the way, but the ice quickly branches into the air before curling towards itself.

"_Wait a second, what's Vali doing?_" Naud wondered.

"_I don't... wait, ice and fire, that Issei is completely insane!_" Amaterasu replied, smirking slightly.

"_...Amaterasu, why does what you just said scare me?_" Naud asked, sweating a bit before swallowing a bit.

Soon the ice becomes a dome of sorts with Issei trapped within, and soon he charges a fire infused Dragon shot in his hand.

"Here goes!"

**[BOOSTING BREAKER!]**

Issei's body goes fully red from his aura, and he screams as he starts preparing his custom spell.

**[EXPLOSION... MAXIMUM!]**

"**[Purgatory!]**"

The spell's heat and power rise to incredible levels, and then Issei's strategy was revealed... because the cold air of Vali's ice, the air around him had compressed a bit from being cooled down, but due to his fire it was about to rapidly expand at an even faster level.

Before anyone on the field or in the crowd realized, a giant explosion of Issei's fire shot off, and the force of it was so intense, the entire field of the Rating Game arena was hit by it, and right as the attack's force ended, the dimensional field outright _shattered_!

** _ \- (*insert song end*) - _ **

"He actually broke the field!" Lilith exclaimed.

"Just how powerful was Issei at that moment to achieve that!?" Mio begged, the recoil pressing her against her seat.

Naud and Amaterasu were just as speechless, until the latter cleared her throat.

"Huh? Oh, right!" Naud realized.

"_I... I don't know what to say folks, other than we seem to have found a threshold for the dimensional field that we need to increase to avoid an event like this, we're lucky it only shattered at the last moment!_" Naud announced.

"_Issei definitely overdid it with that hot and cold trick, but I don't think we can blame him considering he did it right as he and Vali were put into a dire situation._"

Naud looked at her before checking with Ajuka, soon verifying that Issei's move didn't break any rules due to situation causes.

"_Alright, we have confirmation that Issei's action was within rules because he couldn't have predicted the explosion's intensity, now the question is what's the final result?_" Naud announced.

Everyone waited, and soon the smoke cleared a bit, the sight of a most members of each team retiring until only each side's King, and each side's Queen, were left standing on the battlefield.

"_I... I don't believe this, but it seems Akeno, Rias and Vali all survived the attack! As for everyone else... all of them have retired!_" Naud announced.

Everyone on both sides who had just been retired rushed to see the field directly, each member was panting heavily, but then... Rias and Akeno gave smiles before they both fell over, collapsing into unconsciousness.

The entire crowd gasped, realizing who had won.

"_Lady Rias and her Queen have both lost consciousness, and that means all of Lady Rias' team has been defeated, the winner is... Vali Lucifer!_" Naud announced.

"We... won?" Vali whispered.

"...WE WON!" She exclaimed.

The entire crowd cheered loudly, although a few of the Elders who had come to watch the match showed displeased reactions, having been sure that Rias would have come out victorious in the end.

Vali soon tackle hugged Issei, with the Sekiryuutei spinning her around before hugging her close.

"Issei, you won us the match!" Vali cheered.

"Yeah, that I did, hope I didn't get anyone mad over that last part though." Issei chuckled, sweating slightly in worry.

Vali giggled.

"Oh, relax a bit, Issei. With how much of a bind the two of us were in I think they'll be fine, and then there's the fact we didn't expect you'd break the dimensional field." Vali chuckled slightly, sweat dropping as she did.

"Yeah, I probably shouldn't have tried boosting with my Blazing Soul during the match when I hadn't tested it before." Issei admitted, scratching his cheek.

Vali suddenly went blue in the face at that, immediately pretending she didn't hear it.

* * *

Back at the Leviathan clan's territory, Ineelana and her peerage all saw the end result, and Ineelana showed some interest before smiling a bit.

"I knew she'd end up winning, and now... it's my turn to do the same." Ineelana stated.

"D-do you think we have a chance against Sairaorg?" Murasaki asked.

Ineelana looked at Murasaki, and gave her a slight pat on the shoulder.

"I refuse to fall after rising this high up, that's why we're winning, so don't even imply we can lose." Ineelana declared.

* * *

Sairaorg, and his peerage watched from the Dragon mountains, with Tannin watching alongside them.

"A new power unique to this generation's Sekiryuutei, it makes me wonder what the two of them will accomplish when the Final match begins." Tannin noted.

"Damn, looks like I've got more to worry about than Issei using Ascalon now, they might just be the team that can beat us." Ladora remarked.

"And that's only Issei, who knows if Vali's saved he own hidden ace just for the finals?" Kuisha mentioned.

Kirin got up, sighing as she walked off to start training again.

"Kirin, don't you wanna train with the rest of us?" Sairaorg asked.

"...Why, so you'll claim you'll be going full out when you definitely won't be?" Kirin asked.

Sairaorg didn't say anything to that.

"Just as I thought, how can I trust the training of a hypocrite?" She stated.

Kirin walked off, and most of Sairaorg's peerage sighed.

"I don't get it, why's she got such a problem with you just doing your best without your trump card?" Coriana wondered.

"Maybe this is some kinda Dragon's pride or something, is that it Tannin?" Gandoma asked.

Tannin sighed, shaking his head.

"Pride and rage don't necessarily correlate, I'm afraid Bahamut has no influence beyond revealing the truth to her, whatever her reason stems from something deeper in her soul." Tannin explained.

Kuisha's eyes widened slightly, but quickly reverts her expression before anyone noticed.

* * *

A while later, back at the Hyoudou Household, Issei suddenly felt his mother hug him tightly as they arrived back home.

"I'm so proud of you Issei, you created your own unique ability, this is so amazing!" Homura squealed, crying happy years.

"Help... can't... breathe!" Issei choked out.

Ayumu tried to have his wife loosen his grip, and only succeeded when a [Power of Hole] portal appeared in the room, surprising everyone was Kuisha walked through with a troubled look on her face.

"Kuisha, what are you doing here?" Vali asked.

"I... need help, it's about Sairaorg and Kirin." Kuisha answered.

* * *

**Now there's a way to end a chapter, it seems before the fight between Ineelana and Sairaorg begins, the fact Kirin is _still_ made at Sairaorg has left no option but for Kuisha to ask for help on how to resolve it, as it could honestly affect them in their match.**

**There you have it, Issei's new technique is the "Blazing Soul!" It uses his father's power, then strengthens its effects further with his mother's power, and then shatters his scale mail armor for his body to absorb to take in more of Ddraig's power. Basically, the Blazing Soul is an amplification technique that removes his bodily limits, strengthens it, all while having his will power burst out to synchronize the effects and make them stronger.**

**Don't let what happened with the cold to hot explosion fool you, the boost isn't THAT big, that was the unintentional result of using Boosting Breaker to have his body use the maximum boosts and then Explosion Maximum to only use it at the moment he attacked, so it was supercharged on three levels. It was kinda my way of showing that Rias was very close to taking the two of them out, which will make them train harder, and that's training they'll need for the Final match and their Season 5 enemies.**

**For the very reason related above, I actually had to change some of my plans for the match, I was originally going to reveal each of Vali's team members except herself had gotten some new powers, but I decided I should wait on that, and let this match give them more motivation to make them soon enough, the only difference is Vali will get hers around the same point.**

**I decided to only have the defeats of Jeanne, and Kuroka, be shown since I felt Irina, and Shirone, had reason to win rather than leave things ambiguous in comparison to the others. For the ambiguous situation in general, I decided not to have anyone beaten until Issei pulled out his Blazing Soul to show that while Vali's team has become strong, they need to push a little harder.**

**For the two victories, I had Irina win because of her recently having to accept Issei's heart belongs to Vali, and as such, to show she's taking her role as Vali's Knight more seriously now. As for Shirone, I think she pretty much worded it for me when she faced Kuroka, she's not the same little girl she had to protect and left alone due to her situations when she killed her previous master, and since Rias' graduation will decrease how often they see each other, she wants Kuroka to know that that no matter where life takes them, she'll be fine.**

**Speaking of the two Nekomata sisters, and as a friendly reminder, this actually isn't the first time I've mentioned that Vali unknowingly killed Kuroka and Shirone's mother, but she's been unaware of this fact, even after her training in Kyoto during her training journey. I decided to mention it again because due to Season 5 starting off with Volume 9's events... well, I think you get what I'm implying there.**

**I guess that's it for now, next time we'll finally start bringing this season to a close with the fabled Semi-Final match between Ineelana and Sairaorg, and I can assure you there will be layers of surprises to experience. Then it's only a matter of writing the last scene to set the group off for the events that cause the Crossover story.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin has untold feelings for him, Sairaorg's feelings unknown  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	41. Chapter 41

**This is it everyone, the last Semi-Final match is here, and after this a small breather chapter to help connect everything to the crossover! Although, before we begin, I'd like to announce that this story's finally reached 500 favorites! For a DxD story, and not to mention the first big story I submitted here on FFN, it's a big milestone for me.**

**I'll say right now, that this is the chapter of this arc, and this season, that I'm most excited in doing :3 *shakes with anticipation* You're about to see droves of surprises come in, and by the time this chapter ends, I guarantee there's at least one thing that most if not everyone here expected to happen being the very things that _don't_ happen, which admittedly is partly the result of me changing my original plans around the Niruili vs Sairaorg match.**

**Either way, this is the big fight between Ineelana and Sairaorg, and there's a lot at stake for this match up. We have the Heiress of Leviathan whose inferiority complex has made her feel second to everyone, but she intends to push herself into breaking that by beating the current champion among the rookies, while the Heir of Bael is dealing with something that's making him refuse to use the trump card that's his enigmatic Pawn, yet still gunning to win.**

**Well, I think it's time we get things started then, time for the last of the two Season 4 chapters! After this, a small epilogue to connect with the crossover will happen. Now, let the game... *hits a gong* BEGIN!**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Blazing Soul- **

**A technique exclusive to Issei, created by merging the Boosted Gear's power alongside the powers he inherited from both of his birth parents, the "Domineering Will," and "Force Crystallization," into one. He shatters his scale mail armor, then absorbs the shards to imbue Ddraig's power into his skin, and then using Domineering Will to merge his and Ddraig's wavelengths to increase his body's natural power.**

**After that, he uses Force Crystallization on his body, not only breaking his normal limitations, but using the amplified power from Ddraig and his Domineering Will, allows his body to push itself to tripling its full power to turn 100% into 300%. The best part is that he can still use the Boosted Gear in this state, and despite his scale mail being gone, his body still acts like he's wearing it.**

**The only downside to his technique is that Issei's magic capacity powers it, meaning his magic decides the length he can use this form, and Issei's magical skill is nothing compared to his physical ability, limiting his use of it. Worse, even if his magic recovers enough, Issei hasn't used it enough to freely change back, and currently needs to wait a 6-hour period after using it once before he can access it again.**

**Even though it's a new skill, and has a fair share of limitations, it's one of Issei's most useful and powerful tricks when he uses it at the right moment.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Journey to the Finals Arc: Chapter 7 - The Most Unexpected Game _ **

A while later, back at the Hyoudou Household, Issei suddenly felt his mother hug him tightly as they arrived back home.

"I'm so proud of you Issei, you created your own unique ability, this is so amazing!" Homura squealed, crying happy years.

"Help... can't... breathe!" Issei choked out.

Ayumu tried to have his wife loosen his grip, and only succeeded when a [Power of Hole] portal appeared in the room, surprising everyone was Kuisha walked through with a troubled look on her face.

"Kuisha, what are you doing here?" Vali asked.

"I... need help, it's about Sairaorg and Kirin." Kuisha answered.

Vali looked confused.

"Why, what's wrong with them?" Vali asked.

"Well... oh boy, I guess for you to help fix this issue, I'll have to spill a bit about who Sairaorg's First Pawn is." Kuisha sighed.

"I've been wondering who he is myself, I recall during one meeting, Lord Bael implied while thinking I was out of earshot that said Pawn was the Bael household's greatest secret, but that's all I got because he was smart enough to consider people like me heard it." Lilith mentioned.

Kuisha breathed, and sat down slightly.

"That Pawn is a type of Sacred Gear that can operate autonomously, similar to the Canis Lykaon, or the Incinerate Anthem when choosing a new wielder." Kuisha revealed.

Irina gasped at that.

"Wait, you mean that's a Sacred Gear fighting alongside you all?" Irina asked.

"Yeah, but I can't say which one it is, though this I can say due to its relation... Sairaorg's not truly using his full potential unless said Sacred Gear equips himself to him." Kuisha answered.

Kuisha breathed in worry, the troubled look on her face truly manifesting to everyone.

"...That's where the problem comes from, Kirin joined our team when we saved her from flock of Minotaur that destroyed her village, she was the only one who survived." Kuisha revealed.

"Oh, my goodness..." Kunou gasped.

"Yeah, and after that happened, Sairaorg gave her words of encouragement to stay strong, I'm pretty sure that's how she awakened Bahamut's power when she joined you to help the Elves." Kuisha replied.

"I think I get it, such words told her to always give it everything, but if Sairaorg's still got more power by using a Sacred Gear to push himself to greater heights..." Bikou realized.

Kuisha nodded.

"Yeah, she didn't know this initially, but Bahamut eventually realized the truth and told her... she's been mad at Sairaorg ever since because it makes her feel he's a hypocrite for not doing what he told her." Kuisha verified.

"It's a combination of that, and two other things as well, the first is the fact that she's in love with him, which is why it's hurting her this deeply." She explained.

Rias showed shock upon hearing that, making Kuisha chuckle slightly.

"Yeah, surprised me once I caught on too, and the second reason it's a problem... aside from me and said Sacred Gear, Kirin is the only other member of Sairaorg's peerage that knows the story behind why his mother's comatose, I believe Vali knows what I mean." Kuisha replied.

Everyone looked at the Lucifer heiress, sans her mother who knew the story already.

"Sairaorg's mother was a member of the Vapula clan, a clan known for their ability to tame lions no different than Beruka's tamed the Pale Horse, but she was treated horribly by the entire clan including her husband when he didn't inherit the Power of Destruction." Vali answered, a slightly angry look on her face.

Most of the group showed shock at that, especially since it was a good indicator of why Vali hated those looked down on for lacking their clan's power, while Rias who already knew gave a sympathetic look as she remembered the stories her mother told her.

"The two were sent to the Bael's countryside, the only support they had was a butler of Misla's, she was the one who told Sairaorg to be proud of his heritage no matter what he faced, she honestly blamed herself for Sairaorg not getting the Power of Destruction, and wanted him to show the world he didn't need it to become strong." She continued.

"Unfortunately, that's when tragedy struck, she contracted an illness that leaves Devil's comatose until they die... if she doesn't wake up soon, she isn't going to make it." Lilith revealed, her fist shaking.

"No way..." Asia gasped horrified.

Standing back on her feet, Kuisha continued her explanation.

"Yeah, as someone who lost her family, that's something Kirin's particularly sensitive about... because after Sairaorg won the rights to be the Bael heir from defeating his half-brother Magdaran, Lord Bael said he'd get Misla the help that could help her survival if he did was he said, which included to keep the Sacred Gear a secret." She stated.

"Lord Bael, that asshole's a nasty piece of shit, I've heard how he treated Magdaran for reviving an extinct species of flower, even though most Devils, including his ancestor Zekram, actually considered it a prodigal achievement." Lilith stated, glaring as he thought of him.

Kuisha nodded, and then grunted as she slammed the wall.

"Aside from Sairaorg and us in his peerage, Magdaran as his peerage, and Misla... I wish the entire clan died out, they don't deserve to be called the clan of the Great Kings... because they're nothing more than tyrants, that's why Zekram leads the Elders in a sense, doesn't he?" Kuisha stated.

Lilith sighed, nodding a bit.

"It was clear to me when I realized why my husband made me the line of succession, because Zekram would have had the reign of command otherwise, and the current Great Devils would have been second to him... I'm the only one that keeps him from taking full control of Hell." She confirmed.

"Well, that's beside the point... that's why I beg you, help me settle this between them, because otherwise I feel we won't have any chance to defeat Ineelana in the next Rating Game." Kuisha begged.

Kuisha bowed on her knees, lowering her head.

"Please, I don't know what else to do..." Kuisha begged again.

After a bit, Irina kneeled down, catching her attention.

"Kuisha, the way I'm seeing this, there's only one way to solve this, Sairaorg is stuck because Lord Bael claims that he's gonna help his mom if he lets the Bael clan keeps this Sacred Gear a secret. If you want things to fix themselves, Kirin has to do it, let her know in the next match to let Sairaorg know exactly what she things, and force him to bring it out. After all, that's Sairaorg's strength, so Lord Bael shouldn't have any rights over someone not of his own peerage." Irina reasoned.

Kuisha's eyes gasped at that.

"Just like Excalibur's my sword, or Albion is Vali's host, or how Primal Abyss is a power belonging to Lilith." Irina smiled.

"...I see, to stand up to what you believe, and we already have little reason to trust Lord Bael." Kuisha realized.

The Queen of Bael stood up.

"Sairaorg accepted us because we were the outcasts and the different ones, we should be fighting for the reasons we want, and I think Kirin's the one person who can get that message into Sairaorg's thick head, thank you for your advice, I hope it works." Kuisha thanked.

"Just promise to give it your all next match, and for one hell of a fight in the Finals should you win." Vali replied.

Kuisha smiled at that.

"Sure thing, it's a deal." She promised.

Kuisha opened a portal using her clan power, and then walked right through it.

"Good luck Kuisha." Vali whispered.

* * *

Kirin angrily smashed against some rocks she used as training dummies, screaming as she shatters another group of them, and panting heavily after they were all nothing more than rubble.

"Stupid hypocrite!" Kirin screamed, clenching her fists.

**'=I'd like to say something, but if I do, then I think she'll find a way to strangle me!='** Bahamut thought worriedly.

At that moment, Kuisha made her reappearance, catching Kirin's attention.

"Hey Kirin, let's you and I talk, I think I know how you can get Sairaorg to finally use-" Kuisha stated.

The rest of what they talked about went unheard, with Kirin showing some surprise before smirking, and nodding a bit at Kuisha's idea.

* * *

** _~Day of the last Semi-Final Match_ **

Everyone quickly rushed into the stadium to get their seats, remembering the massive swarm from last time, with Lilith having been smart enough to get them there ahead of time and avoid most of it.

"Oh my, I hope this isn't any worse for the Final Match..." Hana thought aloud.

"Well the stadium for that one is three times the size of this one, so hopefully it does." Lilith chuckled, sweating dropping a bit.

Soon enough, Naud Gamigin took his seat and hit the mic, getting everyone's attention.

"_Welcome to the last Semi-Final match of this exciting Rating Game tournament, I'm your hose, Naud Gamigin, here to announce the play-by-play for you all!_" Naud announced.

"_Now, time to announce today's guest announcer, I present to you... huh?_"

Naud looked, seeing his guest announcer was present, and then a door slams open as the sight of Artemis carrying a bunch of food in hand ran in, placing it to the side as she took her seat.

"_Sorry about that, I was in a hurry and forgot to grab my usual meal, but I'm today's guest host, the one and only Artemis._" Artemis introduced.

"_And there we go, since the first Semi-Final match was a beginning, while Amaterasu was a Sun Goddess, I figured we should have a deity of the Moon be the one with us for the second Semi-Final to represent this one was an end, so once again... welcome Artemis!_" Naud announced.

Everyone cheered at that, and soon enough, Artemis took the mic.

"_Now, let's introduce the predators fighting to claw their way to their rival in the finals!_" Artemis declared.

The West and East gates opened up, revealing Ineelana's team from the former, and Sairaorg's team from the latter, both of them walking towards the center of the arena.

Ineelana's team, with the exception of the slightly nervous Murasaki, all gave their own looks of readiness, and determination. Meanwhile with Sairaorg's group, they showed their focused looks, with Kirin still looking a little mad at her King.

"_Alright then, how about you reveal the set match type for this battle, Artemis?_" Naud suggested.

"_Got it Naud, and here it is!_" She agreed.

Artemis took the orb on the right of the small podium beside them, showing it had the image of a flag with a clock beside it.

"_It's a flag battle, which means that if one team grabs the others flag, they win instantly!_" Artemis announced.

"_However, this time there's a catch, you have 15 minutes to capture the flag, and if you fail... then the team with more members standing wins by default!_" Naud stated.

"_Now, when we say with more members, we don't mean members defeated, but overall, which means that if neither side loses any members, this rule would make Sairaorg's team win the match._" Artemis explained.

The crowd shows surprise, murmuring a bit, while Lilith grits her teeth to show the group that this was clearly another match that favored against the team with a more noble goal should they win the tournament.

"This uses Ineelana's smaller team against her, but disguised under the fact that she's less likely to win in a direct fight." Lilith growled.

"I think I see what you mean, while she could get the flag to win, the time limit is working against her." Gabriel realized.

"Worse than that Gabriel, some of Sairaorg's peerage have powers that would make reaching the flag harder Kuisha's a prime example." Mio added.

Naud cleared his throat.

"_Now, due to the nature of this game, we have a few restrictions added to avoid causing things from being to unfair._" Naud announced.

"_Kuisha's Power of Hole can't be used within a set of rings for the flag zones of both her team, and Ineelana's team, not to mention she'll be limited to traveling a certain distance with a small time limit between uses. Beruka is also not allowed to summon his steed into the battle._" Artemis explained.

Beruka went white at that announcement, while Kuisha was indifferent, knowing she'd get restrictions on her powers from the moment she heard the match type.

"_While for Ineelana's side, Murasaki and Ophelia simply can't use their powers to grab the flag outside of the same flag zone, with these conditions, I think it's safe to say that this match will be fairer and equally winnable to both sides._" Artemis announced.

"_Yep, so without further ado, let the game-_" Naud shouted.

"WAIT!"

Everyone went silent with shock, the loud shout having come from Ineelana herself.

"Before the match starts, I have something I'd like to announce related to the event I should make it the Finals, may I speak?" Ineelana requested.

"_Oh, go ahead Lady Ineelana, if you feel it's that important than I won't stop you._" Naud replied.

The Gamigin Devil soon teleported a microphone over, and Ineelana cleared her throat as she readied her announcement.

"I've had some heavy thoughts, and after getting this far... I've decided to change my wish, as now I've truly realized something I want for myself!" Ineelana revealed.

The entire stadium gasps, with the Elders showing surprise, the only one not showing any surprise was Vali... because she had already known.

* * *

_Vali shows shock as she hears something from Ineelana via a magic circle, her eyes shaking heavily._

_"You're changing your wish, but why!?" Vali asked._

_"Vali, don't be stupid, you and I both know the Elders don't want it happening, I've already had a good idea of the tricks they'd be pulling for a while now... for that reason, what would happen if the two of us who share the same with met in the Finals?" Ineelana explained._

_Vali gasped a bit, realizing what could happen._

_"...They might find a way to prevent the Final from happening, or put both of us at risk, even if it means killing many who aren't even involved in this." Vali remarked._

_"Yeah, exactly, and I don't intend to just let Sairaorg win to avoid that... so, what would happen if I won, but changed my wish before that?" Ineelana mentioned._

_"You're... giving me a chance if you win, so that the possibility of me losing keeps them from doing anything serious!" Vali realized._

_Ineelana nodded._

_"You still have to beat me, but I think due to me being of the Leviathan clan, they'll have my own envy likely convince them that this isn't just some normal play... at least I hope, but just know I still intend to face you in the finals, and I'll still be trying to win." Ineelana stated._

_"I get it, that's the whole gamble of this tournament my mom set up for us, good luck then..." Vali replied._

* * *

Vali kept watching, wondering what Ineelana was about to say.

"My new wish should I win this tournament is this, I want... to be allowed to challenge the current Rating Game champion, Diehauser Belial, to a match!" Ineelana exclaimed.

The crowd gasped at that, even Sairaorg's group looked shocked at her claim.

At the same time, the Elders all gave looks at one another, soon smirking a bit as to Ineelana's luck, considered her in the same way they did Sairaorg for who they'd prefer trying to make win the tournament.

"_O-Oh my, that's a big claim, and I guess we've all heard it here, Ineelana intends to challenge the current emperor of the Rating Game!_" Naud announced.

"_Quite the bold wish, although it's not that unexpected when we consider what clan she's from, who else would she challenge if she wanted to become the best?_" Artemis noted.

Naud cleared his throat.

"_Alright, with that out of the way, let the game... begin!_" Naud announced.

** _ ~Current Time Left: 14 min, 59 secs~ _ **

The dimension field settles itself, creating a large hilly field, with a red and blue flag setting themselves by each team respectively, and a large ring showing the "flag zone" that held the restrictions for Kuisha, Murasaki and Ophelia.

Looking at her team, Ineelana nods at them.

"Everyone, this match has given us a good chance for victory, since I'm sure our chances to beat Sairaorg directly even with Kirin all pissy will be next to impossible, we've gotta reach that flag!" Ineelana shouted.

"Right!" Everyone agreed.

"Alright then, take the lead Stella!" Ineelana ordered.

"You've got it!" Stella replied loudly.

Stella formed her sword, and used her knight speed, and her flames, to rush over to where Sairaorg's team was positioned.

"She's already made her move, go and counter her Beruka." Sairaorg stated.

"Right." Beruka stated.

Forming his armor, Beruka dashed forward, and summoned one of his two spears as he jousted it forward, only for Stella to dodge it and thrust straight at him.

Beruka screamed in pain, soon being slingshot back by the force of her blow.

"That power, even though she's a Knight, she hits like a Rook!" Beruka remarked.

"I didn't take up two Knight pieces for nothing, and I have no intent to lose to someone like you!" Stella shouted.

Beruka soon summoned his second spear, having realized Stella attacked too fast for him to be able to gain any ground with just a single spear, and grunted as he struggled to keep his ground against her.

"I'm impressed, that's a lot of talent you have there." Beruka complimented.

"...What did you say?" Stella said, anger in her voice.

Stella screamed before slamming her foot down, making flames erupt near Beruka, who looked at her slightly scared at the flames absorbing her rage.

"I hate people who claim I got where I am with just mere talent, so don't speak like you know what I had to go through!" Stella shouted.

Beruka dodged as she slashed her sword, sending out more fire towards the Knight of Bael.

'OK, note to self, don't mention the word talent if you're not trying to piss her off!' He thought.

Rushing to aid him, Gandoma charged through, only for plumes of miasma to erupt from the ground, and Ophelia walking out of one of them with her usual look.

"If I recall correctly, you're the one known as Ophelia, am I right?" Gandoma asked.

"Yes, you are correct, may I assume you have a reason to ask me this in battle?" Ophelia inquired.

"To a degree, you and I both have great strength, but why do you look like you have such great pain in your heart?" Gandoma wondered.

Ophelia sighed, looking away with a saddened look.

"...I can't change the fate of my past, what I am now, I shall always be, just as my powers will forever be stained to me, powers I did not start with or ask for." Ophelia answered, putting a hand near her heart.

"The only thing I can change, is my destiny's power, but I can't trust myself to guide my path, I fight for Ineelana because I believe she can do it for me, but not if I don't have the strength push her forward... that's why I can't let those who've walked an easy road make, they must understand the hardships people like me have faced." She stated.

Ophelia gave a calmer version of Stella's earlier expression, and clasped her hands together as her miasma rises into the air, causing Gandoma to react and rush at her, but was too late as the Miasma spreads apart and acts like a bind around his chest.

"W-what is... the pain!" Gandoma cried.

"**[Savagery of Rewolf.]**"

The miasma starts digging into Gandoma, and Beruka looks to notice his struggle.

'Oh no, she's got Gandoma locked, I gotta be careful or-' Beruka thought.

"Stella, time for our combination technique." Ophelia stated.

Beruka and Gandoma flinch at that, looking as Stella smirked widely.

"You've got it, now... show everyone your power, Laevateinn!" Stella exclaimed.

Her sword shatters, and then reforms, but now it was a far larger golden blade, higher than Stella, and thicker than a man's arm, all while burning with intense power that flared as a vermilion flame surrounding the Knight of Leviathan.

"Beruka, stay on guard!" Gandoma grunted, trying to shake the miasma off.

"R-Right!" Beruka replied.

"Go, my **[Dragon Spirit!]**" Stella yelled.

Stella's body unleashes the vermilion flame surrounding her towards the miasma floating in the sky, embedding itself inside, and extending out as a group of magenta Asian Dragons that rushed at the two Bael retainers.

While they avoided being retired, they both felt the flurry of poisonous flames smash into them, leaving Stella and Ophelia to rush past them as they both try to go after the flag without wasting a second.

"_Holy shit, look at the Leviathan team go, they've not only revealed some new tricks, but I don't see any hesitation to win as they rush to the flag!_" Naud announced.

"_It makes sense, the Leviathan peerage is bonded over the same feeling, they feel second to various things in the world, and that shared feeling of envy towards those above them propels them to push higher._" Artemis analyzed.

Naud looked at her surprised.

"_Because her entire peerage is full of girls, I visited Ineelana once, and I heard all of their stories. While I'm going to respect their privacy and not reveal them, what I will say is that it shows they earned their way to this point. Misunderstandings, troubled pasts, hardships, a permanent change in their lifestyles... with all of it leading to the same feelings of being jealous to something, and feeling second in some manner to the world._" Artemis explained.

The crowd listened in shock, seeing the two clash with Beruka and Gandoma again, the two having rushed to catch up with them.

At the same time, Misteeta, Coriana, and Liban all rushed to try and capture the Leviathan team's flag, they were quickly scattered as Sinon, and Mine, began firing at them with their signature weapons.

The sight of Tamara making a barrier to defend against Ladora's attacks, with Kuisha trying to avoid Yumi's attacks, and Murasaki aiding the Leviathan Bishop from behind, also made itself shown. It all came together, showing Ineelana's entire peerage with determined looks on their faces.

"_Whoa, that's... that's heavy, combine that with the discrimination that Ineelana faced for a few years, I can see how they have a strong bond formed by similar feelings._" Naud replied, amazed at the story he heard.

As this was happening, Ineelana skated across an ice path she was forming, heading towards Sairaorg's flag, where the only ones there to guard it were himself, his enigmatic Pawn, and Kirin who still didn't look like she wanted to do anything.

* * *

** _~Current Time Left: 8 min, 17 secs~_ **

Back with Vali's group, everyone watched as they noticed that currently, Ineelana's group was gaining ground due to a combination of the severe limits put on Beruka and Kuisha, along with Kirin refusing to fight by staying with Sairaorg.

"Guys, this doesn't feel right, it still seems like Sairaorg's team isn't fighting at their best... did the advice I gave to Kuisha not work, is Kirin still too angry with Sairaorg to truly fight for his goal?" Irina wondered.

"I don't know, but... look at the audience, it feels like they know Sairaorg's not working at the best he could." Vali suggested.

And she was right, the audience didn't have any excitement, things felt too one sided, even on the field... Ineelana didn't have a look of satisfaction despite she still intended to win despite how she did.

"Don't count them out just yet, maybe we might just see something, who knows... maybe we just haven't seen Kirin ready to take action just yet." Lilith suggested.

Everyone continued watching the match, wondering what would happen.

* * *

Ineelana soon launched into the air, jumping off her ice slide before creating a wall, realizing that she was closing in, Sairaorg turned to both his Pawns.

"She's coming you two, let's get ready to face her." Sairaorg ordered.

His enigmatic pawn nodded, but for Kirin...

Everyone noticed her refusing to respond, still as still as when the match had begun.

"Kirin, what's-" Sairaorg asked.

"**[Absolute Zero Shadow!]**"

A wave of purple ice storms towards Sairaorg, causing the Heir of Bael to react as it neared them, and he threw his fist forward to smash it apart, the Leviathan Heiress still rushing towards them despite few miles left to reach the flag.

'I have a chance to win, but... I really wish that it wasn't like this, Vali's team got this far with their opponents being at 100%, her victories didn't feel hollow like this one will.' Ineelana thought disappointingly.

Sairaorg pants, feeling the cold affect him after his punch.

"This isn't over yet, so let's-" Sairaorg stated.

"SHUT UP ALREADY!" Kirin screamed.

Everyone in the crowd gasped, with even both peerages' members stopping from the shock, as Kirin punched Sairaorg in the gut while he didn't expect it, leaving a small crater below where the Bael Heir stood.

As Sairaorg fell onto his back, Kirin pants angrily, showing her eyes shedding tears as her face gave a furious expression.

"If you really wanna win this tournament, then you should actually be giving it all, just like how you told me back then!" Kirin screamed angrily.

Everyone kept staring, not even Naud or Artemis could say anything in response, Kirin's one act had caused the entire crowd to freeze up in silence.

"There's no way I can know what you've gone through, or what brought you to this moment, but you need to stop screwing around right now, you have no right to reject your father if you let him tell you what to do for the sake of helping your mother when there's no proof he'll keep his word!" She shouted.

The current Head of Bael watched angrily, intending to storm into the arena before some guards blocked him off.

"Invade the match, and your son will be disqualified under the premise you intend to cheat with him." The guard warned.

"Damn you..." Lord Bael growled.

Sairaorg's eyes shake, and the sound of his mother's violent coughing rang through his ears.

"But Kirin, I... do you expect me to just let her die-" Sairaorg replied.

"HE'S YOUR POWER, NOT YOUR FATHER'S!" Kirin countered loudly.

Sairaorg's eyes widened.

"If you wanna reject your father then fine, but if you really wanna win this tournament so badly, then don't listen to your father's demands to hide your full strength, no one's enjoying this match... and I won't fight if you won't be serious about it!" She shouted.

Kirin cried, looking at him with her teary eyes.

"If this is to save your mom, then forget about getting the rest of your peerages the rights you're fighting for, there's always another chance, if anything you should use your wish to help her instead! If you truly care her, and truly don't want to be a tool for your father, then do it... be who your mom wanted to be, and... be the man I actually fell in love with!" She begged.

Sairaorg gasped at that.

"Kirin..." Sairaorg breathed.

* * *

_Sairaorg holds the hand of his mother, a woman with long blonde hair, violet eyes, and a buxom figure, but looking a bit weak and sickly as she laid in bed, the illness that was about to put her comatose starting to have a noticeable affect her._

_"Sairaorg, promise me that... you'll become strong, rise above everyone in the Bael clan... even without the Power of Destruction." Misla smiled, coughing a bit._

_"Mom..." Sairaorg replied sadly._

_She grasped his hand tightly, smiling as her eyes began to close._

_"Just remember, to... stay true to yourself, I... love you my brave little boy." Misla smiled, her eyes with tears._

_At that moment, she succumbs to her coma._

* * *

** _~Current Time Left: 3 min, 17 secs~_ **

Sairaorg's eyes shake as the memory rings through.

'I can't believe... that I had forgotten that promise, forgive me mom, I'm going to rectify that mistake right now.' He thought.

** _ \- (*My Hero Academia - You say run*) - _ **

"...The time has come, reveal yourself Regulus!" Sairaorg shouted.

Kirin's eyes widened, and Sairaorg's enigmatic pawn showed surprise at his order, before smirking and nodding.

"Very well, let us show the world, you and I!" Regulus replied.

"Sairaorg..." Kirin cried happily.

The cloaked Pawn removed his shroud as a flash went off, revealing a giant lion to the entire crowd, and surprising both Lord Bael, and Zekram, as they saw Sairaorg expose the Bael clan's greatest secret without any hesitation.

"_A-A giant lion!?_" Naud exclaimed.

"_I recognize that lion, that's the mighty Regulus, but that can only mean one thing! Sairaorg's final pawn is none other than... than... than..._" Artemis stuttered.

"**REGULUS NEMEA, BALANCE... BREAKER!**"

Regulus roared before dashing at Sairaorg, creating a bright flash that filled the field, and blinding everyone from its bright light.

"He's actually using Regulus in a match!" Coriana exclaimed, shielding her eyes.

"I don't believe it, incredible!" Ladora grunted, doing the same.

Ineelana herself stated, seeing the truth manifest before her, the full potential of Sairaorg's abilities... the power of what was best said as his Sacred Gear: The Mid-Tier Longinus, "Regulus Nemea."

Finally, the light faded away as Sairaorg was seen wearing golden armor similar to the Heavenly Dragons' scale mails, but lion-themed, and Sairaorg's face in full view due to a lack of a face cover on his helmet.

"Ineelana, allow me to apologize to you, even though if we both wanna win this battle... all I've been doing is screwing around, so let me give you the honor of being the first Rating Game opponent to face this power. This is my..." Sairaorg stated.

"**[Regulus Rey Leather Rex!]**"

The crowd's silence finally shattered as they cheered, everyone's excitement restored from Sairaorg's reveal.

"_I don't believe it, all this time, Sairaorg's unknown Pawn was one of the Longinus, this is the sign of his Vapula heritage at work!_" Naud announced excitedly.

"_This is a whole different match now, so what will Ineelana do to face this new power?_" Artemis wondered.

Artemis soon realized something.

"_Wait, how does Regulus equipping to Sairaorg effect his current status?_" Artemis asked.

"_Let's see... according to the rules we have on hand, while he won't leave the field, acting as a Sacred Gear instead of independently means he's been retired by default, so Sairaorg's currently a Pawn down._" Naud answered.

Ineelana breathed.

"This is it... now I won't feel empty once I win this match, so let's do this Sairaorg!" Ineelana exclaimed.

"Don't forget about me!" Kirin shouted.

Kirin landed by Sairaorg, now with her Impact Tyrant active, and punching a fist into her palm.

"Come on, let's do this!" Kirin smiled.

** _ \- (*insert song end*) - _ **

The two screamed before smashing the ground, ripping the ground apart as they ruptured it with their earth manipulation abilities. Ineelana gasped before making an ice slide to dodge, barely escaping as it shatters from the rupturing Earth.

"_Oh no, it looks like Ineelana's now on the run, either she has to fight those two, or she has to somehow get to the flag without being caught, can she do it, or has Kirin's wake up call to her King spelt her doom in this match!?_" Naud announced.

** _~Current Time Left: 2 min, 38 secs~_ **

Ineelana breathed heavily as she saw the destruction of the field before her, and tried to figure out a way to somehow have a chance.

'With a Longinus empowering him, I'm almost positive that he's at least ten times stronger now, there's no way I can handle a punch from him, worse is Kirin can adapt due to her powers, I don't know what options I have-' Ineelana thought.

Suddenly, a thought rang in her head.

'Wait a minute, that's it, maybe I shouldn't try to avoid taking a hit!' Ineelana realized, smirking a bit.

"_Oh my, that look on Ineelana's face seems to imply she's got an idea, but will it work?_" Artemis wondered.

'Here goes nothing!' Ineelana thought.

** _ \- (*My Hero Academia - Hero A, Instrumental version*) - _ **

Ineelana ran ahead, surprising the audience as she used her ice slide to make a path towards her opponents.

"_IS SHE CRAZY!?_" Naud exclaimed.

Sairaorg soon readied a punch, charging his Touki into it as Ineelana slid behind him, reeling her arm back like she intended to punch him.

"You were a good opponent Ineelana, but I'm afraid this is where the match ends!" Sairaorg declared.

He threw his fist forward, and everyone gasped in horror at the sight they were about to see, only for Ineelana to not throw a punch like expected, but form an ice barrier as she shifted her lefts and other arm forward.

Upon making contact, an explosion goes off, making everyone on the field feel the air, but rather than the announcement that Ineelana had been eliminated like expected... everyone saw her flying through the sky!

"_I... I don't believe it, she's still OK, what just happened!?_" Naud announced.

"_Look at the arm and her legs attached to that slab of ice she made._" Artemis pointed out.

Everyone did, the sight of said limbs now a raw red, showing they had been badly broken from the impact was seen, but kept steady by the ice as she flew with only her one good arm held out.

"_Holy shit, aside from the one arm she broke her most vital limbs, and she's flying towards... wait a second, I don't believe it!_" Naud announced.

"_She's going for the flag, the reason she took that hit was so she could launch herself towards Sairaorg's flag!_" He screamed excitedly.

The entire crowd cheered in excitement, while Sairaorg's peerage all gasped as the prospect of Ineelana having possibly creating the chance to win the match.

** _~Current Time Left: 1 min, 11 secs~_ **

However, things took a bad turn when Ineelana began falling towards the ground, while losing speed.

'Oh no, it wasn't enough, I'm not gonna make it... worse, I'm wide open now!' Ineelana panicked.

"Sairaorg, we gotta take her out while we have the chance!" Kirin shouted, rushing after her.

"Right!" Sairaorg replied, doing the same.

Everyone in the crowd panicked as they felt themselves wondering who would win, with the match having become a full-on thriller at this moment. Meanwhile, the rest of Ineelana's peerage did their best to keep the rest of Sairaorg's at bay, trying to keep their flag safe at the same time.

"This is... we have to do something, we're not losing when we're this close, if only we could give her a boost somehow-" Tamara growled.

She gasped.

"I've got it!" She exclaimed.

"Everyone, aim an attack at me, the strongest you can afford!" Tamara demanded.

"WHAT!?"

The entire crowd, and both peerages, showed disbelief at the request.

"Just do it, trust me!" Tamara shouted.

"...Alright, anything else you need from us?" Murasaki asked.

"Yeah, you and Yumi stand by me, and wait for me to give you more instructions!" She replied.

All of Ineelana's peerage charged their best attacks towards Tamara, and soon she guards herself as she takes them all, leaving her a bit ragged, but with a smile on her face. Taking this as a bad sign, the members of Sairaorg's prepare to attack her.

"BACK OFF!" Stella shouted.

Stella smashed the ground with her sword, creating a wall of fire to trap them for a brief moment, the others all surround them as Tamara's requested allies rushed over to her.

"OK, what do you need from us?" Yumi asked.

"Yumi, I need you to use your Balance Breaker, and attack forward in a straight line to make an ice path, while I need you to throw me across it with your shadow hand Murasaki!" Tamara explained.

The two blinked, but realizing why she took the attacks, Yumi gasped and nodded.

"I get it, that's your plan, then here we go." Yumi replied.

Yumi assumes her transformed state, and charges all the power she can, with Murasaki grabbing Tamara with her hair.

Once that was done, the Leviathan Bishop shouted as she slammed the ground, creating a path of ice going straight near the Bael team's flag, causing Sairaorg, and Kirin, to briefly lose their balance.

"Murasaki, do it now!" Tamara screamed.

"O-OK!" Murasaki agreed.

Murasaki shouts as she throws Tamara forward, causing her to slide forward before she bit her thumb, and neared the slipping members of Sairaorg's team, while Ineelana began nearing the ground, preparing to crash into it.

'This is it, the difference between victory and defeat is right here, right now!' Tamara thought.

'If this doesn't work, then we'll lose, we have a chance here, so we've gotta reach out and take it!' She grunted.

She got between Ineelana, Sairaorg, and Kirin, before biting her thumb harder.

'This is it, time to take a leap of faith, now it's time..." Tamara thought.

'TO SHOW THE WORLD WHO WE ARE!' Ineelana's peerage thought together.

Tamara ripped her thumb out of her mouth, a slight trail of blood coming from it as she glowed brightly, surprising the three surrounding her.

"**[Karmic Retribution!]**"

Tamara's body glowed, and she suddenly released a massive explosion, blinding the audience as they feel the wind recoil reach them. Both Sairaorg, and Kirin were knocked back, but Ineelana... was propelled forward, only continuing to speed up as she landed on the ice path.

"_DID WE JUST SEE THAT!?_" Naud announced loudly.

"_She used herself as a bomb to knock Ineelana's chasers away, while giving her back the speed she lost, and giving her even more... she could do it, Ineelana might grab the flag!_" Artemis announced in shock.

Tamara looked up, weakened but smiling.

"Go... win this Ineelana, please." Tamara begged.

** _~Current Time Left: 13 seconds~_ **

"_We're near the last few seconds, will she get the flag in time!?_" Naud announced, sweating heavily.

"Come on, come on-" Ineelana breathed.

Her ice barrier shattered, and Ineelana tumbled as she struggled to keep balance as she slid forward, going for the flag!

"10!"

Stella bit her nails.

"9!"

Tamara's eyes shook in worry.

"8!"

Yumi sweated.

"7!"

Murasaki whimpered, clasping her hands.

"6!"

Ophelia stared.

"5!"

Sinon watched, praying her King would make it.

"4!"

Mine breathed heavily, the stress getting to her.

"3!"

Sairaorg watched, wondering if she might actually do it.

"2!"

Vali gasped.

"1!"

Ineelana tumbled into the air, making everyone's focus reach their intensity as her good hand reached for the flag, grabbing it as she crushed to create a dust cloud.

"**TIME IS UP!**"

** _ \- (*insert song end*) - _ **

"_That's it, the time limit's run out, now the question is... can our instant replay show she grabbed the flag, and did she keep hold of it to win?_" Naud announced.

"_Checking it now._" Artemis replied.

Everyone looked as they checked the instant replay, and they saw with barely less than a second to spare, she managed to grab it!

"_She got hold of it, now the question is... did she hold on, or let go?_" Naud wondered.

As the dust cloud ended, everyone saw the injured Ineelana's form on the ground, and when they did... the flag wasn't seen in her hands.

Her peerage stared in sadness at their king's current state, as without the flag in their hand, it meant only one thing... they lost because Sairaorg had more of his team in the end, having only lost Regulus due to equipping him as a Sacred Gear.

"_Oh no... she didn't keep it, and that means Sairaorg is this match's winner!_" Naud announced.

Some of the Elders chuckled a bit as her dismay.

"Look at that, I bet any moment now she's gonna cry due to her little inferiority complex." The Paimon elder laughed.

"Yeah, how lame to crash and burn at the last moment." The Uvell elder smirked.

As she laid on the field, Ineelana cried as the rest of her peerage rushed over, with Murasaki helping Tamara.

"Ineelana..." Stella breathed.

"Damn it, we were so close, but we still lost... damn it!" Ineelana cried.

As they wondered how to comfort their friend, the sudden sound of clapping as was heard, getting everyone's attention as cheers began to sound out, but to the person they were aimed at? That was the true surprise.

** _ \- (*Yugioh Arc V - Glittering Tears*) - _ **

"That was incredible Ineelana!"

"You nearly beat Sairaorg, just a bit more and you'd have finally done what no one else has!"

"Why did they even have a time limit in this match?"

"I know, the winner should honestly be Ineelana, we should request they reconsider the winner!"

Ineelana stared in shock, even though she had lost the match... everyone was currently cheering for _her_, not Sairaorg!

As they listened, the Devil Elders stared in shock at this development.

"W-what's going on, she lost!" The Paimon elder demanded.

"You won't get it, and you never will."

The elders turned as they noticed Lilith standing nearby, smirking at them.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Lord Bael growled.

"You had this match set to favor Sairaorg's victory, and what you expected was for that to show an absolution of your strength, but that isn't what happened... the way their efforts touched everyone's hearts, the crowd considers Ineelana their champion today." Lilith answered.

Th Devil Queen walks off right after that.

"And that shows why your efforts are doomed to fail, even if my daughter doesn't win the Finals, the hearts of the people are slowly changing, but yours won't change with them... they aren't yours to control anymore." She added, smirking at them.

The Elders all glare at her angrily, while back on the field, Ineelana stars to cry as she heard everyone's reactions to her.

"I agree with them, with what you pulled near the end, you deserved to win, the timer's the only reason I got this victory." Sairaorg stated, smiling as he walked up to her.

"Sairaorg..." Ineelana whispered.

Ineelana sniffles more, smiling as she finally felt it for the first time in her life... her inferiority complex fading away, because despite the results, she had a victory unlike any other that she truly needed.

** _ \- (*insert song end*) - _ **

During all of this, Artemis suddenly whistled, catching everyone's attention.

"_Hold it, something's wrong here... if Ineelana didn't get the flag, then how come we can't see it?_" Artemis noted.

Everyone suddenly went silent, realizing that the red flag was missing!

"_We can't fully call this match yet, the rules say that Ineelana has to hold onto the flag to win, but... there's no rule saying she has to hold it with her hands in the rule book._" Artemis smirked, having a good idea why no one could find it.]

Murasaki gasped.

"Wait, so if the flag's somewhere on Ineelana's body where it stayed in place..." Murasaki mentioned.

"Then it means we win!" Tamara exclaimed.

They began looking around, trying to make sure not to hurt Ineelana too much due to her three broken limbs, and after a bit, Ophelia notices something red in her King's hair.

"What's this?" Ophelia asked.

Moving it into view, everyone sees the red object caught in Ineelana's hair was... the flag!

"_That's the flag, she's got in within her hair!_" Naud gasped.

"_Everyone, give another big round of applause, because this match's true winner is Ineelana Leviathan, she's beaten the unbeaten rookie of the young Devils!_" He exclaimed excitedly.

At once, the crowd obliged, cheering louder than before as Ineelana teared up again, realizing she and her peerage had just made it to the finals.

The Elders all stared in greater horror, not only had they just been humiliated by Lilith, but the Devil they had just mocked ended up being the actual winner, further embarrassing themselves.

'Damn it... that bitch, guess we'll just have to bend Ineelana into our plans so she beats that Lucifer brat.' Zekram thought.

"She really did it... great job Ineelana, for someone who felt like she was always second best, I think you came out on top by giving us the tournament's most memorable battle." Vali said to herself.

* * *

**And the winner isn't Sairaorg like in canon, but Ineelana! This was an interesting twist because originally, I did intend for Sairaorg to win, but the more I thought about it... the more I wanted to try something different, and the more I felt his and Kirin's relationship progress would work better if he lost the match. As a result, I ultimately decided to have Ineelana be victorious.**

**Well, that's it for the Semi-Finals, the journey to the finals has been completed, and now all that's left is next Chapter to tie up a few loose ends. Said loose ends include some descriptions about the Finals, having a character I'd like to appear show, a return of Satan's peerage since they're set to be the guest judges, an answer to where Kirin and Sairaorg's relationship will go, and most of all... making the one connection between this story and the Crossover.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki, Yumi**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Stella Vermillion**

**Akame ga Kill - Mine**

**Sword Art Online - Sinon**

**Asterisk War - Ophelia Landlufen**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Kirin's Confessed, Sairaorg's Reply still unsaid  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	42. Chapter 42

**We've finally made it everyone, the Season 4 finale! This chapter will mostly be a breather chapter where everyone gathers for a mini-celebration before the Finals happen, while also explaining exactly how the Finals is gonna go. Among that, we're also getting the loose ends of a certain character's appearance, the return of Satan's peerage in preparation of the finals, Sairaorg's answer to Kirin's feelings, and finally... the connection to the crossover!**

**Oh yeah, I mentioned this in DAR:L's most recent chapter, so I'll do it here too. If you're reading this... the crossover has been posted alongside this chapter, so the moment you finish reading this one, immediately go and look for a story called "Heaven and Hell: Adventure of Two Worlds" to start reading it, I also recommend reading the latest Date A Re:Live chapter's last scene, otherwise some parts of the crossover's first chapter will be very confusing.**

**Either way, enjoy this chapter, and I hope you'll enjoy the crossover. Also, as a small reminder, the story will be on hiatus until the Crossover ends, so I'll see everyone back here when we begin Season 5. Oh, and I guess there's no harm in saying this here, but the Crossover is going to be this story's excuse for having the Kyoto arc happen _before_ the Finals, as the catalyst for the crossover will delay it.**

**With that out of the way... let's bring this season to an end!**

* * *

**This chapter, LOHD's latest chapter, and the first crossover chapter all go out to everyone, including fellow readers, authors, and families of theirs that live in Florida. *shakes* I know how they're all feeling right now, I have family there too, and to make it worse? Some of them were refugees who had to flee Texas due to Hurricane Harvey... and I just learned they can't get out of the danger zone.**

**I... *shakes* I'm so scared right now, because they can't leave, any day now I might wake up and have my parents tell me that... some, or maybe all of them, are gone. *cries* I don't know if they'll actually do it, but most of the people I know say Irma's so dangerous, it might just be the Hurricane that forces hands to create a Category-6 on the Saffir–Simpson scale, to even just hear that makes me wish I could somehow help them get out of there.**

**For that reason... let's all send our wishes, our good luck, and our hope to them so they'll make it out of this in one piece, then wish them the best in getting back on their feet from all the losses Irma brings. They need us right now, even if we can do nothing more than believe in their safety. By extension, to everyone there who makes it out OK after this is all over, and then reads these chapters... I'm glad you made it.**

* * *

**"(Albion talking)"/'(Albion thinking)'/(Albion talking to Vali mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically)**

**"[Ddraig talking]"/'[Ddraig thinking]'/[Ddraig talking to Issei mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically]**

**"{Vritra talking}"/'{Vritra thinking}'/{Vritra talking to Saji mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically}**

**"=Bahamut talking="/'=Bahamut thinking='/=Bahamut talking to Kirin mentally or another sealed consciousness telepathically=**

* * *

** -Regulus Nemea- **

**One of the 13 Longinus, and the unofficial Sacred Gear of Sairaorg. This Longinus was originally owned by someone else, and Sairaorg wanted to add him to his peerage, but he was killed shortly before he could. Luckily, due to his Vapula heritage, he was still able to reincarnate Regulus itself by using 7 of his Pawns. When Lord Bael learned of this, he forced Sairaorg to keep it a secret under the (possibly false) promise to aid in undoing his mother's coma.**

**The Regulus Nemea normally takes the form of an Axe, but as Sairaorg doesn't use weapons, its usually seen in its Lion form, a human disguise, or through Sairaorg using its Balance Breaker state. However, since the Regulus Nemea lacks a current owner, it could be used in its axe form by someone else if given permission by Sairaorg.**

**Due to being an Evil Piece, but a Sacred Gear without an owner, its human and/or lion form is considered as the actual Pawn in Sairaorg's peerage, so if he chooses himself or anyone to use for his Balance Breaker or axe form, then Regulus will be considered retired and unable to change back for the rest of that particular Rating Game.**

**The Regulus Nemea has a further level of strength that Sairaorg can use, but should only use as a last resort.**

* * *

** _ Season 4, Journey to the Finals Arc: Chapter 8 - Another World _ **

Artemis suddenly whistled, catching everyone's attention.

"_Hold it, something's wrong here... if Ineelana didn't get the flag, then how come we can't see it?_" Artemis noted.

Everyone suddenly went silent, realizing that the red flag was missing!

"_We can't fully call this match yet, the rules say that Ineelana has to hold onto the flag to win, but... there's no rule saying she has to hold it with her hands in the rule book._" Artemis smirked, having a good idea why no one could find it.]

Murasaki gasped.

"Wait, so if the flag's somewhere on Ineelana's body where it stayed in place..." Murasaki mentioned.

"Then it means we win!" Tamara exclaimed.

They began looking around, trying to make sure not to hurt Ineelana too much due to her three broken limbs, and after a bit, Ophelia notices something red in her King's hair.

"What's this?" Ophelia asked.

Moving it into view, everyone sees the red object caught in Ineelana's hair was... the flag!

"_That's the flag, she's got in within her hair!_" Naud gasped.

"_Everyone, give another big round of applause, because this match's true winner is Ineelana Leviathan, she's beaten the unbeaten rookie of the young Devils!_" He exclaimed excitedly.

At once, the crowd obliged, cheering louder than before as Ineelana teared up again, realizing she and her peerage had just made it to the finals.

The Elders all stared in greater horror, not only had they just been humiliated by Lilith, but the Devil they had just mocked ended up being the actual winner, further embarrassing themselves.

"I... I won, I actually won..." Ineelana stated.

Ineelana's body shook, before tears flowed out, and she raised her hand up.

"I MADE IT TO THE FIN-" She shouted.

Unfortunately, she ended up raising her broken arm, making everyone wince as she screamed in pain.

"_Vali, Rias, get your two healer bishops down here so they can fix up those broken limbs._" Artemis announced, sweat dropping a bit.

"Oh dear... Asia?" Vali stated.

"Valerie, go give her a hand." Rias replied.

"R-Right!" Asia nodded.

"Poor dear, she got too excited to remember her injuries." Valerie said worriedly.

The two headed down, and began healing the injured Leviathan heiress' broken limbs, still wincing from the pain of moving her broken arm.

"If it makes you feel any better Ineelana, I know what it's like to move a broken arm like that." Kirin stated.

"Really good to know Kirin... I think!" Ineelana winced.

Noticing the elephant in the arena, Kuisha pushes Sairaorg near Kirin, making him look at her as the Bael Queen cleared her threat. Realizing what she meant, Sairaorg recalled the one thing Kirin said and walked closer to her.

"Kirin, you mentioned something in the match I took notice of." Sairaorg stated.

"Hmm?" Kirin blinked.

"You know, the part where you mentioned me being the man you fell in love with?"

Kirin blinked a few times, and soon blushed red as she realized she had said that.

"I actually said that out loud!?" Kirin asked horrified.

**"=Smooth, you didn't even remember telling him that, what do you have to say to that?="** Bahamut inquired.

"Shut up!" Kirin blushed.

The host of Bahamut looked away slightly, blushing more as she realized her secret was exposed.

"If he already knows, then tell him why you feel the way you do." Ineelana suddenly stated.

"Eh?"

Ineelana sighed.

"It's obvious you have a reason, to act like you did because of how he was fighting before now, it isn't just simple attraction, so if you're in this position... just go for it." Ineelana explained.

** _ \- (*Ikki & Stella become a couple - Chivalry of a Failed Knight*) - _ **

Kirin looked shocked, and took a deep breath, looking at Sairaorg as everyone watched.

"Back when you and I first met, back when you saved me, I told you... that there was nothing that I could offer you." Kirin began.

She soon looked towards the Hell's counterpart of the setting sun.

"But then you told me don't underestimate myself, and that I needed to handle the burden of those I lost, my entire village, my parents... deaths I couldn't let be in vain. I've had to face hardships and misery with you, but I chose this path like you said. I found that fire in my soul, and I've let it burn, and before I knew it..." She continued.

"I realized just what the fire us, what was driving me forward all along, I wanted to repay the man who saved my life and gave me a new chance at it, but it wasn't because I wanted to be thankful... your way of life helped me bare the pain, and it was when realized that, that I realized I had fallen in love with you."

Sairaorg's eyes widened at that, realizing just how much effort Kirin had put in all this time, pushing through vomiting from the stress, enduring broken bones, not letting anything stop her until she passed out entirely.

Kirin wanted to do everything to make his dreams come true, because it had become her dream, and once he realized that... her words to snap him into finally using Regulus made him realize something.

...He loved her as well.

"If you don't feel the same way, then I-"

Kirin never got to finish as Sairaorg hugged her close, surprising her.

"I'm very lucky to have met you, to do all this for me when I've never asked, how could I deny your feelings and your resolve after hearing all of that?" Sairaorg stated.

"...Wait, does that mean what I think it does?" Kirin asked, her eyes shaking a bit.

Sairaorg stares at her, nodding slightly.

"...You're such a big idiot, you know that?" Kirin smiled, closing her eyes as they teared up.

Before anyone realized it, Kirin kissed Sairaorg on the lips before he was prepared for it, yet he didn't resist at all.

** _ \- (*insert song end*) - _ **

The crowd all starts clapping, and Naud smiles a bit.

"_This is a first, but it looks like this match ended with two victories, both for a Rating Game, and for love!_" Naud announced.

Vali smiled.

'I'm happy for you Kirin, you earned this.' Vali thought.

Suddenly, a Devil ran onto the field, surprising everyone as he stopped near Sairaorg, causing him, and all of his peerage to look at the Devil that Kuisha quickly recognized as the butler that took care of Misla's comatose form.

"Hey, you're Misla's butler..." Kuisha stated.

She soon gasped, realizing why he may have rushed onto the field.

"Oh no, did something bad happen to her!?" She asked.

"No, nothing of the sorts, I came to bring you back right away... Sairaorg, your mother, she's awake!" The Butler answered.

Many eyes widened at that revelation.

* * *

Sairaorg quickly ran through the doors, panting as he looked for the sight of his mother, and soon saw her looking at the nearby window, and quickly turning as she looked to see Sairaorg at the door, the rest of his peerage quickly catching up moments after.

"Mother..." Sairaorg breathed.

"Sairaorg, it's been so long." Misla smiled.

The heir of Bael got closer, and Misla rubbed her hand against his cheek, smiling as if she verified something.

"My adorable Sairaorg, while I was asleep, I dreamed of you growing, and seeing you now... I think it was more than just a dream, you have become a splendid person." She stated, her eyes tearing up.

Sairaorg began crying, and Misla pulled him closer, rubbing his back as he did, soon looking at his peerage.

"All of you, while I still don't know who you are, I can tell you've supported my son all this time, I can never thank you all enough." Misla praised, soon turning to Kirin.

"Especially you, I can feel it around you, the intertwining between you and Sairaorg's heart, and what it brought forth... I know you'll make him happy." She smiled.

Kirin sniffled a bit, rubbing her eyes a bit.

"Thank you... my name's Kirin Yamagari, and I'm your son's girlfriend." Kirin smiled back.

* * *

With the tournament over, everyone began exiting the stadium, Vali's group was leaving when suddenly...

"Hey Vali!"

"Hmm?" Vali blinked.

She turned to see Ineelana walk up to her, and the Leviathan heiress stood before her, and all of her peerage, with her own standing behind her.

"...I'll admit it, before now, I've pretty much been a brat, even to one of my closest friends, and all for feeling inadequate compared to everyone over everything." Ineelana revealed.

She takes a deep breath, soon smiling.

"But, now that I've made this far, to stand before you in the finals of this tournament, how can I say that anymore?" She smiled.

"Ineelana..." Vali replied.

"So, that's why I'm coming at you with everything I've got, win or lose, I'll make sure that I'm at my best to leave no regrets." Ineelana declared.

Vali blinked, and soon smirked before holding out a fist, causing the two to fist bump each other.

"That's a promise Ineelana, just like the one between my father and your Great-Great grandmother." Vali stated.

"Yeah." Ineelana agreed.

"HEY GUYS!"

Everyone turned, soon seeing Niruili rush over to them.

"Hey, Niruili!" Issei waved.

"Oh, hey there Issei, sorry I didn't get to see your match directly, and congrats for beating Sairaorg, Ineelana!" Niruili replied.

Ineelana chuckled, scratching her cheek bashfully.

"Oh right, don't wanna forget why I came here, the Beelzebub mansion's hosting a mini-party for the tournament reaching the Finals, so I'd appreciate it if all of you could be there for it, everyone else is already gonna be there." Niruili stated.

"A party? That sounds fun, can we?" Tamara asked.

"Please Vali, please?" Kunou begged.

The two Kings chuckled.

"Oh, why not?" Ineelana replied.

"Kunou, did you actually think I was gonna say no?" Vali inquired.

Everyone raised a hand at cheered at that.

"Alright, looks like it's a full house, I think you'll love the surprise that we've prepared for you." Niruili smiled.

"What kind of surprise would that be?" Irina wondered.

Niruili giggled, and put a finger to her mouth to show how much of a secret it was.

* * *

The various Devil heirs and heiress arrived at the Beelzebub clan's territory, and when they did, they found out exactly what that surprise was... standing before them were various giant-sized versions of many foods!

"Oh..." Vali began.

"My..." Rias continued.

"God!" Sona finished.

Niruili giggles as she walks in front of everyone, putting her hands behind her before turning to everyone, smiling brightly.

"Me, and everyone in my peerage, spent the entirety of the day making all of this." Niruili revealed.

"Had to... fight... appetite, it was... torture!" Lina said from nearby, looking comically malnourished from her hunger.

Niruili looks at her, sweat dropping a bit.

"Lina, don't exaggerate." Niruili remarked.

Kunou noticed the giant ice cream among everything, and turned to the Beelzebub heiress.

"We can really eat this, seriously?" Kunou asked, drooling slightly.

"Of course, you can all dig right, especially our finalists who fought to the top." Niruili smiled.

Kunou started crying happy tears, grabbing Niruili's hands.

"You, you're a goddess!" Kunou exclaimed.

"I'm... huh?" Niruili blinked, confused by Kunou's claim.

Stella was already seen eating some of the gigantic foods, turning to everyone.

"Come on, don't let all this food go to waste!" Stella shouted.

"Well, I guess we should just dig in, here goes!" Vali declared.

In an instance, all the Devil heirs and heiress began digging in as they started eating one of the many giant-sized portions of food before them. Yumina blinked a bit as she saw even Vali pig out for one, and soon snorted a bit, quickly turning into laughter.

"Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to stop being stiff for a while, guess I'll join in." Yumina stated.

"Honestly, even if you're trying to loosen up a bit, you could all at least mind how you look while you're doing it?"

Issei blinked as he recognized the voice, soon looking to see Ravel as she flew into view.

"Ravel?" Jeanne stated.

"Yes, it's me, did you forget about me or something?" Ravel implied.

"W-what!?" Jeanne stuttered in shock.

Issei jumps down, and walks up to hear.

"At the very least, it's nice to see you again, I think the party announcing the tournament was when we last spoke, wasn't it?" Issei mentioned.

Ravel turns her head slightly blushing.

"Of course, it's good to see you've done well keeping up to task, you'd be disrespecting Vali's name otherwise." Ravel replied.

"She's... blushing?" Kunou blinked.

The young Kyuubi soon gasped, realizing something.

"Does that girl have a crush on Issei!?" Kunou asked bluntly.

Ravel's face went red at that, and she turned to face Kunou.

"I-I do not, I just don't want one of the Devils who defeated my brother to look bad, and ruin his image even more as a consequence." Ravel replied.

"...Ravel, you do realize you blushed the moment Kunou said that, which makes that hard to believe, right?" Valerie noted.

Ravel went even more red at that, looking at Issei who chuckled a bit.

"...OK fine, maybe I kinda, sorta, maybe like him a little, but I know his heart belongs to someone else, and unlike the Half-Angel knight, I accepted that from the start." Ravel answered.

"Hey!" Irina shouted, a vein on her head.

Vali did her best to hold Irina back as she tried to lunge at the young Phenex devil.

"At least you were honest about it, that's something to be proud of, isn't it?" Issei mentioned.

Ravel blushed again.

"O-Of, course, it's only proper to show the right manners to those who've earned their respect, and... thank you." Ravel replied.

"Come on Ravel, join the party!" Niruili offered, smiling brightly.

Ravel cleared her throat a bit, looking at the Beelzebub heiress.

"If the heir to one of the Great Devil clans wishes for me to partake, then it's only polite I do so." Ravel replied.

"Yay!" Niruili cheered.

* * *

Meanwhile in the Dimensional Gap, a streak of white and red was seen colliding with one another. The sight of a familiar red dragon, and a white dragoness, being the combatants as the sibling drakes of Great Red and Ophis clashed to claim ownership of the gap once more.

"**[Endless Dream!]**"

"**[Infinity Blaster!]**"

A white beam and a storm of red meteors fly out, smashing into each other before a huge explosion goes off, flinging the two into the lack of ground in the gap. The two soon got up, and reverted back into their human forms.

"Tch, another draw." Great Red stated.

"I think you're starting to slip, I'd have clearly won if you didn't use that attack." Ophis smirked.

"In your dreams!" Great Red shouted.

As the two siblings growled at each other, Ophis blinks and looks to her left, getting her brother's attention.

"What is it?" He asked.

"The finals for that little Devil tournament are here, and it seems like Vali reached the finals." Ophis answered.

"Hmm... ah, I feel it too. So, the Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou made it to the end after all." Great Red realized.

Ophis smirked at that.

"How about it, wanna see their grand battle?" Ophis inquired.

"...Whatever, got nothing else to do." Great Red replied, cleaning his ear.

As the two prepared to leave, a sudden disruption happened in the Dimension Gap, causing the strange space to ripple erratically, almost as if someone... or even just something, was tearing it apart.

"Huh?" Great Red blinked.

A large mist began to manifest within the realm, and the two were blinded before they knew it.

"What the hell is going-"

Ophis would never get to finish her question, her voice was suddenly silenced as she disappeared from view.

"Ophis!?" Great Red called out.

Soon enough, the same thing happened to him, and the only clue related to the origin of what happened was a dark silhouette wearing a strange cloak of multiple dark colors, giving a dangerous smirk that showed his jagged red teeth.

"The strongest Dragons, and the most powerful beings in the world, subdued this easily... I don't know how, but whatever let this plan work without a hitch or the expected time we predicted has my gratitude."

The unknown figure vanished in the mist, taking the unseen downed forms of Ophis and Great Red.

However, had said figure stayed a bit longer, he would have gotten the answer to his question, as the Dimension Gap's apparently fatal fluctuations got worse. A dark mass manifested within the center, with a symbol showing six red eyes, but not the same one representing Trihexa, appeared inside of it.

At that moment, a huge flash enveloped the Dimension Gap.

* * *

As everyone continued enjoying the party, a small throat clearing was heard, getting everyone's attention.

"I hope there's room for us in this celebration?"

Everyone gasped as they saw Edelweiss appear, alongside the rest of Satan's peerage, the reactions varied among the young Devils, although Lilith smiled as she walked over towards her husband's queen.

"Edelweiss, it's good to see you. I'm guessing aside from the party, you came because your role as the Finals' guest judges are coming up soon, right?" Lilith inquired.

"A bit of half-and-half there, but that's the best way to generalize it, and there's the fact we're here to announce how the Finals will work to our fellow finalists." Edelweiss answered.

She looked at the two Devil heiresses in question.

"Vali, Ineelana, you and your peerages gather over here." She stated.

The two did so, and everyone watched, wondering what they were about to hear from the legendary peerage.

"The reason we're all holding the title of guest announcers for this match is because it will be very different, where every battle before now was decided by who was the last one standing, this time... the match will be decided by vote." Edelweiss revealed.

Everyone gasped at that, and many voices were quickly raised, with Ineelana's eyes widened as she realized the reason all 15 would be guest announcers.

"Wait, are you saying... you're gonna decide who wins by who you think fought harder, and wanted to win more?" Ineelana asked.

"That's a basic way of putting it, but it's not a Battle Royale like usual either, that's where this next bit comes in." Acnologia stated.

Uzume soon reveals the final sphere, revealing the match revealing a bunch of lines that formed squares, and 12 squares within them.

"This is the Final match's special rule, the All for One battle!" Uzume stated.

"All for... One?" Issei repeated.

"That sounds like the One for All rule that me and Rias' match had, at least by name, so I'm guessing it's something similar?" Vali wondered.

Edelweiss nodded.

"To a degree, that's correct, but also incorrect." She answered.

"In this match type, all restrictions are thrown out the window entirely, so all powers, abilities, and whatnot are all allowed. Also, the biggest twist is all Evil Piece enhancements are considered invalid, so everyone in your peerages will be fighting at the same level as you in a sense." Edelweiss explained.

The conditions already mentioned surprised everyone, and Edelweiss' face clearly showed she hadn't finished explaining everything just yet.

"And as Acnologia said, these matches aren't a Battle Royale, it's a series of 12 battles, but a total of twelve fights that are all One-on-One matches. In the end, all of these fights will be what make us decide who both us, and the audience themselves decide as their winner. So, in a sense, the fact that everyone felt Ineelana was the true winner before everyone realized she had won the match fit how we planned to Finals perfectly." She finished.

"Holy... shit..." Vali breathed.

Issei blinked a bit, soon realizing that Edelweiss had said _twelve_ matches, but...

"Hey, wait a minute, how can we have 12 matches when there's only ten members Vali's peerage, and eight in Ineelana's?" Issei asked.

"What Issei said, especially since our team has less people." Murasaki replied.

Lilith cleared her throat, making everyone look at her.

"I think that's simple, if you don't have a team of twelve, then you need to add to your numbers for this one match." Lilith answered.

Vali gasped at that.

"You mean, we can have people who aren't in our peerage fight with us?" Ineelana inquired.

"That's right, and I think Edelweiss has the conditions on those to share as well." Lilith replied.

Edelweiss nodded.

"You're allowed to add onto your team through someone without an Evil Piece, though they'll have to be evaluated to see how many pieces they'd be worth, or have someone from the teams in the tournament join you. However, there are some rules." Edelweiss explained.

She held out four fingers to show how many conditions existed.

"The first rule, you can only have one person from another peerage added onto your own."

"The second rule, those you add onto your peerage from another can only be of pieces you had to use multiples of to keep the chess motif intact."

"The third rule, if you add someone from a different peerage on your team, they'll be counted as a single piece, but those who lack an Evil Piece will require the evaluation to decide if they can be added, meaning someone with four pawns can't add someone that we evaluate is worth five pieces."

"And the final rule, asking another King to be on your team will not be allowed, as is asking a peerage to lend you a member if the other has already done so."

Everyone was shocked silent by that.

"As a result, this party is how we'll decide that now, especially to avoid the issues of the last rule."

Vali out a finger to her chin as she thought.

"Kunou took six of my pawns, and Yuuma took two, so... that would mean I can only add two Pawns onto my team, or two people worth up to six pieces." Vali analyzed.

"And I can have either four pawns, or three pawns and a knight." Ineelana replied.

The two Kings looked at everyone present, wondering who they should pick.

"Uh, if I may... is there anything in it for those who lend a member to them?" Suzattin inquired.

"Good point, some of us might be willing to share, but why lend a member when we already lost?" Gebedon added.

Lilith giggled at that, looking at everyone.

"Guess it's time I reveal this, I didn't tell you when we began because I knew that it would make some of you not try, thinking you could just let someone else help you achieve your dream... but if you're willing to lend a member, you still have a chance to make your dreams happen if that side wins." Lilith revealed.

The sudden gasps everyone gave were easily heard, with a nearby Elder spying on everything widening their eyes in horror.

"As Ineelana has less people, she can decide on her choices first." Lilith stated, looking at her.

"O-Oh, OK." Ineelana replied.

Looking at everyone present, Ineelana thinks for a bit, and after a long thought...

* * *

Still within Hell's borders, but a good distance from the party, the black mass from before starts to float into view, almost like it was searching for something. After a bit, it suddenly stopped to look at something...

...And that something was the party.

**[...I have found you.]**

The six-eye symbol glows in the mass again, and it starts getting closer.

* * *

Ineelana breathed, and announced her choices.

"My first two choices will be Xenovia Quarta from Rias' peerage, and Kirin Yamagari from Sairaorg's, as a sign of respect to my fellow Semi-Finalists who didn't make it." Ineelana requested.

The two of them showed shock, surprised that Ineelana picked them.

"And for my next two choices, I'll choose Saji Genshirou from Sona's peerage, as her team is strong, but had misfortune of losing in the first round, and for my last choice..." Ineelana stated.

She thought for a bit, and then wondered something.

"Ms. Edelweiss, out of curiosity, is it possible I could pick someone that isn't a Pawn if I have them account for all the pieces they're worth?" Ineelana inquired.

"Explain that a bit more, please." She replied.

"Well, as I technically have five pawns left by the rules of my choices, would it be alright for me to choose someone who's a Bishop, Knight, or Rook if the match considered them as a Pawn for its duration?" Ineelana explained.

Edelweiss thought, soon coming to a decision.

"As the one match rule negates the usual Evil Piece enhancements, that would technically be within the rules, so I'll allow it." Edelweiss agreed.

"Alright, then my last choice is Xuelan from Riser's peerage, as his team was eliminated due to his injuries from facing Loki, and because I have a lot of respect for how much he's changed for the better." Ineelana revealed.

Saji showed excitement, while surprise filled Xuelan's face.

"Alright Vali, who are your choices?" Edelweiss inquired.

"Hmm... can you evaluate Yumina for me?" Vali requested.

Yumina flinched in surprise, unable to believe she was a considered choice.

"Of course." Edelweiss nodded.

Edelweiss kneeled by Yumina, soon putting her forehead against the Lucifuge heiress', and after a bit...

"Based on your skill level, Yumina is worth three pieces." Edelweiss revealed.

"Three, then that's perfect, because my choices will be Yumina Lucifuge, and Ravel Phenex." Vali smiled.

Yumina smiled a bit, while Ravel showed shock to that.

"M-M-Me?" Ravel stuttered.

"Yeah, I think you'll be a great edition, and I'd honestly like to get to know you better, if you'll allow me to." Vali stated.

"Well, the dream you stated is... something I respect, very well then, I'll help you in the Final Match." Ravel replied.

Lilith smiled, clapping her hands together.

"And there we have it, we have our teams!" Lilith cheered.

Most of the people present cheered, while some wondered about the choices each side made.

"Vali likely chose Yumina because she's Grayfia's younger sister, not to mention the strong support between their clans since the time of Satan's rule, while Ravel has her clan's immortality, a good support with some of her members' fire and light magic, and she's a good tactician too." Rias thought aloud.

"Aside from Vali, Issei's a powerful foe as well, and Irina's become nearly as deadly due to having all but one sword to recreate the True Excalibur, making them the top three of her team. Saji has the power of Vritra, while Kirin has the power of Bahamut, which could stand against the Heavenly Dragons' strength. Xenovia on the other hand is familiar with Irina, and has two Holy Swords, where Xuelan is a Rook that has skills on par with a Queen." Sona wondered aloud.

The two looked at each other.

"Combining their actual peerage members with these additions, who do you think is stronger?" Rias asked.

"To be honest... I think they're equal to each other." Sona answered.

The two looked back at the two Devil heiresses.

"In other words, this match could go either way, this is definitely the greatest match in the whole tournament." Rias stated.

Lilith walks to the two, lightly slapping them on the backs.

"Come on you two, ignore that stuff for now, we've got a party to enjoy!" Lilith smiled.

* * *

Deep within the chambers of Tartarus, the sight of Hades as he sat on his throne was shown, his skeletal body did its best to showcase his anger in the limited manner it could as he had a magic circle show him the celebration the Devils were having.

"Does stupid bats, acting the way they do here, when will the world realize things would be better without them, not to mention those crows!?" Hades seethed.

"It is quite annoying, especially since my daughter left us to join their ranks." Orcus sighed, looking towards him.

Suddenly a crash is heard, catching their attention as a ghostly wail is heard, acting as Tartarus' alarm.

"There's an intruder, intercept and kill them!" Hades ordered.

"Yes, Master Hades!"

The Grim Reapers all prepare for battle, and charge to encounter the invader, but the moment they encountered him... they all instantly backed away, fear being seen on their lack of faces.

Hades looked confused by this, knowing the Grim Reapers rarely showed such terror.

"What are you doing, just who could scare you all so badly you can't act!?" Hades demanded.

"What is this, you trying to have a "funny bone" with that line?"

Hades' own form soon went stiff, recognizing the voice of the intruder, and suddenly understanding what his Grim Reapers had become so terrified by.

Walking into view was the strongest of the remaining "Worst Gods", Sakra Indra, and someone Hades didn't have the power to defeat... however, looking at him closer, Hades noticed something before calming down a bit.

"...What do I owe your unexpected visit to my realm Indra, may I remind you that people are to alert me that they'll be coming in advance!?" Hades asked angrily.

Indra chuckled, irking the Greek God of Death even further, before he walks closer to the living skeleton.

"Oh, so you aren't interested in this little deal I have, one that'll purge you of those nuisances you call bats, and crows I believe?" Indra shrugged.

Hades' body flinched as Indra left, and a blast purposely missed near him, making the Hindu God smirk as he turned around.

"That's an interesting way to tell me you're interested." Indra smirked.

"...Start talking before I lose interest." Hades stated.

"Sheesh, you're a real sourpuss, aren't you... fine then." Indra sighed.

Indra cleaned his ear slightly.

"I believe you know how that brat of Satan's lineage is at the top of their so-called tournament, right?" Indra asked.

"I'm aware, but what does that have to do with it?" Hades asked.

Indra soon removed his ear, and the King of the Deva made a serious face, shocking Hades and the Grim Reapers, knowing Indra's personality rarely lead to such a face being seen on him... that immediately etched this wasn't something small, or minor.

"I told the Governor General a while back that if I saw the current holders of the Heavenly Dragons that if their threat became too great, and threatened my right to the name of Heaven, one only I can have... then I'd kill them." Indra stated.

Hades' eyes widened, putting two and two together.

"That Sekiryuutei's new power was all the proof I needed, and now I'll be waiting for the Finals to end, where I'll kill them in front of their entire species' as they watch in vain, there's plenty of chaos that'll happen... so what better chance for you to wipe out the Devils?" Indra smirked.

"So, you basically want me to start a war as you murder those two?" Hades asked.

"Of course, and it benefits me by cutting off any aid to those two Dragon brats." Indra answered.

Indra offered a hand, smirking widely.

"So, what do you say, do we have a deal as fellow "Worst Gods" as most put us?" Indra requested.

"Hmm... I'll never get a chance greater than this, very well then." Hades agreed.

They shook hands, but then the Greek God wondered something.

"Out of curiosity, what would happen if they were the ones who killed you instead?" Hades questioned.

"Hah, like they could kill me, not even Vritra was strong enough to fell me, but... just to humor your, if I somehow did die, then I guess I'll make a pact agreement that you could get my power." Indra replied nonchalantly.

Indra left mark on Hades hand, and soon turned to leave.

"Well, that's it for now, see ya." Indra waved.

"Hold on, how will I even know when to strike? You just dropping in wouldn't exactly reach me to get the timing you want." Hades questioned.

"Oh that, I have a few students of mine who'll show up to alert you." Indra replied.

Indra slipped a picture over, and instantly realized who was in the picture.

"Now then, bye, bye, for real." Indra waved again.

Indra soon left Tartarus, and the various Grim Reapers calmed down, though most of them turned as Hades began to chuckle darkly.

"Lord Hades?" Orcus questioned.

"Orcus, go have Pluto meet up with these brats that he's been training under, I have a different idea in mind..."

Orcus showed surprise, and Hades began to laugh.

"How lucky that he gave me such a deal without a care!" Hades stated.

"Lord Hades, what do you mean?" Orcus inquired.

"It's quite simple, it's obvious by his smug look he didn't read my mind, because if he did..." Hades replied.

The Greek God's mind trailed to a shadow following Indra upon coming into his chambers.

"...He would know I see the shadow of death approaching him."

* * *

Back at the celebration, everyone was enjoying the mini-celebration, while Lilith was checking the time set for the Finals, with Edelweiss taking a seat next to her as she did, getting the Devil Queen's attention.

"So, how have you been holding up?" Edelweiss inquired.

"Huh?" Lilith wondered.

Edelweiss sighed, smiling a bit.

"I meant since she officially became your daughter? You didn't have anyone after Satan died, and then only a decade ago you find out that your disowned son had his own child, and then a grand daughter who was Half-Human through Azazel, to raise her as your daughter... has that affected you in any manner?" She inquired.

"Oh, well... I'd be lying if I said that seeing her didn't remind me of him." Lilith admitted.

She looked at Vali, briefly seeing the flash of a silver haired man that looked a lot like her.

"She resembles a female version of him so much, I sometimes wonder... if she's not just his descendant, but maybe his reincarnation, and that's why the two of us met like we did, not to mention gained the same dream." She said, giving a slightly somber smile.

Edelweiss giggled a bit.

"Next thing you'll be telling me is that Irina girl is God's reincarnation due to their previous squabbles." Edelweiss joked.

"Uh... I think that's a stretch even for a joke, but who knows, maybe its truthful... though then again I might be wrong on my end too." Lilith replied.

Lilith breathed deeply, looking at her husband's queen directly.

"Still, as much as I miss him, and it pains me to remember him when I see her, it also tells me part of him still lives on." Lilith smiled.

"...Yeah, I agree with you, I'll never understand how Rizevim was born as such a bastard, but even good things come from bad, and I can tell that boy she loves is another example of that." Edelweiss smiled back.

The two looked at the sky.

"I know he'll be back one day, so I can only make sure Vali's ready for it, but I know right here, and right now... Vali's fighting to change all of Hell, and I know if she can win here, that'll make us all the more ready for what he tries against us." Lilith stated.

Edelweiss closed her eyes, smiling again.

'You've become quite strong yourself Lilith, the burden you carry is so heavy, and yet you've managed to bare all of its weight.' She thought.

As that was happening, a sudden win picked up, but the nearby trees made everyone notice that it couldn't have been a wind due to blowing in opposing directions.

"Huh, what is this?" Esketanus wondered.

"I-I'm scared... what's happening?" Eterna asked, hugging Esketanus.

Everyone looked around, and the 'wind' suddenly began getting stronger, and gave a feeling like a vacuum trying to swallow everything with its pulling force.

"Just what's causing this!?" Irina exclaimed.

"Hey, look up there!" Gebedon gasped.

Everyone did, and soon the dark mass that was nearing the party area had finally gotten close enough to be seen, and the six-eye symbol flashed once more.

"That symbol, is that... Trihexa!?" Le Fay gasped.

"No, it looks similar, but there's some clear differences, though it may still be related to that monster!" Lilith answered.

The mass looked around, soon focusing on Ravel.

**[I have... found you!]**

The dark mass' symbol grew larger before a powerful force blew, causing everyone to shield themselves from it, but Ravel on the other hand was suddenly picked up and pulled towards the mass.

"Help me!" Ravel cried out.

"No, Ravel!" Riser screamed.

Vali gasped as she saw her get pulled in, and managed to push herself to grab her, only for herself to start being lifted up.

"Quick, we gotta help them!" Issei ordered.

The rest of Vali's peerage followed, as did Yumina, grabbing the two to try and pull them back... but their attempts were in vain as all of them were suddenly pulled off the ground.

**[Unexpected, but... workable.]**

Before anyone could react, a flash went off, and the entire Vali peerage, along with Yumina and Ravel, screamed as they were pulled into the dark mass, the eye symbol disappearing as they did.

When the sudden gale ended, everyone looked to see the dark mass still present, but those swallowed into it were gone.

"It got them!" Saji shouted.

"If that thing's still in the sky, then we should be able to follow and help them, come on!" Ineelana stated.

Many Devils all flew towards the dark mass, but the moment they did, they were suddenly knocked back, the mass rejecting any attempt they made to go through.

As that happened, Lilith's eyes shook, and once her daughter's disappearance finally registered to her...

"**VAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!**"

* * *

Vali's unconscious form laid on the ground, resting against some grass as it did, before her legs slightly shifted, and she began regaining consciousness.

"H-Huh?" Vali groaned.

Vali slowly got up, shaking her head to dispel the grogginess she was feeling, and soon looked to see her surroundings. It was... well, the best way she could describe it was like if she had somehow been on specific drugs and/or hallucinogens, because the area around her made no sense.

It was like a bunch of random land, but various floating islands, and their positions made no sense either, not to mention the colors she saw were all warped and odd mixtures when not singular colors. **(A/N: Think Valla from Fire Emblem: Fates, but an odd fusion of colors like the Dimensional Gap.)**

"What the heck is this place?" Vali wondered.

"Hey, wait a second, why haven't any of... the others..." She realized.

She turned to look around, and the realization hit her all too quickly, she was all alone, the others had disappeared!

"Oh no, we must have gotten separated when we got sent here, I hope everyone's OK, but... just who or what sent us here? If only there was some-" Vali wondered.

"Huh?" She blinked.

She turned as she saw someone walking nearby, this someone based on what she saw was a teenager girl like her. She had very long purple hair tied back with a decorative butterfly shaped ribbon, matching dark purple eyes with white pupils. Her attire consisted of a gold sleeveless tank top that stopped briefly above her belly button, a purple tie-up jacket with a lavender collar area, dark plum jean shorts with a black belt that had a gold buckle, and a pair of sneakers that matched the same colors of her ribbon.

Once Vali noticed her white pupils, which were something that she had never seen before, she only came to one conclusion...

"That girl... she must be related to if not the one who brought us here!" Vali exclaimed angrily.

Vali assumed her Balance Breaker, and screamed as she flew towards the girl, said girl turned at her with shock as she saw her coming, ready to strike!

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

**And that's it everyone, Season 4 is over, and the cliffhanger leading to the Crossover has been initiated! Not only that, but I threw in a few scenes that will be connected to the events of this story's last two seasons. Also, as a small reminder, the crossover story: "Heaven and Hell: Adventure of Two Worlds", was post simultaneously with this, and you can read it the moment you finish reading these end notes.**

**We've got the special rules for the Final revealed, and with Yumina and Ravel present on their special finals team, I've finally brought the 12 major characters of this story series together. Indra's finally decided Issei and Vali are too strong to let go, it seems like Hades got another layer since it looks like he's sure of Indra's fate, and... just what happened to Ophis & Great Red? It seems while unintentional, the crossover villain was responsible for allowing it to happen.**

**Looks like Vali's already encountered the DAR:L world's version of Tohka, though the reason she hasn't noticed her similarity to Niruili's Rook, the LOHD version of the same character (cause of multiverse-type reasons), is because she doesn't know said Rook well enough. While I won't fully explain it here, I will mention that the two worlds having similar looking characters will be a small side plot that'll link itself to LOHD's eventually since it's already canon due to Rizevim's actions in arc 4.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Vali's Finals Team- **

**King - Vali Lucifer**   
**Queen - Issei Hyoudou**   
**Bishops - Le Fay Pendragon, Asia Argento**   
**Knights - Arthur Pendragon, Irina Shidou**   
**Rooks - Sun Bikou, Kuroka Toujou**   
**Pawns - Yuuma Amano, Kunou, Yumina Lucifuge (x3), Ravel Phenex (x3)**

* * *

** -Ineelana's Finals Team- **

**King - Ineelana Leviathan**   
**Queen - Murasaki**   
**Bishops - Yumi, Tamara Harrison**   
**Knights - Stella Vermillion, Xenovia Quarta**   
**Rooks - Sinon, Mine**   
**Pawns - Ophelia Landlufen, Saji Genshirou, Xuelan (x5)**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Stella Vermillion, Edelweiss**

**Slayers - Lina Inverse**

**Fairy Tail - Acnologia**

**Hyperdimension Neptunia - Uzume Tennouboshi**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	43. Chapter 43

**Welcome back everyone, the crossover is finally finished, so it's time to initiate Season 5!**

**Before we start, I have something important to at least 500 of the people who read this story, remember the crossover? Well... if you haven't seen it, then I need to warn you here that during the crossover's events, there were two major revelations about the Hero Faction that applies to Season 5 & 6. The reveals are so big, that a lot of things that the Hero Faction says or does will not make sense if you haven't seen it.**

**The reason I didn't reveal it here, and I won't be until mid-Season 6, was because the crossover's nature of bringing two worlds together. For that reason, I highly advise you to read it before you continue. It's not just the Hero Faction either, because every member of Vali's peerage, Yumina, and Ravel gained a new powers and/or ability that you won't recognize. As a result, to anyone who doesn't want to be spoiled...**

** WARNING! ** ** \- If you haven't read the crossover story "Heaven and Hell: Adventure of Two Worlds" before this chapter, stop here and read it first, or you'll be exposed to massive spoilers - WARNING!**

**Now that we've got that clear, we can begin the Kyoto Arc. The first thing I should mention is, since she's appeared already, but some of you may have forgotten her since it's been so long, and she hasn't reappeared since then, is that Kunou has an older sister who'll making her reappearance in this arc to take over Kunou's role in canon.**

**Another thing I'll bring up is some important aspects about this season. The first, if you remember what happened last season with Indra, then I think it's clear what I've made to replace the Raynare curse plot point, though how it'll actually go down is what I'm gonna keep secret for now. Secondly, despite this season and the next one are both separate, you can also consider them one for reasons that were also revealed last season.**

**Before we begin, I wanna bring up something that kinda surprised me about Vol 24, the first thing is something I'm not completely sure is true or not because of how shocking it was, but... apparently, the last two Longinus might be owned by the same person? That kind of thing is like winning the lottery, so if it does end up being true, then... wow.**

**Also, it seems that how Lilith created the Devils in canon was ironically not that different to how she and Satan did that (which won't be fully revealed until JOHD's events) in this story 0_0 *breathes* It still surprises me how it isn't uncommon for something a fan makes up to somehow end up being true later on, I wonder if any other ideas of mine might do that in the future? Well, I guess we'll find out in the upcoming volumes.**

**OK, now that I've gotten all of that said, time to finally begin Season 5!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut talking

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Phantom Shift **

**The signature power of the Lucifuge clan, better known as the magic-less teleportation. Those who possess this ability as able to teleport a small distance from their original location, fading into the shadows, hence the power's name. Currently, like the Primal Abyss, this power's considered endangered, with the only living people who possess it being the original Lucifuge, Grayfia, and Yumina.**

**A notable trait about this clan ability is that it's one of the few clan abilities that actually reflects the meaning of its respective Devil clan. The name Lucifuge means "He who flees the light", and as such, light heavily influences this ability. If exposed to light, then a user of this ability will actually be able to teleport a greater distance than normal. If in the sunlight, the user will also move further if they teleport away from the sun's direction.**

**While most members of the Lucifuge don't focus much on using it for offensive purposes, Yumina is considered unique among her clan for actually basing her entire fighting style around it, using it to evade, fake-out opponents, strike with sneak attacks, and move too fast for an opponent to react. Her fighting style has been noted by her sister as being creative, and effective.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Kyoto Arc: Chapter 1 - Return to Kyoto _ **

Everyone was currently in Hell, a crowd cheering in one of the smaller stadiums as a small duel between two Devils was about to go down. On the west side, stood Sairaorg Bael, who removed his coat, showing a tight black shirt with red line designs across it. On the east side, Issei stood as he flung his own jacket to the side, holding up his Boosted Gear to equip his scale mail armor.

Up on the stands, Vali, her peerage, Yumina, and Ravel all watch from one side. On the other, Sairaorg's peerage, his half-brother Magdaran, and his mother who was being moved in a wheelchair by the butler acting as her caretaker.

**「** **Chivalry of a Failed Knight: Let's Go Ahead** **」**

Sirzechs was standing between the two, holding up his hands.

"This is a friendly match between the current heir of the Bael Clan, Sairaorg Bael, and the Queen of Vali Lucifer, Issei Hyoudou! The match will be decided when I call a winner, do both combatants understand this?" Sirzechs asked.

Both of them nod, and stepping away from the battlefield...

"Let the match, begin!" He announced.

Issei began as his scale mail's jets blasted out, propelling him like a rocket as he drifted around Sairaorg... then proceeded to rocket forward at full speed!

Sairaorg countered this by smashing the ground, making a controlled shock wave that Issei narrowly does a side flip to avoid, sending a similar attack as a wave of fire towards him. Everyone cheered in excitement, with both combatants taking a moment to stare each other down, Issei's armor briefly repairing the damage it gained from the slight grazing of the Bael heir's attack.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**   
**Incredible! For a small duel, things are already heating up between our two fighters, I just can't call it!**

Issei chuckled a bit, rushing forward again.

"I have to say, that strength of yours is the real deal Sairaorg!" He praised.

"I could say the same!" Sairaorg returned.

The Bael Heir swung forward, his fist held out as he prepared to punch at the Sekiryuutei, who prepared his own strike against it.

"**[CRIMSON DOMINATION FIST!]**"

Their fists met, causing a huge shock wave that everyone felt from the stadium.

**「** **insert song end** **」**

The two powers continued clashing, with both sides shouting as they gave it their all, and a white flash encompassing the both of them.

**« Issei: And that was how it began, the preparations for the Finals of the Rating Game tournament, and most of all... the end of the first chapter of our story. »**

Out of nowhere, a black area was seen as the sound of falling shards were heard, and the only thing that could be seen in this strange blackness? Well, a single spotlight showing none other than...

A destroyed Boosted Gear, and Divine Dividing.

* * *

***Attack on Titan - Shinzou wo Sasageyo plays***

**(*high pitched piano playing*)** The sight of the DxD symbol was seen lying across the ground, untouched by the elements surrounding.

_[After a long struggle, Vali and her friends have successfully reached the Finals of the Rating Game tournament, and are preparing to face her friend Ineelana Leviathan for the right to claim victory. The only obstacle in their way now?]_

**(*heavy guitar slamming*)** The sight of various shadowed figures were seen surrounding the symbol as the screen zoomed out.

_[...It's MUCH more than just this one last match!]_

**(The greatest challenge is finally nearing us, and now that it is there's only one question...)** The Hero Faction slowly nears Kyoto, making the many Youkai living there afraid, and worrying Kunou's older sister, Nainen.  
**(I won't falter in the road ahead, so will you still follow me!?)** At the same time, Vali's team were putting on their Rating Game tournament uniforms, with Yumina having gray as her theme color, and Ravel's being blue.

**(Be it Angels, Fallen, Devils, Demons, Youkai, Magicians, or even Heroes...)** Cao Cao holds the True Longinus, with the main forces of the Hero Faction following as a red hue overlays them on the screen, and fire following behind them.  
**(This final blockade standing in my way will surely fall, and then I'll finally achieve my dream!)** Ineelana's team began putting on their own tournament uniforms, and a blue hue overlays them, with Ineelana taking a deep breath as a cold mist left her mouth.

**(The so-called hero wielding the spear of God following his own faith!)** The sight of a red screen showing Cao Cao's smug mug is seen.  
**(A good friend facing me in a friendly challenge, but having found new strength!)** A blue screen follows, showing Ineelana giving a confident look as she put her hands on her hips.  
**(What else is waiting in the path ahead?)** Follow that was a green screen, showing a silhouetted figure as he adjusted his glasses, briefly gleaming his appearance to show a familiar deity.  
**(I'll find out my own way!)** With one final shift, the colored screens shatter as Vali jumps through it, landing with a determined look ebbing throughout her body. Her teammates slowly following behind her.

**(Take a deep breath and more forward, there's no more turning back here...)** All of the Hero Faction begins attacking Kyoto's Youkai Realm.

**(Let's fly above the Heavens, and exceed the dragons within our two souls!)** The members of Ineelana's team all line up together, raising their hands up to show their resolve.  
**(Come on everyone, let's make victory ours!)** Both Vali, and Ineelana's teams, rush forward as they begin the final match of the Tournament.

**(D **x** D... D **x** D!)** Vali's team stands before Kyoto.

**(Our dreams are shining brighter than the stars!)** The sight of twelve stars glow in the sky, glimmering brightly against the darkness trying to shroud them.  
**(We'll walk the red, we'll walk the white!)** Lines connect the stars to form the symbol of the Lucifer clan's symbol, causing all of Vali's team to fly out from them, smashing through the shroud that had blocked them off.**  
(Don't give up my friends, and rush straight ahead!)** They land on a giant battleground, where a large mass of red, a medium-sized mass of blue, and a small mass of green were all gathered in that order.

**(D **x** D... D **x** D!)** All the armies begin to charge, with the blue mass being revealed as Ineelana's team as most of Vali's group faces off with them in one-on-one battles.

**(Our dreams are shining brighter than the stars!)** The red mass was the Hero Faction, and Irina leaped, using Excalibur's power to clone herself and swing both Issei and Vali at them, both using their scale mails, before switching to their Blazing Soul and Rising Morningstar techniques.  
**(We'll walk the red, we'll walk the white...)** They rush forward, with a blue and red screen divide separating them, as Issei clashes with Cao Cao in the red, and Vali with Ineelana in the blue.  
**(And make it through the obstacles ahead!)** Both smash together to become green, revealing the silhouetted figure being their shared opponent this time, with a flash revealing a cocky looking Indra ready to slaughter the both of them.

**(*heavy guitar and drum playing*)** The image of various characters passed by, those aligned with the alliance having blue tints in their images, and those who were with the Khaos Brigade having red tints. Indra appeared at the end with his unique green tint coloration.

**(*same heavy guitar and drums play, but now even louder before coming to a sharp stop*)** Everything on the screen suddenly shatters as it becomes a ghostly gray-white, showing Hades running across a field, with many faceless Grim Reapers flying by, wearing their hoods and holding their scythes as they floated alongside their deity as their run became a charge, decimating the landscape of Hell until it became ruins.

The same DxD symbol was seen where it had started, still as clean as when the opening started, and causing a garden of glowers to blossom around it.

* * *

Issei panted on a couch as he sweat up a storm, being fanned by Irina. His duel with Sairaorg had been intense, and that had been the Bael heir without using his Regulus armor to fight him, proving how he earned the title of the strongest young King until Ineelana defeat him.

"You gonna live there, Issei?" Irina asked in concern.

"The only thing I know I'm gonna be is overheating for a while." Issei replied, slinking down the couch more.

Kunou giggled, jumping on Issei's lap, and making her cough in response.

"That battle was still great, you were all like... boom! While Sairaorg was all bam!" Kunou said excitedly.

Vali grabbed Kunou off Issei, chuckling as she saw her boyfriend's now winded form, which slumped to the side from the intense impact it had just received.

"Kunou, I think you might wanna give Issei his rest for about maybe... indefinitely?" Vali joked worriedly.

"Aw..." Kunou pouted sadly.

Meanwhile, Le Fay was seen talking with their worlds' versions of Tohka and Kurumi, the two still extremely curious about their counterparts in the other world.

"Seriously, what was the other me like? Tell me!" Tohka begged.

"OK, OK! Just calm down!" Le Fay gave in as she sweated.

She took a deep breath, looking at Tohka first, who had her eyes sparkling in excitement.

"Let's see, if our groups were like the heroes in a story, then you of the other world was the main heroine as Vali would have been in that situation. Heck, she had a power that Albion said rivaled a Longinus." She revealed.

"No way, are you serious!?" Tohka gasped in surprise.

Le Fay chuckled a bit, nodding, and then looked at Kurumi.

"Then your counterpart was... well, I guess I can best say she didn't seem as flirty, and her powers were the same except for one other extra, the power to manipulate time." Le Fay explained.

"So, I had Gasper's power then?" Kurumi questioned.

"No, Gasper can only stop time, my brother said she could manipulate it in almost any form." Le Fay shook her head, correcting her.

Kurumi's eyes widened, followed by her jaw dropping... Tohka waved her hand over her face a few seconds later.

"...I think you broke her." Tohka said worriedly.

"...Yeah, that's actually what I'm thinking as well." Le Fay said nervously.

Tohka poked her, and she fell over, soon getting back up as she shook off the surprise.

"Wow, that world's versions of us seem so much cooler..." Kurumi said sadly.

"Hey, don't feel too bad, you could still have potential in you. The Vali of that world is pretty powerful, being the daughter of their world's God. If that's the same in both worlds, maybe you just haven't found your true power just yet." Le Fay comforted, technically telling the truth.

The two had their eyes widen at that.

"Hey, I bet you're right! I'm gonna have Niruili train me right now!" Tohka exclaimed.

Tohka ran off, vanishing through a Beelzebub clan circle. Kurumi chuckled before doing the same for a Mammon clan circle. Lilith walked by, wondering what the scene was about, and when she looked at Le Fay... she just whistled in response.

"...OK, don't tell me then." Lilith sighed as she shrugged.

"Hey mom, what's up?" The Lucifer heiress asked.

"Just thought I'd let you know that we finally got you clearance to go to Kyoto." Lilith smiled, winking a bit.

Vali blushed at that, pretty sure that she was implying some romantic time between her and Issei.

"Mom! We're heading there because we gotta save Kunou's mom, it isn't that kind of trip!" She exclaimed while blushing.

"Sheesh, can I not joke after you worried me half to death?" Lilith replied with a slight glare.

Vali blushed even more, nervously chuckling as she walked towards the wall.

"So, when are we heading over?" Yuuma asked.

"In two hours, something about Tsukuyomi claiming her brother will be more of a pain to handle if you don't leave sooner... I think?" Lilith answered.

Yumina blinked in confusion upon hearing that, with Kunou silently giggling in response.

"Oh good, a train ride can be relaxing." Issei said hoarsely, still feeling Kunou's jumping on him.

Lilith looked at Issei's current condition with confusion, but shrugged it off since Vali didn't seem too worried when she had walked in. Though it was seeing him that reminded her of something that Lady Phenex had asked her about earlier.

"Hey Ravel, may I have a word for a moment?" Lilith requested.

"Yes, Lady Lilith?" Ravel replied with curiosity.

Lilith looks at Issei briefly, making him notice.

"Issei, what I'm about to say relates to you, so pay attention." Lilith stated.

"Uh, OK?" Issei replied.

"Ravel, under the suggestion of Sirzechs, your mother has asked me to tell you that she'd like you act as Issei's manager in the same manner that Yumina does with Vali." Lilith announced, surprising the Sekiryuutei.

Ravel blushed a bit, while Yumina gives an interesting smirk towards her.

"Ho, ho... since the situation doesn't allow Lady Phenex to ship them, is this related to-" Yumina teased.

"Yumina, please stop." Vali groaned.

Yumina giggled before sticking a tongue out playfully.

"U-Uh, if I may ask Lady Lilith, w-why would Sirzechs request something like that? And why did my mother choose to agree to it?" Ravel questioned, blushing nervously.

"It's quite simple. You see, with where his standing is now, Issei will be start becoming quite busy alongside Vali, a result of his efforts in the Tournament up to now. Either way, this will require great focus on his studies in both the human world, and the supernatural world, so matters that he can't handle by himself will start appearing before he realizes it." Lilith explained.

"Any particular reason Ravel was chosen?" Irina asked.

Lilith looked at Irina, nodding.

"There was, Irina. We had many candidates submitted, and among all of those, Serafall found Ravel was the best choice that fit all that applied to Issei's criteria, and Maliran agreed when she paid her a visit not too long ago. While I do believe she had a secondary reason that's fairly obvious to me, I know Maliran well enough to know her primary reasons were because she agreed in Ravel's potential, and perhaps that Issei was the best person to unlock it." She replied.

Vali whistled at that, with even Yumina looking somewhat surprised by the last bit of Lilith's words. Ravel blushed a bit more, though her surprise was more evident than her red cheeks were. Lilith snapped her fingers as she recalled something else.

"Oh, that's right, there was one other reason this matters. The promotion tests are coming up, and while we're still figuring out due to the Tournament, alongside a few other things to decide what level everyone might promote to... as of right now, it seems likely Issei will take a High-Class promotion rest." She revealed.

All the current Devil heirs gasped loudly in response, with even Mio showing surprise to the claim.

"Uh, why did everyone just react like that?" Issei questioned.

"Issei, to promote to high-class in less than a year is unheard of, even in times of war that wasn't enough. If you succeed in promoting into a High-Class Devil..." Vali explained, her legs buckling.

"Not to mention, with how strong you are right now, the peerage you could make would be powerful." Rias added.

Kunou turned her head, a little confused.

"I don't get it, how could Issei have a peerage? Isn't he Vali's Queen?" She asked.

"That's simple Kunou, a reincarnated Devil starts as a Low-Class by default, and they rank up from there. You need to be a High-Class in order to get Evil Pieces, so having an Evil Piece matters little in that area. My queen, Blaze Meteor Tannin, is such a Devil to have achieved this." Lilith explained.

Kunou's eyes widened at that.

"So, one day I could have that too?" She asked.

"Yep, though you'd still be expected to be Vali's Pawn when she participates in a Rating Game." Lilith confirmed.

Issei on the other hand was sweating a bit, now it made sense why Vali was shaken by the shock, he was being considered for something that normally couldn't happen. Actually, he realized he was skipping a Mid-Class promotion, meaning he was _that_ good.

"Wow, so I'm kinda a big deal, aren't I?" Issei mentioned.

"Big enough that kids see you and Vali as their heroes, I think Serafall is thinking of a TV show based on you both to inspire children. Though admittedly, it isn't just the fact you've got a chance to reach High-Class... if you succeed, Vali will be promoted to an Ultimate-Class due to all your efforts against the Khaos Brigade, and being able to have you reach High-Class so fast." Lilith explained.

Vali's eyes widened at that, and when she tried to vocally express her shock... her voice failed to project.

"Ooh, looks like we've got some celebrities here." Bennia snickered.

Lilith chuckled oddly as her daughter, and all but official son-in-low's reactions held, before looking at Ravel again.

"So, what will it be Ravel? Will you accept this role? This is your choice, so we'll accept it should you decline." She inquired.

Ravel thought on it for a moment, what the role of being a manager would mean for her. It was true, she had definitely seen how many children in Hell had spoken highly of Issei, and having Issei involved in such a show would have its own fair share of things to focus on, enough that Issei might not be able to handle considering while not a bad student, his grades weren't exactly noteworthy either.

However, if Issei were to become a High-Class Devil, that means he'd have his own peerage, and this could be something that could work in her favor as well. She already knew Issei's heart belonged to Vali, and he wasn't interested in multiple wives, but... it wasn't uncommon for those with strong affection to a certain Devil to consider being in their peerage as the next best thing. Maybe if she did well enough, Issei might consider trading one of his unused Bishops to have her included.

With that thought in mind, she finalized her decision.

"I understand, leave it to me! I'll do the Phenex name proud as Issei's manager!" Ravel declared, holding her hand up in the air with confidence.

Lilith smiled, putting a hand on her head.

"Alright then, I'll let Sirzechs and your mother know right away, go get them little fire bird." She encouraged.

Ravel blushed a bit, soon rushing off to get prepared for both the trip, and her new role as Issei's manager.

"Wow, she seems oddly eager." Yuuma mentioned.

"I think I can tell why, she's obviously hoping she can get Issei's interest, so he'll take her in his peerage." Vali chuckled a bit.

"Uh, I'm confused... what does that have to do with this?" Issei asked.

Vali blinked, and then gave an embarrassed laugh as she realized Issei wasn't aware of that part of peerage culture.

"Sorry, I never mentioned it to you because the right time hadn't come up yet, but since not every Devil is interested in a harem... such as yourself." Vali mentioned.

Issei nodded, he was only gonna have a relationship with Vali, a harem was just too complicated for many reasons he didn't wanna get into.

"Well, it isn't uncommon for those pining for a certain Devil to join a peerage because if they can't be with the one they love, they can at least keep him or her safe. Think of it kinda like concubines, but more in the role of an elite guard." Vali explained.

"...Ooh, I think I get what you're saying now. Since Ravel knows that I'm not gonna have a harem, then the next best thing would be that, guess that makes some sense." Issei realized.

Homura giggled a bit, wondering what her son would do with that reveal.

"So, what do you think Issei? Would you consider someone like Ravel for your peerage?" She asked.

"Well, I don't know, at least not yet. Although, that doesn't mean there's absolutely no chance for me to consider it as time goes by." Issei answered.

Hana smiled at that, nodding in response to his decision.

"I agree, you should take your time on a big decision like this one, and also get to know her a little more." Hana stated.

"Yeah, not to mention I have to actually get my Evil Pieces first." Issei mentioned.

Lilith giggled before hitting him on the back, making him nearly fall off the couch.

"For now, focus more on rescuing Kunou's mother, Mio will go with you as your chaperone in case she needs to send any vital info to the alliance." Lilith stated.

"Will do Miss Lilith." Mio agreed.

* * *

Cao Cao held a magic circle to his ear, nodding a bit before dispelling it, getting the attention of the other Hero Faction elites.

"Jeanne just gave me the message, they're heading towards Kyoto as we speak." Cao Cao stated.

"Then we need to begin the plan, I just hope things don't get too messy." Georg remarked.

Leo shrugged at that, starting to walk off.

"We already caused a mess for what we did, and for what nearly happened, Jingu really messed up on making sure that kid was OK." Leo stated, looking lazily at Jingu.

"Hey, not my fault she went flying somewhere that I barely understood, have you ever gone to visit an Elf village before?" Jingu glared in annoyance.

"Stop arguing you two, right now we need to ready ourselves, we can't let our actions make the Khaos Brigade suspicious of us after coming this far." Cao Cao interjected.

The two quickly relented, and the group began to follow, though Cao Cao didn't notice Jingu's cruel smile.

'You have little to worry about, it'll matter little when my father's plans take you out with those disgusting bats.' Jingu thought darkly, giving a silent chuckle.

The memory of throwing Kunou's unconscious form into the Elf wilds, lacking the damage that it had when Vali found her there, replayed through her mind as she sparked her excitement.

'Soon, very soon, everything will change.' She thought with sadistic glee.

* * *

Everyone was seen on a train that was heading to Kyoto, each doing their own thing. Irina was playing a game of cards against Yuuma, with Le Fay watching them play as she saw the latter sweating nervously... with her usual train sickness having her face green already. Arthur was looking at the window, sitting across from Bikou who was eating some snacks as Kuroka sat by him, sweating fearfully at the fact she'd be returning to her homeland soon.

Asia was with Kunou, the former a little panicky as she tried to keep Kunou calm, with the young Kyuubi excited about her first train ride, and the two Heavenly Dragons were sitting together, with Vali blushing a bit as she smiled.

"This is so great, I can't believe I never rode on one of these before!" Kunou exclaimed.

"K-Kunou, please keep your voice down... please!" Asia begged, worried they'd get in trouble.

Ravel and Yumina walked back, bringing in some ginger ale and crackers for her nausea.

"Thank you..." Yuuma smiled weakly, taking them.

"Must suck you gotta deal with this to get to Kyoto, speaking of which... why are we taking a train there?" Yumina asked.

"After what the Shinto Gods told the Youkai, they're too suspicious of anyone who doesn't arrive normally." Ravel explained.

Yumina sighed, scratching her head.

"In other words, going there with magic would have them think we're with the Khaos Brigade... that's just peachy." Yumina said annoyed.

Vali looked at Issei, getting his attention.

"What, is something wrong?" Issei asked.

"No, I'm just thinking that this train ride is a bit... romantic. We haven't really gotten to really act like a couple because the tournament's been keeping me focused on it, especially after we almost lost Asia." Vali answered.

Issei smiled, wrapping an arm around her shoulder.

"Don't worry, once we win the Finals, we won't have to worry about that anymore." He reassured.

"Yeah, that's good to know." Vali said, her eyes slowly closing themselves.

Issei soon saw Vali slump against his shoulder, making him chuckle at how she fell asleep, soon deciding to take a nap himself. Seeing the two napping, Mio pulled out a blanket to cover them with.

"Have nice dreams you two." She whispered.

* * *

Issei blinked a bit as he suddenly found himself in a red space, but one that he was able to recognize as it hadn't been the first time he had been inside of it before. It was the realm he occasionally spoke to Ddraig's manifestation of his former body (albeit the whole area was on fire when he did this), and where he once saw his past possessors try to push him to the Juggernaut Drive, only for him to overcome it.

"Whoa, why am I here? Did you call me here Ddraig?" He called out.

**"[No, I didn't do anything this time, so that can only mean your summoner is one of my past wielders.]"** Ddraig answered from his right hand.

Issei looked around, not seeing anyone.

"Then where is everyone?" Issei questioned.

The sound of someone walking into view caught Issei's attention, making him turn around to see who it was. It was a man who looked like an older version of Issei, only with dark green hair, and his face full of small, but noticeable facial hair.

"Hello there current Sekiryuutei, or should I call you by Issei Hyoudou instead?" He greeted.

"Uh, hello there... are you the one who called me here?" Issei asked.

The man nodded, and suddenly Ddraig's laughter caught Issei's attention, surprising him slightly as he manifested his small-scale silhouette.

**"[I should have known it was you who called him here, you were always the one with the most common sense among all my previous wielders. Good to see you again, Belzard!]"** Ddraig greeted.

Issei blinked, a little bit lost.

"Uh, Ddraig? Just which past host am I talking to for you to say something like this?" He questioned.

**"[Partner, while you've been told you have the potential to become the strongest Sekiryuutei yet, I can easily say you still haven't earned the right to be called the strongest one. That honor goes to Belzard here.]"** Ddraig explained.

Issei's eyes widened at that.

"Wait, so... you're the strongest Sekiryuutei up until now!?" Ddraig exclaimed in surprise.

"That's right, and we've technically met already, but I don't think you had the chance to notice me when it happened." Belzard answered, mentioning the Juggernaut Drive incident.

**"[He was the one who agreed with your choice from the start, so in a way, he helped you destroy the Juggernaut Drive.]"** Ddraig answered.

"Oh, I think I remember your voice now, so... how did you earn the title of strongest, and how did you meet your end if I may be so bold to ask?" Issei inquired.

"Well, if I remember right, I was able to defeat my generation's wielder of the True Longinus, and the Annihilation Maker." Belzard tried recalling.

"You beat two High-Tier Longinus users!?" Issei exclaimed.

**"[I can verify that, Belzard knew how to use his powers well, though it still may have gone differently if he fought different users for either of them. Sometimes a Sacred Gear doesn't choose the best host for it, there have been some pacifist as my hosts... not the best thing for my powers.]"** Ddraig replied.

"As for what ended up taking me down, well... the Juggernaut Drive did." Belzard said, looking a bit sad.

Issei noticed this, and Ddraig sighed in response.

**"[Issei, Belzard is the one who your one ancestor has to stop.]"** Ddraig revealed.

"Whoa, that was him?" Issei was shocked at that reveal.

**"[That's not all, the Hakuryuukou of that time, she was... in the same position you and Vali are in.]"** Ddraig said with a low voice.

Issei's eyes froze at that, and Ddraig continued.

**"[She was the best Hakuryuukou, something even I can admit, but she and Belzard instead fell in love, only for tragedy to tear them apart when the Juggernaut Drive took hold of them both.]"** Ddraig continued, highlighting the fact.

"So, the both of them are who Vali and I could have ended up as?" Issei remarked sadly.

Ddraig didn't respond, but his facial expression told Issei all he needed.

**"[So, why have you brought your current incarnation here?]"** Ddraig asked.

"I'm interested, you did what I couldn't, so I'd like to see how you create your own story, your own legend in a sense." Belzard explained.

Belzard walked by Issei, making him look as he did.

"Keep that girl of yours close, avoid the fate that I had, that's something I truly believe in." He stated, smiling a bit.

He vanished from view, surprising Issei.

"Wow, so that was the greatest Sekiryuutei yet..." Issei mentioned.

**"[I get the feeling you'll be seeing him often from now on.]"** Ddraig mentioned.

* * *

Vali yawned a bit, opening her eyes to see herself in a vast white space, surprising her a bit as she saw it. Unlike Issei, she hadn't been here for a long time, so the sight had caught her off guard before she even realized it.

"A-Albion, where are we? I feel this familiar, but..." She asked.

**"(Relax yourself Vali, this is simply your mental landscape, I first spoke with you in hear some time after you awakened your Sacred Gear.)"** Albion explained.

Vali relaxed a bit, glad that it wasn't something serious.

"I wonder why we're here though?" Vali wondered.

"Simple, I called you here!" A female voice giggled.

Vali blinked in surprise, looking around for the source of the voice, but not finding anything. Unaware to her, the sight of a young woman who looked like an older version of herself, but with wavier blonde hair, and a few freckles on her cheeks. She poked Vali's shoulder, making her flinch as she turned, but didn't find the blonde-haired woman as she moved behind her in response. She kept doing a few more times, until finally... she turned Vali towards her.

"Boo!" She exclaimed.

"Ah!"

Vali fell on her butt, making the blonde-haired woman giggle a bit.

"W-what the heck!?" Vali shouted.

**"(I don't believe it, how long has it been, Elsha?)"** Albion inquired.

"Hey there Albi, nice to see you!" Elsha waved.

Vali blinked at the nickname, looking at her right hand in response. Albion's small-scale manifestation appeared, but looked away from her as he whistled, hoping that his current host wouldn't notice his embarrassment.

"Ah, and you must be Vali! I never got to meet you because of those jerks pushing you to use the Juggernaut Drive. They're a bunch of idiots, nothing good can ever come from that power, I know that better than anyone." Elsha pouted, making it hard to notice the sad look in her eyes.

"Uh, Albion... mind explaining who she is? I can tell she's a past Hakuryuukou, but-" Vali questioned.

**"(Not just any past wielder of mine, Vali. This woman here is the one you will one day have to overcome in power to be claimed as the greatest Hakuryuukou of all.)"** Albion answered immediately.

Vali froze at those words, this woman standing before her was the greatest Hakuryuukou of all?

"Yeah, I get that look a lot, my personality doesn't make you think I'm a fitting wielder of Divine Dividing, right?" Elsha giggled.

"Uh, well..." Vali trailed off at that.

"The irony there? Turns out mine's perfect, the Sekiryuutei's power can let him work alone, but the Hakuryuukou's power is one better made with allies, so wouldn't someone open and friendly like me make sense as a good user of this power?" Elsa smiled brightly.

'That's... actually a good point.' Vali admitted.

Elsha rubs Vali's head playfully, surprising her even more as she giggled, and clearly making Vali a bit uncomfortable.

"Uh... Albion, please distract me by telling me how she's considered your best host?" She begged, sweating a bit.

**"(It's quite simple, during her time as my host, she was able to take down a prior wielder of the Dimension Lost, and Zenith Tempest.)"** Albion revealed.

"Are you serious!?" Vali exclaimed, unable to believe she beat someone with the second strongest of the Longinus.

"Nope, he's completely serious, although it took a lot of hard work to do it." Elsha confirmed.

"H-Holy shit... just how did someone take you down-" Vali questioned.

Elsha gave a sad expression upon hearing that, and Vali blinked a bit before she realized one of her prior words, about how she knew how nothing good could come of the Juggernaut Drive.

"Oh, I'm so sorry... that was insensitive of me." Vali apologized.

"No, it's fine, besides... it didn't get too bad because Belzard and I were stopped by the ancestor of your boyfriend." Elsha said, trying to rid the downer mood.

"Wait, what?" Vali said in shock.

**"(You heard her, Elsha was that Hakuryuukou, and the one she faced back then was the strongest Sekiryuutei no less.)"** Albion explained.

Elsha giggled, somehow appearing by Albion's manifestation as she patted him on the head.

"Sheesh Albion, I thought I told you to not be such a stiff, liven up a bit like Ddraig!" Elsha remarked, pouting playfully after.

**"(U-Uh, well I... you see...)"** Albion replied, sweating a bit.

Vali blinked at the odd reaction she saw Albion give, almost unable to believe it was actually happening in front of her eyes.

"You know Vali, I like you a lot better than anyone else that Albion's been partnered with, especially since you're the only other host I've seen actually fall in love with their generation's Sekiryuutei." Elsha giggled, hopping near her again.

"Huh?" Vali exclaimed in shock.

Elsha nodded at that, giving a toothy grin.

"That's right, I was in love with the Red Dragon of my time, Belzard. Unfortunately, unlike with you... we didn't earn our happy ending, that's something we just weren't strong enough to defy." She answered, looking sad near the end.

"No way, so... we're not the first time this happened?" Vali asked in shock.

"That's right, but unlike us, I'm pretty sure you'll be the ones who can make their happy ending. It'll be a great love story the whole world will enjoy hearing! An even better Romeo and Juliet, one full of hope!" Elsha cheered, spinning around.

After getting dizzy for a moment, Elsha shook her head to regain her bearings.

"Well, nice meeting you for now. I'll keep in touch, so we'll be meeting again soon, bye for now!" Elsha giggled.

Running by Vali excitedly, and then vanishing from view, the Lucifer heiress blinked.

"...What the heck just happened?" She asked.

**"(I think it's better that I don't answer that, and you never ask again.)"** Albion replied nervously.

* * *

At that moment, the two suddenly woke up, with Mio surprised at the sight.

"Oh, I was just about to wake you both up, we're seconds away from arriving." Mio explained.

The two quickly noticed they were inside the train station, only a few more seconds passed before the train finally stopped.

『 All departing for Kyoto, thank you for riding with us today, we hope you enjoyed your trip. 』

"Alright, looks like we're here." Vali mentioned, getting up from her seat.

"Right, let's go." Issei replied.

The Lucifer team, Yumina, and Ravel all got off the train as they stepped into Kyoto. Once they finally left the station, Kunou happily began running around with her arms out, taking in the sunlight of her home after so long.

"Everyone, welcome to Kyoto!" Kunou smiled happily.

Vali smiled as she looked at Kyoto once again, the last time she had been hear was over 7 years ago at the very start of her training journey, which had also been when she first met a then 5-year old Kunou for the first time.

"I haven't been here in a long time, this place looks great." Vali praised, taking in the sights.

"Oh yeah, you mentioned you were here before we met on your training regime, right?" Bikou recalled.

Vali nodded at that, and at that moment, Bikou noticed something that made him laugh.

"Is there something funny, Bikou?" Arthur questioned.

"Hey look, snore fest." Bikou snickered, pointing at what he saw.

Everyone looked to where he pointed his finger, and saw none other than Susanoo, the one that Lilith assigned to be their guide, who had fallen asleep on the nearby bench. Kunou finally lost it as she giggled, while Yumina's eye twitched at the sight.

"...Holy crap, he really is the lazy god." Yumina remarked, a sweat drop on her cheek.

"Wow, that's gotta be embarrassing when you said otherwise when we came back from Shinigami's world." Ravel said bluntly.

Yumina hung her head down in defeat, groaning a little.

Kunou lightly slapped Susanoo's cheek to try and wake him, but all his body did was just slump onto the ground, still sleeping as he suddenly began a loud snore. Everyone gave odd looks at that, realizing that waking him might take a while.

"Oh boy..." Irina sighed.

* * *

**There you go, we're arrived in Kyoto! For everyone who ignored my warning about reading the crossover, that bit with the Hero Faction contains two of the few things that was an important reveal in the crossover. The one other thing was something related to Euclid, but I won't say what they are here, as the crossover is canon to the events before this chapter.**

**For the duel at the beginning of the chapter? I didn't reveal a winner because I wanted to give you, the readers, the choice to decide on who you thought won that battle, especially since I only added it to honor the reveal of the anime's 4th Season: "High School DxD Heroes", which was awesome I might add! :3 *shouts excitedly* Seeing that, and learning Date A Live's finally got a third season? I'm still motivated from it!**

**So, we finally have Ravel taking the role of Issei's manager, and the reveal that he's being considered for a High-Class level promotion test, which also means his peerage isn't that far away. Before anyone asks, while there are hints with Ravel, there's only one guaranteed member I've decided on for his peerage, and Ravel isn't one of them. I will say this, Ravel's chances of being in it are fairly high, so I might just add her.**

**We've also got a small meeting with the best former hosts for our Heavenly Dragon duo, or I guess reunion in Belzard's case since he was seen back in Chapter 29 when Ddraig's former hosts tried to make Issei use the Juggernaut Drive. I've made Elsha a past host of Vali's instead because being a girl, and with that reveal they both gave, it made more sense. *giggles* I really like how I made Elsha's personality for this story, writing her scene was so fun ^^**

**Now that I've said all that, well... nothing much else to say. Since this is something I'm sure the people who read the crossover may still be somewhat confused on, I'll at least tell you all the new abilities they gained during the crossover's events. Though first, I should mention all of them, similar to Issei and Vali have since the Summit Arc, are no longer lethally affected by holy attributes. Now, for the abilities exclusive to each of them...**

**Issei - Can now turn into a female form called "Izumi", which prefers his Knight aspects over his usual Rook aspects, and makes his fire become lightning. Due to discomfort, he only uses this _when_ he needs to.**

**Vali - Now has a counterpart to Issei's Blazing Soul, which is powered by her heritage, called "Rising Morningstar". It enhances her physical force in comparison to "Blazing Soul".**

**Ravel - Now has a form called the "Phoenix Dragon Mode", which turns her hair, and her flames, crimson red.**

**Asia - She has achieved her Balance Breaker.**

**Kunou - Has unlocked use of her canon "Fox Dragon Mode".**

**Arthur - Caliburn has gained some of the powers from the greatest knights of the Round Table.**

**Le Fay - Her outfit is now like an Astral Dress from DAL, she has a new wand like a DAL's Angel, and gained a new form of magic based on Reiryoku.**

**Yuuma - She can now use the special holy powers of every cadre, like Baraqiel's holy lightning, though she currently lacks the experience to fully use them.**

**Irina - She now has the True Excalibur, having managed to fuse Excalibur Ruler's core into the Excalibur DxD.**

**Bikou - Has obtained a transformation called the "Golden Ancestry", which makes him more like Sun Wukong in appearance by fusing with the Flying Nimbus.**

**Kuroka - Has successfully created her "Kuro Mode".**

**Yumina - She can make herself intangible, a technique she's named the "Mirage State".**

**And that's pretty much all I can say, other than I'm happy to finally be continuing this story again. Also, while I think most of you already noticed this, there's a planned AU version of this story that's currently under the placeholder name: "Legend of the Heavenly Dragons: Re-Imagined", which will start sometime after I make the sequel. I hope you'll like it when it comes out, especially if you wanna see more original stuff ^^**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Date A Live - Tohka Yatogami, Kurumi Tokisaki**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	44. Chapter 44

**Hey everyone, before we begin... I have a small announcement. As you may have noticed, I decided to delete my "Night of the Heavenly Dragons" story, my reason for this? Simple, after getting this far, and realizing why I made it when trying to make another lemon, I just didn't like it anymore. Since it didn't really matter to the overall story, and because a few scenes give you the general idea of what they did, there was no problem with deleting it.**

**That isn't the only reason though, I've simply come to realize that making lemons is outside of my comfort zone, mainly for the reason I feel they're all the same when I try, and trying to alter them to not be the same... that's just too stressful for me to handle. Either way, I'm not gonna make any more lemons from now on. The closest thing you'll get from me is two characters making out, and... well admittedly, I'm not sure how far I'll take my limits just yet.**

**I thank you all for your understanding on my decision, and I'll do my best to continue making this story the best I can.**

**Now, let's get to the actual start notes. One of my favorite parts about finally reaching this arc? Well, it's because Susanoo is taking the role Azazel has here in canon, similar to how Mio's acting as the Rossweisse of this arc. *giggles* Since he's the lazy God, he can give the same level of assistance as Azazel, but I have the perfect reason to have him not be around, fight, or able to help out the others.**

**Susanoo is one of the most powerful Gods in this story (I'd say he probably ranks in... the Top 50?), so having him do little fighting when he's this prominent is a necessity. *shrugs* Either way, I'm glad to finally give him a bit of a spotlight since he's had less presence than his sisters, especially Amaterasu who I gave a huge role to for Issei's backstory. Although, I may need to give a bit screen-time more to Tsukuyomi as well ^^;**

**Provided what I said above hasn't told you already, I think it's kinda clear I really like the Shinto Gods, and my reasoning for that is fairly simple... the Gen VII Pokémon games are at fault! *giggles* I've been obsessed with the Sun and Moon ever since, especially since they tie to Angels and Devils in DxD, and since Susanoo's personality makes me think Azazel, it just all came together ^^**

**OK, I had my fun there, let's start the story now.**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut talking

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Belzard & Elsha **

**The greatest Sekiryuutei, and Hakuryuukou, that have existed to date. Both of them are noteworthy for their achievement of defeating two high-class Longinus wielders in their time, with Belzard defeating the wielders of the True Longinus, and Annihilation Maker, and Elsha defeating the wielders of the Zenith Tempest, and Dimension Lost.**

**While unknown to most, possibly only being recalled by Ddraig and Albion themselves, both of them were the first wielders of the Heavenly Dragons to try defying the fate of fighting one another, having fallen in love during some point. Unfortunately, for reasons not fully known, they were unable to succeed, and the both of them fell to the Juggernaut Drive.**

**Both of them would die while in this form, as Issei's ancestor who possessed the Domineering Will power managed to hold them back until their Juggernaut Drives consumed their life force. Since then, like their predecessors have, part of their souls still remain within their respective Longinus, being the most sensible of the lingering wills. Having seen their current wielders defy their fates, they have decided to take a more active role with their successors.**

**Issei and Vali have compared the two to themselves, noting they're what they could have become had Issei not saved Vali during the Diodora Incident.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Kyoto Arc: Chapter 2 - The Big Sister Appears _ **

As everyone wondered how to wake Susanoo up, Yumina suddenly had an idea and snapped her fingers.

"I got it!"

"I need someone to buy me hot sauce, I'll get something else in the meantime." Yumina requested.

Yumina sneaked behind a building holding some beer, and phased her arm through the wall, grabbing a bottle without anyone noticing. At the same time, Issei bought the hot sauce over.

"Wait, is that... ooh, I think I see what you're doing." Issei realized.

"He does love his beer." Kunou agreed.

Popping the cork off, Yumina poured the hot sauce inside before snickering a bit, and holding it up to the lazy God of Storms. As the scent wafted by his nose, his nostrils widened to sniff it out, and he grabbed it in his sleep before he guzzled it.

"3." Mio began.

"2." Yuuma followed up.

"And 1!" Bikou finished with a snicker.

At first, nothing looked like it happened because Susanoo's already red skin... then his eyes widened with the veins showing, and he screamed in bloody hell as he released hot steam from his mouth. He began running around, everyone watching oddly at the troubled God as the Vali group all laughed at him, with Kunou outright on the ground as she felt her stomach in pain, and finally... Susanoo had duck his head into a random barrel to remove the spicy sting in his mouth.

After making more steam from said barrel, and bubbling for a moment to breath the hot remnants from his throat, Susanoo's head resurfaced, turning towards the group who was still slightly laughing at him. He walked over, a slightly angered look on his face.

"Dua es muf wannie, ah yun't retive sue gu fit chew key! (That was not funny, I can't believe you did that to me!)" Susanoo tried to speak, but with his tongue too burned to do so coherently.

"Hey, it isn't our fault you fell asleep on us." Mio countered.

Susanoo tried to counter that, but growled as he swung his arm down, he was never able to defend such accusations against him since the incident with his sister's rice fields. Knowing they'd need him to talk, Asia healed his tongue for him.

"Ah, thank you Asia." Susanoo praised.

The Bishop of Lucifer blushed at that, and Susanoo cleared his throat in response.

"Anyways, welcome to Kyoto! I'm your guide, the great, and might Susan-" Susanoo announced.

"AHEM!" Vali coughed.

The lazy deity quietly realized where he was, and what he almost revealed, causing him to clear his throat,

"...Please follow me to your lodgings."

Quickly followed Susanoo, everyone began heading up to another area of Tokyo, and once they did...

"Here we are, the Kyoto Serafall Hotel!" He announced.

"Wait, what?" Yuuma flatly remarked.

The group saw a large hotel with an appearance based on Serafall's taste was seen, making Yumina's eyes twitch a bit upon seeing it.

"...Sona, be glad you aren't here to see this right now." Vali stated awkwardly.

"Uh, how about I get us set up while you all look around?" Mio suggested.

"Alright, we can do that." Issei agreed.

The group split up to go look at the sights, while Mio turned to Susanoo.

"Come on Susanoo, let's-" Mio mentioned, only for her eyes to widen.

Somehow, for reasons she couldn't explain or understand, Susanoo was snoring against a nearby bench... again!

"YOU'RE KIDDING ME!" She screamed.

* * *

Issei began walking through what felt like a thousand torii as he walked the visiting road to the Fushimi Inari-taisha. Needless to say, he found out it really did take around 2 hours to walk up it, only needing less because of his physique being boosted by his Devil and Dragon powers.

"Man, I can't believe such a thing really exists, I wouldn't be surprised if it was actually made by the Youkai living here." He mentioned to himself.

**"[If we find Yu-Long here, we can ask him.]"** Ddraig replied.

"Another Dragon you know, right? What's he like?" Issei inquired.

Ddraig mused for a bit, trying to recall what he could about the one best known as the "Mischievous Dragon", and laughed a bit.

"Ddraig?" Issei wondered, curious to his partner's laughter.

**"Sorry about that, but Yu-Long's quite the card! He's the youngest among the Dragon kings, and best described by what you Humans could describe as a jade-colored Eastern Dragon, being a bit lazy, yet enthusiastic at times. Because of this attitude, Tannin can't stand him."** Ddraig answered.

"So, in other words... he's an immature brat?" Issei basically described him.

**"Pretty much."**

At that moment, Issei finally began laughing himself, with Ddraig joining him as he began resuming his own. It was around that moment, when they reached the summit of Fushimi Inari-taisha.

"Well, looks like we made it-" Issei remarked.

**"Wait, do you feel that partner?"** Ddraig inquired, feeling uneasy.

Issei stopped at that moment, and suddenly felt something odd surround him. This made him nervous considering he was alone, expecting the Khaos Brigade may have targeted him without the others at his side. However, to his surprise, he simply witnessed a bunch of Youkai corner him.

Among the ones surrounding him, he noticed the sight of Tenguu, crow like individuals with red faces and long noses. For the rest of them, they seemed to be Kitsune, which were better described as weaker version of a Kyuubi, having only a single tail compared to Kunou, and often wearing fox masks due to a priest like nature.

"Wait, these are Youkai! Why are they surrounding us?" Issei questioned.

"...Not from Kyoto?"

Hearing that voice, Issei turned around to see a surprise as the sight of a Kyuubi walked into view, but what concerned him more was _who_ she resembled... she was a teenage girl with the appearance of an Middle School or Junior High student. She had golden-blonde hair tied in a ponytail with matching eyes, and her main attire was the traditional miko outfit and tall geta with white tabi, with the sleeves of her haori feature a giant blue star-shaped hexagram, surrounded by six smaller hexagrams in between the points.

The similar appearance to Kunou, and her outfit simply replacing the red with the blue, while changing the shapes from pentagrams into hexagrams? Issei quickly realized that going by her age, which was still too young to be a mother to someone like Kunou, there was only one person this Kyuubi before him could be... Kunou's older sister!

"Outsider... How dare you, attack!" Nainen ordered.

"Huh!?Wait, I think you've made a misunderstanding, I'm not-" Issei exclaimed in confusion.

He didn't get a chance to finish as the 16-year old version of Kunou blasted her Fox Fire at him, glaring at the Sekiryuutei with anger as he barely dodged the flames that had been shot at him, which were clearly stronger than her younger sister's.

"You took my mother, and my sister! Now you must pay!" Nainen shouted.

Issei paled at that, realizing a huge misunderstanding just happened, and that this girl was likely not in the mood to listen to him in the slightest.

**"...Shit."** Ddraig cursed.

* * *

Vali was seen with Kuroka, the two walking through a cemetery that included the deceased Yokai of Kyoto, and after walking for a bit... she saw Kuroka stop at a certain grave labeled with the name "Fujimai", the grave of her mother.

"So, this is your mother?" Vali inquired.

"Yeah, the only parent me and Shirone ever knew, our father was apparently a Human, which for a Nekomata at least, doesn't result in birthing a half-breed. The only thing I can accurately remember about her was that she looked a lot like my sister, and she was just as kind." Kuroka answered.

Kuroka put her hands together, prompting Vali to do the same as they gave their respects to her... at that moment, the black Nekoshou finally broke down.

"...I can't handle being here any longer than I need to, so thank you for coming with me to do this." Kuroka sniffled, wiping her eyes.

Vali patted her back, looking at Fujimai's grave one last time before they walked off... the Lucifer heiress still not being aware of the truth behind her and Kuroka's mother, a truth she would find out soon enough.

* * *

Asia was with Kunou, the latter playing tour guide as she pointed out the various sights.

"Wow, this is all so pretty." Asia said happily.

"Yeah, I love my homeland-" Kunou replied.

At that moment, Kunou felt something off, and began squinting her eyes a bit. As Asia stared at her, she soon closed them entirely, and her ears popped, prompting the former nun to hide them before anyone noticed.

"Kunou? Is something wrong?" Asia asked worriedly.

Kunou's ears kept twitching, and soon Asia saw her tails pop out, panicking as she moved to hide them from view as well. It was only after another minute that Kunou's eyes opened, gasping as she realized something was off.

"Issei!" She exclaimed.

Kunou quickly ran off, surprising Asia as she was left behind.

"W-wait, where are you going, Kunou!?" Asia called out.

* * *

Nainen stretched her hand out, signaling her command to attack.

"Take this Devil down, annihilate him!" She commanded.

"Yes, Lady Nainen!" The Youkai all replied.

The Kitsunes unleashed some hinotama towards Issei, who dodged them easily by jumping out of the way. Realizing he'd attract too much attention with his Scale Mail, he simply manifested the Boosted Gear.

**[ASCALON!]**

Issei's blade jutted out of his gauntlet, and he used it to slice through the next waves of the Senjutsu powered fireballs.

**"Partner, look out!"** Ddraig warned.

Issei saw the Tenguu moving at incredible speeds towards him, with blades being drawn to use against him, ones he wouldn't be able to dodge at his current speed. Grunting in irritation, his body glowed before he vanished from view. The Tenguu looked around in surprise, with even Nainen and the Kitsune confused.

"What the, where'd he go?" A Tenguu asked.

"I hate using this ability, so I'm a little pissed off right now!"

The sudden female voice surprised the group, only for each Tenguu to feel their hands struck, making them flair in pain as they weren't cut, but their blades were shattered apart. At that moment, Issei's female form, better known as Izumi, reappeared as lightning sparked around her.

'What's going on? That's clearly the same guy, but he's suddenly become female... what an odd life force.' Nainen noticed, squinting a bit.

The Tenguu all growled before flapping their wings, making Izumi grunt as they tried blowing her away.

'Stand your ground, focus your weight to your legs!' Belzard advised.

'Belzard?' Izumi thought upon recognizing her.

She does just that, and uses it to rush forward, smashing her fist into each of them, and paralyzing them. Upon dealing with all the Tenguu, she glowed as she changed back into her original form, making Issei feel relieved to re-assume his true gender.

Nainen finally had enough of watching this happen to her fellow Youkai, and her Senjutsu flared out, surprising Issei as the pressure of her power forced him to the ground.

"What the!?" He exclaimed.

**"Such power! No doubt about it, this is the strength she's inherited from the leader of the Youkai!"** Ddraig grunted.

'This is how powerful Kunou could become?' Issei gasped in shock.

Seeing his defenseless form, the teenage Kyuubi began preparing her Fox Fire, and then released it all at once for the finishing blow. As it neared him, a familiar blonde Kyuubi jumps in front of him, making Nainen redirect the attack before it hit her.

"K-Kunou!?" Nainen exclaimed in shock.

"Big sis, what are you doing!? Why the heck are you attacking my friend!?" Kunou shouted with flailing arms, pouting after.

Nainen goes white at that, looking at Issei again.

"F-Friend?" Nainen repeated with worry.

Taking a closer look at Issei's gauntlet, her face went blue in horror, finally realizing she had been attacking none other than the Sekiryuutei all this time. Upon having the same realization, the other Youkai began to quietly inch away, leaving her to deal with this alone.

"...Lovely weather we have together, am I right?" Nainen sweated as she tried to change the topic.

"Big sis, you always do this! You get all irritable and pissed off without checking anything! Didn't you learn your lesson after that one time with Yu-Long, or Grand Elder Tenguu!?" Kunou shouted loudly.

Nainen hung her head down as her own sister scolded her, and based on what Issei was seeing... this wasn't a first.

"...Ddraig, I am very confused here." He admitted.

**"Don't worry, you aren't alone."**

A familiar female laughter soon reached everyone's ears, making Nainen flinch even more at that.

"Oh dear, I should have known you'd cause some trouble if I left you alone."

Everyone turned to see Tsukuyomi hanging upside-down from a nearby tree.

"Hey, Lady Tsukuyomi!" Kunou waved.

"Ah, welcome back to Kyoto little Kunou, it's-" She greeted.

The Moon Goddess screamed as the tree branch broke, making her fall on her noggin in response, and causing the trio to wince. Luckily, she got back up pretty fast.

"I'm OK!" She announced.

"Lady Tsukuyomi, maybe you should watch your own behavior first?" Nainen advised.

Hearing that comment, Tsukuyomi stuck her tongue out in a playful manner.

"Well, considering my lazy ass brother fell asleep on your little Demon Chaperone's watch, how about we discuss this all back at that hotel you're staying at?" Tsukuyomi suggested.

* * *

Back at the hotel, Tsukuyomi was seen sighing in delight as she enjoyed her food, a bottle of whisky in her hand as her face clearly showed her having gotten drunk. Susanoo laughed in a similar manner, having also gotten drunk.

"Oh my, such an interesting party we have here!" Tsukuyomi giggled, hiccupping a bit.

"You said it my sister, you said it!" Susanoo cackled loudly, slamming the table a bit.

Everyone looked at the scene oddly, while Nainen gave an apologetic look for the actions of the two deities beside her.

"...Is Amaterasu the only one of these three that's not a child in some manner!?" Mio asked with a twitching eye.

"I'm afraid so." Kunou confirmed, nodding apologetically.

Tsukuyomi soon swung an arm around Mio's shoulders, making her blush before forcing some of her alcohol down the Demon's throat, making her go blue in the face.

"Here, just relash a bit, live a little!" She said, giving her little choice.

Once the whole bottle was forcefully downed her throat, Mio quickly got flushed in the face, and her eyes slightly closed themselves as she swayed a bit.

"T-The room is... I think this place... my head... the room..." Mio mumbled in response.

Her cheeks suddenly swelled, some green mixing with the red flush across her face.

"I'm gonna be sick!" Mio moaned painfully.

She quickly stumbled as she ran to a bathroom, and the sound of heavy vomiting was heard, making everyone slid their chairs away from the two deities.

"...Aw, you're all no fun." Tsukuyomi pouted.

"My god, this is embarrassing." Kunou said as she held her head.

"There, there..." Issei attempted to comfort her.

Clearing her throat, Nainen stood up before bowing slightly to the others.

"My apologies for today's earlier misunderstanding, I had been away from the Youkai Realm at the time, and didn't receive notice. Since I didn't recognize any of you, I assumed you might be the people who kidnapped my mother." Nainen apologized.

"H-Hey, it's fine, water under the bridge now." Issei reassured, sweating a bit.

Nainen stopped bowing, and looked at everyone.

"I should properly introduce myself then, I am Nainen, current heir to title of Youkai leader, and daughter of the current leader, Yasaka. I've been ruling in her stead ever since she and Kunou left to meet with the Shinto Gods, but never returned." She introduced herself.

"Nice to meet you, Kunou's told us a bit about you. I'm Vali Lucifer, and with the exceptions of Yumina and Ravel, this is my peerage." Vali greeted, motioning to them.

Looking at Kunou, the older Kyuubi gave a sad look.

"...So, it really is true, you've become a Devil?" Nainen asked.

"...Yeah." Kunou verified.

"I have to apologize for that, we found her injured in the land of the Elves, but I was in such a hurry... I forgot I had a way to save her without making her a Devil." Vali apologized, bowing a few times.

"And you honestly have no way to change her back?" Nainen questioned to be sure.

"Sorry, even if the Sephirot Graal could revive her, she'd just come back as a Devil, and if I tried to purge her pieces out to have Valerie heal her... Ajuka told me that I should never try that. From how he said that, it sounds like it could risk doing something to her soul, and if anything were to happen to it..." Vali explained sadly.

Nainen lowered her ears sadly, realizing this was a done deal. She walked towards Kunou, and gave her a tight hug, making the latter blush slightly.

"I'm so sorry Kunou, if only I had been there, maybe I could have prevented them from taking mom, or at least you getting as hurt as you did." Nainen cried, tears flowing out of her eyes like a waterfall.

"H-hey, don't beat yourself up sis, it isn't your fault." Kunou reassured.

She soon jumped up, getting her big sister's attention.

"Besides, it wasn't all bad, Vali and the others have taught me lots of stuff, and I've even got my own special power now!" She smiled happily.

"Your own power?" Nainen repeated.

"Ah, that's right. Kunou achieved a transformation she calls [Fox Dragon Mode], which enhances her with some latent dragon energy within her, I even recall Amaterasu saying it puts her on a similar level to a Beast God." Vali revealed.

Nainen's eyes widen at that.

"Holy shit, my sister might end up stronger than me, and yet I'm the only one who can inherit the title of Youkai leader? What kind of crazy world do we live in?" Nainen replied, beyond merely shocked.

At that moment, everyone heard groaning as Mio walked back in, an ice pack on her head as she did. Yumina gave her water that she quickly drank.

"...No one give me alcohol, that stuff makes me sick as an infection." Mio begged in pain.

Vali patted her back, soon looking at Nainen.

"So, Nainen... can you tell us what happened when Kunou and Yasaka left? Kunou can't fully remember everything about what happened." Vali requested.

"Of course. The news of the Christian Pantheon reforming from their alliance caught my mother's attention, so we decided to let Lady Amaterasu, Lady Tsukuyomi, and Lord Susanoo about the news. Kunou went with her as part of her training, should the need arise for her to take my mother's place in the future, rather than me." Nainen explained, a slightly down look on her face.

"It wasn't long until the Shinto Trio went to the party they hosted, but when they left, they seemed a bit surprised about it. That didn't make sense, and that's when I realized they had been gone longer than usual... their expressions when they came back were when I began to really worry." She continued with slight reluctance.

She took a look at Kunou, who looked back.

"Little sis, do you remember what happened?" Nainen inquired.

"Well, I remember we got attacked... I flew, then I woke up seeing Vali in the Elf village. Most of it is still a blur to me, but what I can remember is that I think I saw... something long, sharp maybe?" Kunou replied, struggling to recall anything new.

Everyone blinked on that, as it was still kinda vague.

"Oh yeah, we came here because we got news that Yasaka was brought back by her kidnappers for something, have you heard any news about that?" Mio questioned.

"No, I hadn't... wait, so the culprits are here!?" Nainen exclaimed in shock.

"Yeah, but we're not sure who they are, it's why we came here in the first place." Bikou explained.

Nainen's breath became shaky, and soon took a deep gulp as she regained her bearings.

"Mother... if she's here, then I'm gonna get her back no matter what! The Youkai will support you with everything you need!" Nainen said with strong resolve.

"That's good to here, and we'll do our best to help." Kuroka smiled.

At that moment, Nainen noticed Kuroka fully for the first time, and got a bit closer to her. The Black Nekomata gave an odd look as the Kyuubi seemed to be examining her.

"...Can I help you?" Kuroka asked in irritation.

"This might sound out, but is your name Kuroka by any chance?" Nainen inquired.

"It is, but... how did you know that?" Kuroka answered in surprise.

Nainen sighed, looking down as she gave a look of regret.

"My mother knew yours quite well, and while I never met Fujimai, I heard about how she was killed... did you ever learn that?" Nainen replied, giving her a curious look.

"Actually, no I don't. My sister and I were left homeless, so after we lost our mother, we just ended up following the wind." Kuroka admitted sadly.

Nainen sighed, looking at her.

"Your mother was killed in her duty of protecting Master Nurarihyon, who was killed by a Devil many years ago." She revealed.

Vali's eyes widened as she accidentally knocked her drink over, with Kuroka's eyes shaking at the reveal, which luckily kept everyone from noticing the former's sudden accident.

'That was... oh my god, no... Kuroka, Shirone, that was your mother! I was the one who killed her!' She realized, tears shedding from her eyes as the truth hit her.

As that horrible truth hit her, Vali immediately covered her mouth, trying to avoid having a panic attack as her mind flashed back to the day she killed Master Nurarihyon, and the Nekoshou that was his aide... the one she now knew as Fujimai.

"She was... murdered, by a Devil? Do you know which one!?" Kuroka begged, worried it was her old master.

"Sorry, we never found out who did it, but Hell claims that it was likely a rogue Devil that had done it." Nainen answered best she could.

Unable to bear hearing this anymore, Vali slowly walked out of the door, only getting Issei's attention as she did.

'...That couldn't have been a coincidence.' He realized.

He got up, following her outside.

* * *

Vali ran across town, soon rushing near an area with a small fountain, and feeling her cheeks swell as she began dry heaving from the horrible taste the revelation had left in her mouth, having nothing in her stomach to expel. Once her throat rid itself of the taste, she too heavy breathes, soon crying as she looked at the water.

"How did I never see it before? That white hair, and that figure that matched Kuroka's... all this time, my own Rook's mother, I was the one who killed her." Vali said to herself, sniffling as she looked at her reflection in shame.

"Kuroka, Shirone... I didn't know, and I never meant to take her from you... I'm sorry!" She broke down against the fountain's rim, her voice shaking as she sobbed.

As this was happening, she was unaware of someone walking behind her, only to suddenly turn when they touched her shoulder. She looked to see it was Issei, a worried look on his face, and knowing something was wrong.

"...Issei!" Vali cried, hugging him tightly.

He hugged her in return, running his hand across her back as he tried to help calm her down.

"Vali, you didn't just run off for no reason, something Nainen said... you knew what she was taking about, weren't you?" Issei questioned.

"Y-yes... another of my sins that I had to commit while under my Grandfather, I..." Vali sniffled, hugging him closer.

After her voice shook once again, she managed to get it out.

"...I'm the one who killed her, the one who took Kuroka's mother away, left her and Shirone homeless, and the reason they suffered all they did."

Issei rubbed her head, letting her cry it all out. He already come to terms she had blood on her hands, but this was blood she didn't choose to spill, so to him? Her hands might be covered in blood, but they were still clean.

However, a new problem arose a moment after Vali's reveal...

"...It was you?"

The two Heavenly Dragons both turned, and when they did, they saw the worst thing they possibly could... Kuroka was standing not too far from them, and most likely had been long enough to hear Vali's confession.

"K-Kuroka..." Vali said quietly, horrified what she just let Kuroka her.

"...You did it? The one who killed them was you?" Kuroka questioned, a distant look on her face.

* * *

Deep within a certain section of Kyoto, some of the usual Youkai were doing their usual duty of looking for anything suspicious, and once they passed... Georg dispelled the Dimension Lost mist that was covering the group.

"We've managed to get in here without being spotted, we should be fine for a while." Georg stated, adjusting his glasses.

"Finally, that game of hide and seek was annoying." Connla sighed in relief, stretching his arms out.

Cao Cao quickly turns at Jingu.

"Jingu, do we still have Yasaka in our possession?" He inquired.

"We do, just a second." Jingu replied.

Slapping her hands on the ground, an icy mist formed around the group.

"**Freezing Archaeopteryx!**"

At that moment, a bunch of ice formed into the shape of the Dinosaur mentioned in the Sacred Gear's name, being triple the size of Hercules, the group's largest member. Within the ice of the Sacred Gear, a captive was seen entombed.

The person trapped within the ice was a Kyuubi a voluptuous figure, and breasts that could rival Lilith's, that resembled Kunou and Nainen if they were fully grown adults. She had golden-blonde hair tied in a ponytail with matching eyes, and her main attire was the traditional miko outfit and tall geta with white tabi, with the sleeves of her haori feature a giant golden star-shape heptagram, surrounded by seven smaller hexagrams in between the points.

This woman was Yasaka, the mother of Kunou and Nainen.

"Still can't believe you managed to keep her in there all this time, impressive." Menes noted.

"Alright, here's what we're gonna do, since they'll be looking for her any time now, we'll grab their attention like this..." Cao Cao stated.

Everyone looked at him, and he continued.

"Me, Georg, Leo, Jingu, Herc, and Sieg will all catch them off guard through the Dimension Lost, and give them a small taste of our strength. That'll get their attention as we draw their focus, at the same time, the others will force the Youkai out of the realm, allowing us to test out plan with the Leylines." He explained.

"So, regardless if we succeed or not, we'll be testing if they have a chance if Rizevim caused the word to happen, correct?" Georg inquired.

"Yes, that's an accurate way to put it." Cao Cao verified.

He looked at Connla, getting his attention.

"Connla, you're in charge of the second group." Cao Cao decided.

"Understood." Connla replied.

With that, they split into their two groups, beginning their plans... whatever they really were.

* * *

Kuroka stared at Issei and Vali, her face frozen with a distant look from what she just heard Vali reveal.

"...You did it? The one who killed them was you?" Kuroka questioned.

"K-Kuroka, it isn't what-" Vali tried to say.

"I asked you a question, so tell me... You. Did. It?" Kuroka emphasized.

Vali shook a bit, and knowing she couldn't say anything without seeming hypocritical... she had no choice, sighing as she lightly nodded.

"...Back in my days under Rizevim, I was forced to kill them both, it was me." She admitted.

Kuroka's left hand twitched, the shock of what she heard evident, that the one who killed her mother was the same Devil that was her King. Issei gave a worried look, and decided to interject.

"Kuroka, you can't blame Vali for what her grandfather put her-" Issei tried to say.

"I KNOW THAT!" She screamed.

Both of the Heavenly Dragons froze in shock at her response, having not expected it.

"...I'm not angry that I did it, and it seems like you didn't know, so I can't hold that against you. I'm angry because you ran away when you figured it out. When you did that, it was like you didn't think I was your friend, that I wouldn't trust you." Kuroka admitted, looking away sadly.

"I... I'm sorry Kuroka, I made a mistake, I didn't want to hurt you." Vali replied in shame.

Kuroka sighed, turning around as she faced away from Vali.

"I know, and I'll still back you up on what you need, just don't... don't talk to me right now." Kuroka answered, calmly revealing she was still angry.

With that, Kuroka headed back to the hotel, leaving Vali to cry again once she was out of range. Issei caught her as she fell to her knees, covering her hands as she sobbed more, completely at a loss for what he could say to her.

Kuroka's reaction could have been much worse, but it was so calm... it was kinda justified, he couldn't try to comfort Vali by saying it could have been in the wrong. In the end, he decided all he could do was be her boyfriend if he wanted to help her feel better.

"Vali, she'll come around, I know it... she just needs time, just like you did before you were willing to call Lilith your mom." Issei comforted, rubbing her back.

Vali sniffled, looking at Issei.

"Issei, that's not why I'm scared, the way she reacted, it... it felt so similar to a worry I told Mio while in the other world." Vali admitted, shaking with fear.

"Huh?" Issei blinked.

The Hakuryuukou breathed, shaking a bit as she looked at the boy she loved.

"Issei, despite all we've done... I don't feel we've defied the fate of the Heavenly Dragons. I'm still worried that somehow, someday, we might end up fighting against our wills... that we won't get our happy ending." She revealed, sniffling a bit more.

"Vali..." Issei said softly.

He hugged her tightly, soon picking her up in a bridal carry to her surprise.

"I get it, you're scared... I'll admit it, that's something I've thought about, and been worried myself, even if not as much. However, I just want you to know this." He stated.

Taking a deep breath, the Sekiryuutei made his vow.

"I **will** find a way to break that cycle permanently, without any doubts to it. I will give us a future Vali, because no matter what, I will always be by your side."

Vali's eyes widened at that, making her eyes shake before she cried into Issei's chest, with her holding her closer as he let her cry out all her worries, and then slowly walked them back to the hotel.

"...Vali, do you want me to sleep with you tonight?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, please don't leave me alone... I need you right now." She replied, nodding her head.

Issei smiled a bit, soon walking them inside.

"Vali?" Issei said.

"What is it Issei?" She asked.

"I love you." He smiled.

She blushed at that, but soon smiled as she rested against the warmth of his chest.

"...I love you too, Issei." Vali replied happily.

Eventually they went into the same room together, and as they rested on the floor, Vali cuddled close to Issei before she fell asleep. Watching her finally close her as, Issei kisses her forehead, before hugging her close, and letting he use his chest as her pillow.

'Find the way, because I believe you can do it.' Belzard's voice echoed.

'We may have defeated stronger opponents, but you've accomplished greater feats in our view, so prove the impossible is anything but.' Elsha's voice echoed.

* * *

Connla's group found themselves before a secluded torii at Kinkaku-ji, having followed Morgiana's hunch about it being the one they were looking for.

"Marsilio, feel anything odd from that thing?" Connla asked.

"Yeah, there's definitely some chi involved, it has to be the gate leading to the Youkai realm." Marsilio replied.

"Man, your instincts are as good as your ancestor." Mulan chuckled playfully.

Morgiana blushed a bit at that, and to verify it, Menes stuck his head through... causing half of it to vanish behind some kind of ripple! He pulled his head back out, nodding to confirm what he had seen.

"Yep, this torii definitely leads to the realm of Youkai that overlays across the city." He mentioned.

Connla took a deep breath, cracking his neck in response.

"Alright guys, do some major damage, but try not to kill if you can help it." Connla said as he stared at it.

"Right." Perseus agreed.

They all rushed inside the torii, and once they appeared inside, the Youkai present noticed them.

"We have intruders!" A Nekomata shouted.

"Stop them, don't let them through!" A Tenguu yelled.

Menes swung his arm a few times like he was shaking something, confusing the Youkai before him.

"**FLAME SHAKE!**"

Suddenly bursts of fire sprayed out as if they were in a can of soda, and continued bursting across the area. Morgiana quickly ran through, her face unusually serious, and flipped into the air.

"**Deception Chain.**"

Spirals of magic appeared around her wrists, shooting out as energy chains that created a web of tangled metal, binding multiple Youkai in place.

"Thank you Morg, now I'll get the stragglers." Mulan smirked.

"**Sterling Light!**"

A strange gauntlet that didn't cover Mulan's hand, but had a gem over the spot above her upper wrist, began firing beams of light that suddenly flew around at the speed of rabbits, striking many Youkai, and causing explosions of light.

In mere moments, all of the Youkai that had come to attack them had been defeated, laying across the ground with serious, but non-fatal injuries that could be treated later. Looking ahead, Connla smirked as he clapped his hands.

"Nice work you three, didn't even need the rest of us." He praised.

"Not much of elites if we can't win by ourselves." Mulan joked.

Connla snickered at that, and soon enough, they found themselves near the area of the Youkai Realm that they needed to be at.

"We're almost at the Leylines, it won't be much longer." He stated with interest.

The battle had only just begun.

* * *

**Things just got crazy for the Youkai Realm, and I've officially introduced Nainen... yes, I know she looks like a younger Yasaka, but isn't that what Kunou is? Maybe Kyuubi genes just work that way, like how Vol 24 mentions that female Nekomata who mate with Humans don't give birth to hybrids, yet they do with anyone else, like Issei's children with Koneko and Kuroka in the EX novels.**

**First thing I should mention, as you may have noticed in this chapter, is that Nainen doesn't know who Vali is despite she and Kunou knew each other. That'll be explained in JOHD, when I cover Vali's training journey, but I can say that it was the result of something making them unable to meet each other when Vali was training in Kyoto.**

**As for what Vali meant about why Kunou couldn't be changed back into a Kyuubi? Well, the way Issei died and came back to life is unique, so I don't think it would work the same as it had for him where he'd lose his Devil traits. Especially since he got revived using Great Red's flesh, which seemed like it replaced his old Devil skin, and his Evil Pieces replaced it. *shrugs***

**Main point, in this story at least, any reincarnation system will cause the person it transforms to be stuck as a what they were changed into. This doesn't mean Kunou is guaranteed to stay a Devil though, but if I do have her changed back in the future, I want it to be something that her friends have to struggle to accomplish for her. Not to mention for now, I need her to stay in Vali's peerage regardless.**

**Looks like Kuroka finally learned the truth about Vali being her mother's murderer, and... yeah, she's angry with her now, but not for the reason you'd expect. I based her reaction off what happens if during the loyalty mission for Tali in Mass Effect 2, you choose to prove her innocent by exposing the evidence, and she knows Shepard didn't want to hurt her if he apologizes after mentioning she "didn't need another father, I needed a friend"**

**Basically, Kuroka isn't mad at Vali for killing her mother, but only because she knows Vali enough that she had to have done it while under Rizevim's hold on her psyche. What she _is_ mad about is when Nainen made her realize she was the killer, Vali just ran off, and told Issei alone... which sounds like a secret she only would let Issei know. That's what bothered Kuroka, she feels like Vali couldn't trust her, or anyone... anyone that wasn't Issei.**

**How long will Kuroka be like this? Well, I can only tell you that she won't let it go during the Kyoto arc, and she _may_ keep staying angry at her during the events of Season 6. The main reason for this is because of what Vali just said about worrying the cursed fate between Ddraig and Albion is still involved, so having her actions cause this minor issue without intending to? I feel it's a good way to shake her slightly, which fits what will happen in the Finals, and S6.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	45. Chapter 45

**Welcome back everyone, and before we start, I'm happy to say the only two concerns I had with the previous chapter went through fine. Those two were the minor one of Morgiana's Sacred Gear, which I was initially unsure about in regards to having given a good theme for it. The second was about the scene with how Kuroka got angry at Vali, which was well accepted by everyone.**

**Now, for anyone curious for the assignments I gave with the Hero Faction Elites who have canon Sacred Gears, allow me to answer that. Menes has the Flame Shake because of his Egyptian heritage, and deserts are hot. While for Sterling Light (Sterling Green & Blue combined) was given to Mulan because of her Chinese heritage, and China's flag has stars. As for giving Jingu the Freezing Archaeopteryx, well... it's just to replace Jeanne's Stake Victim Dragon ^^;**

**Oh, and if anyone can help me, can someone describe the Balance Breaker for the Dreamlike Curse for me? I've read the novel story where it appears to figure it out, and gotten some idea on how it works, but I still feel all I'm understanding is that it affects a certain area like Dimension Lost in the form of realistic illusion. Since I'll need him to use it next chapter, anyone who can help me understand it better would be a big help.**

**Since we've cleared all of that, today's chapter has a scene that I'm sure most of us hope to see in DxD Heroes... the first group fight with the Hero Faction elites! I'm excited to write this because even though I've had Cao Cao in the story for around 30 chapters, he hasn't officially been in any fights just yet, with the closest case to it being him causing the cliffhanger of Season 2.**

**Alright, now let's begin this chapter!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out an attack

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out an attack

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Extinct Clans **

**The title given to Devil Clans who have either been entirely wiped out due to various means, most often a form of conflict, or were unable to keep themselves as Pure Blooded in their attempts to survive extinction. During the events of the Great War, the most notable number of extinct clans were found within the ranks of those representing the Ars Goetia, with only 33 of the 72 pillars avoiding this fate.**

**When an entire clan is marked as extinct, but not because their entirety is wiped out, they get treated even worse than natural Low-Class Devils, simply because of the fact they're no longer "pure" Devils anymore. The discrimination is so horrible, that most join other peerages in order to be spared from this status, thanks in most to the efforts of Sairaorg giving little reason for them to be mocked because of his efforts.**

**Among the 39 families, many descendants have been found over the year, such as Lilitifa Vepar, which had made many theorize that each clan that went extinct has managed to survive in some way, and simple need to be found, or simply passed their powers to another as a way to let their powers survive for their clans to one day be reborn from.**

**However, an even bigger theory, one considered a conspiracy even, is that the Elder Devils... simply want some of the clans wiped out for being "problematic", regardless of this, the current Great Devils and Lilith have used their influence to try and bring most of these Devils into their protection, with Lilitifa being an example due to being under the Gremory clan's protection.**

**Certain clans can also be marked as endangered, meaning they're at risk to becoming an extinct clan, which currently includes... the Lucifer Clan, due in part to Vali's human heritage. This is a primary reason for Vali's goals in the winning the Rating Game Tournament, as she wishes to abolish this cruel classification, and allow clans to continue even if not purely Devil anymore.**

**Extinct Clans are considered a very real reminder of the Devils' current situation, not to mention their possible fate... if things don't begin to change.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Kyoto Arc: Chapter 3 - Triple Longinus Strike _ **

It was morning in the hotel, and Vali moaned a bit with closed eyes, her head hung down in shame. Issei rubbed her back, feeling a bit awkward over the fact that everyone was staring towards the expressions she, and Kuroka were making. Speaking of the Black Nekoshou, she had a calm looking face with her eyes also closed, but hers looked less... expressive in comparison.

"So, Kuroka isn't talking to you?" Le Fay questioned.

"...Nope." Vali sighed.

Le Fay sweated a bit, and soon looked towards Kuroka.

"What about the rest of us?" She asked.

"I'll talk to you, and I'll listen to orders if Vali gives me any, but that's it." Kuroka stated, her expression unchanged.

Irina groaned, and being the unofficial third-in-command of the group after Issei, she decided to speak up about this.

"OK, spill it you three, what did you do to make this happen?" Irina stated, glaring a bit.

"No need to ask Irina, based on last night, I'm pretty sure I've already figured this out... when I told Kuroka of her mother's fate, Vali left the hotel because of the shock of realizing that she had been the unwilling murderer." Nainen explained.

Vali went blue at that, panicking a bit.

"Relax, I only know because Susanoo explained the situation about Rizevim to me. Once I heard it, your sudden exit made more sense to me, and I'd also like to share my condolences for the suffering you had to endure... know the Youkai will not blame you for Master Nurarihyon, or Fujimai's deaths." She reassured, holding a hand out.

"Thank god..." Vali breathed in relief.

Clearing her throat, the stand-in leader of the Youkai continued.

"The main point being, Kuroka's silence is likely based on that fact, am I correct?" Nainen inquired.

"...No." Kuroka said simply.

That surprised Nainen, who now had no idea what the problem was.

"Uh... well, then can one of you explain the real issue then?" She requested.

"It was due to-"  
"Because Vali chose-"

The two stopped for a moment, making everyone blink.

"When I ended up-"  
"She made the-"

The two stopped again, making everyone sweat drop, and before they could start again...

*WHISTLES*

Everyone covered their ears as Issei used his fingers to whistle, and cleared his throat.

"**I'll** do the explaining, thank you." He said annoyed.

"The problem was a matter of trust. When Vali realized she had been the killer, she had run out in shock, and while that on its own wasn't a problem... I had followed her, and she told me alone, in a way Kuroka felt was me being the only one Vali could trust. It made her feel like she didn't trust her, or the rest of you, enough in comparison to me. That's why Kuroka won't talk with Vali, and nothing more." Issei explained.

No one really had anything to say to that, with Kunou finding it too complicated due to the fact she wasn't a teenager just yet.

"I see, guess that makes some sense..." Nainen replied, unsure how else she could respond.

Mio took a sip of her water glass, and finished it before exhaling.

"Well, more importantly, I think we need to start finding signs to where Yasaka might be." Mio suggested.

"Right, we should-" Nainen agreed.

She suddenly got a strange feeling, and pulled out a slip of paper with the kanji for communication (通信) on it, placing it on the table. Tracing some Senjutsu over the symbol, and she gets a watery image of a short, elderly Tenguu.

"What is that?" Issei asked.

"A spell talisman, this one in particular uses the kanji for communication." Kunou explained.

"Best way to describe it is the Chi counterpart to magic circles, I think you've noticed that very few Youkai can actually use magic, correct?" Susanoo explained.

Issei actually hadn't noticed that until Susanoo mentioned it, most likely because Kuroka actually _could_ use magic, but that must have meant she was one of the rare few. On the other hand, Shirone, Bikou, and Kunou were all Youkai he had never seen using magic.

"Grand Elder Tenguu, is there something wrong?" Nainen inquired.

"I'm not sure just yet, but I've gotten some serious reports since I awoke, so please avoid returning to the Youkai Realm until I can verify the situation." Grand Elder Tenguu responded.

Nainen sweated at that, making her gulp.

"Don't worry, the both of us will not let Kyoto fall in your mother's absence, I'll guarantee that happens." He reassured her.

The water imagery vanished, leaving only the talisman behind.

"I don't like the sound of that, I think it already proves that someone's acting on something..." Nainen remarked.

"Come on, we need to start recon around Kyoto immediately!" She exclaimed.

"No need to tell us twice, let's go." Vali agreed.

Right as everyone got up, the sound of snoring caught their attention, and Nainen's eyes twitched in response. Everyone turned to see Susanoo had fallen asleep... again! Mio hit her head against the wall upon seeing it.

"Serious!? Why did he stay, and Tsukuyomi go back? This ass keeps falling asleep when we actually need him!" Mio complained.

"...Stand back, while Kunou doesn't have the power to do it yet, me and my mom have a way to wake him up we learned from Lady Amaterasu." Nainen stated, giving a glare with a smile on her face.

Everyone saw her form a Fox Fire in her hand, and then... she shoved it down his throat.

A loud scream was heard that very moment, with all the nearby birds flying away, and all the tourists wondering what they heck they had just heard.

* * *

Everyone was walking around one of Kyoto's more barren areas where they could avoid people witnessing anything supernatural related, with Susanoo's body emitting steam, looking even redder than its usual red tint.

"...Is that why he has red skin?" Bikou questioned to Nainen.

"Maybe, he was already that way when I first met him, so there's a chance that Lady Amaterasu already did that." Nainen shrugged, leaving a scared Bikou.

Mio's cheeks puffed as she tried to contain a laugh, but at that moment...

Everyone suddenly noticed Vali suddenly stopping, giving an odd glare around her was she felt something strange.

"Vali?" Kunou wondered what she was doing.

"...We've got trouble." She warned, glaring in a certain spot.

At that moment, a familiar bit of mist begins creeping in, and Asia suddenly began to panic, catching everyone's attention.

"Asia?" Yuuma asked worriedly.

"Wait a second, Asia... is that-" Arthur realized, piecing how Asia knew of it.

She nodded, it was a sight she couldn't forget... the mist that created the Longinus Seal that Diodora imprisoned her in, and her panic made her run behind Vali in pure terror.

"It's back... don't let it get me!" Asia was shivering like someone shoved ice into her underwear.

The mist quickly rushed by all of them, making everyone shield their eyes as they found themselves in some kind of realm of gray.

"...Something doesn't feel right." Kuroka said worriedly.

"Yeah, I can feel it too." Ravel agreed.

**"(...Dimension Lost)"** Albion stated out of nowhere.

Everyone looked towards Vali's right hand upon hearing Albion talked, with the Hakuryuukou looking at it.

"Wait, you mean the same High-Tier Longinus that Elsha once faced?" Vali asked in shock.

Albion was silent, only giving a slight hum to confirm it.

"No way, that means we're facing someone with one of the Sacred Gears with the potential to destroy the world..." Mio said in worry.

Susanoo gave a similar sweat, a fear most Gods shared over the stronger among the Longinus.

"Hey, look over there!" Yumina alerted everyone.

The group turned to see a group of six shadows walking forward through the mist, preparing everyone for battle. It was at this moment Jingu, Hercules, and Leonardo came into view among the frontal shadow trio.

"Who are they?" Yumina asked.

"Never seen them before, though I get the feeling they're tougher than they look..." Mio mentioned.

However, it was the next trio that shocked them, with all of them gasping as they saw the sight of Cao Cao and Sieg, with Georg in between them.

"Cao Cao!" Issei shouted.

"Damn it, I can't believe Sieg's here too!" Irina growled in annoyance.

Cao Cao smirked a bit, tapping the True Longinus against his shoulder.

"...I think I get it, all of you are members of the Hero Faction, aren't you?" Mio stated with an angry look.

"Hero Faction?" Yuuma questioned.

"The second biggest group after the Anti-Maou Faction, one completely comprised of normal Humans who wield Sacred Gears, which means among the two Longinus we can already see, the other four all have Longinus as well." Mio revealed, glaring at them.

Sieg snickered at that, holding Gram out.

"Bingo little Demon, we're the Hero Faction, and not just any members... we're half of the 12 Elites that make it up." Sieg announced, chuckling.

Nainen growled at them, prompting Kuroka to glare at them.

"You, why did you kidnap Yasaka? What purpose do you have with her?" Kuroka demanded.

"As a Youkai, shouldn't you be able to figure out her importance to this place?" Leo said in a bored manner.

Upon hearing that, Nainen gasped in realization.

"Of course, no wonder you went after my mother, but saw my younger sister as expendable... you're trying to use the city's Leylines for some kind of twisted reason, aren't you?" Nainen realized, growling a bit.

"Leylines? Uh, anyone mind clarifying on that?" Issei asked in confusion.

"They're the most important bit of Kyoto's energy, as well as the reason the Youkai Realm exists, with the Youkai Leader always being a Kyuubi." Kunou started explaining.

Everyone turned to her in response.

"The Leylines are basically a flow of powerful Chi across the city, but incredibly different, perhaps even more than mere Chi... no one's really sure. The only thing we truly known is back when Kyoto didn't exist her, the energy within it was noticed, marked, time or etc. by the original Kyuubi, and ever since his descendants have been responsible for maintaining the balance of their energy."

"When the current Youkai Leader, otherwise known as the main Kyuubi as my mother current is, the Leylines respond to them, keeping themselves stable as they become responsible for the flow between the various areas of the land. That's where the problem lies, this energy is dependent on the presence of a Kyuubi, so if my mother were to leave the land or be killed... Kyoto will undergo dramatic changes."

Aside from Nainen, Kuroka, and Susanoo, everyone gasped in shock upon that revelation... a single woman was responsible for the entirety of an entire city? At that moment, Le Fay noticed something bad within Kunou's words.

"W-wait, but your mother's been gone for a few months now, shouldn't Kyoto be facing those very problems?" She questioned.

"They haven't because of me, which is why I had to stay behind when she left to visit the Shinto Gods. Because of my training so far, while I'm still not at the level where I can enhance/empower the Leylines, or call upon their strength to add to my own, I can at least keep them stabilized in place of my mother." Nainen explained in response.

After finishing that, she glared at the Hero Faction's members.

"Give my mother back right this instant, or I won't hesitate to burn you to the point even your souls die!" Nainen warned, emitting her fox fire as an aura.

Jingu laughed as she looked at the Kyuubi sisters.

"Oh, I believe you're looking for... this?" Jingu questioned in a knowing manner.

At that moment, she summoned the Freezing Archaeopteryx into view, and it gave a cry sounding like clanging ice. It didn't take long both Nainen to notice the sight of her mother inside the Sacred Gear's body.

"Mother!" Nainen screamed.

"What? Mom's in there!?" Kunou responded worriedly.

Susanoo's eyes growled at that, making his body cackle with power, screaming loudly as Leo noticed this.

"HOW DARE YOU INSULT THE GREAT SHINTO PANTHEON, AND THE HONOR OF THE SUPERNATURAL SOCIETY THAT MAKES UP JAPAN! I SHALL RAIN DOWN DIVINE JUDGMENT ON YOU ALL WITH MY MIGHTY STORMS! NOW, FEEL MY-"

Suddenly, a shadow stretched out of Leonardo before it broke off into a black mass, and a strange creature popped out of the ground, closing over Susanoo's form to everyone's shock. He discharged his power endlessly, but it did nothing as the creature seemed immune to his Godly force.

"Did he just make a monster?" Asia gasped.

"No way, then that would mean... he has the Annihilation Maker, the one who made the beast that Sieg attacked with at Cassiel's party!" Vali realized.

Sieg snickered as he pets Leo's head, glaring a bit.

"Look at that, the Alliance has three of the High-Tier Longinus as their enemies, how sad is that?" Sieg cackled.

Growling at that, Nainen prepared to attack, only for Issei to hold a hand out to her surprise.

"Let us deal with them, I remember first meeting this bastard, and now... time I make him put his money where his mouth is!" he stated.

"...Alright, if you insist, just make sure I see you kick his ass." Nainen relented, looking at Issei.

Vali looked at the others, and decided who else should fight, and who should standby if needed.

"Irina, Arthur, Bikou, and Kunou? I think we should start off against these guys. Everyone else, standby until we need you, understood?" Vali ordered.

"Understood!" They all agreed, with Kuroka nodding.

**「** **Sonic the Hedgehog: Crisis Valley** **」**

The six of them all readied themselves, and with it, the battle began as Issei rushed ahead.

**"[WELSH DRAGON... BALANCE BREAKER!]"** Ddraig announced with a loud shout.

Issei's scale mail formed as she rushed ahead.

* * *

As Issei rushed ahead, Cao Cao spun the True Longinus overhead, readying his arms for a fight.

** _ Battle: Issei vs Cao Cao _ **

Issei thrust his fist forward.

**"[CRIMSON DOMINATION FIST!]"**

"Is that it?" Cao Cao smirked.

He thrust the True Longinus forward, causing it to collide with Issei's fists, and making him scream as it seared in pain. He slid back as his left hand's armor shattered apart, the True Longinus gleaming after Cao Cao's attack.

"So, the rumors are true, holy attacks truly don't work on you as they would on other Devils." Cao Cao praised.

"Seems kinda odd to praise your enemy consider your position!" Issei grunted.

"I have justified reason to give such praise. The only other Dragon that's ever survived this was Ophis, and I stabbed through her chest no less." Cao Cao stated.

Issei briefly widened his eyes at that, but soon regained his focus as he restored the broken part of his armor.

"Ddraig, I think I'll need some aid here." Issei whispered.

**"[I'll back your moves partner!]"** Ddraig replied.

"_[Mind if I help?]_" Belzard requested.

Issei showed surprise as he looked at the BG's gem.

"Belzard?" Issei said in surprise.

_"[I've fought this Longinus before, if anyone had advice on how to fight it, then it's me.]"_ Belzard smirked with confidence.

Issei looked at Cao Cao.

"Alright, if you think you can help, then go ahead!" Issei agreed.

Cao Cao rushed forward, thrusting the True Longinus towards Issei again, only for the Sekiryuutei to jump back and dodge it, sliding against the ground that ripped apart from the Holy Spear striking it. Holding out his hand, Issei charged an attack.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

"**[Dragon... SHOT!]**"

The sphere shot as Cao Cao incredibly quick, and she used the True Longinus to block, but widened his eyes as it pushed him back, causing him to skid across the ground before he finally swung the attack away. The red sphere flew away before crashing on the ground, exploding.

**[BLADE!]**

"Go, Ascalon!" Issei screamed.

Issei swung his sword against Cao Cao, making him dodge as he thrust at Issei, and it quickly lead to the two fighters playing a game of hit & run. Their weapons soon collided, making a strong recoil of power shoot off from behind both fighters.

Using the opening it gave him, the eyes of Issei's helmet gleamed brightly, and the jawline area opened up to unleash a beam of flame out of it, scorching the area as it ran flew towards Cao Cao. Focusing the stance of his lower body, Cao Cao shouted before he thrust his Sacred Gear forward, the ground underneath him to collapse as he completely dispelled the fire.

"No way!" Issei gasped.

The thrust's force soon slammed into his gut, making him scream.

** _ Winner: Cao Cao! _ **

Issei fell to the ground, his Scale Mail dispelling.

* * *

Vali stood against Georg, and readied herself as her Divine Dividing appeared, and glowed.

**"(Vanishing Dragon... Balance Breaker!)"**

Vali's body was covered in mist before she walked out wearing her scale mail, and flew towards Georg. The magician took a deep breath pulling out a book, and then removing his glasses, replacing his usual stoic look with a serious one as the book opened, and began glowing.

** _ Battle: Vali vs Georg _ **

Jumping into the air, Vali held out her hand towards him.

**(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

Georg felt himself weaken, but he surprisingly didn't flinch, or shown any signs of weakness... yet Vali didn't feel it was because of him attempting to resist it. Upon taking the power, she clearly felt herself gain quite the noticeable amount of power.

"Albion, any reason he could just... shrug that off?" Vali questioned.

**"(I don't believe that's what he did, it looks more like he just has a very high-level of endurance.)"** Albion answered.

'I see, then he could be near-drained without needing to bat an eye because he's been pushed that far before.' Vali realized.

Zooming around Georg again, she appears behind him with an ice spell.

"**Blizzard!**"

A strong gust of ice blasted from her palm, but Georg simply moved his hand, causing the attack to redirect itself around him as some mist motioned it away.

"What!?" Vali gasped.

"**Inferno.**"

Vali prepared to be attacked by fire spells from the front, but somehow, they hit her from the backside, making her gasp as she saw the magic circles vanishing behind her.

"How did he do that!?" Vali wondered in shock.

**"Demonic Blast."**   
**"Fairy Rain."**   
**"Dark Strike."**   
**"Dragonic Breath."**   
**"Purifying Spear."**

Vali gasped, unable to believe the number of magic spells he was trying to cast, but couldn't find the source of the magic circles.

_"(Go forward and left, now!)"_

Recognizing the voice, Vali quickly did just that, not only avoiding the five spells she heard Georg cast, but at least 7 others that likely lacked names. The others appearing to be some elements besides fire, a bit of Angel magic, Fallen Angel magic, and even a Norse spell.

"Impressive, I expected you might avoid a few, but I didn't think you'd actually dodge them all." Georg said with interest.

Vali panted, looking at her wings.

"Elsha, I don't know where you came from, but thanks." Vali thanked panting a bit.

_"(I've faced the Dimension Lost before, I figured this would be a good time to help out.)"_ Elsha giggled.

"Wait, so he's the one who made this mist?" Vali questioned.

_"(This is likely his Balance Breaker, the Dimension Create. Think of it like a barrier version of his power, which based on what I've heard, could potentially move a whole country to the Dimensional Gap to be destroyed.)"_ Elsha theorized.

Vali flinched at that, sweating underneath her helmet.

**"(Of course, now I understand how his spells kept attacking you from every direction. No Longinus completely lacks an offensive use, but for the Dimension Lost, it doesn't attack you directly like the Sephiroth Graal... it changes how you can fight to make the best defense into a good offense.)"** Albion realized.

"I get it, he redirected my attack, and then used the mist so he could use his magic without me seeing it... Elsha, does it have a weakness?" Vali inquired.

_"(Yes, his magical skills give him a great versatility to strike within this mist, but that likely strains him, push him too hard or catching him off guard is all you need... though I worry how you might fair against him since his magic seems a bit abnormal.)"_ Elsha explained.

Vali was confused by that, though that's also when she noticed his magic's strange aura... definitely Human, but it possessed traces of a Devil's within it.

"What the? That doesn't make sense, how can a normal human have traces of Devil magic when lacking an Evil Piece? It wouldn't work when the Human's version of magic requires calculations instead of imagination!" She questioned.

"Quite simple, I believe you are aware of the Magician who began the Devil's tradition of Magician pacts?" Georg questioned.

"The one who made a pact with Mephisto Pheles, I'm pretty sure that was Faust... wait, no way!" Vali realized.

"Correct, I am his descendant, meaning I have the benefits of that pact through my bloodline." Georg stated, swiping his hand out.

Hundreds of magic circles appear, and Vali held out her arms.

**(REFLECT!) (REFLECT!) (REFLECT!)**

Vali managed to send the spells all back, magic Georg throw up a few shield spells in surprise.

"It seems I underestimated your limits to that ability, but mistakes always yield experience." Georg remarked.

Vali began forming her custom magic circle, getting Georg's attention.

"Hmm..." He kept a close gaze on it.

"**Cocytus!**"

The icy dragon flew at Georg, but Vali didn't stop there, and appeared behind him, her Divine Dividing Wings beginning to glow.

**"(SUPREMACY WING STRIKE!)"**

Vali screamed before flapping her wings, creating blades of white energy towards Georg, and they explode as the Cocytus' ice field burst off around him. Vali panted a bit... until she saw a barrier of flames surround Georg, surprising her.

"No way... did he make a custom spell to merge fire magic with a barrier?" Vali said horrified.

_"(This looks bad, I might be exaggerating a guess here, but I get the feeling that his skill with magic is good enough that as long as an ability isn't exclusive to someone... he might be able to learn it by just seeing it.)"_ Elsha suggested.

"And... while Custom Spells can be exclusive, the process isn't!" Vali realized, shaking a bit.

Georg takes only a few seconds to combine magic circles for earth and fire magic.

"**Meteorite.**"

A bunch of flaming rocks are flung at Vali, making her panic as they neared her, and then burst from impact.

** _ Winner: Georg! _ **

Vali tumbled across the ground, having lost her Scale Mail.

* * *

Irina drew Excalibur into view, holding it out as Jingu looked at it.

"Oh? The True Excalibur has been forged back together, how very interesting to see." Jingu noted, smirking a bit.

"However, something you should know... I'm a little more willing than it comes to the others about using force!" She said with a dark glint in her eyes.

She took an arrow from her quiver, and threw it onto the Freezing Archaeopteryx's back, causing it to shake before Jingu took out her three-pronged daggers, and her Sacred Gear begins to react as two glowing red marks that represented eyes lit up.

** _ Battle: Irina vs Jingu _ **

The beast swings the small bits of its claws onto its body, making its signature cry in response.

"Now, let us begin!" Jingu stated, her eyes with the same glow.

The Freezing Archaeopteryx began to charge at Irina, causing the Knight of Lucifer to put up her guard.

'I need to be careful, and try to disable that thing so I can go after her, I can't guarantee my attacks won't accidentally cut through and his Yasaka while she's in there...' Irina sweated, knowing she had the worst disadvantage among the group.

"Alright, I'll just have to do what I can... **Excalibur Replicator!**"

Irina rushed forward, and soon six clones of herself formed as they all accelerated, catching Jingu's attention. Her eyes darted around as the former Half-Angel began cutting across the legs of the Freezing Archaeopteryx.

'I see... she's limiting herself to attacking my beast's support, how foolish.' Jingu thought, not worried at all.

Irina shouted, soon swing down towards where Yasaka was.

"What? Are you crazy!?" Jingu shouted.

"You fell for it!" Irina exclaimed.

Jingu's eyes widened as Irina used the power of Excalibur Destruction, but instead of breaking the Freezing Archaeopteryx, it just shook as the Excalibur split apart from the impact, and used Mimic's power to bind it.

"Now, I'll take over your little pet! **Excalibur Ruler!**" Irina grinned victoriously.

The Freezing Archaeopteryx's eyes began to glow yellow as Irina began assuming control, however... Jingu glared her eyes, and opened a pal towards herself, revealing a symbol belonging to Hades as it glowed. The Freezing Archaeopteryx's eyes glow red again, but even brighter as its signature ice clanging cry went off even louder, now sounding more like breaking ice!

"W-what!?" Irina was shocked at how it defied Excalibur Ruler.

"**Freezing Archaeopteryx, destroy her!**" Jingu exclaimed, her eyes glowing brighter.

The icy Sacred Gear began hitting its chest again, and soon began charging at Irina once more, but this time... it suddenly tripled its speed, and kept getting faster every second, nearly moving at an Excalibur Rapidly boosted Knight!

"Oh no!" Irina gasped.

She began to run, but the Freezing Archaeopteryx quickly caught up, soon jumping over her to block Irina's escape.

"**Lifeless Zero!**"

The Freezing Archaeopteryx gave a roaring version of its cry before Irina was blasted with an icy cyclone.

** _ Winner: Jingu! _ **

Irina was on the ground, half-frozen was her eyes swirled.

* * *

Bikou twirled the Ryuu Jingu Bang into view, and soon stood before Heracles smashed his fists together, making his muscles flex in response. He took a pose, causing his feet to smash the ground underneath him.

** _ Battle: Bikou vs Heracles _ **

Bikou readied himself.

"So, you must be the descendant of Hercules? I couldn't think of a better way to consume some time!" Bikou smirked.

"Hmph! I'll make sure you eat those words, come at me!" Heracles exclaimed.

If the others weren't distracted, they'd be groaning over the fact that Herc was basically a second Bikou. Taking the initiative, Bikou extended his staff, smashing it into Herc' body as he took the attack with little efforts.

"Alright, here's my move!" Herc responded.

He punched Bikou's staff, sending it back before a sudden ripple appeared where he struck, and a giant explosion went off, pushing Bikou back.

"What the!?" Bikou gasped.

"Take this!"

Bikou suddenly found himself slammed in the gut by Herc's fist before he could even see him move, causing the same explosion to blast his stomach, and throw him back even further. The descendant of Sun Wukong tumbled a bit before landing on his feet.

"What... did you just... do?" Bikou breathed heavily.

"My Sacred Gear is called the [Variant Detonation], whenever I deal a physical blow, it explodes all the power I use! Let's see you handle that!" Herc cackled, mocking the Monkey Youkai.

Bikou gritted his teeth at that, whistling.

"**Flying Nimbus!**"

Bikou's signature cloud formed underneath him, and he began flying.

"At least I have the advantage of flight, whereas you-" Bikou tried to mock back.

Herc jumped high in the air, surprising Bikou before Herc slammed his leg down in his head, causing the same ripple to form again, but even bigger.

"**SLAM BOMBER!**"

Bikou smashed into the ground, and then the explosion went off, pressing him the second he started to lift off of it.

** _ Winner: Heracles! _ **

Bikou collapsed onto the ground, completely KO'd, leaving Herc to smirk over his victory.

* * *

Arthur drew Caliburn out of its sheath, and stood before Sieg. Excited for the challenge, Sieg smirked a bit, and took out Gram from wherever he kept it, the strongest cursed sword emitting its dark aura that clashed against Caliburn's.

** _ Battle: Arthur vs Siegfried _ **

Sig rushed ahead, shouting loudly as she slashed Gram multiple times, unleashing Durandal level energy strikes without any charging time. Arthur swung against them with Caliburn, doing the same, and it wasn't long before both sides began rushing fast, their blades emitting massive bursts of force.

"I'll say, it's pretty impressive that you can use Gram without any issues!" Arthur grunted, his voice louder than usual.

"Of course, I'm not like those creations from the Sigurd Institution, I'm his real deal descendant!" Sieg replied, grinning as she clashed with Arthur.

Soon the force of their attacks pushed the two off of one another.

"As such, that makes me the only person in the world that can currently use the Cursed Swords and pay the cost of life!" Sieg smirked, drawing out more power.

He shouted as he clashed with Arthur again, and the ground underneath them collapsed, forcing the two to start using the shards of land to do battle. Arthur rushed at Sieg again, and spun to create an opening, using it to attack.

"You have lost." Arthur declared.

"...Have I?" Sieg questioned with a toothy grin.

*CLANG*

Arthur suddenly noticed a second sword in Sieg's hand, revealing a blade that Arthur knew well.

"That's... Clarent!" Arthur gasped.

"Yep, the holy sword that was cursed by the betrayal of Mordred." Sieg revealed.

Sieg yelled loudly before using both blades to push Arthur back, using the latter's power to unleash his unleash a flash that burned like a fire.

"I guess I should reveal this now..." Sieg stated.

Pulling his hands back, Arthur's eyes widened as Sieg revealed the swords of Balmung, Nothung, Tyrfing, and Dainsleif, before putting them all away to leave the two swords he was already wielding in Arthur's view.

"...All six Cursed Swords, you have them." Arthur stated in shock.

"All of which chose me as their wielder, and best of all is my Sacred Gear lets me do so much more with them all." Sieg chuckled.

He soon rushed by Arthur, making him freeze in shock.

** _ Winner: Siegfried! _ **

Arthur soon fell on his knees.

"And yet, I didn't even need it to defeat you.: Sieg said with a smug smirk.

Arthur soon collapsed onto the ground.

* * *

Kunou looked at Leonardo, her ears and tail twitching to show she was angry. Leonardo on the other hand was... just looking at her, yawning a bit out of boredom, most likely not even wanting to be fighting in the first place.

** _ Battle: Kunou vs Leonardo _ **

Shrugging his shoulders, Leonardo snapped his fingers, making a spot on his chest glow before his shadow stretched out, then breaking off to form a group of the same creature he lent Sieg to attack the Shadow Realm with.

"You're letting these monsters fight your battles for you, bully!?" Kunou growled.

"They're how I fight my battles, my Sacred Gear is made to create stuff, so why bother learning to fight myself when I'm not even interested in combat?" Leonardo questioned.

Kunou steamed up in anger, and soon shouted as she blasted out her Fox Fire, only for the monsters to scratch their chests.

"Huh!?" Kunou gasped in shock.

"If you were still just a Kyuubi, that probably would have worked, but these Anti-Monsters I just brought out are made to counter Devils." Leo explained.

In response, the Anti-Devil lizards all charge holy blasts, firing them at Kunou. Though the Annihilation Maker's wielder showed surprise when she jumped out as if he had attacked an angel instead.

'A Devil that holy power isn't lethal to?' Leonardo thought in shock, looking at the others in Vali's group.

'Does it apply to all of them?' He questioned.

Kunou landed, with her Pawn piece shown morphing.

"Promotion... Queen!" She exclaimed.

She screamed before unleashing a surge of Senjutsu, added by charging forward to physically strike the monsters, and making them explode into shadow particles that retreated into Leo's shadow.

"...Hmm, it seems this won't be as one-sided as I thought." Leo remarked.

Kunou charged at him, and he created another monster, and when the shadow broke off... Kunou slammed into some wall-like monster, which soon tipped over.

"Oh no, don't fall on-" Kunou panicked.

*SLAM*

Kunou was crushed under it.

** _ Winner: Leonardo! _ **

The monster dispelled back into Leo, and a nearly flattened Kunou's body briefly twitched from the experience, weakly lying across the ground.

"...Mommy, please fluff my pillow." Kunou begged in a dazed manner.

**「** **Insert song end** **」**

The entire group looked at their defeated friends in shock, unable to believe what they saw.

"...They didn't even break a sweat, even Issei and Vali couldn't win their battles." Yuuma said fearfully, shaking a bit.

"And with that, we bid you a fond farewell, there's no point in taking you out when we didn't even use our full strength." Cao Cao mocked.

Mio gritted her teeth, but stood down since attacking them wouldn't do them any good.

"Come on everyone, time to meet with the others." Georg stated, his glass back on.

The Dimension Lost fog spewed out, blinding everyone as it covered them, and eventually bringing them back to where they were. Mio quickly noticed that Cao Cao's group had disappeared, while Susanoo was seen fainted on the ground.

"Susanoo!?" Mio called out.

"That thing... I foolishly used up all my power to try escaping it, but... it was all in vain, and now I'm powerless." Susanoo breathed out, completely drained of his strength.

Mio grunted in anger, having felt completely useless, as did the others. Even if they hadn't stayed back upon Vali's request, the result implied it wouldn't have mattered what they had tried. Three Longinus wielders, and three powerful Sacred Gear users, one of which had Kunou and Nainen's mother trapped, easily beat the people who had fought.

"Asia, get everyone healed up, we need to figure out a plan." Mio ordered.

"OK!" Asia nodded.

Asia activated her Balance Breaker, healing all six of their defeated allies simultaneously.

"...We're in deep shit right now, I don't see how this could get any worse." Nainen remarked.

Suddenly, her communication talisman began glowing, and her face went blue.

"Damn it, why did I just say that!?" She said worriedly.

* * *

Within the Youkai Realm, Connla noticed the rest of their team appear from the Dimension Lost mist.

"Oh, already back? Did you accidentally kill them or something?" Connla wondered.

"They were pushovers, and we barely had to do anything, I'd say we've already proven they're too pathetic to do what we're hoping-" Jingu replied, not hesitating or holding back on insulting them.

Cao Cao put a hand on her, making her stop.

"Jingu, you clearly weren't paying attention, they didn't even use their full strength for the same reason. They were smart enough to consider we wouldn't go full out, and I saw the proof when the Sekiryuutei withheld from using his Blazing Soul trick." He warned her.

Jingu growled as she looked away, finding it disgusting he praised them.

"Wow, jealous much?" Sieg smirked.

"Wow, why don't you just shut up!" She glared, making Sieg snicker.

Turning away, she summoned the Freezing Archaeopteryx.

"Go ahead and do whatever Georg, I'm gonna avoid being near this asshole for a while." Jingu said towards Sieg.

"Hey!" Sieg replied angrily.

Georg nodded, and raised a hand to remove part of the ice-type Sacred Gear's body out, moving the section containing Yasaka into a certain area. Once that was done, he cast a spell that made the Leylines react, and once they did... everything began to shake.

"It has begun." He announced.

* * *

As Nainen was talking with Grand Elder Tenguu, her eyes shook in response, enough he hadn't noticed him having hung up since.

"No way, the Youkai Realm... invaded?" She said quietly, horrified about her people.

At that moment, the entire city began to slightly rumble, getting everyone's attention at the sudden event.

"Huh, what the!?" Issei exclaimed.

"This isn't an earthquake..." Kuroka realized.

Susanoo feels the oddity, making him gasp as he realized what was wrong.

"The Leylines, those idiots are using Yasaka to tamper with them, and the whole city's feeling it as a consequence!" Susanoo realized.

"What!? But if they did that, then wouldn't that expose the supernatural to the city?" Yuuma questioned.

"No, they probably think this is just an earthquake, and I bet that Dimension Lost guy could add mist to make it look like some pipes under the broke in an accident... they have every means to keep the Humans here oblivious to the truth." Nainen answered, sweating a bit.

Kunou looked around, soon making a determined face.

"We gotta get home, and stop them before they risk hurting mama!" Kunou decided, running towards the entrance.

"Wait, Kunou!" Vali warned.

Parts of the ground begin to crack, and Kunou panicked as she was about to fall into one, only for a sudden burst of magic to press it down. She blinked before seeing Tsukuyomi fly down, using her magic to hold the city in place.

"Lady Tsukuyomi!" She exclaimed.

"Not just me, right sis?" Tsukuyomi gave a toothy grin.

Everyone turned to see Amaterasu using her powers the same way, but in a much wider area of effect.

"Right you are sister." Amaterasu smiled.

"Thank god, I'm glad you two are here." Issei sighed in relief.

The two sisters look at Susanoo.

"Hey Susanoo, is the bit of power you got left enough to help us and the other Youkai?" Amaterasu asked.

"It might be, no guarantees." He answered, pouring the small pool he had left into the ground.

Tsukuyomi looked at the others.

"We hate to ask this of you, but we'll need you to go to the Youkai Realm alone to rescue Yasaka from their clutches. If we were to leave right now... Kyoto could risk being destroyed by the influx of the Leylines' abnormal flow." She requested, grunting a bit.

"...No need to tell us twice, we've got some payback to deliver to those six." Issei agreed.

"Huh, but Issei, you were creamed by that Cao Cao guy!" Mio warned.

"Was I? Tell me, did anyone notice something off during our fight?" Issei questioned.

Everyone was confused, but Yuuma soon gasped.

"Wait, you never activated your Blazing Soul, and that last attack you got hit with was a perfect chance to activate it!" She realized.

"Yeah, the fact only six of them showed up when Sieg mentioned there were more of them? It didn't seem safe to reveal my full hand." Issei replied, nodding.

"Good eye Issei, I was thinking the same thing." Vali replied.

"I'm fairly sure we all did, with Kunou being the slight exception." Arthur mentioned.

Kunou blinked before she blushed in embarrassment, she only didn't use Fox Dragon Mode because of how Leo defeated her, giving her no chance to use it.

"And even though we might not know what the rest of them can do, they likely don't know all of our tricks either if you managed to briefly surprise them in your fights... this is our best chance, so let's do this!" Le Fay exclaimed.

"Come on, let's hurry!" Nainen stated.

Everyone followed Nainen through the city, soon bringing them to the torii that lead to the Youkai Realm. Before following, Mio looked at the Shinto Trio, and Amaterasu looked back at her.

"Good luck, all of you." She smiled.

"Right, you can count on us." Mio smiled.

She followed them in, signaling the start of the upcoming battle.

* * *

**Now that was a fight! The half of the Hero Faction Elites, with neither them, or Vali's group at full power, wiped the floor with our heroes. I did this because in canon, they were always crazy prepared during the events they got involved in, so I had them win this first bout to really show the Heroes where they stand, and because they honestly needed to lose a fight that was just them having their butts kicked.**

**But now that they have, they'll have to go full out against one member each, and this time we'll have both sides fighting at 100% of their power to rescue Yasaka. Mio will get to fight as well, but how she will is something I won't reveal just yet. *giggles* Luckily, I have the Shinto Trio unable to interfere by having them, alongside most of the Youkai, using their power to keep the city from being destroyed.**

**The big question is what does Cao Cao hope from our heroes? We know they're trying to do something to stop Rizevim's upcoming plans, and doing some pretty extreme things (partly so no one learns they're moles) to do so, but just what about that relates to Vali's group as a second option? *shrugs* Who knows, other than Jeanne screamed Sieg's ears off over dragging Yasaka into it ^^; *chuckles***

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

**P.S.: And yes, that really IS the reason behind why this story's Susanoo has a reddish tint in his skin :3**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	46. Chapter 46

**This is it everyone, the Kyoto's arc final chapter, and after that... the main highlight of this scene is next, the "Tournament Final Arc!" So, let's make sure the battle between our two forces goes into full overdrive! *giggles excitedly* I'm also happy to report that none of you had any issues with me making our heroes lose, I even heard people like that I made them lose for the sake of giving them an opportunity to grow.**

**Speaking of which, those same people are likely going to love the next arc for that very reason, since the winner's not being decided by who wins the most matches. Though for right now, we're still in the Kyoto arc, so... the Hero Faction is the focus for now, as is the long-awaited reunion between Yasaka, Nainen, and Kunou, especially the latter who's literally gone through Hell in her attempts to rescue her. *snickers* I just made a pun ^^**

**Oh, and here's a small update on the matters of Issei's peerage. While I've still only officially decided one member of Issei's peerage, I'm getting pretty close to officially deciding on some other members, and currently in the process of creating a would-be (as it depends on how much I like this character) member. *giggles* Best thing this chapter will do? Well, considering I'm talking about his peerage...**

**Now to reply a guest review.**

**To Guest:**   
**"It first happens during the crossover, Heavenly and Hell: Adventure of Two Worlds, so the reason you can't find the first instance of Izumi is simply because you've been looking in the wrong place. You'll find it during the crossover's second chapter."**

**Well, enough about all of that, because it's time to begin this chapter!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out an attack

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out an attack

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Kyoto Leylines **

**The unique phenomena that exists only within Kyoto, a basis for the Youkai Realm, and most of all... the very thing that could mean life or death for the entire city if something were to go wrong with them. According to word of Nainen, the Leylines were originally just a normal chi flow throughout the land that would one day become Kyoto, until her ancestor arrived.**

**The original Kyuubi, the one better known as Tamamo-no-Mae, found a barren area of land after she was freed from the statue she was contained in. Noticing the unique area of the land, she tried connecting with the chi, and she succeeded... or so she thought, because what happened ended up being _way_ more than a simple connection. The land below the chi resonated with her power, and evolved.**

**The area that was once barren suddenly flourished with life, and allowed a city to be built there, while also creating another realm within it for the Youkai to call their home. However, during one point after doing this, Tamamo left, and was quickly alerted the Leylines were going haywire. She returned to try and see what was the problem, but it faded once she returned, making her realize her absence was involved.**

**Ever since then, the Kyuubi have been the ones that lead the Youkai race, with some like the late Master Nurarihyon, and the current Great Elder Tenguu being in charge of other areas within the city limits, as they keep the Leylines safe. The current manager is Yasaka, and her eldest daughter Nainen having been trained enough to keep them stable in her absence.**

**The Leylines are said to be similar to a giant magic circle, but the significance of this seems to be unknown... provided there is any.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Kyoto Arc: Chapter 4 - The Spirit of Kyoto _ **

"This is our best chance, so let's do this!" Le Fay exclaimed.

"Come on, let's hurry!" Nainen stated.

Everyone followed Nainen through the city, soon bringing them to the torii that lead to the Youkai Realm. Before following, Mio looked at the Shinto Trio, and Amaterasu looked back at her.

"Good luck, all of you." She smiled.

"Right, you can count on us." Mio smiled.

She followed them in, soon slightly tripping as they found themselves within the Youkai Realm. Everyone aside from the Kyuubi sisters took in the sight before them.

"Wow, so this is where you live?" Mio questioned.

"Yeah, a little misty, sometimes a little too orange in color, but we consider it home." Nainen answered.

"If I remember right, the Youkai Realm was made by Tamamo-no-Mae, the original Kyuubi... is this related to the Leylines?" Yuuma questioned.

Kunou nodded in response.

"Yeah, though she never understood why. Some of us think it's the odd shape of the Leylines." Kunou mentioned.

"Oh yeah, the fact it looks like a big magic circle... wait, oh crap." Vali suddenly realized what was happening.

"That magician in their group, he must be casting some giant spell with it!" Bikou replied, having guessed as well.

"Then we've gotta stop it, and fast!" Issei agreed.

"Oh, you aren't stopping anything!"

Everyone turned to see a bunch of Humans come into view, and each of them had a Sacred Gear on hand, albeit weaker ones that hard a larger number of wielders sharing the same Gear.

"All of them have Sacred Gears?" Asia said in surprise.

"Yeah, the one detail about the Hero Faction we could confirm was every member was a Human with a Sacred Gears, most likely because they were the Humans that had the best potential." Mio replied, sharing what the leaders had told her.

"Damn it, we don't have time for this!" Irina growled.

**「** **Highschool DxD New: D no ishi** **」**

At that moment, Nainen sighed before rolling up her sleeves, making the others turn towards her as she glared at the army of Sacred Gear users.

"I'm stressed, tired, pissed off, and annoyed over all of this... I'm gonna kick all of their asses myself!" She screamed with rage.

"Attack!" A Hero Faction member yelled.

They all charged, prepared to use their Sacred Gears against the teenage Kyuubi... that very act was Nainen's cue to begin, and she rushed forward incredibly fast, appearing behind the whole arm as she charged up Senjutsu with her Fox Fire/

"**FLASH FOX!**"

A giant wave of fire expelled from her hands, sending many of the Humans flying, while others who tried to defend were shot around from the overwhelming force. Everyone stared in shock, side from Kunou, at what she had just done, while the Hero Faction members quickly got on their feet again.

"...Kunou, how strong is your sister?" Vali asked.

"She's at least twice as strong as I am." She admitted.

"You mean, like she would have taken 12 Evil Pieces if she had been the one Vali had to save?" Issei shockingly inquired.

"Yep!" Kunou smiled.

Vali and Issei's eyes turn towards each other in shock, and then Vali's asked again.

"What about your mom?" Vali wondered, sweating a bit.

"She's triple my strength, and that's without the Leylines' boost." She smiled again.

'T-that would be 18 pieces... I'd need a Mutation Queen for that, and she still got caught? Oh boy...' Vali thought, both worried and terrified.

Nainen continued her one-sided battle against the Hero Faction members, who just didn't know what it meant to fight a hopeless battle, and turned towards the group with a determined look on her face.

"Everyone, I can sense around twelve irregularities in the Leylines, and I bet each one has one of the Elites by them! Go take them all out and save my mom, I'll keep these annoying brats occupied!" She shouted.

"Right!" Vali nodded in reply.

Mio quickly tossed Kunou onto her back, surprising the young Kyuubi.

"That Leo kid might have more tricks for you, best we team up against him, hope you don't mind?" Mio explained in response.

"Nope, not a bit." Kunou replied.

"Everyone, let's do this!" Issei declared.

All of them quickly ran off, splitting up to challenge their respective opponents.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The focus started with Mio and Kunou, the former rushing to the irregularity where Kunou felt Leo at while Mio carried her, and before they knew it... the very boy they were looking for was seen sitting on the ground. His eyes turned to them, noticing they finally arrived.

"...You finally showed, such a pain, but I gotta do what Cao Cao asked me to." Leo yawned.

Snapping his fingers, his shadow extended itself, then had parts of it break off to create a single Golem that looked like an advanced version of a Gogmagog. The golem began to shake around, making strange beeping sounds in response, and then its sole eye glowing in response.

** _ Battle: Mio & Kunou VS Leonardo & the Super-Gogmagog _ **

Mio readied herself, with Kunou jumping off her back.

"Alright, you ready for this, Kunou?" Mio asked.

"Yeah, now let's show him!" Kunou agreed.

Focusing her power, Mio noticed Kunou's hair go white, surprising her a bit.

"**FOX DRAGON MODE!**"

"Oh?" Leo questioned in slight awe.

'Interesting, I guess I have something to entertain me then...' He thought.

Motioning his hand, the Super-Gogmagog's beeps gained a deeper pitch, quickly charging at the two. Seeing the opening, Mio raised her hands, forming the glowing metallic spheres that were part of her and Cassiel's signature ability.

"**GO, SMASH SPHERE!**"

The orbs fly at the massive Golem, smashing some small holes into the behemoth's form.

"Really? This is all you had, I could kill this thing a hundred times easy!" Mio mocked.

"You think my Super-Gogmagog is that easy to beat?" Leo wondered in a sarcastic manner, cleaning his ear.

In response, the stone monstrosity began slamming the areas it was damaged in, creating a loud screech that split into Mio's ears, but Kunou began screaming in pain because her ears were much more sensitive.

"I think my ears are bleeding!" Kunou cried out in pain.

"I kinda wish mine were so the blood clogged them!" Mio replied in pain.

The spots that the Super-Gogmagog was hitting started to glow, and began cracking as they began to change into something else. Finally, it smashed its fists into its body, pulling on it, and transforming into a second form that was larger with glowing lines across its body.

"What in the Shadow Realm!?" Mio questioned.

"The Gogmagog are weapon adapters, so I made something that adapts to much more, can you really beat such a foe?" Leo asked mockingly.

Mio sweated a bit.

"Kunou, this might be harder than we thought." Mio mentioned.

"Yeah, but I'm not giving up, I'll save my mama!" Kunou stated with resolve.

* * *

Ravel flew around, trying to find where her irregularity was at, but having no luck so far.

"Come on, there has to be someone nearby if I'm getting this close, right?" She asked herself.

"**Dancing Flames.**"

Ravel suddenly noticed a bunch of explosions, catching her by surprise as one consumed her.

Seeing he had gotten his target's attention, Menes walked onto view, smirking a bit at his handiwork with a small chuckle.

"I believe you called?" Menes questioned.

At that moment, she saw Ravel's body on the ground, slowly getting up as part of her face burned to regenerate, surprising him a bit.

"Oh? That's unique, I didn't realize you were a member of the Phenex Clan." He stated.

"And just who are you, wise guy?" Ravel questioned in annoyance.

Menes chuckled a bit, and gave a somewhat fashionable pose, his face sparkling a bit in response.

"I am the great wielder of the Sacred Gear known as Flame Shake, you may call me... Menes."

** _ Battle: Ravel VS Menes _ **

Looking at the sight, Ravel's eyes became half-closed.

"Menes, that's a name related to Egypt... no wonder you look so vain right now." Ravel said, intending the insult.

Menes suddenly had a vein show on his head, growling a bit.

"Oh, you aren't getting away with that one!" Menes swore with anger.

Shaking his body around, a sudden burst of flames exploded around Ravel, though this time she flew away from them. Once she stopped, she looked at her opponent, realizing that his Sacred Gear was no joke despite her regeneration powers.

"Alright, I think it's time you learn the power of the Phenex clan!" Ravel stated.

Spinning around, her clothes unravel, replaced by flames to change into a spots outfit, removing the hindrance of her dress.

"Then bring it, yakitori." Menes smirked.

Ravel's face twitched, and her body suddenly blazed three times hotter, surprising Menes.

"...You're dead." Ravel stated, her eyes glowing deep red.

* * *

Asia nervously walked across the area, a bit worried about fighting on her own, but...

"No, you can do this Asia... you need to be brave, don't be afraid." She told herself, trying to boost her resolve.

"Hmm... you fight, yet you're afraid? I'll admit the courage it takes to do that."

Asia jumped at that, looking around for the source of the voice.

"I'm sorry, let me just change into something else real quick."

The former Holy Maiden blinked as she looked around, noticing the sight of the area changing, becoming what looked like some kind of world of checker squares.

"E-Eh!?" Asia sweated with worry.

It was at that moment she saw Marsilio walk into view, giving a smug smile.

"You like it? This is my [Dreamlike Curse]'s Balance Breaker, the [Palaselene Utopia]." Marsilio asked.

"Dreamlike... Curse?" Asia repeated.

Marsilio gave a dark chuckle at that, staring straight at the Twilight Healing wielder.

** _ Battle: Asia VS Marsilio _ **

Asia stepped back a bit, only for him to appear behind her, making her see double.

"It's a sacred gear that can turn a certain though of mine into a reality, and the realism behind it can be truly terrifying, the perfect weapon for someone who isn't a strong fighter, and my Balance Breaker makes it manifest as a whole other world. Now there won't be any way for your friends to come save you." He stated.

Shaking a bit, Asia saw the multiple copies of Marsilio surround her, but remembering what the others taught her... she gave her best determined look, getting into a fighting stance.

"I can't run this time, I'll... I'll fight!" Asia exclaimed.

"You're actually going to fight me? Fine then, I'll humor you for a while." Marsilio replied.

* * *

Le Fay flew on her broomstick, with her magic flowing from the back as she accelerated her speed even more to reach the irregularity. Looking around, she felt an odd feeling in the air, and then... a bunch of energy chains begin flying at her!

"Chains? Oh no, that's a Sacred Gear!" She realized.

Le Fay threw up a shield, causing the chains to break apart upon making contact. Le Fay dispelled her broom as she skids across the ground, eventually stopping to see someone else flipping through the air, landing to reveal Morgiana.

"So, you're the Hero Faction Elite that's stationed here?" Le Fay asked.

"Correct, my name is Morgiana." She answered, bouncing on her feet a bit.

Grabbing her shoes, she back flipped into the air, throwing them off into the distance, and ripping off her main outfit to reveal another layer of clothing underneath.

** _ Battle: Le Fay VS Morgiana _ **

Staring at one another, Le Fay gazed at Morgiana as she quickly made the first move.

"**Go, Deception Chain!**"

Her energy chains appear around her wrist and ankles, causing Le Fay to gasp as she saw them appear everywhere.

"Whoa!" Le Fay shouted.

She activated her teleportation spell, disappearing from the spot, but having to repeat her spell as the chains continued following to form a web of binds. When it was over, Le Fay panted as she saw the lack of fighting room she was left with.

"This is bad..." Le Fay sweated.

"So, ready to give up?" Morgiana questioned.

* * *

Kuroka dashed across the area, using her Senjutsu to sense her opponent's location. Knowing that she was arriving, Mulan simply meditated in place, and once Kuroka finally came into view...

"I had a feeling you'd be the one I'd meet up with, guess not every cat gets killed by curiosity." Mulan stated as she stood.

Kuroka giggled slightly, looking at her.

"Either you like cats, or you're just fairly cocky to have made that joke." Kuroka responded, having a hand near her mouth.

"I'd say the latter's more likely." Mulan admitted.

Focusing her gaze on Kuroka, she materialized her Sterling Light on her wrist.

** _ Battle: Kuroka VS Mulan _ **

Kuroka focused on her Sacred Gear, having a strong feeling it would be a powerful one due to Issei's Boosted Gear being a gauntlet as well.

"I am Mulan, and I'm assuming you must be the Nekoshou known as Kuroka?" Mulan greeted before making her inquiry.

"Guess it isn't hard to know that when only two of us are left, but you're correct." Kuroka replied.

Mulan nodded, and soon vanished from view. Kuroka tried to look for her... only to suddenly notice shots of light, and moved out of the way, avoiding them as they burst across where she was standing prior.

"I didn't even see where she fired them, what's going on?" Kuroka sweated.

"Did you really think it was impossible for non-Youkai to learn Youjutsu? Sorry, but..." Mulan's voice echoed.

Mulan reappeared, smirking as she formed Youjutsu symbols, creating small-scale mountains across the ground for her to use.

* * *

Yumina rushed ahead, teleporting with her Phantom Shift every few moments, in an attempt to find her opponent. However, she wasn't having any luck in trying to find him/her in the slightest.

"Man, this is tricky! Where are they hiding!?" Yumina grunted.

"Perhaps, below you?"

Yumina's eyes widen, and suddenly a sword made of shadows surged up, nearly stabbing right through her. She panted heavily as she caught her breath, followed by the sight of Connla walking into view as he held a mass of shadows in a sword shape.

** _ Battle: Yumina VS Connla _ **

Yumina's eyes widened at the sight of the sword, swearing she recognized it.

'I think I've seen that before, but where?' She thought.

"Alright, you nearly killed me, bravo for you... gonna tell me who you are?" Yumina asked, glaring at him.

"Oh, how rude of me? My name's Connla, and now, I'll be showing you who truly rules the shadows." Connla announced, holding up his sword.

His body began glowing black, making Yumina flinch.

"**Balance Breaker... Night Reflection Death Cross!**"

The heiress of Lucifuge began to sweat, worried what she just got herself into as shadows began swirling onto Connla's body.

"...Oh boy." She whispered.

* * *

Yuuma flew around, soon noticing the sight of Perseus as she simply sat on the ground, a shield by his side as he kept himself still.

"Well, I guess that's who I'll be fighting." Yuuma realized.

Flying near the ground, Perseus noticed her, but did not move, and then... he lifted the shield up, making it glow.

** _ Battle: Yuuma VS Perseus _ **

Yuuma suddenly found herself frozen in place, like her body was as stiff as stone, and fell to the ground. She crashed hard, making a small bit of dust kick up, with the wielder of the Shield-type Sacred Gear looking at her downed form.

"W-what did you do?" Yuuma asked in shock.

"My name is Perseus, and I possess the Sacred Gear known as [Aegis Materialization], those I aim my shield upon lose their ability to move depending on how much weaker they are than me, as if they were turned to stone." Perseus greeted, revealing his power.

Yuuma's eyes widened, and a trickle of sweat went down her cheek.

'Someone who can lock my movements? Oh no, how do I fight against that!?' She thought worriedly.

* * *

Sieg yawned as he tried balancing Gram on its tip for fun, waiting for his opponent to show.

"My apologies for keeping you waiting, Sieg." Arthur stated.

Sieg got up, noticing Arthur had finally arrived, and smirking excitedly.

"Finally, did you take the scenic route?" Sieg joked.

"I don't believe that's the purpose of this rematch, so let us skip the witty banter." Arthur stated, drawing Caliburn out.

Sieg laughed, taking Gram in hand, and pulling out Clarent.

** _ Battle: Arthur VS Sieg _ **

"I will not be as careless against your swords this time, it won't be too hard to adapt against you dual wielding." Arthur warned.

"Oh, is it?" Sieg questioned.

Arthur raised an eyebrow at that.

"Hello? If you were smarted, then you'd know you haven't seen my Sacred Gear just yet... so, here it is!"

"**ASURA ARMAMENT!**"

Sieg screamed as a paw of wrist guards that resembled scales with protrusions resembling the sun appeared on his hands, and following that... Arthur's eyes widened, seeing his body create for identical arms on his body.

"Six arms? Wait, you can't be!" Arthur realized.

Sieg laughed at that, instantly drawing his remaining Cursed Swords out, causing him to wield them all at once.

"My [Asura Armament] makes me well-armed, so I can use all these swords together! Prepare to be decimated!" Sieg announced.

* * *

Bikou flew on top the Flying Nimbus, hearing some clanging as Herc smashed his fists together, chuckling as he tried to draw his opponent in. Bikou quickly lowered to the ground, giving a readied stance against him.

"Ah, back for more?" Herc smirked.

"It won't end like it did last time, you can count on that!" Bikou declared.

Herc laughed at that, smashing his fists to make an exploding sound, followed by flexing his muscles.

** _ Battle: Bikou VS Heracles _ **

Bikou readied the Ryuu Jingu Bang.

"Fine then, bring it!" Herc challenged.

"You asked for it!" Bikou replied.

The descendant of Sun Wukong rushed ahead, shouting loudly.

* * *

Irina jumped into view, catching Jingu's attention as she gave her cruel expression towards the former Half-Angel, laughing haughtily.

"Well, if it isn't the girl who had her ass handing to her last time." Jingu mocked.

"I wouldn't laugh at me this time you bitch! You only had the advantage due to circumstance last time, but this time?" Irina announced.

She channeled all her holy power into Excalibur, making its aura flare.

** _ Battle: Irina VS Jingu _ **

Jingu felt herself pushed back, grunting from the force.

"You got rid of it, because you don't have Yasaka anymore, that's the only way the Leylines could be disrupted right now!" She stated.

Jingu's eyes widened, growling at that.

"Damn, I thought you were stupid, but that was just wishful thinking." Jingu growled quietly.

"**Freezing Archaeopteryx!**"

The giant dinosaur of ice forms, and began charging towards Irina.

"No good! Go,** Excalibur Destruction**!" Irina shouted.

The Knight of Lucifer dashed forward, instantly swinging her sword, and the moment she did... the traitorous Sacred Gear user gasped in shock as the Freezing Archaeopteryx shattered! Irina looked at Jingu with a smirk.

"...To think she'd actually make me use _that_? Fine then!" Jingu thought aloud, scowling intensely.

* * *

Vali flew forward, her Divine Dividing wings out, and soon found herself being surrounding by a field of familiar mist.

_"(He's near.)"_ Elsha realized.

**"(Vali, be careful... we don't know what he might do.)"** Albion warned.

Vali nodded in response.

"Right." She agreed.

At that moment, the mist fully surrounding the area, and Vali saw Georg walk into view.

** _ Battle: Vali VS Georg _ **

Vali readied herself, with Georg adjusted his glasses.

"Alright, spill it... where's Kunou mother! You better not have-" Vali shouted.

"Relax, she is unharmed, doing such to her would ruin our plans." Georg stated.

Vali growled at him, and in response, he took off his glasses again.

"Perhaps if you are that serious about stopping me, we should reveal our plan to you?" Georg inquired.

"...Sure, enlighten me so I'll make sure not to lose to you." Vali said quietly, her words full of fury.

Georg opened his book, just to be on guard.

"You are aware how the Leylines resemble a large magic circle, correct? If one has the right means, they could use it to cast a giant spell... what do you think such a spell would be for?" Georg questioned.

Vali wondered on that, it didn't seem like they were just gonna annihilate Kyoto, so it couldn't be an offensive spell. A spell to defend something made even less sense. It could be an empowering spell, but that seemed redundant due to the Leylines only boosting a Kyuubi who mastered their connection with them. However, that's when she realized the meaning behind it being large... because it was going to summon a gigantic living creature!

"No way, you couldn't be!?" Vali's eyes shook with rage.

"I'd disagree with that." Georg responded.

Vali growled at that, and with it...

**"(Vanishing Dragon... Balance Breaker!)"**

"Never! If it takes me bleeding all my blood and shattering all my bones, I will not let you free Trihexa from its seal!" Vali screamed as she transformed.

Her scale mail armor formed, steaming up in response to her rage.

'Alright, I've got her mad, let's see if that anger truly can defy what Cao Cao believes they can, should this plan fail.' Georg thought, readying himself for battle.

* * *

Issei rocketed towards the irregularity's location, and once he did, Cao Cao sees the land he tore apart fly straight at him. Stopping some of the debris with just a hand, he smirked at his opponent's arrival.

"I'll admit it, that was an impressive show you pulled off right there." Cao Cao said as he clapped.

"This won't go like last time Cao Cao, this time... I will win!" Issei declared.

Issei roared, his body emitting flames.

**"[WELSH DRAGON... BALANCE BREAKER!]"**

Issei's scale mail formed on his body, while in response to it, Cao Cao formed the True Longinus.

** _ Battle: Issei VS Cao Cao _ **

Channeling power into it, Ddraig noticed something.

**"[Partner, get ready... he's doing something differently.]"** He warned.

_"[He must be activating his Balance Breaker, be careful Issei, I nearly died when I faced this.]"_ Belzard added in response.

Issei nodded, knowing he had to be against the ultimate Sacred Gear.

Cao Cao shouted loudly, raising the spear into the air before it morphed its shape, and had golden spirals swirl around it, with seven orbs manifesting on certain spots of the spear's new body. The Sekiryuutei showed shock at the spear's new form. **(A/N: Think DxD Hero's version of the True Longinus)**

"As long as I have the [Polar Night Longinus Chakravartin], nothing you do can defeat me." Cao Cao stated.

"We'll see about that! Time for me to get serious!" Issei declared.

"**[BLAZING SOUL!]**"

Issei's scale mail shattered, and Cao Cao smirked.

"Finally using your real power against me? Alright then... bring it!" Cao Cao stated.

* * *

Back in the Human realm, the Shinto Trio was seen struggling as they felt the city shaking more, the various Youkai doing their best to help.

"Damn it, about to hit my limit... here..." Susanoo panted.

"Whatever you do, please don't fall-" Tsukuyomi begged.

Suddenly, snoring was heard, and both Susanoo's sisters turn to see he had just passed out at that moment.

"...Really, now of all times!?" Amaterasu screamed angrily.

Grand Elder Tenguu began noticing something around the entirety of Kyoto's borders.

"Lady Amaterasu! Lady Tsukuyomi! The outside of the city, look!" He warned.

"Hmm?" Amaterasu wondered.

She turned to look, seeing a magic circle that showed a spiky serpentine dragon that looked like it was going to eat its own tail, only for it to miss, spiraling inwards until it reached a center area. **(A/N: Think Meliodas' sin marking, only as a swirl instead of a circle)**

Tsukuyomi noticed a different symbol behind her, which was two snakes that shaped themselves as an ∞ symbol, making her gasp as she quickly recognized it. Looking towards her sister who had recognized the one she was seeing as well.

"Ami, I'm seeing Ophis' circle behind me!" She remarked worriedly.

"Yomi, would you say that's bad if I'm seeing Great Red's circle with that?" Amaterasu questioned.

Before an answer could be stated, an even larger magic circle was manifesting itself, but this one was very different... both Goddess gasped as they saw a certain symbol appear on it. Somehow, despite having just passed out, Susanoo's unconscious form shook as if a nightmare took over.

"No, they couldn't be..." Both sisters said with worry.

* * *

Mio crossed her arms, twirling as she sent more of her spheres towards the Super-Gogmagog's arms, followed by Kunou blasting her Fox Fire at them. The Golem shook a bit, with the two panting as they hoped the Golem losing its arms stopped its adaptive evolutions.

"How sad, you think where you hurt it can disable that power? Sorry, but wrong answer." Leo stated, holding a sign with a prohibition sign on it.

'Where'd he even pull that from?' Mio thought confused.

The Super-Gogmagog began stomping heavily, soon moving so fast it emitted steam, and then vanished in a flash.

"Huh!?" Kunou said in surprise.

It reappeared before them, releasing an explosion that made both fighters scream, and during the explosion... tiny versions of itself fly out, grappling onto their bodies. Before either of them knew it, both of their own attacks (Kunou's fox fire, and Mio's spheres) materialized around them, and struck them full force!

"You can't win, not against someone who can counter anything you make with his thoughts." Leo yawned.

Kunou was tossed to the right, and the mini-Gogmagogs blasted out Senjutsu, and Youjutsu to add to the onslaught. While the ones by Mio, who had been tossed to the left, go hit with demonic power, and more of her spheres.

Both of them screamed again, soon collapsing onto the ground as the Mini-Gogmagogs rushed back, reforming into the Super-Gogmagog, which was now twice as large, and had wings. It whirred as it began charging a beam.

"Game over." Leo said, turning to walk away.

Kunou's body began to shake, and as she did, she started to tear up.

"Mama..." Kunou said quietly.

_"Kunou, you and Nainen make me the happiest mother alive." Yasaka's voice echoed._

"Mama... I'll save you, Mama!" She screamed.

Kunou got up, and her Fox Dragon mode's energy spiked out, suddenly smashing the Super-Gogmagog onto the ground, falling in front of Leo.

**「** **Testament of a New Sister Devil: Kareinaru Taiketsu** **」**

Leo's eyes suddenly showed shock, turning around at Kunou as her power flared.

"No way..." Leo said in surprise.

The Super-Gogmagog whirred as it sparked a bit, releasing steam like a train as it glowed red in anger.

"I'm not going to let it end like this, I won't!" Kunou screamed.

"Seriously? Such a pain, finish it now-" Leo tried to say.

The giant Golem suddenly hit the ground, a powerful red energy pushing against it like a tidal wave, surprising Leo as his creation kept sparking, unable to move and adapt to the power. He looked to see Kunou, but all she was doing was having her tails emit energy to make them shaped like serpentine Dragons hissing at him.

"Then, that would mean..." Leo realized, looking at Mio.

Mio's body was glowing, her eyes having no light to represent her rage as she emitted a power that affected the gravity itself.

"Little brat, you listen well right now, while I might not be much older than you... didn't anyone ever tell you to respect your elders?" Mio asked menacingly.

The Super-Gogmagog was crushed even more as she emitted more power against it, with Leo sweating a bit.

"Because, you'll regret underestimating them!" She shouted.

She slammed her hand down, and the Super-Gogmagog exploded! As he looked at the fiery blaze it left, for the first time in a while, if not ever... Leo's expression lacked its bored state.

"Impossible..." He said fearfully.

"Kunou, let's end this!" Mio declared.

"Right!" Kunou agreed.

The two ran at Leo, and in his panic, he summoned as many creatures as he could possibly make. However, Kunou's tails simply smashed right through them, while Mio's wave of metallic spheres, and her gravity energy, crushed them all.

"**B-Balance Breaker-**"

Kunou tackled him, keeping him from using his ace in the hole as she angrily glared at him.

"No, please... don't!" Leo shook, thinking he was dead.

"...Bad boy!" Kunou shouted, holding a finger towards him.

Leo blinked at that, confused.

"Eh?" He said oddly.

Kunou punched him in the face at that moment, leaving him motionless before he passed out, white eyed from the impact.

** _ Winner: Mio and Kunou! _ **

The Demon Princess chuckled awkwardly at the sight, scratching the back of her head.

"Uh... I guess that's one way to win a fight?" Mio remarked.

* * *

As Menes saw Ravel's flames get hotter, he gave mock laughter.

"Oh, you think that's going to worry me? Sorry, but no dice, and now you'll see my flames are much worse than your little fryer-made brand!" Menes stated unconvincingly.

"**Dancing Desert Haze!**"

A spiral of flames burst from the ground, swinging like a whip across the landscape. Ravel flew around them, looking like a graceful swimmer before raising her hands up.

"**Phoenix Fall!**"

A burst of flames expelled from her body, transforming into the shape of a bird as it smashed on Menes. The Flame Shake user grunted as he was pushed back, only avoiding a burn due to his Sacred Gear's element.

"Alright, it seems I've got to become serious against you, so time to meet your ancestors!" Menes stated.

Menes made a flashy movement, melting the ground below him.

"**VOLCANO CORE CARNIVAL!**"

Menes screamed loudly, fire shooting off his form before it started to melt, and making geysers of lava spew out.

"Oh no..." Ravel shook as she saw the one thing worse than fire.

"Aha! I knew it, you Phenex clan members might be master of fire, but something even hotter is what you fear most? Even you fear the sun, so..." Menes smirked in a smug manner.

Menes suddenly put a hand to the ground, swinging his body around to create a stream of lava towards her. Ravel quickly flew away, trying to avoid the blaze, only for one to strike through her arm. The Phenex Devil screamed in pain, feeling her arm melt off, and while it regenerated... it was all red and raw, showing the pain was worse than usual.

"...You must fear the earth's volcanoes, and right now that's what I am!" Menes laughed.

Ravel coughed a bit, the pain nearly unbearable for her.

"So, you gonna cry a fowl? You should, just give up, spare yourself the humiliation." Menes mocked.

Ravel coughed once more, and then lifted her head up... glaring at Menes, surprising him a bit as she walked towards him, making him flinch.

'What the hell? She's not scared even after all that, what kind of nerves does she have?' He thought.

'I... can't let myself, falter over just one injury!' Ravel thought, pushing herself forward.

As she did, she recalled a conversation with her mother.

* * *

_Ravel sat across from her mother, Maliran Phenex, who was basically an older version of herself, as they had tea together._

_"Ravel." Maliran suddenly stated._

_"Yes mother?" Ravel asked, placing her tea cup down._

_"Do you know the reason I had your brother trade you into my peerage?" Maliran questioned._

_Ravel blinked at that, honestly having no idea what her mother did that._

_"I see, it seems you don't, then allow me to shed light on that." Maliran replied._

_Standing up a bit, Ravel saw her mother walk towards the window._

_"Because, Riser was never willing to use your full talents, I'm honestly appalled he only had you in his group for the sake of having... the tsundere sister type as he defined it." Maliran began explaining, covering her face at the last part._

_"...I regret letting him convince me." Ravel agreed, looking a bit blue in the face._

_She quickly sipped her tea, trying to distract herself._

_"What do you mean by my talents though?" Ravel questioned._

_"Quite simple, a strength I doubt you've realized because of your time under him." Maliran answered._

_Turning to face her daughter, she moved a hand near her chest, and began to explain._

_"Your grasp over one's power and knowledge, how you can chronicle it all together, and use it all to the fullest. You have skills that could have made you a great strategist for Riser if he had let you use them, to be quite honest? Had you used that in the Rating Game with Rias, she'd have never taken out any of Riser's pieces, and against Vali? There's a chance you could have actually beaten her." She revealed._

_Ravel showed surprise at that, she had never thought her attention to details was that grand._

_"An unshakable determination, and a spectacular way of executing it, while giving your allies the way to acutely realize it. One day you'll be leaving my peerage to become a Bishop to someone who understands your strengths, or at least trusts you to use them, sees you as an equal to them... perhaps the Sekiryuutei is the one you'd like to do this form?"_

_Upon hearing her mother say that, the young Phenex lady went red in the face, missing the playful smirk she threw her daughter's way._

_"W-what!? Mother, that's ridiculous! I have no intention of such a thing." Ravel said, trying to deny it._

_"Ravel, then why did I find you have a picture of him in your room?" Maliran inquired._

_Ravel froze at that, realizing she had been caught... followed by her lowering her head._

_"...It wouldn't matter anyways, he already found the one he loves, and I'm pretty sure she's the only one his heart has room for." She said sadly, not wanting to fight a losing battle._

_"It seems you don't know another reason some joins peerages, do you?" Maliran asked, putting a hand on Ravel's shoulder._

_Ravel showed surprise, and her mother smiled at her._

_"I'll explain that, but know this at least, Ravel... you are more than you think you are. However, before you can realize this, you need to learn to stand up with your own strength. Not just as a member of the Phenex clan, but as who you really are, gleaming with your full potential."_

* * *

Ravel's fire begins to flare out again, and her fiery avian wings glow brighter in response.

"I admit it... I want to be Issei's Bishop! Seeing his fight, I fell for him, but I never got the chance because he already had his heart... yet I've seen Irina's determination, even she still fights for him despite she suffered the same way. I want to stand by him, even if just by protecting him, but how can I do that if I just ran away?" She said quietly, confusing Menes a bit.

"I. Will. FIGHT!" Ravel loudly declared with her resolve.

She pulled off the bindings on her pig tails, and Menes suddenly got a bad feeling.

"I've seen this cliché before, please don't be some kind of second wind! Please don't-" He panicked.

"**PHOENIX DRAGON MODE!**"

Menes went white at that, seeing Ravel's transformation as her hair became crimson red, along with her flames. Her wings flapped to show her determined expression, with the terrified Menes laughing nervously.

"Get ready, because this is it." She said calmly.

She flew towards Menes, who quickly stomped the ground as he forced out a laugh. Geysers of magma fired out of the ground, aiming towards the Phenex Devil.

"Hello!? My lava will eat your flames, this changes nothing!" He exclaimed with some doubt.

"**RISING DRAGON!**"

Ravel unleashed her crimson fire at the lava, and beyond all expectations, Menes screamed in fear as they ate his fire, with the crimson flames taking the shape of a roaring dragon.

"No, that's impossible! Her flames exceeded my lava!?" He said in panic.

"This is it!" Ravel shouted.

Ravel unleashed another wave of her flames, this time taking the shape of the animal her clan name resembled, and it smashed into Menes. The Flame Shake user screamed as his entire form was burned.

** _ Winner: Ravel! _ **

Ravel panted, and reverted to normal as Menes fell onto his stomach.

"Don't you know? A phoenix... always rises from the ashes, even stronger." She said, smiling before she blacked out.

* * *

Marsilio's multiple copies began to move towards Asia, and as they did, the Dreamlike Curse's illusions transformed to when she was excommunicated over sealing Diodora. The copies transforming into the people that had cursed her as a witch at the time.

"This girl has the power to heal Devils!"

"Only Heaven has that power!"

"She's a witch!"

"Burn her!"

Asia stood before all of that, while the real Marsilio watched, intending to defeat her through mental warfare... then he saw her walk, surprising him.

"Die, you witch!"

One of the illusions swung at her, but she showed no hesitation, and he faded right through her. Marsilio gasped as he saw this.

'No way, how is she able to walk through all this? I'm showing her worst memory!' He gasped.

"...You can say that all you want, but I already know despite all those words you tell me, they're as far away from being true as the Earth and the Stars." Asia said, still walking forward.

She recalls her first meeting from Issei, Vali smiling at her, and then meeting each member of Vali's peerage. All of it came together, making Marsilio see an image of the entire Mythological History Club gathered together, smiling as they enjoyed their time together.

"No way, all of them were enough to brush away that pain?" Marsilio asked in shock.

Asia held out her hand, forming a bow of light as she aimed at her opponent's distracted form, looking up with a smile, shedding tears of happiness.

"They're more than just my friends... they're my family." She answered.

Asia fired the arrow, and it hit Marsilio in the stomach, bursting as he was flung across the ground.

** _ Winner: Asia! _ **

The Dreamlike Curse's environment faded away, with Asia breathing in relief as she finally stopped holding in the feelings she held from the memory.

"...Issei, Vali, I'll keep walking forward like you both do." She promised herself.

* * *

Le Fay looked at the area around her, and gasped as she made magic circles for a lightning spell.

"Hmm?" Morgiana blinked.

"**Discharge Wave!**"

The energy chains suddenly all rumble, and break apart from the conflicting energies between them. Morgiana gasped in surprise at her technique shattering so easily.

"Energy and energy can be a volatile mix, I'm glad it worked in my favor." Le Fay smiled.

"Hmm... guess my normal chains aren't enough, so it's time I unshackled them." Morgiana realized.

Motioning her one arm up, and shifting her legs, her body glowed.

"**Balance Breaker, Prison of the Unbound Earth!**"

Morgiana's chains tighten around her body, and her eyes tighten until the light in them faded, with the veins by her face intensifying. She gave an inhumane roar as her muscles spiked up, their veins pulsing as her body pushed itself to the limit.

"OK, that's like Issei's Force Crystallization... only it's kinda creepy." Le Fay said, her face a bit blue.

"TIME TO MEET YOUR MAKER!"

Morgiana punched the air, and a whole bunch of chains form around Le Fay, suddenly disabling all her powers as she feels pain shoot through her.

"All your powers have been locked! There's nothing you can do, and no power in this world you can use to stop it!"

Morgiana swung her arm around, making the chains holding Le Fay get swung around, smashing into everything with heavy force, all while Morgiana kept screaming.

'Come on, there's gotta be... something I can do, there... has to!' Le Fay thought.

At that moment, an image of Natsumi flashed by, showing off her Reiryoku to her.

"That's it! Nothing in _this_ world can help me, but I have something that's not from it!" Le Fay exclaimed with a smile.

"Hmm!?" Morgiana wondered with a strange look.

Le Fay motioned her wound, creating a new magic circle that had a sigil for the Sephirot on it. Morgiana's eyes widened as it unleashed a huge beam at Morgiana, smashing into her chest, and breaking her chain's hold.

"Impossible!" Morgiana coughed.

Le Fay shouted before blasting another beam, hitting Morgiana with enough force that her chains broke entirely.

** _ Winner: Le Fay! _ **

Morgiana's body shook, soon returning to normal as she lost consciousness, her eyes still open and pure white.

"I think... I need... to sit down for now..." Le Fay panted.

* * *

Kuroka gave an annoyed look.

"Now, time for a new light show..." Mulan announced.

"**Balance Breaker, Endless Lightspeed Star!**"

Mulan back flipped in the sky, the gem on her gauntlet breaking off to form something like a Valkyrie's armor around her.

"Be purified by the light!" Mulan shouted.

She thrust a beam of light from her helmet, while Kuroka just gritted her teeth in annoyance.

"Alright, I'll play your game... my way that is!" Kuroka announced.

"**Kuro Mode!**"

She initiated her transformation, the blazing black flames suddenly swallow all the light, making Mulan sweat as Kuroka rushed at her.

"**Sterling Meteor!**"

Various spots on the ground begin to sparkle, bursting into light, and rushing at Kuroka if they miss. However, she simply dodged around them, accelerating before appearing right before Mulan.

"Wait, hold just a-" Mulan begged, sweating a bit.

Kuroka jumped over her, causing Mulan's own attack to pummel into her, and leaving her dazed.

"And now, you get what you deserve." Kuroka stated.

She gave a Senjutsu infused kick to Mulan's face, making a loud gong like sound due to Mulan's armor.

** _ Winner: Kuroka! _ **

Mulan's Balance Breaker faded, and she fell onto her back, her eyes spiraling from her daze.

"Had I been anyone else, you might have stood a chance." Kuroka smirked in a cat-like manner.

* * *

Yumina finally saw Connla's transformation end, revealing him in an armor that seemed like it was made from solid shadows.

"Whoa, nice texture on that armor." Yumina remarked.

"Uh... thank you?" Connla replied, caught off guard by that.

At that moment, he saw Yumina teleport over to him, causing him to realize he fell for her feint. However, it mattered little as her attempt to punch him had her suddenly go through him, yet she clearly felt her touching him.

"What the?" She said confused.

Connla chuckled at her reaction, turning towards her with a deep smirk as he summoned his sword back.

"Hey, wait a second, your power... now I get it! Aside from what your armor just did, this Sacred Gear, it's like the Canis Lykaon!" Yumina realized.

"Of course, that's because a Night Reflection was the very Sacred Gear that created that Longinus. This armor is the power the Canis Lykaon lost when it fused with one." Connla revealed, showing his sword for emphasis.

Yumina sweated a bit, trying to figure out what to do.

"Now, since you can't seem to hit me, I believe this fight is mine!" Connla announced, rushing forward.

Yumina suddenly saw his shadows grabbing rocks, tossing them at her. When she tried to dodge by teleporting, she simply saw the other shadowy tendrils redirect the missed shots back at her.

'Come on, think Yumina... why did your attack go through the armor? What make my punch fail?' She thought.

She thought hard, comparing Tobio's Balance Breaker compared to Connla's, wondering what was different... then, she remembered something her sister had told her.

'Wait, if his armor is a literal shadow, and you can't physically touch one, then... of course!' She realized, smiling.

"**Mirage Shift!**"

Yumina's body became intangible, surprising Connla.

"What!?" He gasped.

Yumina rushed at him, and then gave him a kick to the face, this time she landed a blow.

"Yes, and just to double check..." Yumina grinned.

Yumina unleashed a shadow spell, making Connla yell in pain as it managed to strike him as well.

"So, that's your armor's weakness, physical attacks don't work, you can only be hurt by energy, which is the only thing that could influence someone's shadow!" Yumina stated.

"I can't believe you realized it so quickly, damn!" Connla coughed.

At that moment, he suddenly noticed a bunch of black orbs appear around him, making him pale under his helmet.

"Sorry, but I don't fight fair due to my power, do you mind?" Yumina joked.

"...I don't think I have the right to comment, or the time to-" Connla replied, expecting he'd get knocked out.

Yumina teleported at that instant, and her silhouettes flew at him.

"**Phantom Schism!**"

Connla was slammed by them, collapsing from the phantom pain overwhelming his mind.

** _ Winner: Yumina! _ **

Yumina fell to her knees exhausted, holding herself up with her hands.

"Too many... teleports!" Yumina wheezed out.

* * *

Yuuma raised a hand towards Perseus, forming pink lightning in her hand.

"**Fell Lightning!**"

Perseus evaded her attack, and soon sighed, glaring at her.

"Very well, you've forced me to open the eye of Medusa." Perseus stated.

"Eh!?" Yuuma panicked.

Perseus held out Aegis Mineralization, and it began to split slightly, revealing a hidden middle area underneath the plating.

"**Balance Breaker... Gorgon's Vanquisher.**"

That hidden area soon opened, revealing a serpent's eye, and the moment it gazed at Yuuma... she suddenly screamed in pain, feeling parts of her body turn stone-colored, and her vision getting hazy as if she had been poisoned.

"W-what did you do to me..." Yuuma said weakly.

"Gorgon's Vanquisher enhances the effect of my shield's paralyzing affect, and worse? The gaze of Medusa is inducing a phantom feeling of being poisoned in your system... you've lost, that's not something you can fight off." Perseus said, shaking his head as he drew his sword.

He walked towards Yuuma, and as he did... Yuuma's hazy vision hears something.

_"You're weak Yuuma, nothing ever changes!" Raynare's voice echoed._

Yuuma's eyes widen, and her body shook.

_"How could you ever be considered strong in any manner? You took my abuse, and never said a thing, just took it all like the weakling you are!" Raynare laughed n a mocking tone._

Yuuma's body shook more, and her eyes started to regain focus as she felt rage build up in her.

"...No, you're wrong." She whispered.

_"Oh, trying to play the hero? Why don't you just die, get it over with, spare the world your-" Raynare mocked again._

This time, Yuuma's own mental image grabbed her by the throat, and alongside her physical form... she slowly looked up, glaring intensely.

"I'M NOT THAT WEAK PUSHOVER ANYMORE!" Yuuma screamed.

Yuuma suddenly rushed at Perseus, shattering the effects on her body as he was caught off guard, surprised by her willpower suddenly spiking enough to break free.

"**Fell Inferno!**"

She slammed her hand into Perseus' Sacred Gear, shattering the shield with dark pink flames.

"No, not now!" Perseus gasped, knowing he couldn't reform it in time.

"**Fell Blizzard!**"

He was suddenly struck by a storm of pink ice fired at him, smashing into his chest, and making his eyes go blank as he fell over.

** _ Winner: Yuuma! _ **

He fainted on the ground, and then Yuuma fell on one knee, coughing out a bit of blood before she managed to collect herself, smiling.

"...I told you, I'm not weak anymore, big sis." Yuuma declared softly, looking up.

* * *

Arthur did his best to hold back against Sieg's rapid slashing, having all six Cursed Swords in hand thanks to his Sacred Gear.

"**BALMUNG!**"

He swung Balmung downwards, and Arthur suddenly felt powerful whirlwinds blow at him, pushing him back.

"Come on, is that all you have!?" Sieg mocked.

"Far from it." Arthur grunted.

Sieg jumped into the air, spinning for a sextuple sword slash.

"**Lancelot's Shield!**"

Arthur's skin was encased in a diamond shell, causing all the sword strikes to do nothing other than bounce off.

"Oh?" Sieg said in surprise, yet excitement.

"**Gawain's Reach!**"

Arthur slashed forward, creating a rift where his arm prepared to slash Sieg from afar.

"**DAINSLEIF!**"

Sieg swung up the said sword, creating huge ice pillars to shield him.

"**TYRFING! NOTHUNG!**"

Combining the two swords, Sieg thrust his blades forward, creating a huge ripple from the strength, and making a precise explosion where Arthur was standing.

"And that's game over!" Sieg declared.

"No, the game has only just begun!" Arthur declared.

Sieg turned, and saw Arthur fly at him from above, as he readied Gram to strike... he suddenly gasped as a swirl of energy appeared around Caliburn.

"**Percival's Counter!**"

Sieg tried to move Gram away, but he was too late, and he felt his strongest sword's power reflect back against him, causing him to tumble across the ground. He tried to lift his arms, but his extra ones faded, making all six of his blades retreat into his Sacred Gear.

** _ Winner: Arthur! _ **

Arthur looked at Sieg as he fell on his knees.

"...I hate you." Sieg stated with annoyance, falling onto his face.

* * *

Herc readied a punch, and Bikou slid under her, giving him his chance.

"**Golden Ancestry!**"

The Flying Nimbus flew at Bikou, while he swung his Ryuu Jingu Bang up, and the latter fused into him alongside the Nimbus, turning Bikou's body the same color as his ancestor. Herc turned, looking impressed.

"So, taking after your old man, eh?" Herc asked.

"This is my own thing, the name only honors the color he wears." Bikou answered.

Herc smirked at that.

"Well, I have something my ancestor lacked, the power to actually uses the stars that represent him in the sky!" Herc replied.

"**Balance Breaker, Detonation - Mighty Comet!**"

The aura around Heracles' body began glowing, transforming into numerous missile-like objects, making Bikou's eye twitch as he noticed they looked ready to discharge towards him at any moment.

"...I wanna swear, but I don't know which one to use." Bikou whispered, sweating a bit.

Herc roared, unleashing a missile fire of his aura, prompting Bikou to rush ahead as he took to the sky, holding his palms out.

"**COMET STRIKE!**"

Herc shouted as he charged his aura around his fist, unleashing a flying energy fist towards Bikou, and it exploded around him.

"STRIKE!" Herc cheered.

"No, that's a Gutter Ball!" Bikou corrected.

Herc's eyes widened, unaware Bikou was behind him, and too late to react as two Ryuu Jingu Bangs stretch out of his palms. He tried to move, but Bikou channeled Touki into them before shifting them, slamming another two strikes that crushed his sides.

"No... way..." Herc choked out.

** _ Winner: Bikou! _ **

The mighty mammoth of the Hero Faction Elites fell onto his back, his unconscious face frozen in shock as he slammed onto the ground.

* * *

Jingu screamed in anger, and a dark mist left her body, surprising Irina.

"This energy, it feels so... wrong. What is it?" Irina wondered, a bit shaken.

"Let's see how you deal with this... my Sub-Species Balance Breaker!"

Irina's eyes widened at that, and Jingu screamed more, her voice distorting in a dangerous manner as the shards of Freezing Archaeopteryx surround her.

"**Balance Breaker... Zero-Life Kiss of Cocytus!**"

The shards stab into her, making her scream before her eyes glow, making her daggers, and her quiver full of arrows suddenly morph in shape. Her entire body merged with the ice, making a mutated, alien-like version of the Freezing Archaeopteryx from her body... with a skeletal body.

Irina briefly drops the True Excalibur in shock.

"...Oh, my god!" Irina said in horror.

Jingu roared inside this new form, creating a black blizzard, and making Irina shiver from the cold that pelted on her.

"...This feels like death, but why would she have that in a Sub-Species Balance Breaker?" Irina questioned.

Jingu rushed ahead at Irina, ramming into her, and making her scream. However, she quickly gets onto her feet, and holds up Excalibur towards her.

"Wait, it looks like she has less control now, which means... **Excalibur Ruler!**"

Jingu suddenly felt her body lose its free will, making it shake.

"W-what are you doing to me!?" Jingu demanded angrily.

Irina giggled a bit, smirking at her opponent.

"Looks like being together isn't as effective, or you honestly haven't practiced using this form." She replied.

Irina formed her clones, and all of them rushed in her place.

"Go!" The clones shouted.

Combining the powers of Excalibur Destruction with Excalibur Mimic, the blades split apart, with each using the strength of Destruction to smash onto her. After hitting her enough, all of them came together, swinging down for a massive strike against the icy skeleton head.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Jingu's voice stammered for a moment, and then her Sacred Gear body shattered, making her fall to the floor, shaking as she tried to move in vain.

** _ Winner: Irina! _ **

Irina breathed, panting heavily as she fell on her butt.

"Take that, cheater!" Irina exclaimed with pride.

She ran off to find the others, while Jingu glared at her, hate filled in her eyes.

"...I'll make sure your entire group is the first my father sends to the grave!" She said, swearing vengeance for her humiliation.

* * *

Issei shouted as he rushed at Cao Cao, soon stopping to unleash a barrage of fireballs at him.

"**Dominating Flare!**"

Cao Cao dodged the flaming strikes, thrusting through those he couldn't avoid. He suddenly gasped as an entire wave of fire came his way.

"Let's see you dodge this!" Issei exclaimed.

"I can't, so... **Horse Treasure - Atsusa Ratana!**" Cao Cao shouted.

He taps the True Longinus against his shoulder, and he suddenly teleports in front of the flaming wave.

"What the?" Issei gasped.

"My Balance Breaker is special, you see... I basically have seven Balance Breakers in one." Cao Cao revealed.

Issei's eyes widened in shock, unable to believe what he heard... yet he knew it had to be true considering what he saw, and the Sacred Gear he was facing off against.

"Atsusa Ratana is my power to teleport whatever I touch, including myself, and the best part is that I don't pay cost for using it." He added in response to Issei's reaction.

He zoomed ahead, making Issei raise his left hand up.

**[BLADE!]**

"**Ascalon!**"

Issei swung the blade as soon as it formed, making it extend itself.

"**Wheel Treasure - Chatsuka Ratana!**"

Cao Cao struck the blade, causing it to shatter and retreat back into Issei's gauntlet.

"No way!"

_"[I remember that one, it destroys weapons! Ascalon is useless against his Balance Breaker!]"_ Belzard explained, sweating a bit.

Issei screamed as he unleashed his Domineering Will's effects, pushing Cao Cao down to the ground.

"That won't work... **Itsutei Ratana - Skill Treasure!**"

Suddenly, Issei felt his Domineering Will's effects fade, making him cough as his scale mail reformed, cancelling his Blazing Soul.

**"[What was that one!?]"** Ddraig asked in shock.

_"[I don't know, I won before my time's wielder could use it against me, though the evidence here implies it might be a negation power...]"_ Belzard grimaced.

"Damn it, all his Balance Breaker abilities are diverse, it's almost a perfect counter!" Issei grunted.

Cao Cao readied his spear, waiting for another attack.

"Come on, you still have fight left Sekiryuutei, a fight's meaningless if you don't give me all you have!" He stated.

"Considering we're enemies, isn't that the last thing you want?" Issei questioned.

"Why have power if you don't get reason to use it? I challenge all who come at me, victory or defeat!" Cao Cao answered.

Issei was surprised by that, but he pushed it aside for now as he rushed forward.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

Issei readied a punch at Cao Cao, moving at top speed, prompting him to parry.

"**Pearl Treasure - Mala Treasure!**"

Issei's punch was redirected, sending him into the air, and Cao Cao soon readied for a jump.

"**Elephant Treasure - Hatsutei Ratana**!"

Cao Cao starts flying towards Issei, surprising him at the sight of his fifth ability.

"Really!?" Issei exclaimed.

**"[Oh boy... partner, we might have to use Izumi again.]"** Ddraig sighed in defeat.

"Yeah, guess we don't have a choice." Issei nodded, closing his eyes.

Cao Cao noticed Issei go still, and then suddenly... he disappeared! He looked around for the sight of his opponent, only to hear a female's voice shouting from behind. Before he could react, an electrified punch smashed him in the face, sending him flying.

He crashed into a nearby building, and one he got up, noticed the scale mail armor in a less protective version, with long brown hair flowing out.

"...What trick is this?" Cao Cao said somewhat confused.

"DON'T ASK ABOUT IT!" Izumi cried in response.

Cao Cao's expression went a bit flat, and decided he probably didn't want to know the answer.

Izumi gave a loud scream, rushing at lighting speed, faster than Cao Cao could react.

"Alright, time to call the cavalry... **Householder Treasure - Kahabatei Ratana!**"

A bunch of Chinese armors suddenly formed around Cao Cao, and immediately begin charging at Izumi, who was forced to move around to dodge them.

_"[Kid, I think Izumi's run her course! You need strength over speed!]"_ Belzard suggested.

"Thank you!" Izumi replied.

She glowed red as she morphed back into Issei, and once he did, he opened his jaw.

"**FLAME WAVE!**"

**[PENETRATE!]**

Issei breathed fire out of his jaw, burning through all of the warriors.

"I'll admit it, you've lasted pretty long, so you earn an honor... the first one to ever face my final Ratana in battle!" Cao Cao announced.

Issei's eyes widened at that, readying himself for a deadly attack.

"**General Treasure - Balinayaka Ratana!**"

**"[Here it comes!]"**

A beam fired from the true Longinus, smashing into Issei with incredible force as it started cracking his Scale Mail.

"You put up a good fight, but unfortunately... this battle is over." Cao Cao sighed, wanting to fight longer.

Issei kept screaming, unable to hold on.

"No, this... can't be it..." Issei breathed out.

_"[...This is far from it kid!]"_

**「** **My Hero Academia: You Say Run** **」**

He felt an arm touch his shoulder, looking behind him to see a silhouette of Belzard, only visible to him.

"Belzard?" Issei breathed in shock.

It wasn't just him, the other past wielders that came both before, and after him were also shown standing behind Issei. They all put a hand on his shoulder, or his back, looking at him with the same expressions.

"No way, all of you... you came..." Issei breathed, his surprise growing larger.

**"That's right, all of us..."**

_"We heard your struggle, and our voices came."_

"Back when we tried to coerce you into the Juggernaut Drive, you defied it, and changed our minds."

"{Then, you did the unthinkable, and destroyed the Juggernaut Drive.}"

"(You made a future for us, no... I think you had long before we ever spoke.)"

"[Now, you're in trouble, and you need strength...]"

"=So, it is time we pay our debt, and lend our strength to the future you created!="

Issei's body began to glow, catching Cao Cao's attention.

"What is this?" He asked in surprise.

"\\\You are the Sekiryuutei, the one who will replace the Crimson Purgatory with a Crimson Future!\\\"

"**N**o**w** g**o**, **w**i**n** t**h**i**s** b**a**t**t**l**e**.**.**. **I**s**s**e**i** H**y**o**u**d**o**u**!**"

Issei suddenly screamed as he feels all their power flow into him, making Cao Cao gasp as the resulting power broke his Balinayaka Ratana apart.

**[BOOSTED GEAR - THIRD LIBERATION!]**

The Boosted Gear shines brighter than ever, awakening a new power as the Hero Faction's leader watched with interest.

"Looks like this fight isn't over yet." Cao Cao smiled, actually happy over this development.

"**[I, who has awakened! I am the Heavenly Red Dragon who discarded the title of Domination! I shall walk the road of righteousness by having infinite dreams, and become the Crimson King of the Future! I promise you all, I shall reveal the path with true crimson light!]**" Issei and Ddraig chanted together.

"**[DIABOLUS DRAGON - GOD!]**"

Issei's Scale Mail shattered, only to be replaced with an evolved form that resembled a Dragon even more than it had prior, with a few traits that matched Ddraig's body. Finishing his transformation, Issei looked up towards his opponent.

"Amazing, simply amazing! This is the kind of fight I want! This is why I'm thankful the supernatural exists!" Cao Cao said excitedly, his blood pumping.

"Huh? That sounds odd, why say that when you're helping the Khaos Brigade!?" Issei asked.

"I have my reasons, but mostly? I just want to fight strong rivals like you, so as my greatest respect..." Cao Cao answered.

Cao Cao held the True Longinus with both hands, aiming its blade at the sky.

"**Oh Spear, the true Holy Spear which pierces through God... suck the ambition of the King that sleeps within me, and pierce through the gap of blessing and destruction. You, Will of God, announce the truth of my idea, and turn into a glow!**" Cao Cao chanted.

For a moment, nothing happened, but then the blade of the True Longinus glowed. Once its radiant light shone from the ultimate Longinus...

**« Will of God: ...Oh young one, wielder of the spear of Saint Longinus, I hear your call. I hear your desire, your wish, and I beseech you! I gave you the strength fight the current Sekiryuutei to the fullest on equal grounds! »**

Cao Cao felt a surge of power awaken in him, and he gave an excited look towards Issei.

"So, that was the Will of God, the consciousness living in the True Longinus?" Issei asked.

_"[That's right, think of it like a Balance Breaker on top of another Balance Breaker. However, this trick of his, the Truth Idea? God will only side with the noble one]"_ Belzard explained.

_"[I wonder... what he said, and how he hasn't done anything to take an advantage, but faced you head on? Is he truly the villain he appears to be?]"_ He wondered aloud.

Issei wondered about that, noticing Cao Cao's actions did feel odd.

"Guess I've gotta beat the crap out of him so we can ask him about that, since it seems like that's what he's asking for!" Issei decided.

Issei shouted as he flew at Cao Cao, with his opponent doing the same. Issei swung out his fist, while Cao Cao thrust his Sacred Gear forward, and as the two neared one another...

"All my feelings, I'll pour them into my fist, and break through to the future! This is the path... of the Red Dragon Emperor!" Issei announced.

**[BOOSTING BREAKER!]**

Issei screamed as all of his power surged up at that moment, and he smashed his fist against the True Longinus.

**[EXPLOSION... MAXIMUM!]**

Both fighters shouted with all their might as their attacks crashed against one another, breaking the area around them to shreds! As this happened, the faces of the past Sekiryuutei's fly by one by one.

**"Issei!"**

_"Issei!"_

"Issei!"

"{Issei!}"

"(Issei!)"

"[Issei!]"

"=Issei!="

"\\\Issei!\\\"

"**I**s**s**e**i**!"

Many more Sekiryuutei who couldn't share their voice had their faces do the same, and that's when Ddraig and Belzard appear by Issei's side, nodding their heads.

_"[Go, Issei!]"_   
**"[Go, Issei!]"**

Issei screamed as his fist flew through, smashing into Cao Cao with a ton of red energy flowing out from his fist, and with that... a huge burst went off!

** _ Winner: Issei! _ **

Cao Cao's power boost faded, and he landed on the ground, his body clearly having been damaged in ones that should make most scream in agony, yet for someone with his endurance? It didn't even faze him, or at least not enough that he felt any real pain.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Issei soon groaned in pain, having stressed himself pretty far to win.

"...No doubt, that was the greatest fight of my life." Cao Cao chuckled.

"It almost sounds like you just wanted to fight me." Issei panted.

Cao Cao closed his eyes, surprising Issei.

"Let's just say, the Hero Faction is the white sheep of the Khaos Brigade, most are just those shunned for their powers, ones they didn't choose to be born with. Even I once faced that tragedy..."

The sight of Cao Cao crying over multiple dead bodies flashed by, and Issei somehow felt like he saw it, despite he couldn't make out anything.

"...Then why do all of this?" Issei asked.

"You couldn't understand, not until your girl finally finishes her end, and breaks the curse for good." Cao Cao answered.

Issei was surprised by that, and Cao Cao starts getting up.

"Let's just say... even the Will of God has a lot to say, and one day your Dragon will remember an important promise." He answered.

Before leaving, he swiped his arm, causing a familiar bit of ice to fly over to Issei. His eyes widened as he saw Yasaka inside, only for it to break, and let her go of her still unconscious form.

"Huh?"

"Georg is the only one left to defeat, she'll wake up once that happens, I'm sure your girl will beat her... after all, you've proven you can do it. Even if this fails to change what we hoped it would." Cao Cao explained.

Looking at his retreating form, Issei found new respect for Cao Cao, while still unsure what he was talking about...

"Maybe, he's the kind of Hero that has to the things that don't seem heroic from an obvious view." Issei realized, wondering if this whole situation had something more to it.

**"[Perhaps he is.]"** Ddraig agreed.

* * *

Georg layered every spell he could over his book, and at that moment... a shadow representing one of Leo's Anti-Monsters formed, summoning what looked like a hybrid between a Kyuubi, Octopus, and an Ankylosaurus.

"Albion, please tell me that isn't-" Vali asked worriedly.

**"(No, it isn't Yasaka, but I do believe he made it using a sample of her powers.)"** Albion answered.

Vali sighed in relief, and the magical beast soon had Georg float on its head, tapping it to make it suddenly move, roaring to life as the magician acted as its brain.

_"(There's our proof, it couldn't be here if he needs to be its brain.)"_ Elsha remarked.

Vali quickly takes a position, staring down the monster.

"Alright, let's kick its sorry ass!" Vali shouted.

_"(If there's any kind of princess such that should be saying that, it would be you, Princess of Hell.)"_ Elsha giggled.

Vali flew at the monster, and then unleashed a geyser of poison from her hand, but the monster lunged forward, pushing it away from the force before it slammed its tails down on Vali, knocking her to the ground with a heavy thud. She screamed in pain as this happened, feeling the impact smash against her body.

"It seems this is it, finish it." Georg ordered.

The monster prepared to attack, and right as Vali looked like she had no way out...

"COMING THROUGH!"

Georg showed surprise at that, causing both him and Vali to turn as a giant, green Asian Dragon rammed into the monster, tearing off four of its tails that morphed into smaller one-tailed counterparts. The remaining half suddenly were smashed by a long staff, leaving the original with only a single tail.

Managing to get free, Vali knocked the monster away, and looked to see who came to help her by facing the other eight counterparts... Yu-Long turned and smirked at her, while Sun Wukong gave a stern, but reassuring smile.

"Sun Wukong!" Vali exclaimed.

"Hey!" Yu-Long complained.

**"(Yu Long, she's never met you, how is she supposed to call out your name?)"** Vali groaned, annoyed as ever by Yu-Long's antics.

Yu-Long was about to complain, only for him to be interrupted by Wukong's staff hitting him.

"Stop whining." He warned.

"Vali, it is good to see you, I'd like to ask how Bikou's doing, but we can save that for later."

Vali nodded, turning towards Georg.

**「** **My Hero Academia: Jet Set Run** **」**

"Alright, the time for games has ended, I _will_ save Kunou's mother, and I _will_ defeat you here! No matter what, I will not let my efforts in reaching this far be in vain!" Vali screamed, showing her resolve.

"**(RISING MORNINGSTAR!)**"

Vali's scale mail breaks apart, and her counterpart to Issei's Blazing Soul activate.

As she looked towards the Hero Faction's second-in-command, she looked back on some memories of her past, showing her tears, and her bond with Issei. Then other memories like meeting her peerage, and then Lilith, but most of all... the support Albion had always given her.

"Elsha, if my predecessors are watching... let them know this, that I'm going to create the future just like Issei is!" Vali stated.

She instantly moved so fast, Georg couldn't spot her. Unaware to her, said predecessors were listening, with Elsha smiling as she looked at their expressions.

At that moment, Georg had the monster smash his hand down as Vali reappeared in his view, but he missed. Vali takes the chance to grab the monster, and then suddenly throws it! Georg nearly lost his balance before Vali jumped up, charging a white sphere in her hands, imbuing her Primal Abyss into it.

"**(SHINING ABYSS STRIKE!)**"

The white sphere flies at the monster, and then explodes, but instead of the black hole affect her Primal Abyss normally had, it was more like a white hole and threw it around by repelling it from the singularity.

"Here goes!" Vali exclaimed, preparing another attack.

"I won't let you!" Georg shouted.

The monster got up, readying an attack... only for Vali to hold a hand up.

**(REFLECT!)**

The monster moves its head forward, only for it to slam against one of Vali's magic circles for her reflect ability, knocking it back down before it could do anything. Vali makes multiple magic circles for her Cocytus spell in an instant.

"**Cocytus Blizzard!**"

She fires multiple Dragon heads of ice, and they all slam onto the monster with full force, layering multiple freezing waves over the beast. Georg suddenly fell off, surprising himself as he teleported to the ground.

Vali took the chance to charge all the power she could into her Divine Dividing wings, and screamed.

"**(ALMIGHTY FREEZE!)**"

The attack strikes into the monster, making Georg scream as a chain reaction makes him feel the same force of the monster. Yu-Long unleashed an emerald green fire, while Sun Wukong simply thrust the true Ryuu Jingu Bang through the rest. All nine copies of the monster explode at that moment, making Georg fall back.

** _ Winner: Vali! _ **

Georg's Dimension Lost mist faded, and the three looked at him, with Vali breathing heavily as her Rising Morningstar dispelled itself.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Georg slowly got back up, putting his glasses back on as he readjusted them.

"...You have won, but our spell has had the time it needed to be used." Georg stated, not too focused on his defeat.

Vali gasped, and at that moment, Georg taps his book, forming a magic circle to initiate the giant spell...

Nothing happened, shocking Georg before he gave a defeated expression.

"It seems that we don't have that kind of power, even like this. It seems he was right all along..." Georg said, accepting the result.

He looked at Vali, who glared at him.

"Your fellow Dragon should have already beaten Cao Cao, so your friend's mother should be with him. We shall withdraw, we have lost in every possible way." Georg stated.

Huh? Hey, wait!" Vali called out.

Georg teleported away with a spell, and Vali sighed at the result.

"...Albion, something felt wrong there, it didn't sound like he was summoning Trihexa in the first place." Vali mentioned, an odd feeling in her chest.

**"(I agree, let's ask Issei and Ddraig later, best we don't involve the others when this topic could go anywhere, and could form many misunderstandings.)"** Albion suggested, feeling similar to his host.

* * *

Outside, everyone noticed the Leylines calm down, the two sisters of the Shinto Trio seeing nothing bad had happened, making them both fall to their knees in relief.

"I think I had a heart attack... three times, in just a few minutes." Tsukuyomi wheezed out, releasing all her terror and stress.

"When Susanoo wakes up, I'm so giving him my worst fire for blacking out when he did." Amaterasu replied, a glare in her eyes.

Both sisters gave a dark look at their still sleeping brother.

At that moment, everyone found themselves outside the Youkai realm, appearing by three deities. Everyone blinked in surprise by how they were suddenly forced out, though the Kyuubi Sisters soon noticed their mother in Issei's arms.

"Mama!" Kunou called out.

"Mom!" Nainen shouted.

The two got near her, with the former nudging her awake... after a few seconds, Yasaka groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. Looking at the two, Kunou's eyes began to water, happiness flowing throughout her body.

"...Kunou? Nainen? Where am I, what happened? Why are we back in-" Yasaka asked many questions, only for Kunou to hug her.

"MAMA!" Kunou cried, wailing months' worth of tears out.

After Issei helped get back on her feet, Yasaka showed surprise at Kunou's action, but soon hugged her in return.

"There, there. Everything's fine my little Kunou." Yasaka smiled, rubbing her head.

Amaterasu sighed in relief, walking up to the two, and catching the older Kyuubi's attention as she saw the Goddess.

"Lady Amaterasu, glad to see you're here, I need to tell you off-" Yasaka tried to say, but Amaterasu held up a hand.

"Yasaka, I need to say this right now... you've been missing, and apparently unconscious, for a few months." Amaterasu stated, quickly ripping off the bandage.

Yasaka's eyes widen, somewhat understanding why Kunou was crying right now.

"Months? Oh, my heavens, what month is it now!?" She asked worriedly.

"Uh... late August." Tsukuyomi answered.

"T-that's almost three whole months, oh my heavens..." Yasaka paled, hugging Kunou closer.

Vali soon walked up to Yasaka, kneeling by her, and catching her attention.

"Vali, is that you? Wow, you've become so gorgeous since I last saw you." Yasaka praised, making the Princess of Hell blush.

"O-oh my, thank you... I've been watching Kunou the past few months." Vali replied.

"Really? I thank you, I'm glad she was in good hands all this time." Yasaka smiled.

At that moment, Vali's dam broke, and she bowed onto the ground that confused the Youkai Leader.

"I'm so sorry Yasaka, we found Kunou nearly dying, and I was in such a panic I turned her into a Devil to save her, but forgot we had a healer that could have done that! Please forgive me for my stupidity!" Vali apologized, her face pressed against the ground.

Yasaka blinked at that, looking at Kunou who gave an embarrassing nod.

"Vali, you were trying to save her life, right? It doesn't matter the form, not as long as my daughter's still in the world of the living." Yasaka reassured, rubbing her head.

Vali lifted her head up, tears flooding from her eyes as she looked at the Youkai leader.

"Yasaka, you're too kind!" Vali sniffled.

'Melodramatic, much?' Kuroka thought with a sweat drop.

At that moment, Susanoo finally woke up, lifting his body from the ground as a certain pair of Goddess looked at him. They both put a hand on Yasaka, who quickly realized what they needed her to do.

"Hmm? Oh, is it all over? Great job protecting the-" Susanoo stated with a grin.

He stopped midway, noticing his redhead sister, and the three Kyuubi all looking at him, each with a flame in their hands.

"W-wait, why are you all holding flames? Can't we talk about this!?" Susanoo sweated, soon beginning as she crawled away.

Everyone soon winced, hearing him scream as he was overdosed on a fire punishment, with Tsukuyomi laughing her ass off at this karma. Using the moment, Mio cleared her throat.

"...We should probably clean up while they take care of that?" She suggested.

Everyone looked at the city's damage.

"Yeah, we might wanna start fixing this." Tsukuyomi agreed, giving an awkward chuckle.

* * *

As thinks were being cleaned up, Bikou suddenly noticed Sun Wukong walk towards him, making the Rook of Lucifer shake in fear.

"H-hey there old man..." Bikou said fearfully.

"Hey, same as ever, little brat." Sun Wukong stated, slamming his fist on Bikou's head.

Issei noticed that, looking at Vali confused as she gave an embarrassed chuckle.

"They... have a unique relationship, part of which relates to why Bikou ended up as my Rook." She confessed, scratching her cheek.

"Unique? How is that unique when he looks like he's so scared that he'll wet himself!?" Issei asked in disbelief.

Vali gave the same embarrassed chuckle as Le Fay walked up to Kuroka, who was still giving the distant/silent treatment towards Vali.

"Are you still mad at her?" She asked.

"...You should know the answer to that." Kuroka said, slightly annoyed.

The Bishop of Lucifer sighed, flicking Kuroka in the forehead.

"Ow! Le Fay, the hell was that for-" Kuroka growled.

"Kuroka, you can be such an idiot at times." Le Fay said bluntly.

Kuroka flinched at that, surprised she actually heard Le Fay of all people slap her with that choice of words.

"I get it, maybe not telling all of us something isn't the best thing, but Vali's already been through enough crap. If she isn't gonna tell us all something, then we have a right to respect that, most of us didn't even know about her grandfather until earlier this year! As for her telling Issei? Well, I don't see what's wrong with that." Le Fay stated, hammering down the facts.

"Le Fay, it isn't right for her to only trust her Queen with everything, what about-" Kuroka tried to counter.

"Kuroka, who do you trust most in this world? Who would you say your first friend, regardless if they're your family? To me, that's Arthur, not Vali." Le Fay interrupted.

Kuroka went silent, and hearing that... she had to admit if there was anyone she trusted most in this world, it was her little sister.

"That's exactly why her telling Issei something is something we have no right to judge... he was Vali's first friend, back when she was so fragile that even Azazel couldn't fully connect with her after he rescued her. He was the one that melted her icy wall of fear, the one she could trust most, the one that healed her, the one..." Le Fay stated, her hands shaking a bit.

As she paused for a moment, Kuroka looked away, her ears drooping more, though her expression still slightly mad.

"...The one that's the only reason Vali ever saved you from being a criminal, and let you get your sister back." Le Fay stated, her voice quieted for emphasis.

Kuroka's eyes widened at that, being hit by the words that she had no defense towards.

"Ask yourself this soon Kuroka, is this something worth getting mad over her for, or... can part of you really not forgive her since why you and Shirone ever needed to be saved. You're better than this, so actually prove it to me, because I know how stubborn you really are." Le Fay sighed, soon walking about.

Kuroka lowered her head, her lip quivering a bit before she shook her head, trying to ignore Le Fay's words.

Around that same time, Issei and Vali were talking about what they experienced between their fights with Cao Cao, and Georg. Vali was scratching her chin as Issei was explaining his bit.

"He gave me Yasaka just after I beat him, and his words? it felt like I was talking to someone who does the dirtier stuff for the sake of those needing to keep their hands clean. Not to mention the fact his Longinus has the remnant of God's will, it just feels like his group is..." Issei explained, trailing off.

"...Like he knows something we don't, maybe even the whole Alliance doesn't know?" Vali finished.

Issei nodded at that, making Vali think more.

"You know, now that I think about it... why did Cao Cao even show up during the Summit? Or rather, why was he allowed there? He wasn't allied to any of the Christian Pantheons' Four Great Powers." Vali wondered aloud.

"Not just that, but he mentioned a comment about something Albion and Ddraig forgot, yet was important in some manner." Issei mentioned, getting Vali's attention.

"Wait, really?" Vali asked in surprise.

Issei nodding, prompting both of them to look at their hands.

**"[Hmm... I'll admit, there's a lot I don't remember among the past two millennia that I don't recall fully, if at all. I'm honestly surprise that I recall what my fights with Albion began over.]"** Ddraig admitted.

**"(The same with me, whatever the answer to his words may be, it has been lost to me. Though perhaps we may remember soon enough, such a claim seems to... prophetic.)"** Albion remarked.

The two Heavenly Dragon users thought hard on this, looking at each other once a few moments passed.

"I guess we need to tell Lilith about this, it might be important." Issei stated.

"Yeah, we'll make sure to do that." Vali agreed.

* * *

Hours later, all of Kyoto was repaired, everyone had come back with a fitting cover story made, Bikou had... survived his brief reunion with Wukong, Susanoo had his punishment dealt, and everyone was as back to normal as it could be.

Standing by the train station, Vali's group was about to see Yasaka, Nainen, and the Shinto trio off as they returned home to Kuoh Town. Yasaka adjusted a back onto Kunou's back, and she smiled once she finished, with Kunou turning with a similar smile.

"You've grown so much in so little time, I promise me, and your sister will come visit during the Finals." Yasaka smiled, rubbing her daughter's head.

"Just make sure you win it little sis, because I don't wanna have to tell my children you lost when I get older." Nainen joked, prompting a playful hit from Kunou.

The three of them laughed, with Kunou hugging them in response.

"I'll miss you, but I'll visit whenever I can." Kunou promised.

Vali wiped a few tears at that, smiling before walking forward.

"Yasaka? It may seem impossible, but... if there's a way to turn Kunou back into a Kyuubi, I'll find it. She has that option if she wants to." Vali promised, making Yasaka smile.

"Thank you, Vali, and just so you know, if Kunou wants to stay with you, she has my blessings there as well." She replied.

Vali nodded, her and Kunou giggling as they looked at each other. At that moment, everyone heard the train arrive, prompting Kunou to give one last look at her mother and sister before sniffling a bit.

"I'll... I'll make you proud, I will!" Kunou promised, wiping her eyes.

"Guess you'll always be a bit of a crybaby, though you're our brave, strong crybaby." Nainen smiled.

Kunou sniffled, nodding her head.

Soon, everyone was on the train, waving goodbye. As they left, all the various Youkai in their human disguises wave as their princess left, all of them wishing her good luck.

"Bye everyone, I'll come back to tell you how we won the Finals!" She shouted, waving back happily.

'She went through a lot, but now she's got a great smile... I know she'll truly give it all she has now that she has nothing to worry about.' Vali smiled.

She rested her head against Issei's shoulder, and the Sekiryuutei rubbed his girlfriend's head as he smiled at her.

'Just a bit longer, and then... I can finally tell you.' He thought.

* * *

The Hero Faction was seen as they began nursing their wounds, Sieg wincing as he dabbed disinfectant on a cut he received from Arthur's last attack.

"Goddamn, that stings! Who knew my own swords could cut _me_ that badly?" Sieg joked, wincing again.

"...I lost by being called a bad boy, and then getting punched in the face, the humiliation." Leo groaned, a dark cloud swirling over him.

However, the worst reaction came from Jingu, whose face was scrunched up with malice.

"So, how'd your fight go?" Connla asked.

Jingu simply threw her fist, punching him in his crown jewels, surprising everyone as he fell to the ground.

"...Who the hell peed in your breakfast!" Connla winced, his voice high from the pain.

"Piss off." Jingu warned, her eyes glaring with rage.

Connla flinched.

"...Yes ma'am." He quickly agreed.

Walking out of the room, Jingu headed to a certain spot, opening a magic circle.

"They failed, begin preparations for when the Tournament's Final match ends." Jingu stated, speaking with Hades.

"Understood, just bear with it a bit longer." Hades replied.

"Of course, father... you're the one who taught me that good things come to those that wait. " Jingu replied, smirking as her eyes turned to mock her so called _allies_ in the Hero Faction.

* * *

After a long trip home, Issei was seen stretching as he walked down the hall, ready to take a relaxing bath, when suddenly...

"Dang it, this time for sure!" Irina shouted.

Issei backtracked a bit, looking to see Irina holding Excalibur, using her Excalibur Replicator ability to make her six copies before shouting loudly, and all rushing at once to a series of slashes that formed into a seven-pointed star shape. A glow formed as it tried to discharge holy power from the clones fading in... only to fizzle.

Seeing she failed to make it work... again, Irina panted briefly. It was at that moment she saw Issei looking at her.

"Issei?" She stated in shock.

"Sorry, I was heading to the baths and I heard you. Working on a new technique?" Issei answered, then questioned.

Irina nodded, sighing a bit.

"I'm trying to make something like Xenovia's Cross Crisis, I have a good feeling I'll fight her when she aids Ineelana during the Finals, so I need to have a way to stand on even ground with her." She admitted.

"Hmm... I think I got a way to help you out." Issei offered.

Holding his arm up, his Boosted Gear formed.

**[BLADE!]**

Ascalon appeared, followed by Issei using a spell to separate them, and then holding it out to her.

"Try this, maybe a second sword can help you practice." Issei smiled.

"Wow... thank you Issei." Irina smiled, blushing a bit.

He nodded at that, soon preparing to walk out when...

"Issei, you just got confirmed you'll definitely be taking the High-Class Promotion, right?" Irina asked.

"Yeah, and I'm kinda glad it went that way, I want to make sure I'm a man worthy of being with Vali." Issei replied.

"So, any thoughts on who you'll add to your peerage?" She inquired.

Issei wondered on it a bit.

"Well, not just yet." Issei admitted.

"Would you... be averse to trading with anyone?" She questioned.

"Uh, no... I might consider Ravel once I can see more from her, why?" Issei asked, a bit confused by her inquiry.

Irina took a deep breath, soon getting close to Issei.

"Because... when you rank up, and I know you will, I want to be your Knight!" Irina declared.

"Huh!?" Issei was shocked at that statement.

"I already asked Vali about it, and she said that I have her blessing. She trusts me enough to know I won't abuse that role... do you have a problem with that?"

He was surprised by Irina's resolve to do this, and that Vali agreed... though he also knew she was a strong ally, and a friend he put his full trust in.

"Guess it couldn't hurt... alright, I guess you're the first choice in my eventual peerage." Issei agreed with a thumb's up.

"Thank you Issei, hearing that from you? I know I'll be able to do my best in the Finals." She smiled.

At that moment, she pecked Issei on the cheek, making him blush.

"I-Irina!?" Issei blushed worriedly.

"Relax, that was a thank you... unless would you have preferred it on the lips?" Irina giggled, teasing him a bit.

He quickly ran out the door.

"No, the cheek was fine!" He exclaimed.

Irina laughed at that situation, with Vali teleporting in via a magic circle.

"Looks like it worked out, but did you have to tease him there?" Vali questioned.

"Come on Vali, we all know he's gonna marry you one day." Irina replied.

Vali blushed at that, steaming up a bit.

"Irina, not you too..." She whimpered in embarrassment, covering her face.

* * *

**Phew... I did NOT expect this chapter to end up as long as it did, but this was one of those chapters you feel like you just can't split into multiples, so I put it all in one go. Also, that leads to this mini-announcement... *drum roll plays* Not only does this chapter earn the honor of having the largest word count for LOHD, but the honor of my longest chapter to date with a whopping 16,500+ words, shredding my old record of 15,200+!**

**And you saw it right at the end, I mentioned a while back that I had only one member of Issei's eventual peerage confirmed, and it's Irina! Back when Irina joined Vali as her Knight, they didn't have the best relationship due to how Irina forced her to add her in, but they've become fairly close since then. Close enough that Vali trusts Irina enough to trade her to Issei... provided she does nothing further than a peck on the cheek ^^; *chuckles***

**What I can confirm at the very least is that if Vali ends up trading more than just Irina to Issei, the only ones she won't be trading is anyone she had prior to adding Issei to the group, with Kunou the only odd one out since as Vali implied above, I'm leaving things open for the possibility they actually could have Kunou returned to a pure Kyuubi one day if she wants to go that route.**

**One thing I'd also like to bring up about the Balance Breakers for the Hero Faction Elites is for this story, _only_ Jingu's is a sub-species. Everyone else has their Sacred Gears' true Balance Breakers, where in canon, the "Polar Night Longinus Chakravartin" and "Night Reflection Death Cross" are also sub-species types. Considering her true nature, I don't think I need to explain why I'm having her use a sub-species to differentiate her.**

**Most of you are probably more excited by the fact I just had Issei pull off what's essentially the Diabolus Dragon form through the "Third Liberation" you all just saw, and all I'll say is this... Cao Cao's words aren't too far off the mark for why he achieved it. Let's just say that you'll find out by the time LOHD ends, so you won't need to wait until somewhere in JOHD to find out.**

**Anyways, that's it for the Kyoto arc. Next time, we begin the Finals arc, where the last battle of the Rating Game Tournament happens, we see Issei & Vali's promotion tests to become High-Class & Ultimate-Class respectively, and most of all... the battle against Indra happens. Then, following all of that, Season 6 will immediately begin where this one ends, so get ready for the last leg of the first story in the "Heavenly Dragon" series!**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating**


	47. Chapter 47

**We're finally starting the last half of Season 5, and the 10th arc overall, so... welcome to the Finals Arc! This is the arc that's been in waiting since halfway into the third season. Vali is finally about to fight to achieve her dream, and finally change Hell into be what her father had always intended it to, with only the Elders left in her way.**

**Before we actually get to the Finals, there's quite a bit to finish up. The first thing of interest? Last chapter, we learned Issei's been verified for a High-Class Promotion exam, while Vali had been set since last arc's beginning to take the same, only to reach Ultimate-Class. As a result, they'll be dealing with that before they begin fighting, and I think we already know what the results of their exams will be.**

**There's also a few characters that haven't gotten the spotlight who'll be showing up, two who were briefly mentioned in the crossover, but also some new ones, both canon and OCs of mine. It'll make more sense deeper in this chapter, when one of them brings up why they're present. Also, I'll admit right now... two of these characters are ones I kept forgetting to have shown for multiple arcs, in a row ^^;**

**One of the most important things about this arc? Chapter wise at least, it will be the longest to date, and for multiple reasons. The first one being the gap of chapters getting a few things I need in before the battle actually begins. The second, we'll be seeing the pasts for the members of Ineelana's peerage, since both peerages will be in the spotlight due to the one on one battles. Finally, each battle will be its own chapter.**

**In the last arc, every battle happened within the same chapter because the importance of the fights as a whole, but this time each individual fight is important in its own focus. As a result of this, a lot of these chapters might end up as short as the Yuuma Omake chapter was, but for the same reason I didn't split the last chapter in half, I feel these fights need to be their own thing.**

**Overall, I think the best way this arc can be described? Where the other arcs were like running while they rushed ahead, this one is simply walking, and taking its time to take everything in. *thinks* Oh, we're also going to get some insight on the pasts of Issei's birth parents, Vali's human mother, and a bit more about both our protagonists' pasts to a degree.**

**Phew... I said a lot more than I expected to, but that's pretty much the entire mass for the last half of Season 5. So, with all that said, let's begin!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Third Liberation **

**A previously unknown power sleeping within the Boosted Gear, and Divine Dividing that was recently discovered upon being achieved by Issei Hyoudou. As it has only been recently discovered, almost next to nothing is known about it, with the only obvious answers being it exceeds the Second Liberation, and it evolves the power with each Longinus even further.**

**The activation for the Third Liberation happened when the past possessors of the Boosted Gear all lent their power to Issei, who had believed in him since his actions in trying stopping Vali while in her Juggernaut Drive, shattering the power within both of them, creating what can best be described as every one of them activating the Balance Breaker simultaneously.**

**In doing this, a new form of the Balance Breaker was created, becoming a new version of the Juggernaut Drive that's powered on the hope Issei granted to them, known as "Diabolus Dragon". The true power of this form has not yet had a chance to be measured, but it was able to match up against Cao Cao when he was empowered by God's Will through his Truth Idea.**

**Issei's version of this form is called "Diabolus Dragon - God", likely a reference to how he was once Human, but is also a descendant of the Hero Clan, and a Magician through his biological parents. Despite that Vali has yet to achieve this form, the history between the Heavenly Dragons has guaranteed she'll learn it eventually, with Issei believing that hers will be named after her Devil heritage.**

**However, the true power of the Third Liberation may lie within something no past Sekiryuutei or Hakuryuukou has managed to use before now.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 1 - The Promotion Exams _ **

The scene opens to the train station of Kuoh Town, where one of the trains arrived at the platform, making a steam-like sound as it stopped.

『 Attention passengers, we have now arrived as Kuoh Station, to all of those who have arrived at your destination, we thank you for riding with us. 』

As the doors opened up, the passengers heading into Kuoh Town began walking out. One particular set of feet were seen, wearing a pair of blue sneakers, as they walked out of the train, pulling a blue wheeled luggage behind her. The view soon began to move up, showing their legs, and eventually revealing the individual was female by her body shape as it continued towards her head.

Once she finally walked out of the station, and found herself outside, she stopped to gaze at the sunny sky above her, covering her eyes with her hand to block out the sun's rays from hitting her eyes.

"Finally, I've made it." She smiled.

Her appearance was finally able to be identified, showing she had mid-back length, messy black hair with a heavy blue tint that made it look more like it was dark blue, contrasting nicely with her blue eyes, with long locks of hair framing the sides of her face, reaching down to her quite gifted chest.

Her outfit consisted of an opened, white short-sleeved hoodie with two black stripes circles near the end of the sleeves, wearing a sky-blue shirt underneath it, and blue-gray jean shorts, alongside the blue sneakers she was already wearing. However, the one odd part of her outfit was a strange necklace she wore, being a simply brown string with some unique charm... one that appeared to be supernatural in nature.

"OK, let's see... where do I find the Hyoudou Household?" She wondered, unfolding a slip of paper she had in her pocket.

"Ah, I'm actually not too far from it, then let's go!" The mysterious girl rushed ahead, surprising many as the incredible speed she was sprinting with.

Rossweisse was heading back there from a brief shopping trip, only to see her running by her, and glancing at her necklace's charm. Upon seeing her, she widened her eyes as she recognized it, making her rub her eyes.

"That insignia, if I remember right, it can only be worn by one when they represent the..." Rossweisse gasped as she realized it.

"Something tells me I better get back, or I'll miss something important!" She exclaimed as she began to hurry back.

* * *

Kunou's eyes were sparkling as he looked at Issei, who was sweating a bit with a nervous chuckle, holding some study papers for his upcoming Promotion Exam.

"I can't believe you're gonna take Irina with you when you finally become a High-Class Devil, you're gonna win without even trying!" She exclaimed happily.

"Uh... yeah, I know I will." Issei said, slightly sweating from the oddness of his situation.

Looking at the situation, Homura tried not to laugh with all she could, but eventually... it failed, causing her to start laughing as she held her stomach. Meanwhile, Ayumu was also watching alongside Hana and Seiji, chuckling a bit himself.

"I didn't know you had a harem Issei, guess you're a real lady's man!" Ayumu joked.

Irina flinched at that, making sure Vali wasn't around to hear it. Luckily, she wasn't, but at that very same moment, Homura suddenly stopped laughing, and Issei noticed her expression as if she said a forbidden word.

'Oh boy, and I thought Vali's dry heaving when that word was used in conjunction to me was an extreme reaction.' He thought worriedly.

"Hey sweetie..." Homura replied, turning towards him with a normal smile on her face.

Ayumu suddenly sweated, and turned to see his wife's aura flaring, clearly showing how well that smile was masking her expression. Before he could run away, she grabbed him by the shoulder, and only a few seconds later... she had him caught in a triangle hold, with Ayumu banged a hand in surrender.

"It was a joke, I swear!" Ayumu whimpered.

"Then why is no one laughing." Homura asked, having the same expression.

Seiji shivered a bit at the sight, gulping in response.

"Whoa... I guess she's the one with more authority in their marriage." He laughed nervously.

"Makes sense, you are looking at a member of the Hero Clan compared to a human turned Magician. People from the Hero Clans get trained from birth to face excruciating challenges, and according to what Amaterasu told me, the Akane family is known for their results." Lilith explained, watching the scene with interest.

"Oh, so dad took your surname?" Issei asked his birth mother.

"Yep, that's a tradition of the Hero Clan, especially since I was the eldest child in my generation. In comparison, my younger sister's probably taken her husband's name, provided she married another Hero of course." Homura answered, still holding Ayumu in her hold.

Irina giggled a bit, kneeling near Ayumu.

"Well, looks like you have a very dedicated wife, Mr. Akane." Irina praised.

"Yeah, that strong-will of hers is why I fell in love with her." Ayumu winced in reply.

"Aw, you flatter me... alright, I'll let you off early." Homura replied.

She released her triangle hold, making Ayumu slump across the ground, groaning from the experience. Rossweisse soon returned through a magic circle, confusing everyone as they saw her appear from it, rather than the door.

"Rossweisse?" Rias said in surprise.

"Oh my, whatever could have made her teleport here through a magic circle." Akeno giggled curiously.

"I was on my back, when I saw someone running towards the house, and she had the insignia of... well, how should I put this? We might have an ambassador of-" Rossweisse tried to answer, still somewhat surprised.

At that moment, a knock is heard from the house, only for the door to fall over, making the same girl from earlier blush at her unintentional act.

"Ah, dang it! I really to fix that problem." She winced, quickly fixing the door.

"...Never mind, she's already here." Rossweisse said, chuckling awkwardly.

Upon finishing the door repairs, the girl turned towards everyone, making Homura gasp as she saw the necklace insignia.

"That symbol, it's of the Hero Clan!" She realized.

"Wait, as in she's a member of the Hero Clan as well?" Issei questioned.

Hearing that, everyone heard someone trip down the stairs, showing Vali at the bottom as she quickly got on her feet.

"Are you serious?" Vali asked, surprised and excited.

The girl from the Hero Clan blinked a bit, giving an awkward laugh as sweat trickled down her one cheek. Taking a moment to collect herself, the girl sat herself in the seiza position, looking towards everyone.

"Greetings to all of you, my name is Asuka Aoyama, meaning [Bird of the Blue Mountain], and I come here on behalf of the villages that comprise the entirety of the Hero Clan." She greeted, smiling towards them with a slight bow.

"Nice to meet you Asuka, my name is Homura Akane, meaning [Deep Red Blaze], welcome to this humble abode." Homura replied, getting into the same position before bowing slightly as well.

A few people looked confused at that, even Lilith, so Ayumu spoke up after a brief moment of snickering.

"Guess it makes no sense to those who aren't of the Hero Clan, or familiar with their culture. Basically, the reason they're sharing their names' meanings is because Heroes are named meaningfully in response to their family name as a way of their parents showing their faith in the potential they all have." Ayumu explained.

"Oh, so my name is meaningful as well?" Issei asked.

"Yep, your name's meaning is [Sincerity/Honesty of the Deep Red], which is quite fitting since you ended up with the power of the Red Dragon Emperor." Ayumu verified.

Issei blinked at that, realizing how prophetic his name ended up being.

**"[Now that's how you name a Sekiryuutei! Homura, my respect for you as grown even greater!]"** Ddraig exclaimed happily.

Homura blushed a bit, laughing in a bashful manner. She quickly cleared her throat, looking at Asuka again, knowing what she should be asking her next.

"Asuka, what is your reason for coming here to Kuoh Town?" Homura asked.

"I have come here because the Hero Clan wishes to bring this notice to the alliance." Asuka explained, removing the necklace.

At that very moment, the insignia glowed, transforming the necklace into a rolled-up paper. Homura takes it, and quickly unrolled it to see what was inside, her eyes darting across it before showing surprise.

"Yes, it is as you've just read Mrs. Akane, recent events have led to the Hero Clan as a whole deciding we shall join the Alliance against the Khaos Brigade. We have reason to believe that as of late, their forces seek to cause us trouble." Asuka explained.

Homura nodded at that, recalling how Rizevim caused her separation from her son for nearly two decades.

"Alright, I'll have Lilith pass this notice to the other Alliance leaders, then meet with the current leader of the Hero Clan. Thank you for bringing this message to us." Homura thanked, slightly bowing again.

Homura rolled up the paper, tossing it over to Lilith as she caught it.

"Alright, guess I'll go deliver this real quick, be right back everyone." Lilith waved as she entered a magic circle.

Homura smiled, and then looked at Asuka.

"So, what plans do you have for now, Asuka?" Homura wondered.

"I'm planning to go rent a hotel room for a while, I figured while I'm here, why not watch the Finals of the Rating Game Tournament I've heard so much about?" Asuka answered.

Upon hearing that, Homura put a finger on her forehead.

"Forget about a hotel, feel free to stay here for a while, I haven't seen anyone from the Hero Clan in so long, this is the least I can do from someone of the current generation." She stated.

"Oh no, I couldn't impose one..." Asuka held her hands out, trying to be humble.

"I _insist_." Homura stated.

Asuka gave an odd chuckle at that, rubbing her head a bit.

"Alright, I guess if you don't mind, then I'll take your generous offer." Asuka decided.

Vali giggled at that, looking at Issei.

"I can't tell if Homura is just that good, or if Asuka's one of those people who you just need to ask something twice before she agrees to it." She mentioned.

"Who knows, all I know is right now..." Issei remarked.

Issei's focus finally returned to the papers he was holding, stress sweat forming across his forehead as he tried to study them.

"Yikes, is that everything Ravel said you need to study?" Vali said, a similar sweat on face as she saw it.

"That's right, what about you?" Issei questioned.

Vali went silent, hanging her head down as she whimpered, prompting Issei to pet her head.

"I've never seen so many papers at once, and Yumina says it was only the first half." She whimpered again.

* * *

With a few of the Alliance Leaders, they were looking over the notice that Lilith gave them.

"Really? The Hero Clan, they actually brought this over to you directly?" Artemis inquired, rolling the paper back up.

"Yeah, most likely they knew that Homura was here, and the best person to give such notice to." Lilith answered.

"How would they know she was in Kuoh Town though?" Vishnu questioned.

"Most likely heard it through me, the Akane is the family of Heroes born through my blessing, it still surprises me how it led to the Domineering Will, much less of Issei being part of the Akane bloodline." Amaterasu suggested.

Tsukuyomi nodded at that, turning to the others.

"The Aoyama family is the bloodline my blessing comes from, so for someone of that family to have delivered that message makes learning that not just justified, but also shows their peaceful intent to truly join the Alliance." She added.

Everyone thought on it, and after a bit...

"I don't see anything wrong with this then, plus what happened to Homura's home in the past means the Heroes already have bad blood towards the Khaos Brigade. Let's just trust them and be done with it." Cassiel stated, getting to the point as usual.

Odin chuckled at that, enjoying Cassiel's actions as usual.

"Good point, now all that's left is to decide who should meet with the Hero Clan's leader." He replied.

"Me and Tsukuyomi will go, as the bloodlines with our blessings were involved in sharing this message, we should convey our trust better that way." Amaterasu offered.

"Alright, we'll leave it you two then." Lilith agreed.

She clapped her hands in response.

"OK, meeting adjourned everyone."

Everyone began heading back to their usual places, and while this was happening, Mephisto appeared by a magic circle. Lilith noticed his appearance, and saw him walk towards her.

"Mephisto, do you need something?" Lilith asked.

"Nothing much, I just thought I should tell you we can officially list which Magician groups are sided with us, and the Khaos Brigade's Magician Faction, while also making sure the eventual Magician pacts from those tied to the latter are blocked off entirely." Mephisto explained, showing her some papers.

She looks over them, and to her surprise, only one group was allied with the Khaos Brigade, the one Walburga was sided with.

"So, just that witch's group, huh? Glad to hear most of them are on our side." Lilith smiled.

She placed a hand on Mephisto's shoulders.

"Thanks for your hard work as always, Mephisto." She smiled.

He gave a playful smirk at that.

"Of course... Oh! By the way, is Vali busy right now?"

"Not too busy, just doing some prep for her Promotion Exam. Why do you ask?" Lilith asked.

"Well, now that we've gotten this cleared up, her Big Sis wants to pay her a visit." Mephisto explained.

Lilith's eyes widened a bit, giggling as she realized who she was referring to.

"I think a quick visit wouldn't hurt her, might even help her. Let her know she can come over right now if she can." She replied.

"Will do." Mephisto replied, holding his hand out in an [O] shape.

Lilith giggled again, soon walking through a magic circle.

* * *

Lilith soon comes back from her magic circle, noticing her daughter's current state.

"...Ultimate-Class Exam stress?" Lilith asked.

"Ultimate-Class Exam stress." Issei repeated in confirmation.

Lilith gave a playful sigh at that, soon walking over to her daughter before kneeling down, smiling a bit.

"Well, I think a certain guest will help fix that problem for you." She stated.

"Huh?" Vali blinked in surprise.

Issei was curious about that as well, and that's when a magic circle appeared in the room, catching everyone's attention.

"No worries everyone, that would be a guest I invited over." Lilith stated in response.

At that moment, the magic circle vanished, revealing its caster. It was a beautiful woman with long flowing blonde hair, and sapphire blue eyes, wearing what appeared to be standard Magician robes in white. Upon seeing her, Vali's eyes widen, and her body shot straight up.

"Lavinia!" Vali exclaimed happily.

"Vali, good to see you." She smiled, hugging her.

Vali giggled as Lavinia hugged her, though quickly that turned into a blush of embarrassment when she started hugging her a bit too much into her chest.

"Uh, Lavinia? Don't hug me like this, everyone's watching..." She said with embarrassment.

Unfortunately, the white clad wizard seemed to be ignoring that, and eventually... Vali just gave in, smiling as she hugged her.

"Who is this?" Kuroka questioned.

"I don't know her either, what about you Arthur?" Bikou asked, also unsure.

"Sorry, I don't know either." Arthur replied, with his sister nodding.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet a Magician of Grauzauberer, member of Tobio Ikuse's Slash/Dog team, and the possessor of the Absolute Demise... Lavinia Reni." Lilith introduced.

Le Fay gasped at that, shaking in awe.

"No way, y-you're Lavinia?" She asked, her entire body still shaking.

"That's right." Lavinia replied.

"Wow, I didn't know she was that close to Vali." Bikou mentioned with surprise.

"You think that's surprising, as you may have noticed here, these two are close. To be specific on how close, Vali sees her like an older sister, and vice-versa." Lilith giggled.

Issei noticed the odd hugging, and Vali's smile during it.

"That would explain why Vali doesn't mind where she's being hugged." Issei chuckled, rubbing his head a bit.

After a bit, Lavinia released her hug, making Vali look at her.

"It's been so long since I last got to see you, now I don't feel as stressed over my Exam anymore." Vali smiled.

"And I know you'll make it Ultimate-Class too." Lavinia giggled, playfully tapping Vali's nose.

The two laughed at that.

"Aw~, she looks so happy right now." Yuuma cooed.

"I'm not as aware of what's going on, but I agree." Asuka nodded.

Vali soon had a thought at that moment, looking at Le Fay.

"Hey Lavinia, think you could do me a favor before the Finals, and teach Le Fay a bit of your magic?" Vali requested.

Le Fay suddenly went red in the face, surprised Vali asked that.

"Sure thing." Lavinia smiled, patting Vali's head.

"L-Lavinia is... gonna t-teach me..." Le Fay quickly fainted as her mind went through an overload.

Everyone looked at her unconscious form, while Arthur picked her up.

"I think the shock was too much for her to handle." Arthur said.

Irina chuckled at that, though soon her eyes widened as she realized something, catching Issei's attention.

"Hmm? Something wrong Irina?" He asked.

"I just realized, now that we know Lavinia has the Absolute Demise... doesn't that mean we know the whereabouts of all 13 Longinus?" She mentioned.

Issei's eyes widened at that.

"Hey, you're right. That's all 13!" Issei realized.

Yuuma counts on her fingers once she heard that, organizing the details.

"The Alliance has 9 of the Longinus, while 4 are with the Khaos Brigade. We have a single High-Tier, all of the Middle-Tier, and we're only missing one of Low-Tier, but they have the remaining High-Tier with that final Low-Tier... who has the advantage when we take that in mind?" She tried to figure out as she looked over every detail.

"I hate to say it, but Longinus-wise, they still have the advantage. Not only do those three High-Tier Longinus include the True Longinus, and are said to have the power to destroy the world... the Incinerate Anthem is that missing Low-Tier Longinus, and a powerful Anti-Devil weapon." Lilith admitted with a sigh.

Asuka patted her back.

"Hey, don't let one aspect keep you down, some of the people standing here defeated those three High-Tier Longinus users in battle." She mentioned.

"Yeah, and the only one who didn't show his Balance Breaker among those three was Leo, only because we knocked him out before he could use it." Mio smirked, feeling some confidence.

Lilith blinked, soon laughing a bit before wiping a bit of water from her eye.

"Oh, thanks Mio, I really needed to hear that." She remarked.

The Demon Princess chuckled, blushing as she rubbed the back of her head. Once everyone else was distracted, she shifted over towards Asuka, making her blink a bit.

"...Say, is there anything you can tell me about someone in the Hero Clan named Basara Toujou?" Mio whispered.

"Hmm? How do you know... wait, are you that Demon Princess he mentioned he was dating?" Asuka asked in surprise.

Mio went white at that, with everyone suddenly turning towards her in surprise.

"...Why didn't I ask you to keep that secret!?" Mio whimpered, curling onto the floor in embarrassment.

* * *

The next day came, and once it had, Issei and Vali stood ready as they looked at the magic circle standing before them, one that would be taking them both to Hell... for their Promotion Exams. Vali was holding Issei's hand tightly, being the more terrified between the two.

"Alright, this is everything you've been working towards the last few days, you can do this." Yumina encouraged.

"No matter what, just believe in yourself, besides... if you could be my brother, this is cakewalk in comparison." Ravel stated, blushing slightly.

Issei nodded, tightening his hold on Vali's arm, getting her attention.

"Don't worry, we're both gonna pass this, and then we'll have even more reason to celebrate once we win the tournament." Issei reassured her.

"I... I'm still scared, even despite how brave a face I put making my announcement, I'm still afraid, especially for something like-" Vali replied, still worried.

Before Vali could finish, Issei promptly shut her up with a kiss, making her blush a bit before she kissed back.

"Consider that a bit of good luck, alright?" Issei smiled, winking a bit.

Vali felt her lips at that moment, silently nodding as she smiled a bit, with everyone else smiling at the adorable scene.

"I really need to get a boyfriend soon." Jeanne sighed through a whisper.

While no one was looking, she secretly looked at a picture she had of a boy, blushing a bit before hiding it again.

"Well, this is it everyone... wish us luck." Vali smiled at everyone.

Everyone nodded, and they slowly took their first step, soon walking through the circle as it vanished.

Once it was gone, everyone went silent for a moment, with each of them silently hoping for the success of both Heavenly Dragon users. At the same time, Arthur noticed the clock, making him smile slightly, and began walking towards a mirror.

"Hmm? Big brother, what are you doing?" Le Fay asked.

"I have a guest coming that I need to prepare for, I believe you know them well." He answered.

Le Fay blinked, trying to figure out who he was implying.

"I was sure that alone would tell you, but I guess I need to say more to remind you about your magic teacher." Arthur chuckled slightly.

Le Fay gasped, instantly realizing who Arthur was referring to.

"She's really coming over!?" Le Fay said with sparkling eyes.

"Yep, after getting the last few details ironed out with your old man, she'll be working as a maid here from now on." Lilith giggled.

"Who are you two talking about?" Kunou asked in confusion.

"Oh yeah, you don't know that part of how we came to join Vali's peerage, do you?" Le Fay realized.

Kunou shook her head, soon sitting down in curiosity.

"We'll wait for when she arrives." Arthur told her.

"Aw... OK." Kunou reluctantly agreed, pouting a bit.

A few knocks were heard on the door.

"Excuse me." A female voice sang.

Everyone went still as Arthur went to open the door, revealing a young lady around Arthur's age with brown hair and green eyes, a well-endowed figure, and was wearing a casual dress as she held a large suitcase in hand. However, to anyone particularly alert, they'd notice a ring on her left hand.

'She knows Arthur, and that ring is on her... oh, my god!' Irina realized, blushing slightly.

"Arthur!" She exclaimed happily, hugging him.

"Elaine, it's been far too long." Arthur smiled, hugging her back.

"Everyone, this is Elaine Westcott, the one who taught me magic, and my brother's special sweet heart." Le Fay introduced, giggling as she gave a bright smile.

"Oh, so that's the girlfriend that was part of your reason for leaving your home." Bikou realized.

Arthur shook his head at that, confusing the Monkey Youkai.

"...Wait, she's not your girlfriend." Bikou replied.

"No, she is my _fiancé_." Arthur explained.

"Oh." Bikou nodded simply.

However, it took him a few seconds to actually process those words, making his eyes widen.

"O-Oh! OH!" He exclaimed.

"You two are getting married?" Asia asked, looking happy.

"To be young and in love, I remember it like it was yesterday." Hana smiled.

"At least we're not old farts yet." Seiji chuckled.

The Hyoudou couple chuckled at that, while Elaine began introducing herself to the others.

"Nice to meet you all, I've heard so much about you from Arthur and Le Fay." Elaine greeted, shaking Irina's hand.

"I'm Irina Shidou, nice to meet you Elaine." Irina greeted in return.

Elaine looked around, trying to see where Vali was, as the boy she had fallen for.

"Where's Vali? I wanted to congratulate her on finding love herself." Elaine asked.

"Oh, she and Issei were chosen to take Promotion Exams, they just left a moment ago. Don't worry, they should be back soon enough." Irina explained.

"Issei, he's Vali's Queen, correct?" She asked.

Irina nodded, and Lilith smiled as Mio looked at her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I may have not lost my loved one, but he's not able to spend any time with me right now, so I feel you." She smiled, trying to comfort her.

"...Thanks Mio, that makes me feel a little better." Lilith smiled back.

* * *

The two Heavenly Dragons soon found themselves at the site of the Promotion Test.

"Well, looks like we're here." Issei stated.

"Yeah... alright, let's give this all we've got, Issei." Vali remarked.

The two nodded at one another, walking up to the Devil in charge of the registration. Upon noticing them walk up, he straightened himself a bit.

"Please state your name, and the class you'll be hoping to promote to." He requested.

"Issei Hyoudou of the Lucifer household, High-Class." Issei stated.

"Vali Lucifer of the Lucifer household, Ultimate-Class." Vali stated.

Checking the records, he verified them both.

"Alright then. Issei Hyoudou, you'll be taking your exam at Stadium B. Vali Lucifer, your exam will be at Stadium A." The Staff member explained.

The two both nod, and look at each other.

"Issei, let's meet back here as a higher class." Vali promised.

"Yeah, it's a deal!" Issei promised in return.

The went to their respective stadiums, and once Vali reached hers, she saw a surprise as Niruili was seen standing there.

"Niruili!" She called out.

"Hmm? Ah, Vali!" Niruili waved happily.

Vali ran over, hugging her friend who eagerly returned it.

"So, you're taking this exam too?" Vali asked.

"Yep, and it isn't just me." Niruili smiled.

Vali blinked, and soon noticed Ineelana, Gebedon, Esketanus, and Suzattin all walking into view. The sight of them all walking over made her smile brightly, realizing it could only mean one thing.

"I can't believe it, you guys all made it?" Vali asked with excitement.

"Yep, the Tournament gave us a good chance to shine, as did the fight with Loki... though I personally think part of this comes from the fact we were discriminated for so long, Lilith pushed hard for us to get here so she good give those Elders a good kick in the crown jewels." Esketanus explained.

Gebedon snorted at that, looking away for a brief moment.

"Well, regardless of what got us here, at least we made it. Now, all that's left is for us to make it through." Gebedon stated.

"Yeah, so let's all take the title of Ultimate-Class today!" Ineelana shouted.

The others all gave the same determined shout in agreement.

Meanwhile on the side where Issei was, he stood alongside various Mid-Class Devils, and possibly other Low-Class Devils such like himself, as he waited for the exam proctor to show themselves and begin the test. At that moment, said proctor appeared, revealing it was none other than Diehauser Bael.

"No way, the Rating Game Champion's gonna be the proctor this year?" A Mid-Class Rook gasped.

"This is the best, if we promote here, then no one can question you earned it!" A Low-Class Bishop said excitedly.

Diehauser coughed loudly, silencing everyone as she held up a microphone.

"Everyone, as most of you have likely noticed already, I am the current Rating Game Champion, Diehauser Belial. Compared to most instances where we hold the Promotion Exams, the Rating Game Tournament has given you more chances for combat, as has the always looming threat of the Khaos Brigade. As such, the Great Devils all decided that as those who will be gaining the right to earn Evil Pieces of their own, that I should be the one to judge if you are truly ready to promote into High-Class Devils."

"Most of you are Mid-Class Devils who have ranked up once already, both normal, and reincarnated alike. However, there are also few who are Low-Class Devils who pushed hard to be considered. Know this, many of you who were said to have a good chance may not promote today, but it is not because I did not agree with your skills, or you were lied to. When you earn the right to be King, there is a subconscious pressure you will always feel, and most High-Class Devils did not learn this feeling due to their births."

"So, believe in yourselves, but do not let your confidence blind you to your limits. Do the best you can, and strive to succeed fairly, earning the right to promote to a High-Class Devil today!" Diehauser finished his speech, hoping he inspired them while properly showing the reality without scaring anyone off.

The Devils all went silent for a moment, and then they all began clapping at his speech.

"Good, it seems you've all accepted the challenge that you _will_ face, so let us all begin as we prepare for the first stage of the exams... the Written Test." Diehauser acknowledged, followed by initiating the exams.

Many Devils winced at that, if there was one part of the exams any Devil hated... it was this one, which most considered the [hard] part of the exams. Out of the exam's two stages, it was the one where you had to treat like you were actually passing a test at school, where the Practical Test just required your battle skills, albeit with tactics and strategies used since it was the High-Class exam.

Following the others, Issei found himself in a room that could seat at least a hundred. Sitting himself down, he saw the test appear before him by a magic circle, followed by a magic barrier made to prevent people from trying to copy their answers.

"Alright, everyone may begin." The Written Test proctor for the room announced.

Picking up his pencil, Issei took a deep breath.

'OK, remember everything that Ravel drilled into you Issei, you can do this... remember what you promise yourself!' He thought to himself, keeping his resolve strong.

Looking at his test, he looked at the first five questions before him.

**【**** Question 1: Who is the oldest Devil not among the 72 Pillars?** **】**

**【****Question 2: During the Great War, which of the original Great Devils was the first to be confirmed KIA'd, and how did they die?** **】**

**【****Question 3: Among the 72 Pillars from highest to lowest, what pillar is the first among the extinct houses?** **】**

**【****Question 4: The material that Evil Pieces are made from is what?** **】**

**【****Question 5: How many Pawns are the other types of Evil Pieces said to equal?** **】**

Looking at the questions, he thought on them for a bit.

'Let's see... the oldest non-pillar Devil, that seems like Lilith, but she wasn't born a Devil, so it shouldn't count. Yeah, it isn't her, that's Mephisto Pheles.' Issei told himself, soon focusing on the other answers.

He soon filled them in, one by one.

[Mephisto Pheles]

[Asmodeus, cause of death was his clan ability's weakness being used against him]

[Pillar 5: Marbas]

[A red crystal found inside of Agreas Island]

[Bishops and Knights are worth 3, Rooks are 5, and Queens are worth 9]

Confident in his answers, Issei sighed in relief, looking at the rest of his exam as he readied himself to tackle the remaining questions.

* * *

Within a secret area, Zekram Bael stood alongside the current Lord Bael, speaking as they prepared to meet with the other Elders.

"Things are becoming more serious, that Lucifer brat is only getting closer to the chance of succeeding in her dream, and ruining all we've managed to hold onto." Lord Bael growled.

"Be lucky we still have the Leviathan Heiress standing in her way, but the recent power of the Sekiryuutei has only made her chances of success harder. We've done our best to bribe as much as we can, while rigging outside the view of Satan's peerage... his Queen's attention to detail almost had us caught a few times." Zekram replied, slightly annoyed.

Lord Bael screamed angrily, slamming the wall.

"It was already bad enough that bastard of my _heir_ revealed the Regulus, and I can't murder his stupid Pawn since he'd be suspicious! I will not accept this... not at all. All we've manipulated, the roots we tainted to make everything ours, we've come too far to lose it all here!" Lord Bael screamed.

Zekram sighed, soon revealing something in his pocket, showing some kind of container.

"Hmm?" Lord Bael hummed as he noticed it.

"Let's just say I have my methods, and even then... there's someone who wants her, and the Queen of her peerage gone. Someone willing to aid us as long as we promise to prevent more like them from rising up." Zekram stated, looking to the side.

The both stop, showing a magic circle with a certain person being viewed from the other side as he gave a cocky expression.

"What better way to ruin a Dream than at the moment it could happen? I'm eagerly waiting for the Finals to end." Indra stated, smirking darkly.

* * *

Issei panted as he looked at the final three questions on the text.

**【**** Question 48: Name the year that Satan founded Heaven.** **】**

**【**** Question 49: When did the Great Devil Leviathan grant the first non-Devil party access to the prison of Cocytus?** **】**

**【**** Question 50: What is the ratio for the chance of obtaining a Mutation Piece from the King's Monument?** **】**

Issei took a deep breath, answering them all.

[February 6th, 3481 BC]

[1725 BC, official day and month is unconfirmed]

[Studies estimate it as 1 in every 10 sets]

After finally answering them, Issei put his pencil down, panting heavily as his seat's barrier disappeared. His test paper was taken by the proctor before she looked at him.

"You may wait in the mess hall until further notice." She stated.

"Thank you." He panted, slowly getting up.

As he walked into the cafeteria, the scene freezes as the sight of his friends, teammates, Indra, and the Elder Devils in the same scenes they were last seen in flashed above him. A big change was on the horizon, one that would change the entire world as everyone knew it...

** _Forever_ **

* * *

**Well, Issei's just finished the Written Test half of the Promotion Exams, and now he just needs to complete the Practical Test. How will he handle having a fight with another of his fellow examinees when he has to fight smart, rather than strong like he has up till now? Regardless of how, the Elders are doing the same as always as they try to make prevent Vali's dream from happening... by helping Indra, oh boy 0_0**

**For everything new as of this arc, the first thing to bring up is the new OC we saw when this chapter began, Asuka Aoyama. She'll be an important character from here on, but I can't say why just yet. At the moment, she's mainly present to help give development the Hero Clan, who I've only really shown through Homura until now.**

**As you can see from the brief scene in this chapter, Ayumu took her name instead of the reverse, and they have a unique method of naming that I worked based off what Issei's name means. I'm really excited in revealing how the Heroes work in this story, because while their role isn't as big right now, they will be in JOHD, but that's all I'll say for now to keep a few surprises in story.**

**Most of all, I finally got Elaine and Lavinia into the story, and I'm really embarrassed I took this long to do that. Especially Lavinia, as I forgot she was part of Tobio's team, meaning she's technically allied with Grigori... I could have introduced her into the story back in the Season 2 finale. *sighs* Well, at least she's been properly introduced now. As for Elaine, I think this timing still worked well for a few reasons that'll be important in this arc :3**

**Things are heating up, and we can only imagine what Vali and the other Great Devil heirs are doing for their exam. Not only that, but what exactly is Zekram holding? Just how much planning do the Elders have if they're considering Vali will win, and have Indra ready on standby? Vali might need more than good luck here... she might need an outright miracle.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

**And now, since this arc is the one where Issei's High-Class Promotion exam will happen, I'll be showing the progress on his eventual peerage until he gets his Evil Pieces.**

**Right now, this is everything that's confirmed to eventually join him, and who I have in consideration both for those who've confirmed they want to join him in story, and those who have yet to do so.**

** Confirmed Members: **

**Irina Shidou (Knight) - Has asked Issei, who has agreed to it, and gotten permission from Vali to be traded**

** Known Candidates: **

**Ravel Phenex (Bishop) - Is working hard to make Issei consider her**

** Unrevealed Candidates: **

**Bishop  
Rook  
Pawn**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse, Basara Toujou (by mention)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged**


	48. Chapter 48

**We're back to finish the remaining half of the Promotion Exams, and while that's happening, this chapter's also gonna reveal something special. What that happens to be is... something you'll have to keep reading to find out ^^ *giggles* In all seriousness, this is the point where the exams finally get their results, even though at this point you all know the results.**

**Next up after this chapter ends will be where we take a brief backseat to focus on Ineelana's team, the pasts on our protagonists, and their parents, as the latters' stories have some importance to what's to come. After that, we'll have gotten past everything I needed to do before starting the Final match between Vali and Ineelana... and you know who finally taking action.**

**That being said, just because we're not at the tournament Finals just yet, doesn't mean there won't be any action in this arc before then. In fact, this very chapter has a fight scene, and I'm not talking about how Issei handles the Practical Test half of his exam. Let's just say that we can expect the Hyoudou Household to get an unexpected guest in this chapter.**

**Now to reply a guest review.**

**To Guest:**   
**"Thank you, and thanks for sharing your peerage suggestions. Unfortunately, I have already made a few decisions that render said suggestions moot like you mentioned. Though I still appreciate you giving those ideas to me, especially the one with Vali, which was pretty unique. Truth be told, the only reason I can't use that one is because I want to have an instance where Issei and Vali have a Rating Game against each other."**

**"Nothing in canon has really said you can't face your King in a Rating Game when you become one, and there could even be something like the Azazel Cup where you have an assigned substitute if such a game happened. As a result, if Vali was also his Queen... that wouldn't work at all, because their positions as each other's King and Queen would cause a paradox, one that a substitute can't fix due to the instant lose rule applying to a King ^^;"**

**"Anyways, I've already decided on who Issei's Queen will be, and both of his Bishops. As for your other three suggestions, I have a rule I placed on myself to only have crossover characters in a peerage that aren't as important overall, since I don't have to focus on them as much. Because of that, the members of Issei's peerage will only be comprised of canon characters, and OCs of mine."**

**"Still, like I said before, thanks at the very least for offering your suggestions. I could also save them for another DxD story, or something else in this one."**

**So, without any further ado... *presses a button* initiate the chapter!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Hero Clan **

**While Humans as a majority have no involvement with the Supernatural unless they have Sacred Gears, have a Deity as one of their parents, or get reincarnated under one of the Four Great Powers that make up the Christian Pantheon, there are two types of Humans who have larger involvement in the supernatural without falling into one of the following classifications.**

**One of them are the Magicians of the various Magical Orders, who are Humans who've learned magic, and the other? The Heroes of the Hero Clan. The clan is a term referring to multiple villages across the world that house the Humans that are defined as "Heroes", but these villages only appear in regions that have mythological factions containing multiple Gods, such as Japan.**

**The Heroes are defined by their family names, which represent various bloodlines containing a unique power tied to them, powers that were born through the blessings of a specific God that evolved into them. As shown by by Amaterasu, who was surprised by the Akane family's power, the Gods have no control what kind of power these blessings can become, just their superhuman strength, speed, durability, endurance, and healing ability.**

**A tradition within the Hero Clan is that all names given to children are meaningful, as they represent the faith parents have in their children's potential, with the families of the Japanese villages using the family name in their decisions. Another reason for this comes from how an ability is tied to one's name, acting as a guarantee that child shall have at least that ability upon their birth, especially if one must marry into another family.**

**Surprisingly, those of the Hero Clan are very broad in potential partners, even before the time of the Alliance. Evidence is shown through the Demon Princess Mio, who is dating a boy in the Hero Clan, which she implies has been long before the Kokabiel Incident forced the Peace Summit to happen. The only species this is rare with are the Devils, as the Hero's naming tradition clashes with their culture, making a compromise with their names difficult.**

**How the Hero Clan was formed is probably the biggest mystery of their existence, as the Gods recall they gave their blessings to the bloodlines, but they don't remember why. Not even the current leader of the Hero Clan has been successful in finding any records of their origins, which is why in the present, they mainly work to take out dangerous supernatural threats, often taking them into service of the various mythological factions.**

**It's theorized Rizevim knows their origins, as the failed massacre of the village Issei lived in as a baby didn't seem random...**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 2 - Call of the Kusanagi! _ **

Lilith was helping Elaine get settled into her room, when she suddenly had a magic circle appear by her ear, making her gasp as Elaine noticed it.

"Is something wrong?" Elaine questioned.

"...Elaine, mind excusing me for a moment? I just got an important call I need to take." Lilith explained.

Elaine nodded her head.

"Of course, Mrs. Lucifer, I understand." She replied.

Sighing in relief, Lilith smiled at the former Pendragon maid before she walked off somewhere, soon tapping the magic circle to begin replying.

"Sorry for that delay, what do you have for me Alanira?" Lilith questioned.

"Nothing good, so better I tell you that from the start." Alanira replied, not hiding the grim tone of her voice.

Lilith sighed, knowing Alanira was never one to fear hiding such aggressive truths when it came to matters that affected Devil-kind, and more recently any faction with the Alliance.

"Alright, lay it on me." Lilith nodded, making a serious face.

Taking a moment to light a cigarette with her flames, and puffing out a breath, she began.

"Recall how in Kyoto, during the Hero Factions to use the Leylines for... whatever it was, both Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi noticed the magic circles for our two resident Dragon Gods forming alongside the big one?" She mentioned.

"Yeah, they noticed the magic circles for Great Red and Ophis appear alongside them, what about it? Did you figure out some kind of connection to why they appeared in the first place, or something similar?" Lilith questioned.

"Actually, none of the above. Take a look at this image we got of both from a sky view reference I managed to scrounge up." Alanira explained.

Lilith moved the magic circle a bit, creating a copy that she expanded, soon showing an image of both magic circles. At first, she didn't notice anything wrong with either of them, but once she started looking more closely... she finally saw it.

The fact Great Red's magic circle was a swirl, and the sight of the infinity snakes being spiked, neither of those things should have been in their Magic Circles. Due to their unique life forces, and their births being part of a concept representing the world's possibilities, Great Red's magic circle should have its tail being bit to make a zero, while Ophis' infinity snakes shouldn't have spikes.

"...Their magic circles, they changed, but why?" Lilith realized in horror, sweating a bit.

"That's the part you might panic over, I had Roygun help me with an investigation once I found this out, and that's when we learned the worse. Around the same time as the [Three Worlds Incident] began?" Alanira continued, preparing to rip off the bandage.

She took a deep breathing, and then she said it...

**"...Ophis are Great Red, they've gone missing."**

Lilith's eyes shrunk at that, shaking in horror.

* * *

After walking for a bit, Issei finally made it to the cafeteria, settling onto a seat as he sighed out a breath of relief.

"I'm pretty confident I scored high, but I'm still worried... especially after what Ravel told me." Issei said to himself, soon recalling said words.

_"Issei, the exams to become a Mid-Class, and a High-Class share the same two halves, but the latter takes them to a more advanced level. You'll need to practice strategy and tactics for the latter half, which is not your strong suit, so you'll need to score as high as possible on the written half to compensate." Ravel's voice echoed._

He took a deep breath.

"Yeah, no pressure..." He groaned sarcastically.

A magic circle appeared in front of him, and he took a look in surprise, seeing Murasaki from Ineelana's peerage through it.

"U-um... hello there, Issei. I hope this isn't a bad time?" She asked.

"Oh, wait a minute, I know you. The Queen of Ineelana's peerage, right?" Issei stated.

"Y-yeah, that's me." Murasaki nodded, blushing nervously.

"Hey, don't forget about us!"

Issei saw Tohka slide her face in, with Kurumi, Stella, Yumi, and some of the others from the Great Devil heirs' peerages.

"Wow, so all of you are taking the... Mid-Class exam, I think?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, we're not at that point to go further like you are, but we've shown enough to try for Mid-Class. I think we even saw your friends Akeno, Jeanne, Kiba, Tsubaki, and Saji a while ago." Stella replied.

Issei chuckled at that, he recalled they took the long way earlier this morning, so they could check out the sights in advance.

"So, you guys look like your chances are good so far?" He asked.

"Yeah, the Written Test wasn't too hard, what about you?" Yumi inquired.

"Well, Diehauser's running this one, so... less confidence on my end." Issei admitted, rubbing his head a bit.

He quickly realized something about Vali's friends, making him gasp.

"Hey, by chance are your Kings also taking the exams?" He asked.

"Un, they're all testing to reach Ultimate-Class as well." Eterna answered.

"Unfortunately, we can't ask how they're doing right now because those exams are very different, having no Written portion, and the three stages to our two." Tamara chuckled, rubbing her head a bit.

"Makes sense, if you only need to reach High-Class to get a peerage, then Ultimate-Class is more like earning a restaurant's 5th star when having four is already a big achievement." Issei though aloud.

At that moment, both sides hear a dinging sound.

"Aw man, looks like everyone else just finished up." Leone bemoaned.

"Good luck on your end, and regardless of the winner, we'll be cheering for you to do your best in the Finals." Ayato remarked, smiling a bit.

"Thanks, and all of you make it to Mid-Class yourselves." Issei agreed.

Hanging up, Issei went to check the scores for the written exam, where many of the Devils were giving nervous looks as they tried finding their name. Issei himself couldn't find where his ways among them all.

_"[Issei, yours is listed on column 3, near the top.]"_ Belzard mentioned.

"Oh, thanks Belzard." Issei thanked.

Looking at his name, Issei saw his score.

[Issei Hyoudou: 45/50 questions answered correctly]

Issei smiled at that, that was a good score.

**"[Hah! Nice one partner, you made it!]"** Ddraig cheered.

"Yeah, though wonder which questions I got wrong?" Issei smiled.

**"[Probably the ones where you had to give the years and specific dates, you can't really cram that info without a photographic memory, or an exceptional recollection method.]"** Ddraig suggested.

At that moment, Issei noticed many of the other Devils begin leaving, looking sad or crying. That's when he looked at the score notice, which said: "Anyone who scored lower than 25/50 will not be able to gather enough points to pass in the Practical Test, if you scored a 24 or lower, then you've already failed to qualify."

"Whoa... all of them?" Issei said in shock.

**"[Yeah, if I had to make an estimate... this first half has already eliminated 35% of those who started it.]"** Ddraig estimated.

"That many!?" Issei gasped in shock.

**"[Remember, you have to be ready for large responsibilities at this point, so the rate of passing is fairly strict in order to make sure those who aren't ready spend a bit more time. If I had to compare the Mid-Class exam's current state, not even 10% failed the first half, and among them less than of those who remain will fail due to their scores in the latter half.]"** Ddraig theorized.

Issei sweated a bit, but it made sense... Mid-Class was just the first step to reaching High-Class, but a High-Class Devil had responsibilities as a King in a peerage. The unforgiving reality of failing early in the exam was much worse for the latter because passing to easily could put them in a position they're not ready to handle.

"Alright, guess the best we can do from here is succeed." Issei stated, seeing everyone who failed getting passes to try on the next exam date.

* * *

Within in another area of Hell, one of the Elders, specifically the Uvell Elder, was seen with a group of Devils loyal to their side.

"Master Uvell, are you sure about this plan? I'm not saying I don't agree with it, but are you sure it won't risk exposing us?" One Devil expressed his concerns.

"No, if this succeeds, I'll be taking the punishment alone, then be freed in secret when we finally re-assume full control." The Uvell Elder answered.

The Devil nodded, his main doubt cleared.

Making a magic circle. the Uvell Elder brought the group onto the rooftops of Kuoh Town, and soon began forming a magical barrier to hide what would happen from everyone. Looking towards the Hyoudou Household, he gave a dark glare.

"You can't enter the game if your team were to die in an unfortunate accident, or terrorist attack." The Uvell Elder stated, revealing what he intended to do.

"Time to make you... _forfeit._"

* * *

Deep within a certain mountain region of Japan, the sounds of young children using mock weapons (though ones that looked like the real things, not wood) were sparring with one another, while others were practicing with certain powers. As the two sisters of the Shinto Trio appeared by a magic circle, they saw a few children meditating to enhance their healing rate as some adults noticed their arrival.

"Look, two of the Gods have arrived." One of them mentioned.

"It's been so long, when did we last see any deity show?" Another remarked.

The children who were sparring even briefly stopped, all of them looking excited as they saw the two. Tsukuyomi giggled a bit, ruffling the hair of a few kids who crowded around her.

"Aw, looks like the Japanese villages are definitely raising up to par, and their kids have got energy to spare." She chuckled.

Amaterasu giggled at that, soon walking to the closest adult.

"Excuse me, we're looking for the parents of Asuka Aoyama? We're here on behalf of the alliance, and would like to talk with the, and the Hero Clan's current leader, about joining the alliance against the Khaos Brigade." She requested as she explained the situation.

One of the adults nodded, heading over to the home belonging to the Aoyama bloodline. It took a few minutes, but the sight of a man with blue hair with green eyes, and a slightly younger woman with blue eyes came into view.

"Sorry for the short delay, my name is Daichi Aoyama, meaning [Great One of the Blue Mountain], and I'm the father of Asuka." Daichi greeted.

"And I'm Mizuki Aoyama, meaning [Waterwood of the Blue Mountain], Asuka's mother. It is an honor to stand before you, Lady Amaterasu." Mizuki bowed.

Amaterasu waved her hands out embarrassingly, sweating a bit.

"Sheesh, why are you the one always embarrassed by formalities, Ami?" Tsukuyomi joked.

"Yomi!" Amaterasu blushed in embarrassment.

Clearing her throat a little, Amaterasu turned back to Asuka's parents, who were trying to keep straight faces over that small moment.

"Anyways, we'd like you to be with us when we get in contact with the Hero Clan's current leader." Amaterasu requested.

"Of course." Daichi replied, nodding his head.

The four began heading to a certain temple in the village, and as they did...

"So, which of you married into the Aoyama bloodline? Just curious since you're the family that got my blessing" Tsukuyomi asked.

"That would be my wife, before we were married, she was a member of the Akane bloodline before that, second daughter of her parents." Daichi answered.

"Admittedly, I have a little Toujou blood in me." Mizuki admitted, chuckling a bit.

"Ah, so that's why you had Asuka visit the Hyoudou household." Amaterasu realized.

Mizuki stopped for a moment, blinking in confusion, which the others quickly noticed.

"...What are you talking about?" Mizuki asked.

"Huh? Wait, so you don't know?" Tsukuyomi asked in surprise.

"Strange, I was sure that Asuka came there because of Homura being there." Amaterasu mentioned, scratching her head.

Mizuki's eyes widened at that.

"Homura? So, my sister's really alive!?" Mizuki exclaimed.

The two Shinto Goddesses suddenly went white, completely silent from the shock. One could hear the sound of the wind blowing from how quiet it had become.

"...What did you just say?" Amaterasu breathed quietly.

* * *

Lilith had everyone gathered together in the living room area, with Asuka having a snack as she looked from the kitchen, and took a deep breath as she mentally prepared herself to share what Alanira had told her earlier.

"I'm pretty sure my daughter's peerage will understand this more than the rest of you, but this is still serious, so... I'll try to explain this the best I can." Lilith began, opening her eyes after one last breath.

"Remember during the events of the [Kyoto Incident]? How Yasaka's connection with the Leylines was used by Georg to cast some kind of spell that, based on what Vali told me at least, seemed to fail?" She asked.

"Yeah, it seemed like they wanted to summon Trihexa, but what actually happened appeared to be something else entirely. We never really figured out what though." Le Fay replied, looking at the others.

Bikou scratched his head.

"I'm not even sure what else you'd need such a huge magic circle for in the first place." He mentioned, still confused on that small bit.

"Well, during the same time you fought the Hero Faction Elites, the Shinto Trio... aside from Susanoo who _fell asleep_ before it happened..." Lilith emphasized the last bit, making everyone groan.

"Really!?" Mio complained.

Lilith nodded, clearing her throat as she resumed.

"...Anyways, the sisters of the trio noticed two smaller magic circles appear. One had the symbol crest of Great Red, and the other had Ophis' in it." She revealed.

That caught Asuka's attention in an instant, even the Hero Clan knew much about the Dragons, having ancient stories about some of their ancestors that fought against the creatures known as Evil Dragons. The two Dragon Deities were probably the ones they knew best.

"What, seriously?" Rias questioned.

"Do you think that means they were related to the spell?" Sona inquired.

Lilith shook her head, looking down as she gave a sad expression.

"No, and that's not the problem with the symbols we have. When Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi saw them, they were only able to witness them from the side, and that made me worry enough to have Alanira try and get more info on that moment. She found it alright, and this is what she saw." Lilith explained, sliding two images out.

The distorted swirl, and spiked infinity symbol that Alanira got visuals were shown on a paper Lilith slid onto the table.

"I'm confused, what does this have to do with-" Kuroka asked, not noticing they were wrong.

"Wait!" Irina exclaimed.

Everyone flinched a bit as Irina took a closer look, and gasped at the sight. Unlike the others, Irina had seen the images of their magic circles during a time she got bored, and borrowed a book containing them from Vali's room.

"...These aren't right. Ophis' symbol lacks these spikes on the snakes' bodies, and Great Red's symbol should have been eating its tail, not missing it so it could spiral." Irina stated, realizing what Lilith was warning them about.

"Wait, they're wrong?" Kunou blinked.

"Irina's right, especially in regards to Great Red. He represents the [dreams of illusions], which can best be symbolized by the number zero, or the dragon that eats its own tail to shape itself as one. As for Ophis, it should just be two snakes curled into an infinity symbol, not ones that look like a porcupine's trying to pierce its way out from the inside." Lilith confirmed.

"So, in other words... these odd shapes on these symbols imply they're fake?" Arthur inquired.

Lilith shook her head.

"No, these are theirs' alright, otherwise those two wouldn't have been so shaken. Their symbols have been... twisted for some reason. That's where the news I'm about to share is particularly horrifying." She answered.

Lilith took a deep breath, looking at everyone.

"We believe that, during the events that caused the [Three Worlds Incident] to happen... both Great Red, and Ophis have gone missing."

Everyone gave horrified reactions upon hearing that.

"No, that's impossible! You can't be telling us someone really captured the Dragon Gods, can you?" Bennia exclaimed in denial.

Lilith said nothing, and Bennia quickly realized this was no joke, it was real... and it was serious.

"No way..." Gasper said, shaking.

"I do have a theory though, remember how in the Third World, you were told by Issei and Vali that the one you call Shinigami didn't plan on bringing you there?" Lilith remarked.

"Yeah, she was definitely surprised by what they said." Yuuma verified.

"That's when you guys learned about that Azrael monster's plans, to rule every world, so... my guess is he was the reason you were brought to that place. Perhaps during that process, he went through the Dimensional Gap to make sure he could keep Great Red and Ophis KO'd, and therefore they wouldn't be able to bother him until it was too late... which also, to all of our misfortunes, left them wide open to be captured." Lilith worriedly explained her theory.

"Of course, that would be the only moment anyone could have a chance to capture them." Arthur realized.

Everyone looked at each other, worried just what that meant for them. Neither of the Dragon Gods were officially with the alliance, but they weren't with the Khaos Brigade, and made it clear they never would be. The only definite loss was the only two beings who could destroy Trihexa were currently out of the picture.

"...We can only hope that somehow, we figure out where they are, and maybe rescue them." Lilith sighed, slumping onto her chair.

At that moment, everyone felt a magical barrier pass by them, putting them on alert.

"A magical barrier?" Momo stated in surprise.

"Something's wrong here... everyone, stay on guard." Mio warned, sweating a bit.

At that moment, Asuka sensed something outside. She quickly stood up, a sword sheath forming on her side, followed by her quickly rushing out the door.

"Wait, Asuka!" Irina shouted.

Appearing outside, Asuka's eyes looked around for the sight of the progenitor of the magical barrier.

'Where are you hiding?' She thought, her eyes looking around.

At that moment, she noticed the Devils who were with the Uvell Elder, preparing to attack the Hyoudou Household.

"...Gotcha." Asuka said, giving a playful smirk as she vanished from view.

"Now, it is time to-" The Uvell Elder exclaimed.

A sudden gale of wind knocked them back, surprising the Devils from the unexplained wind.

**「** **Testament of a New Sister Devil: Kareinaru Taiketsu** **」**

Asuka suddenly landed before them, holding her still sheathed sword in her left hand as she gave a determined smile towards them.

"What the hell? Who are you!?" The Uvell Elder demanded.

"Sorry, but I'm not that foolish, you don't give your name to the enemy that knows not who you are, otherwise tell them everything they need." Asuka stated.

"...What?" The Uvell Elder said in confusion.

Asuka vanished again, surprising everyone before a few Devils felt themselves get cut, their bodies disappearing instantly as they were purged. The Uvell Elder's eyes widened, soon making him growl.

"Spread out and strike her!" He ordered with a demanding tone.

"Right!" The Devils replied.

They all began to scatter, right as everyone in the Hyoudou Household came outside to see the fight. Surprise quickly entered their eyes as Asuka's amazing speed quickly began cutting down the Devils, who tried all their magic or clan abilities' attacks to hit her, but with no success... all while she still hadn't revealed her sword!

"She hasn't even drawn her blade, just what is it?" Irina wondered.

"I haven't seen a Hero with such strong potential in years, she might be on the same par as Issei will be when his body finally adapts to the full training I've been putting him under." Homura mentioned.

"Uh, just to ask... how far is he on that?" Yuuma asked, suddenly scared about the answer.

"Only 50%, its harder cause he didn't get to do it as a child." Homura revealed.

Yuuma's eyes widened at that, and she returned to watching the fight with a nervous expression.

After a bit, many of the Devils regrouped, and one of them used an ability to form a strong barrier empowered by nearly all of them, making Asuka stop in place.

"Hah! You can't get us now. This barrier is too strong for someone like you to break!" The Uvell Elder said in a mocking tone.

"Sorry, but when facing a Hero of the Aoyama bloodline... you should never stop moving to defend yourself!" Asuka declared.

Asuka slashed her sheathed sword again, and the Devils powering the barrier suddenly widened their eyes before they felt themselves get cut, being purged instantly as only the Uvell Elder, who had moved away in advance survived it.

He saw the shattered barrier fragments fall before they dissolves away, with only Homura among the crowd below not gasping in surprise, and even then Homura was slightly caught off-guard. Asuka gave a playful smile with closed eyes, tapping her sword against her shoulder before opening them again.

"What!? This can't be, there's no way you could have..." He exclaimed in shock.

"The power of the Heroes belonging to the Aoyama bloodline is [Brave Strike], it destroys all attempts at defense when I try to attack, including Sacred Gears. Against me, it's better to let yourself take a hit, or at least try to evade it." Asuka explained.

The Uvell Elder's eyes widened.

'It's almost like Rizevim's Sacred Gear Canceller!' He thought in horror.

Asuka quickly rushed at him, making him gasp.

"Don't underestimate a member of the Hero Clan!" She warned.

The Elder quickly dodged it, appearing on a roof as Asuka's attack destroyed part of the house she hit.

"Good thing there's a magic barrier up." Asuka said, chuckling nervously.

"Fine then, I'll rip you apart like this!" The Uvell Elder roared.

He created a giant energy sphere, and the energy it was emitting seemed quite volatile.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Upon seeing it, Lilith began to shake with worry.

"Oh no... Asuka, get away from that thing!" She warned.

Asuka didn't show any worry, and didn't move. Instead, she simply readied her sword with both hands, and it glowed with a light green energy that Homura recognized.

"Wait, that ability is..." Homura noticed.

"It can't be!" Mio gasped, immediately knowing what the power was.

The Uvell Elder screamed as he launched at her, and then...

"Here goes... **Banishing Shift!**"

She slashed the attack apart, and when she did... the energy that made it was slowly broke apart, dispersing into harmless particles of mana. The Uvell Elder's eyes shook in response to this. Before he could even react, another gale of wind struck him, cutting across his face this time as he was knocked to the ground.

**「** **Seven Deadly Sins: Perfect Time** **」**

Upon crashing, he slowly got up while shakily glaring at Asuka.

"How is this possible! First you shattered my forces' barriers, then you completely ripped my best magic spell to shreds! Now the wind suddenly strikes me with a powerful gale? Just what the hell are you!?" He demanded.

"Well the first two are my own abilities, but the third? Well... perhaps I can show you my sword now." Asuka giggled, finally unsheathing it.

Everyone stared as she finally drawing the blade into view, and quickly revealing it as a black sword with a few golden markings. This instantly got the attention of the Devils nearby, who could feel it was a Holy Sword. However, Irina and Homura knew _which_ sword it was.

"That's the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, the Holy Sword that controls the wind!" Irina exclaimed.

The Uvell Elder's eyes widened at that, realizing just how the wind now only worked against them, but his forces were taken out in a single swing.

"No, it can't be..." He denied in anger.

"Damn you, no matter what it takes, I'll make sure you cease to exist!" The Uvell Elder raised his hands, rushing forward as he poured all the dark power he could.

Asuka sighed, readying the sword in reverse-style.

"Sorry, but its game over for you." Asuka stated.

Pushing all her power into her feet, she rushed past the Uvell Elder, and his body quickly gained a slash of holy energy across it.

"No, damn you... Zekram, I have failed, forgive me!" He begged, his body struggling to stay alive.

He screamed as his body was purged, followed by Asuka swinging her sword up, where it landed back in its sheath.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"And that's how a Hero fights her battles." Asuka giggled.

The magical barrier disappeared, with all the damage that was done disappearing in the process. As it did, the others ran up to her, and the female Hero found herself suddenly overwhelmed by the sudden bombardment of questions and praised aimed her way.

"How did you get the Kusanagi? What made it choose you?" Kunou asked excitedly.

"Just how strong are you, those abilities were amazing!" Irina questioned.

"You have the same power as Basara, are you related to him somehow!?" Mio demanded, pushing past the others.

Asuka chuckled nervously, a trickle of sweat appearing on her cheek.

"I'll answer just those three. My village had it, and it just... did I guess? I dunno how strong I am, but my village says I'm one of the strongest members of my generation. Basara and I are... uh, something cousins whatever removed? I'm not really sure." Asuka answered in order.

Homura chuckled, pushing everyone aside.

"Hey now, let's not crowd her." Homura stated.

"I am curious though, it's very hard for any Hero to have more than one ability. My son only has two because one power came from his father, and he's a Magician, not a Hero. For you to have Banishing Shift, does that mean one of your parents is from the Toujou family?" Homura asked.

Asuka shook her head.

"No, my mother had the ability along with her own and passed it down to me, maybe you know her?" She explained before wondering about it.

"Hmm... maybe I do, what's her first name?" Homura questioned.

"Her name is Mizuki." Asuka stated.

Homura's eyes suddenly widened at that, her body shaking. There was only one Mizuki she knew of who had the Banishing Shift...

"No way, you're her... daughter?" Her voice shook as she said this.

Asuka looked at her worriedly, with everyone else a bit confused as well, all except Ayumu.

"Uh, Miss Homura? Are you alright-"

Asuka was caught off as Homura hugged her tightly, surprising her a bit.

"U-Uh... Miss Homura?" Asuka asked, blushing a bit from the surprise.

"...Asuka, I can't believe she was able to believe all this time I might still be out there. Mizuki, she was born into the Akane bloodline, she's my younger sister." Homura revealed to the girl she now knew as her niece.

The young Hero's eyes widened at that, remembering how her mother told her she was finding someone, and would only tell her when she knew if she was dead or alive, so she knew to either hope for their return, or to grieve their demise.

She always expected her mother to find the answer, but without even intending to... she had found it. With tears welling in her eyes, she returned the hug, and said two simple words to her.

"...Welcome back." She said happily.

"And here come the water works." Irina said before she began crying.

Everyone quickly followed, sharing tears of joy as Ayumu joined the family reunion hug.

* * *

Issei was seen in a fighting outfit made for the Practical Test, wearing a special band that negated his Queen Piece's boosts while he wore it, as well as any abilities that were decided by Diehauser's to make the Practical Exam too one-sided. As such, he only had his magic, and Ascalon (which was sheathed out of safety) at this disposal.

_"[Good luck kid, as long as you can do somewhat well, you can pass this.]"_ Belzard encouraged.

**"[That's right, you just need to get 50 points, so no need to ace it. Just do all you can.]"** Ddraig agreed.

Issei nodded, and walked to his dueling field. After passing the first half, everyone learned the High-Class exam requires 100 points, but not in an overall manner. You had to at least score 50 on each half, fail to get that many on either, and you failed to promote.

It served as a way to trick people who only scored 24 or below on the first half, since those not careful would think they didn't need to score at least a 50 here, most likely to reference the twists that can happen in a Rating Game... or, when one considered the Khaos Brigade's threat, how a real battle doesn't have any rules to follow. He soon saw his opponent appear before him and Issei readied Ascalon in his hand.

"Alright, it's time... you may begin!" The judge announced.

Issei rushed ahead, and his opponent bounced on his feet to try and trick Issei. The Sekiryuutei soon stopped, unleashing a fireball towards him, making the other Devil jump into the air, giving Issei the chance to swung Ascalon in his _right_ hand, surprising him as he formed a barrier spell in his hand. The judge looked at both of them, taking notes as he wrote the dashes to mark overall points for both of them.

'OK, let's think of something else... I know, let him come to me.' Issei thought.

The other Devil rushed at Issei, slamming his fists at him, striking Issei with magically enhanced punches. The judge looked at Issei as if disappointed... though noticed Issei smirking, getting his attention.

"What are you planning, Sekiryuutei?" He whispered.

'Not yet... not yet..." Issei thought.

The other Devil kicked Issei across the field, and at that moment, he felt something was off.

'Wait... is he not attacking on purpose? Shit, gotta stop him now!' He realized.

He rushed at Issei, trying to hit him towards the edge of the dueling field, however...

"Now!" Issei stated.

Issei gave him an uppercut to the chin, knocking his opponent back before Issei held Ascalon to his throat. The judge looked at this with a smirk.

'Impressive, he waited him out, then when he left himself vulnerable, he took the chance. That's a common thing you gotta do in battle, find the right moment, and know when you have to take a hit.' The judge thought.

"Alright, your duel is over. I'll start ranking your scores now." He told them both.

Issei and his opponent both nodded, and soon walked off to the waiting area.

"Man, you got me there. I hope that doesn't cost me." The other Devil sighed.

"Hey, there's no guarantee I'll pass, one act alone can't decide the whole thing." Issei replied.

His opponent chuckled at him, and the remaining duels slowly began to finish one by one. Eventually everyone was gathered together, where Diehauser began his final announcement to everyone.

"To all of you who passed the first round, thank you for giving it your all. I can't say who among here has passed just yet, but what I can say is that just as nearly 35% of you were taken out in the first round, it's not uncommon that out of the remaining 65% here, the among who pass are... a mere 15% on average." Diehauser revealed, seeing little reason to lie at this stage.

Everyone gasped at that, hearing that an entire half of those at the start wouldn't see themselves promote from here. Issei realized this was likely the result of the twist that made some not try as hard, and lacked the 50-point minimum they needed.

"Don't falter, that is just the average, it can be lower, but it can also be higher. I only find it necessary you know the reality. Some of you may have no noticed the hidden message, and others did, all I can say is this... to those who fail today, don't falter the next time you come to succeed!" Diehauser announced.

Everyone cheered at that, quietly waiting for the results.

* * *

Inside part of Stadium A, the Ultimate-Class exam results had just been posted, and Vali's friends were looking alongside her for their names. Vali eventually noticed something, and once she did...

"Guys, look!" She smiled.

"Hmm?" They all looked where she was.

That's when they finally saw it, everyone one of them had passed!

"We did it!" Ineelana shouted.

"I can't believe it, we all made it to Ultimate-Class!" Vali cheered.

They all hugged each other, accidentally falling to the ground in the process as they did.

"...OK, maybe we were too overzealous." Suzattin mentioned.

"Eh, maybe a little bit." Esketanus agreed.

Ineelana quickly jumped up, quickly contacting Murasaki.

"Come on, I need to know if you all hit Mid-Class! Come on!" She said to herself.

The others did the same, while Vali decided to do the same with Issei.

"Breathe Vali, he'll make it... he'll make it..." She repeated nervously.

* * *

As Issei was waiting for the results, he suddenly saw a magic circle appear by his ear.

"Issei, it's me... I passed!" Vali cheered.

"Yeah! I knew you would, great job." He smiled.

"What about you, did you-" Vali asked.

As they were talking, someone came in to post the results on a nearby wall.

"I don't know just yet, the results haven't... oh, wait! They're coming now, keep the line up!" Issei noticed it, quickly running over.

He took a deep breath, looking for his name. As he did, he saw many find they failed to pass, and quickly left, looking sad over not making it, or disappointed because they almost did. His sweat worsened as he looked for his name, and then...

[Issei Hyoudou: 51/100 - Exam Passed]

Issei's eyes widen, and then...

"...I passed." He said.

"You passed?" Vali repeated.

Issei smiled, and then did a back flip in his excitement.

"I PASSED!" He screamed victoriously.

He ran outside the stadium, making some of the staff blink in surprise, and that's when he saw Vali doing the same from Stadium A. They ran towards each other before Issei hugged her, spinning her around once.

"I knew you could do it!" Vali smiled.

"Same here." Issei smiled back.

Unlike usual, Vali ended up being the one that initiated a kiss between them, causing them to fall over as Ineelana noticed.

"...Well, that's one way to sweep him off his feet." Ineelana joked, giving an awkward look at the scene before her.

* * *

Everyone at the Hyoudou Household was seen doing something. Such sights included Asuka and Homura talking, with a magic circle having the former's parents have a chance to catch up and talk, Lilith tapping her foot as she waited for Vali to return about her promotion's results, Elaine cleaning up around the kitchen.

As Irina went to grab a book, she suddenly saw a familiar magic circle appear, making her gasp.

"Everyone, they're back!" Irina alerted them.

Hearing her, the entire room turned their heads to see Issei and Vali appear from the circle.

"How did it go, did you two..." Lilith asked, near-biting her nails from the suspense.

The two looked at each other, and then everyone... followed by them smiling as they held up a paper showing their passing ribbons on them.

"You both passed!" Lilith exclaimed.

"They passed!" Homura repeated excitedly.

Everyone rushed up to them, looking excited as they all gave expressions of cheer.

"Didn't expect anything else from my cousin." Asuka smiled.

"...Wait, what did you say?" Issei said, confused by her comment.

Homura chuckled embarrassingly.

"Uh, well... while you and Vali were out, I found out that Asuka is actually the daughter of my younger sister." Homura revealed, scratching her head.

"Surprise?" She stated, seeing her son's face frozen in shock.

Ayumu snickered a bit, seeing his son's expression, while his wife was a little lost on what to do.

"Sweetie, maybe have him talk to his Aunt? The poor boy already lost enough right now!" He laughed a bit.

"R-Right..." Homura laughed awkwardly, rubbing her head.

Vali nudged Issei, making him regain his focus.

"Oh, right. When exactly do I get my own Evil Pieces?" Issei asked.

"There's a ceremony you and Vali need to attend for that, which should be..." Lilith answered.

Checking her schedule, the events of High-Class Promotions were a day before the Finals began.

"Ah, they're tomorrow, so you'll have your pieces right before you enter the Finals. Though you'll be unable to trade for Irina till after they finished for obvious reasons."

"Fair enough, I do need to consider who else I'd need to add." Issei replied.

Asuka thought on that a bit, and soon looked at Issei.

"I wouldn't mind joining if you're interested." She offered.

"Really?" Issei said in surprise.

"Yeah, most Heroes who join the Church become Exorcists, so the Hero Clan doesn't really care too much about where we go... minus becoming terrorists of course." Asuka replied.

"We saw how strong she was early, you should totally add her. She's got the Kusanagi of all things!" Irina agreed.

Issei's eyes widened, prompting Asuka to draw it out in confirmation.

"However, I'll add a slight condition to that. You've gotta have a duel with me. If I'm gonna join you, then you can't be a pushover." Asuka challenged, giggling a bit.

"Oh, it's on cousin! I'm not letting that claim slide by me." Issei smirked, accepting her challenge.

The two bumped fists at that, making Vali giggled.

"Now that's the only kind of family feud you should ever have." She joked.

Vali soon noticed Asia and Yuuma looking at Issei. With a mere look at their eyes, she easily realized what they wanted.

"Asia, Yuuma." She stated.

They both looked at her.

"If you have something you wanna say to him, then go ahead." Vali stated, winking at them.

"Wait, Vali... you mean you-" Yuuma realized.

Clearing her throat, she pointed at Issei, telling them to just say it. At that moment, Yuuma took a deep breath as she looked at Issei.

"I-Issei!" She shouted.

Issei turned to look at her, a bit surprised by her shout.

"What is it?" He asked.

"I just... want to say that, well... if you don't mind..." Yuuma stuttered, trying to not falter.

Taking a deep breath, she bushed a bit before shouting out the words she couldn't take back.

"I'D LIKE TO BE TRADED INTO YOUR PEERAGE LIKE IRINA!"

That caught everyone by surprise, including Issei.

"A-Actually, I'd like that too!" Asia admitted, bowing a bit.

"Yuuma? Asia? Both of you?" Issei said in surprise.

Vali pat both of them on the back, the two feeling a bit overwhelmed by their confession.

"I think I know why, and it actually doesn't surprise me that much." Vali mentioned.

"Really?" Le Fay asked.

"Really. For Asia, Issei was the first real friend she ever made, and he's been like an older brother to her. Not to mention, when she was doubting herself, Issei cleared them by going with her to the Vatican. As for Yuuma, she's grown a lot since that fateful date, and where everything has gone since the incident with her sister. My guess is she feels for that same reason, she'll grow even more if she stays by his side from here on." Vali guessed their reasons, making them blush at the accuracy of her guess.

Looking at Issei, Vali walked over to her.

"So, what do you think? I don't mind trading them over to you along with Irina." She asked.

"Well... honestly, this is kinda sudden, and I've still been considering things with Ravel." Issei admitted.

Thinking for a bit, he decided on something.

"I think I'll consider them for now, when I make a decision, I'll let both of you, and Ravel know about it." He decided.

The two sighed a bit, glad he at least didn't say no to them.

"There, doesn't it feel better than you two said it before you lost your chance." Vali smiled, putting a hand on each of their shoulders.

"I thought I was gonna faint... no, I think I might still do that." Yuuma admitted, shaking nervously.

Vali giggled at that, making Yuuma blush a bit as she pulled her hair over her eyes.

"Well, aside from that little duel you've set up with Asuka, there's something I need to tell you and Vali about..." Lilith mentioned.

The two looked at her, and the Queen of Hell started explaining the things they didn't get to hear earlier, with the surprise quickly appearing on their faces. This was only the beginning of what would soon come...

Just the beginning...

* * *

**Well, there you go everyone, they both passed! Not just that, but Yuuma and Asia have asked for candidacy in possibly joining Issei's peerage. Now, there's only the one Rook who has left to reveal themselves. Feel free to guess who it is, although the only thing I can give you should that guess be correct is a praise of achievement. *chuckles* Asuka's a definite addition, but I'm gonna withhold telling you which piece she'll be for now :3**

**And speaking of her, this is one of many reasons why Asuka is an important OC from here on out... she was Issei's cousin, and no one knew! For the reason why they didn't... you can blame Rizevim for that, it was his fault they didn't know -_- *glares at the Super Devil* There's still a lot more that makes her important I won't say, other than this was just the first step on that.**

**I hope how I did the High-Class Exams worked out well, I figured that the standards for passing are incredibly high compared to a Mid-Class exam since if passing it was that easy, I'm pretty sure we'd have seen a lot more reincarnated Devils who have their own peerages. For that reason, not only does the High-Class exam have a lower passing rate, but a few hidden twists one has to spot as a leader.**

**Oh, since some of you might be wondering this, I'll share what Devils from the peerages we know of that have were taking the Mid-Class exams. However, since it might be a bit lengthy to share them here, I ask people to ask me via their reviews, or just PM me. Especially since you might not remember who belongs to what peerage. What I can say is this, all of them successfully promoted to Mid-Class ^^**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

**=Issei's Soon-to-Be Peerage Overview=**

** Confirmed Members: **

**Asuka Aoyama (Undecided) - Issei's seen her power, and Asuka has agreed to join him if he promises her a small duel later**   
**Irina Shidou (Knight) - Has asked Issei, who has agreed to it, and gotten permission from Vali to be traded**

** Known Candidates: **

**Ravel Phenex (Bishop) - Is working hard to make Issei consider her  
Asia Argento (Bishop) - Because Issei was the first true friend she ever had, and is like an older brother to her  
Yuuma Amano (Pawn x2) - She feels the reason she became who she is now was due to Issei, and feels staying by his side will let him grow more**

** Unrevealed Candidates: **

**Rook**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse, Basara Toujou (by mention)**

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki, Yumi**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Stella Vermillion**

**Date A Live - Tohka Yatogami, Kurumi Tokisaki**

**Akame ga Kill - Leone**

**Asterisk War - Ayato**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged**


	49. Chapter 49

**Alright, we're at the next stage of the Finals arc, the backstories of Ineelana's peerage being revealed, which is quite fitting since three members of her peerage became Mid-Class (those being Murasaki, Yumi, and Stella) in the previous chapter. While most of them will be their own stories, Murasaki and Yumi kinda share theirs, but this is justified by the fact they're both characters from Senran Kagura.**

**We'll also see the duel between Issei and Asuka, which may or may not have me reveal what Evil Piece I'm giving her, while also finally revealing who the Rook Candidate is. Ironically, out of everything in the chapter, it's what I consider the minor event since this chapter and the next are about Ineelana's first meetings with her peerage, and how they all joined her.**

**Now, for this chapter, we'll be seeing the stories of the three who just passed their Mid-Class exam, and everyone else will have their stories shown in the next. This even includes Tamara, as despite she's the only one that's an OC among the group, you've probably been wondering since I revealed she had the Telos Karma back in S4 how Ineelana managed to get her into her peerage.**

**So, with all of that said... time to begin!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Toujou Family **

**A bloodline in the Hero Clan who possess Susanoo's blessing. The current generation of Heroes in this family include is Basara Toujou, whose name means [Wolf of the Castle], and Tobio Ikuse's girlfriend Sae Toujou, whose name means [Castle's Inspiration]. While not aware of their origins as Heroes, Rias chose the name of Shirone, and later Kuroka, as this due to the former becoming her Rook.**

**Like any bloodline of the Hero Clan, the Toujou family has superhuman level abilities, though they excel most in their durability, a feat shown through Sae being the only person able to adapt to a certain Utsusemi, and was able to survive what would have been a lethal blow to anyone else, despite that she never had any training to fully develop the strength of her Hero blood.**

**Their blessing's ability became known as the [Banishing Shift], a power that allows them to strike energy/magic based attacks, and disperse it into mana entirely, making it a dangerous counter for wizard-type fighters. However, the downside of this ability is that it doesn't work on Chi due to coming from the body's own energy, or abilities that aren't truly magic/energy, like the Domineering Will, and is useless against someone who only uses physical strength.**

**Issei and Asuka share blood with the Toujou family through their grandma, making Basara and Sae distant cousins of theirs.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 3 - Envious Memories, Part 1 _ **

Standing in the training room of the Hyoudou Household, the sight of Issei stretching out as seen, with Asuka raising up her arms on the other side of the room. Everyone was standing on the sides, sitting down as they awaited the start of their duel.

"This looks like it'll be interesting." Kuroka remarked.

"I know Issei's got a few trophies he won from some sport sparring, and he's dabbed in kendo... makes this feel like a match in one of those competitions." Vali said both excited, but a little nervous.

Kuroka didn't say anything at that, making Vali sigh.

"...And you're still giving me the silent treatment, OK then." Vali mentioned, looking the other way.

Lavinia soon came down, taking a seat.

"Have I missed anything?" Lavinia asked.

"Nope, you're good." Le Fay replied.

"I'm curious how she'll fight in this case, I've seen Basara use his Banishing Shift before, so if the match rule allows any magic..." Mio wondered aloud.

Lavinia looks at Mio, getting her attention.

"What?" Mio asked.

"Oh, sorry about that. I just find it surprising that your boyfriend shares the same family name as Tobio's girlfriend, Sae." Lavinia mentioned.

"Sae? I don't remember Basara mentioning anyone like that in his family." Mio replied, a bit confused.

Lavinia giggled at that.

"It actually makes sense he doesn't know her, Sae wasn't originally aware she was of the Hero Clan, not unlike Issei. The difference was her parents intentionally hid it, so they could live a normal life, but that didn't list very long." She answered.

"Hmm... well, if you say they share the same last name." Mio shrugged.

Since the topic of the name was brought up, Irina looked at Rias.

"Hey, did you give Shirone the surname Toujou based on that?" She asked.

"Actually, I only gave her the name of Koneko up till the point she cleared up things with her sister, I think Kuroka's old master in the Naberius clan gave them that name." Rias admitted.

"Considering the experiments that he did to the rest of his peerage... I don't think that was a coincidence." Kuroka mentioned, briefly turning blue in the face.

After both sides fully stretched out, Issei summoned his Boosted Gear.

"Alright, so what are the rules for this duel?" Issei asked.

"Just these two, you can only use your sword, and your Hero abilities, so no using your Boosted Gear or Force Crystallization." Asuka stated.

Issei nodded, and removed Ascalon from his Sacred Gear.

"OK, you can make the first move, so whenever you're ready." She offered.

He nodded, getting into position as Asuka did the same. Everyone watched with anticipation as a magic circle appeared by them, revealing Tiamat walking through in her human form, seating herself by the others.

"Tiamat? Wow, I didn't think this would interest you." Lilith mentioned.

"Eh, I was a bit bored, plus I'm interested in seeing how Issei will fight when he's deprived of his usual tricks." Tiamat shrugged.

The two resumed watching the match, and once they did...

**「** **Accel World: Silvery Wings** **」**

Issei rushed forward and swung Ascalon, prompting Asuka to quickly swing the Kusanagi against it, and the two quickly were pushed back from one another as they hit. Asuka whistled at the result.

"Impressive, haven't had someone cross swords with me like that in forever." She praised.

"Thanks, I've gotta live up to my role as Vali's Queen." Issei thanked, taking a deep breath.

The two charged at each other again, but this time Issei's eyes took an iridescent color with white pupils, making Asuka gasp as she was suddenly forced back through the strength of his Domineering Will. Everyone held their ground as a strong wind blew through the room, a heavy sound echoing through it.

"Not bad, but try this!" Asuka smirked.

She rushed forward, disappearing from view, and Issei prepared to parry, only for Asuka's strike to hit him hard through her Brave Strike's effect.

"Anyone wanna share what she did there?" Tiamat questioned.

"Her Brave Strike ability, I'd say it's not that different from Issei when he uses his Penetrate." Homura explained.

Tiamat hummed at Asuka with interest.

Issei quickly regained his bearings, and instantly shot forward before Asuka could fully react, but she was at least able to cross swords with Issei, and the two quickly rushed around the room, everyone quickly moving their heads to keep track as their blades clashed over and over again.

"HA!" Issei yelled.

"HIYAH!" Asuka yelled.

Their next attacks released a burst of power, which were red and blue respectively.

"Glad this place was made to handle attacks on my level." Tiamat remarked, impressed by the strength they just used.

Rushing ahead again, both sides swung their swords a few times, but unlike before, each of them had their blades manage to strike each other instead of their blades. Making them both slide back, and when Asuka's sliding came to a stop...

"Gotcha!" Issei smirked.

"Huh?" Asuka blinked.

She felt Issei's Domineering Will press onto her again, pushing her down slightly as she felt her movement lock up.

"You put up a good fight, but this is it!" Issei stated, charging at her.

He prepared the finishing strike to end the duel, but right as he got close, Asuka managed to twitch a finger as she tightened her grip on Kusanagi. Before Issei could react, a sudden gale of wind struck him from the side, pushing him across the ground.

"Nice try Issei, but you forgot what the main power of the Kusanagi." Asuka giggled, panting a bit.

"So, it really does manipulate the wind. Definitely caught me off guard there." Issei admitted, also panting.

Realizing they were both nearing their limits, the two charged as they prepared their last sword strikes, with their swords glowing to match the color of their auras, and once they neared each other... they both slashed ahead, creating a purple explosion as their colors melded.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Tiamat focused her eyesight as she looked through the smoke, and that's when she saw both of them on the ground, breathing heavily with their swords laying besides them.

"Alright, looks like this is a draw." Tiamat announced.

The two cousins look at each other upon hearing this, and soon they gave playful laughs in response.

"Man, you're pretty strong, Asuka. I don't think I've had a fight like this since before I first learned of the supernatural." Issei admitted, chuckling a bit.

"Same here, first time I've felt like I could really go all out in a while." Asuka smiled, wiping her forehead.

Vali helped the two on their feet, and Asuka soon held a hand out to Issei.

"Well, you've convinced me with that duel, no doubts for me joining your peerage now." Asuka declared.

"Thanks." Issei replied, shaking her hand.

"So, what piece are you gonna give her, she seems like a good choice for your second Knight." Irina asked.

"Well, I thought that at first, but..." Issei replied, looking at Tiamat.

Tiamat chuckled at that.

"You're wondering how strong she is? Well, if you and Vali lacked your Sacred Gears right now, I'd easily say she's only a bit lower than your levels. If I'm to be honest, I think you'll have to give her your queen, otherwise you'd have to break your word on possibly aiding your current three candidates." She admitted.

"Whoa, so she really is that strong? I thought the stronger the King, the less piece you need." Issei asked in surprise.

"Oh, that is true Issei, but you gotta remember the Evil Pieces are also an invention. They have limits, take Tiamat here, someone could potentially have reincarnated her had she not have become your familiar, but Ddraig or Albion? No one would have ever been able to add them to their peerage." Lilith explained.

"I think I get it, the same general principle that makes Gods immune to them?" Issei realized.

"Yeah, have too much power, and you're immune to an Evil Piece or related system." Lilith confirmed.

Look at Asuka, he shrugged his shoulders.

"Eh, I don't mind. You seem like your strengths would work beyond a Knight." He decided.

"If that's what you wanna go with." She replied.

Le Fay thought on that a bit, then came to a thought.

"What about your Rooks? You could just give her both, and save your Queen for someone else." She suggested.

Issei wondered about that to, but before he could answer...

"Actually, about that Issei. Before you decide on possibly giving Asuka your rooks, do you think you could consider me trading Rossweisse to you?" Rias offered.

This surprised everyone, especially Rossweisse.

"Wait, I'd understand Vali offering to trade someone to me, but why you?" Issei asked.

"Well, it has to do with the fact Rossweisse is set to be your teacher when you begin your third year, since I'm gonna be heading to College..." Rias explained.

Issei's eyes widened, nodding as he understood what she meant.

"I get it, that would make it hard for you to get Rossweisse if something came up during school hours. You couldn't just come back into Kuoh High whenever you felt like it." He realized, with Rias' expression confirming it.

Issei scratched his head, looking at Rossweisse.

"Well... Rossweisse, would you be alright with this?" Issei asked.

"Uh, well... if you two are fine with it, and Rias has a good reason for it, then I don't mind changing peerages. The Gremory benefits I could would still apply due to Sirzechs being the current Lucifer among the Great Devils, right?" Rossweisse replied, looking at Rias.

"It would, we'd just need Lilith's permission." Rias replied.

Lilith gives a thumb's up at that, smiling.

"Hmm... alright, I'll consider it then. I'm already considering Ravel, Yuuma, and Asia, so one more couldn't hurt." Issei decided, smiling a bit.

Tiamat chuckled at that, playfully hitting her master on the back.

"Look at that, haven't even gotten your Evil Pieces just yet, and you've already got two decided, and four potential members that could take you to seven." She praised.

"Whoa, settle down a bit Tiamat, haven't made any concrete decisions aside from trading for Irina, and Asuka being in my peerage regardless of which piece." Issei replied, smiling a bit.

Tiamat shrugged, and looked at Asuka.

"Mind showing me what else you can do, I like your spunk." Tiamat asked.

* * *

Within part of the Leviathan clan's territory, Ineelana poured some fruit punch into eight glasses before holding it up.

"Alright everyone, here's to my Ultimate-Class promotion, and the success of Murasaki, Yumi, and Stella in reaching High-Class!" Ineelana announced, giving a toast.

"Cheers!" Everyone replied, hitting their classes against hers.

Tamara gulps hers down before throwing an arm around Murasaki, smiling brightly.

"Especially you Muri, and you thought you'd only barely pass!" She praised.

"N-No, really... I didn't do that great. Stella's the one who got the best score." Murasaki said bashfully.

"Murasaki, I only got a score like that because I studied for five days straight, be a little prideful in your achievements every once in a while." Stella replied.

Murasaki blushed more, rubbing her fingers against her glass as Ineelana finished a sip of her own.

"It still amazes me how far we got from where we came." Ineelana mentioned.

Everyone else suddenly began reminiscing at the thought, a few smiling, while others had some more... varied expressions.

"Yeah, if you had told me we'd be here when we first met, I'd have called you a liar." Mine remarked.

"Oh yeah, I joined you guys last, so I've always wondered what led the rest of you into Ineelana's peerage?" Tamara asked.

Ineelana blinked before smiling, and laughing a bit.

"Yeah, guess we forgot that we left you in the dark there, didn't we? Alright then, let's share those stories." Ineelana realized.

"I think the first story we should start with is Murasaki and Yumi's." She decided.

"Wait, both of them? As in they share the same one?" Tamara inquired.

"Yep, I met them both the same way, it all started when I went out to a remote area of Japan." Ineelana answered, her mind wandering.

* * *

_Deep within a remote area of Japan, Ineelana was seen walking through a thick forest, not completely sure where she was anymore. She moved a branch out of her wave, only for it to swing back to whack her face, making her hold it in pain._

_"Ow! Damn it, stupid branch..." Ineelana winced._

_As she continued walking, the Leviathan heiress reached to take out a box, opening it to reveal fifteen white Chess pieces inside, her Evil Pieces. She had gotten them fairly recently, despite the massive discrimination her clan faced due to the actions of the traitorous Katerea Leviathan, and now she was on a mission... to find a peerage that was so great, that anyone who laughed at her would regret it._

_Right now, she was going to the first location she could think of to find potential members. She didn't really have any particular traits in mind for who joined her peerage, but what she did want however? A drive. A powerful drive to succeed, those who envied their low standing, or wanted to leave the spotlight of being inferior, and prove to the world how great they were. A feeling she was unfortunate to know more than she wanted to admit._

_"They'll see, the entirety of Hell's gonna suffer the shame of insulting me! I'm a member of the great Leviathan clan! My ancestor helped make our home, and I'll remind everyone of that!" Ineelana screamed loudly._

_Someone screamed in fear, catching Ineelana's attention._

_"Huh?"_

_She looked towards a certain direction, and saw a rustling that began heading somewhere._

_"Hey, is that a person?" She realized._

_Ineelana quickly ran after the sight of the moving foliage, chasing after the fleeing person. After a few minutes, she finds herself near a small shack... among what she saw was a whole radius of destroyed land. She wasn't sure how to describe it, but it looked like the area had been glassed, if it wasn't for the dark coloring, and the land being raised too much._

_"Whoa, this is..." Ineelana gasped in shock, and horror._

_"Get out."_

_Ineelana suddenly noticed some ice fly towards her, and swung her arm to create her purple ice as a counter to it. The two forms of ice clashed, creating a large mist as the Leviathan heiress coughed a bit, soon feeling a fan held up to her face._

_She looked before her, seeing a girl with pale white skin, and icy blue eyes. Her shoulder length hair was a dark-gray color, and was pent up slightly in the back by a white bow that had blue stripes on the ends. She wore a solid white furisode kimono that hung off her shoulders, exposing her cleavage._

_"...So, who do I have the pleasure of talking to?" Ineelana questioned._

_"My name is of no importance to you, but know if you've come to attack me and my friend, I won't hesitate to end you." Yumi warned._

_"Yeah right, like you could kill a Devil." Ineelana scoffed._

_Yumi's eyes widened, shaking a bit._

_"Y-you're bluffing." Yumi said in denial._

_Ineelana quickly unfolded her wings, making Yumi drop her fan in surprise._

_"Am I?" She countered._

_"No way, this is..." Yumi shook at the sight before her._

_"Calm down before you pee yourself, I only came her because I saw someone running, I didn't even know this place was here." Ineelana replied._

_"Wait, so you're not here on behalf of other Shinobi clan?" Yumi asked._

_That surprised Ineelana a bit._

_"Wait, are you saying you're a kunoichi?" Ineelana asked._

_"Yeah, one of the only two left of the village that once resided here..." Yumi admitted._

_Ineelana winced at that._

_"So, what destroyed this place, and everyone you knew?" She questioned._

_"...My friend, the only survivor you followed here." Yumi revealed._

_"Wait, what?" Ineelana said in surprise._

_Yumi turned away, recalling the incident._

_"Her name is Murasaki, she was once just a normal girl, she never wanted to hurt anyone... a trait that didn't fit with kunoichi like us. One day, her father pushed her too far in doing something, and then... well, I was absent at the time, so I didn't see what happened until the aftermath had already occurred." Yumi explained._

_She closed her eyes, shaping memories based on what she heard from Murasaki._

* * *

_Murasaki was holding a kunai using her hair, and tried to throw it... only for it to falter against the ground due to the weak throw she used to do so. Upon seeing this, her father growled before slamming the wall, making her panic._

_"Murasaki, stop playing this damn game with me!" He roared._

_"I-I... I..." Murasaki stuttered._

_He grabbed her arm, making her cry out at the way he did, which was hurting her._

_"I'm not babying you anymore, either you start hardening yourself over this, or I'll have to make you punish you physically!" He roared louder._

_Murasaki breathed heavily at that, with it getting worse by the second._

**「** **Sonic the Hedgehog: Mephiles' Whisper (Minus the hopeful bit)** **」**

_Finally, a breaking point started to near itself as a dark aura released itself off a body, culminating from her negative emotions. Everyone nearby started to look worried, and Murasaki's father even screamed as the dark energy burnt his hand._

_"Ah! Damn it, what the hell is this!?" He shouted angrily._

_"Stop it, stay away from me..." She begged, her eyes turning into dark pools._

_At that moment, the Sacred Gear sleeping within her finally awakened._

_"STAY AWAY!"_

_The energy building around her aura suddenly exploded, and everyone nearby didn't even have time to scream as it swallowed them up._

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

_When it finally ended, Murasaki slowly looked upwards... that's when she gasped in horror at the sight of the grayed remains of her home._

_Around that same moment, Yumi neared the village after a task she had left it for, being the only one absent at the time... though she didn't expect to come back to see it was completely annihilated. Looking around, she saw Murasaki in the center, shaking as she covered her head._

_"Murasaki?" She called out worried._

_"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." Murasaki cried repeatedly._

* * *

_Hearing that tale, the Leviathan heiress showed clear shock, but she was also able to clearly tell what had happened. Ninjas were skilled, but they had no knowledge of the supernatural world based on the rumors she heard about one of the Seraph._

_Small story short, neither Yumi or Murasaki had any idea that the latter had a Sacred Gear, and based on a story she had one heard..._

_"The [Catastrophe Core], she has to have it, there's no other explanation." Ineelana stated._

_"...The what?" Yumi asked confused._

_Ineelana sighed, looking Yumi straight in the eyes, surprising the ice kunoichi._

_"I think I know what happened to your friend, so let me see her." Ineelana reasoned._

_Yumi's eyes widened at that._

_"Wait, you mean like you could get rid of the power that did all this?" Yumi asked._

_"No, but I **can** help teach her how to control it, and prevent her from causing another accident like this one." Ineelana shook her head, correcting her._

_"...Well, if you can help her at all, then I won't stop you." Yumi sighed, deciding to accept her aid._

_Yumi headed towards the small place that she and Murasaki called home, and when they got inside... the heiress of Leviathan's face went blue in shock, surprised at all the video game stuff she saw, with someone squeaking as she hid among bed covers._

_Ineelana sighed before she walked over, grabbing the sheets._

_"Come on, get... out of... there!" She shouted, tugging them off._

_One the covers were thrown off, Ineelana finally saw the one called Murasaki for the first time. She was a girl slightly younger than Yumi with long violet hair, and eyes of a much darker purple shade, which were currently shown with a sad demeanor. She had a prominent bust, and wore what looked like a purple track suit... or pajamas, Ineelana honestly couldn't tell._

_"...Whoa, I didn't realize ninja could be shut-ins." She said in surprise._

_"P-Please... don't just me, leave me alone..." Murasaki begged._

_Ineelana groaned as she face palmed._

_"Why does everyone always assume that?" Ineelana groaned, a metaphorical arrow pointing at her expression._

_Reaching into her magic circle storage, and surprising the kunoichi shut-in, she took out the box she held her Evil Pieces in. Looking at Yumi, she took two of them out, her Queen, and one of her Bishops._

_"You two obviously aren't living well in a place like this, and for your Murasaki? That power of yours will not be tamed as you are... you need someone to guide you, so that you can control it before it ever causes you more pain like this." Ineelana stated._

_She held out her Queen Piece to Murasaki, who looked at it in surprise as she held it, while tossing the Bishop over to Yumi._

_"...Let me give you a new future away from this place, a new home." She offered._

_"I can see you two are like me. The world has pushed you in a place that doesn't favor you, and I know what that's like, but together we can escape that. So, will you join my peerage?" Ineelana looked at the two, waiting for their answer._

* * *

Ineelana soon finished her reminiscing, smiling at the memory.

"So, that's how it happened." Tamara said with interest.

"Only question I have on that is this, when did you learn about Yumi's Sacred Gear? The story didn't bring that up." Mine questioned.

"My mom realized it a week after I brought them home. When I first saw her ice, I honestly thought she just had some skill in magic, hearing she had a Sacred Gear enhancing it was an unexpected bonus." Ineelana answered.

Finishing her drink, the sole Knight of Leviathan looked at the two kunoichi.

"The part where you offered them a new home? Honestly, that sounds almost identical to when you and I first met." Stella mentioned.

Tamara instantly moved into "Start talking, I'm interested!" mode, causing Ineelana to chuckle a bit.

"Alright, alright. Let's see... if I remember right, after things settled with Murasaki and Yumi, I decided to start looking for my next potential Evil Piece somewhere in Europe." Ineelana began, drifting into thought again.

* * *

_Ineelana was seen walking through the ruins of an ancient city, belonging to an ancient civilization that got wiped out long ago._

_She didn't know all of the details, but the few rumors she had heard implied that it was related to the Ancient Gods that built the Gogmagogs, who eventually became one of the many Pantheons to fall to extinction. The city was full of people who knew of them, and thrived due to their efforts, so their demise likely marked the end of their people._

_"I wonder, is there really anything I can find here?" Ineelana wondered aloud._

_The Leviathan heiress had come because this city because before coming, she studied their civilization, and saw something that seemed to imply a preservation technology that could possibly have led to a survivor she could add to her peerage, though she was starting to think she got her hopes up too much._

_"...Damn it, maybe I should just-"_

_Out of nowhere, she suddenly felt her foot sink, leading to her screaming her lungs out as she fell into some kinda hidden chamber. Eventually, she landed on her butt after falling for who knows how long._

_"Ow! What the hell just happened!?" Ineelana winced, rubbing her bruised rear._

_Standing up, she quickly tried to figure out where she was, and suddenly gasped at the sight before her. Various machines decorated the walls, with a few flickering lights that still functioned in what could only be described as one thing, an old laboratory._

_"A lab, but then wouldn't that mean..." She realized._

_"OK, no pressure Ineelana, just the fact that if you can't find a manual, you might cause anything you try to touch to explode." She gave a nervous sweat as she walked around._

_After walking for a bit, she suddenly bumped her elbow into something. She paled as she saw it was a button, and panicked as she moved away, with a nearby machine suddenly beginning to turn on._

_"I'm so freaking dead! I'm completely screwed! I'm gonna die!" Ineelana panicked._

_The machine the button was connected to began steaming up, years of dust starting to burn from the heat... followed by part of the machine bursting, the years having a clear effect on it. Before it finally gave out on itself, part of it opened to reveal something falling out of it._

_"Huh?"_

_Ineelana got closer, and that's when she saw it, the proof of what she came here for... it was a beautiful young woman of average height with a beautiful face, white skin, and ruby eyes. She had long crimson hair tied into twin tails, and a voluptuous figure with large breasts._

_Kneeling down, she checked for signs of a pulse..._

** _*BA-BUMP* *BA-BUMP*_ **

_"She's alive, but for how long?" The heiress of Leviathan quickly formed a magic circle, knowing she needed to get back home this instant._

* * *

_Groaning a bit, the red-haired girl slowly opened her eyes, finding herself in a bedroom that she didn't recognize, with Ineelana seeing she had finally woken up._

_"Thank goodness, I was worried that I was too late to help you." She sighed in relief._

_"...Who are you? Where am I?" The girl asked._

_"My name's Ineelana, Ineelana Leviathan. Where you are is my home in Hell... also, you're not dead, but you almost did die." Ineelana explained._

_The girl gasped as she made a sudden turn... only to wince in pain, with Ineelana quickly holding her in place._

_"Don't move too much, you were badly injured when I found you." She warned._

_The girl sighed, looking at her bandaged hands._

_"What's your name exactly?" Ineelana asked._

_"...Stella, Stella Vermillion."_

_The Leviathan heiress showed shock, that was the name of..._

_"The daughter of the Salathavean Kingdom's king?" Ineelana stated in shock._

_"Oh, so you know who I am?" Stella asked._

_Ineelana sighed, looking away._

_"...I'm sorry, but I'm afraid the world you knew is gone, that Kingdom met its end 1500 years ago. I found you in stasis, and you're likely the only one left of your people." She revealed, looking down as she did._

_Stella's eyes widened in shock, her memories flowing back before she was put into that machine to heal._

_"No, that can't... we weren't at conflict, my parents told me we'd-" Stella stuttered, tearing up._

_She covered her mouth, trying not to puke, and soon began crying heavily._

_"I'm sorry, the Gods that helped your land thrive died out, and I think your nation slowly followed... I don't know why you never got out of that machine, except maybe your nation died out before anyone had the chance. That, or it was better to keep you inside, so you'd survive. I'm honestly shocked that machine was even in working order when I found it." Ineelana gave her condolences to Stella._

_"...What do I do know? Everything I knew and loved its gone, I feel so angry I couldn't be there to protect it!" Stella asked, still crying._

_"Tell me, your angry right? Feels like the world favored something other than yourself?" Ineelana asked._

_Stella looked at her, surprised by her words._

_"I know that feeling, and I've met two others who are the same, people I've had join my household because we want to break those chains that keep us there. Tell me, what was the reason you were in that machine?" Ineelana inquired._

_"My power, I've always had incredible fire magic, and an ability to make a sword from it. My people studied how to imbue magic into the skin to create new powers as a way to forge a strength for those lacking the Sacred Gears." Stella answered._

_"You seem fairly talented to have powers like-" Ineelana mentioned._

_Ineelana suddenly felt a few strands of her hair get cut off, making her pale a bit._

_"Don't say that!" Stella roared angrily._

_"I work hard... I really do, I put effort. I had to actually work to get to this point..." Her voice softened as she cried._

_The Leviathan heiress was surprised by her words._

_"There was a time my own powers burned me, I had no control, so... I had to train harder than anyone to control it. The reason you see me injured? I had only just succeeded in taming them, but I was still hurt from finishing that last step." Stella explained._

_"Whoa... I'm sorry, guess people seeing you as some prodigy is a sore spot for you." Ineelana apologized._

_Stella looked away, a bit guilty she exploded like that._

_"Still, isn't that a similar feeling to what I just said? If so... hold onto that feeling, that way we can show the world we're more than how people see us." Ineelana remarked._

_She held up a Knight piece towards her, but noticed it didn't glow. Stella looked confused as she then held out two, which both glowed._

_"Whoa, you're so strong I need both my Knights." She said with awe._

_"...What are those?" Stella asked._

_"Evil Pieces, and with them is an offer... if you've lost everything, then allow me to give you a new home, so I ask you to be a Knight of the Leviathan household." Ineelana offered._

* * *

Aside from the two kunoichi and Ineelana, everyone was shocked to hear Stella was the sole survivor of an ancient nation.

"No way, you actually came from a kingdom that existed 1500 years ago!?" Tamara shouted in disbelief.

"Yep, I don't bring it up in the present because it's my past, and I live in the here and now... I'm Ineelana's Knight, so that's what I let everyone know I am." Stella answered, smiling a bit.

"Do... you ever miss your family?" Tamara asked with a sad look.

Stella took a deep breath, nodding her head.

"It would be pretty stupid if I didn't, but even if I miss them, I know they'd want me to live to the fullest. That's what I intend to do." She admitted, looking at the sky.

Tamara sighed at that before smiling, rubbing her head.

"Honestly, I should have known you'd say something like that. You're the type of girl who looks like a tsundere without actually being one." Tamara remarked.

"What did you say!?" Stella shouted angrily, her hair flaring in angrily.

Tamara held her hands up defensively, sweating a bit.

"U-Uh... I didn't say that? Hey, continue with the stories Ineelana, anytime now!" She begged.

Ineelana shook her head, making her Second Bishop shake a bit.

"We gotta actually eat the food we made before it gets cold. We'll continue after we eat some, so I'll let Stella scold you in the meantime." Ineelana said, not bothering to hide what she really meant under her words.

Tamara's voice could be heard yelling in a panic from outside the Leviathan mansion.

* * *

Asuka was seen in the training room, practicing her magic skills as she focused her swings with Kusanagi, trying to only blow a slight breeze with each swing, rather than a full gale. Her success was currently a bit varied, but she was making a little progress.

A magic circle soon appeared by her side, getting her attention as she tapped it.

"Hey there sweetie." Mizuki's voice sang, making her daughter smile.

"Mom, it's been a while." Asuka smiled.

Sheathing her sword, she moved her focus to her current call.

"So, what's the reason you're calling?" She asked.

"Just felt like talking with my daughter, and I kinda wanted to know what she thinks of her cousin, Aunt, and her Uncle." Mizuki replied.

Soon, a strange laughter was heard, with Mizuki giving a forced laugh.

"...That, and I need to get a distraction from Tsukuyomi, she's driving me crazy!" Mizuki whimpered, clearly stressed out from the wild Goddess.

"Oh, come on, she can't be that bad." Asuka asked.

"You only say that because you had a good relationship from that one time you went to Osaka while she was there..." Mizuki whispered.

"Hmm? What was that?" Asuka asked, not catching that last reply.

Mizuki screamed at that, making Asuka's eyes widen.

"N-Nothing! Anyways, just answer my question!" Mizuki insisted loudly.

Asuka had no idea why her mother freaked out like that, but she didn't focus on it, deciding to give her answer.

"Well, Aunt Homura's definitely very bright and cheerful, but she's also got a strong will that shows she can stand on her norm. Uncle Ayumu's got a strong heart, and while he can't seem to really get a leg on your big sister, he's definitely happy with where he is. As for Issei? Well, he's very straight forward and true to himself, so many people trust him like they trust his girlfriend, Vali Lucifer... he has strong faith, kinda like how I always try to believe no matter the odds." Asuka admitted, smiling as she answered.

"Yeah, you've always shown that smile when you fight, even when you're really scared, or unsure of yourself... I honestly respect you for being able to believe, and thinking that feeling might be create the slight chance you need to succeed. I could never have that same faith." Mizuki replied, smiling with a sad look.

"Hey, don't put yourself down too much, isn't the reason you never told me about your big sister because you had some faith she might be alive?" Asuka inquired.

Mizuki went silent for a moment, laughing at herself.

"Maybe I did, I guess your faith just grew strong enough you always hold it, keeping your optimism." She remarked.

"Maybe it is? Oh, I should bring this up now, but I'm gonna be joining Issei's peerage, and most likely as his Queen." Asuka giggled before mentioning the good news.

"Really?" Mizuki asked in surprise.

Asuka nodded, making a sound to confirm it.

"You don't mind if I ended up becoming a Devil, would you?" Asuka questioned.

"Sweetie, follow the path you believe is yours, that's what it means to be a Hero. If you think it's the right path for you, then I have no objections." Mizuki smiled.

Asuka smiled at that.

"Thanks mom. Oh, and if you can... think you can ask Tsukuyomi if she can bring you and dad over?" She asked.

"Sure, but... what for exactly?" Mizuki inquired.

"There's this tournament that Issei's in, and his team is about to fight in the Final match for the Championship. It's in two days, and I'd really like it if you could come and watch with us, especially since I think Aunt Homura would like to see you in person." Asuka explained.

Mizuki blinked before laughing her lungs off from that last bit.

"Alright, I think we can do that much, I'll see you soon then." She replied.

"OK, bye mom." Asuka smiled.

The magic circle disappeared, and Asuka resumed her wind-control training.

'Give it your all Issei, I know you and your friends are gonna win!' She thought.

* * *

**That wraps up the first part of "Envious Memories", I hope you enjoyed the stories for Murasaki, Yumi, and Stella. Writing the former two's story was interesting because in their origin series, they're actually on opposite sides (Yumi's a good shinobi, while Murasaki's technically an evil shinobi), even though they're kinda-sorta friendly. For Stella, it was figuring out a good origin for her.**

**With their duel complete, Asuka's officially gonna join Issei's peerage, and Rossweisse has been revealed as the final candidates. Probably caught a few of you by surprise since she hasn't had the same interactions with him as the others, didn't it? *giggles* While it hasn't been confirmed in-story yet, I think most of you know which piece Asuka's getting, the Queen.**

**My reasoning for this? In the novels, Xenovia she states that the reason she likely only needed a single Knight to become a Devil was because at the time, Durandal was the only real mark of her power. Not only does Asuka have the Kusanagi, which is also a powerful Holy Sword, but she went through Hero training that makes her worth 7 pieces.**

**As you can see from the Concept Talk, I've made Sae from Slash/Dog part of the Hero clan. Believe it or not, that actually came from a happy accident of noticing her last name was the same as Basara's from Testament of a New Sister Devil. During the events of the story, there was a Utsusemi that only Sae could use, and then survived what the story made clear should have killed her.**

**With how sturdy that made Sae look, I figured with how I eventually plan to do a prequel for the story based on Slash/Dog, why not have her be unaware she's a Hero by blood? Issei didn't know he was Hero until recently, so it's the same thing here. Plus, it means I can involve Sae in my prequel story more in the event Slash/Dog's Vol 2 only keeps her aware of the supernatural, and not involved in it.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

**=Issei's Soon-to-Be Peerage Overview=**

** Confirmed Members: **

**Asuka Aoyama (Queen) - Asuka decided to join him after being impressed by their duel, with Tiamat stating a Queen seems like the best fit for her**   
**Irina Shidou (Knight) - Has asked Issei, who has agreed to it, and gotten permission from Vali to be traded**

** Known Candidates: **

**Ravel Phenex (Bishop) - Is working hard to make Issei consider her  
Asia Argento (Bishop) - Because Issei was the first true friend she ever had, and is like an older brother to her  
Yuuma Amano (Pawn x2) - She feels the reason she became who she is now was due to Issei, and feels staying by his side will let him grow more  
Rossweisse (Rook) - Rias offers her to Issei due to the difficulties that'll occur from her taking a High School teacher job when she's about to enter College**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse**

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki, Yumi**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Stella Vermillion**

**Asterisk War - Ophelia Landlufen**

**Sword Art Online - Sinon**

**Akame ga Kill - Mine**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged**


	50. Chapter 50

**OK, time to finish up the rest of the backstories for Ineelana's peerage, and boy am I excited to make them, especially Ophelia and Mine's, those two are gonna be fun to make... well, Tamara's too, but since her story is fully original compared to others, the same excitement that comes from the crossover member's alternative stories isn't there to add that one flare the other ones have ^^;**

**Also, this is the chapter where Issei will head to his Promotion Ceremony, and you'll finally learn what choice he's made for all of his Candidates... although, some of you have probably already figured out what he'll decide ^^; *chuckles awkwardly* Although anyone who he'll be trading with Vali will have to wait, since she still needs them in her peerage until after the Finals.**

**Though here's the news I bet most of you wanna hear... the chapter after this one is the last one before the Championship Match of the Rating Game Begins! That's the chapter that takes a small look into the pasts of Issei's birth parents, and Vali's human mother, which have information that will be very important when the second story of this trilogy.**

**Now to reply to a guest review.**

**To Guest:**   
**"Thank you. As for who any new members they'll get to replace the ones they traded to Issei... for Rias, I haven't chosen who she'll replace Rossweisse with yet, but on the side of Vali? I can confirm Yumina is one of them, and there's someone else I'm considering, though I won't reveal who it is unless I make it official. Either way, glad you like my choices for Issei's peerage, and I hope you'll like who joins him in the next part of the trilogy."**

**We've come a long way, and now the time to finally settle the tournament is near! So, let's start this chapter and take us one step closer to ending it!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** High-Class Crowning Ceremony **

**The event that takes place when a Devil promoting to High-Class is officially registered as a King, finally earning the right to gain their own Evil Pieces. After the exams end, those who pass are scheduled for a certain time to begin their official advancement into High-Class, then later picked up alongside their friends and/or guests by heavily guarded limousines that drive them to the ceremony hall.**

**Once they arrive, the Devils will have their promotions happen in the scheduled order to await their turn. When it is finally their turn, the Devil getting promoted will stands in front of an altar, with their master if they're reincarnated, where either Lilith or one of the Great Devils will state the reasons they were considered for the High-Class exam, and then handed a certificate.**

**If the Devil in question is reincarnated, the final step after this is for them to be crowned by either the one in charge of reading their reasons, or their King. Upon receiving their crown, they are officially marked a High-Class Devil, and will proceed to the King Monument so it can register them for their Evil Pieces. A total of 15 crystals from Agreas will be placed on a chessboard, and they will then touch the monument.**

**As a result of this action, their crown will vanish, and empower the Monument before it casts a magical aura over them. This area causes the crystals to transform into their Evil Pieces, and if any of them are a Mutation Piece, said piece will give two brief flashes to identify this status, followed by their chessboard transforming into a box they can use to carry their Evil Pieces in.**

**Following this, the newly promoted Devil is taken to a room where those closest to them will have a celebration in their honor.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 4 - Envious Memories, Part 2 _ **

Zekram got news of the Uvell Elder's death, and growled as he tightened his fist, soon sighing as he recollected himself.

"So, he was killed before he could accomplish anything... who took his life?" Zekram questioned to his messenger.

Said messenger was none other than Diehauser Belial, who kept his usual expression.

"It was an ambassador sent by the Hero Clan to initiate terms for joining the alliance, her name is Asuka Aoyama, and she's unfortunately a cousin of the Sekiryuutei." Diehauser revealed.

"Damn, as if the Hakuryuukou wasn't enough... looks like I'll have no choice, since the Finals are clearly going to happen, I'll have to effect the results a different way." Zekram grunted in anger.

He was already forced to do nothing, if he were to act out in any way in response to the Uvell Elder's death, the fact he was even present in Kuoh Town would instantly cast suspicion on the other Elders, and he wasn't going to be foolish enough to let that happen.

'I still have my role to fill, and I _will_ fill it.' He thought with a glare.

"Is that all you'll need?" Diehauser inquired.

"Yes, you're dismissed." Zekram verified, walking off.

Diehauser nodding before heading off himself, once he was far enough from vie, he formed a magic circle.

"Sorry Lilith, but I wasn't able to confirm anything other than Zekram's got other ideas in mind." Diehauser stated, his eyes closed in disappointment.

"It's alright, you did what you can, we just have to hope we find any signs. Edelweiss has told me they're looking everything they can, and Zekram still thinks like every other elder that Ineelana's freelance enough to manipulate, we'll make sure he learns that Hell is no longer his to rule." Lilith replied.

"Of course, and then... I'll finally be able to forgive myself for not trusting Cleria sooner." Diehauser replied.

The magic circle disappeared, and he quickly teleported to see the gigantic stadium that was going to hold the Rating Game Tournament's finals, and decide who would win the Championship.

"...This is more than the sight of a final match, it's the circle of truth that will house everyone as the circle of lies finally shatters." He stated, knowing that it wouldn't be much longer before the truth came out.

* * *

Ineelana brought out a bit more food to the table, and refilled everyone's drinks. As she sat back down, she noticed Tamara walking back with Stella, the sole Leviathan Knight smiling as Tamara looked slightly crispy from just natural steam.

"Huh, I thought she'd do worse to you." Ineelana quipped.

"You mean I got a light punishment!?" Tamara exclaimed.

Upon hearing that question, Ineelana scrunched her face in thought, and then... she just shrugged her arms, making the Telos Karma user have a color failure moment, prompting Murasaki's hair to put her back in her seat.

"...Just start with member number four's story." Tamara begged quietly, still only semi-responsive.

Ineelana sweat dropped at that response, soon looking at Ophelia.

"Well, that would be Ophelia, we met around... uh, where did we meet again?" Ineelana looked at the white-haired Pawn, trying to recall.

"It was in the northern area of the United States, shortly after I left Canada's borders... where my chains to destiny-" Ophelia replied.

"Ophelia, remember what I said about saying that when we're here?" Ineelana reminded.

The sole Leviathan Pawn blushed, slinking down a bit.

"...I apologize." She bowed in apology.

Clearing her throat, the Leviathan heiress began recalling their meeting.

"OK, I was continuing my search for peerage members like before, and I found myself in the USA..." Ineelana mentioned.

* * *

_High up in the northern lands of the United States, the sight of Ineelana walking through the thick snow was seen. Unlike with the last two regions she visited, she seemed fairly relax, though that kinda made sense since she was in her own element while in the Winter Landscape, enough that she was wearing clothes better fit for the Summer, or at least Spring._

_"I've said it before, and I'll say it again, ice is nice!" She exclaimed, stretching her arms into the air._

_After taking a certain step, she felt something odd, making her look down. She brushed away more of where she stepped with her show, showing the ground bubbling... no, rotting away from something that bubbled._

_"What is this?" She wondered._

_"Wait, this stench, it smells like... oh my god, the smell!" Ineelana gagged a bit._

_A purple cloud spewed out of the ground, a cloud made of... miasma, and it was fresh._

_"This entire area, how did it get filled with poison?"_

_She soon heard the sound of footsteps, showing someone was in the area. She quickly ran around to find it, wondering if they had a connection to the source of this miasma in the area, before encountering the sight of an abandoned house out in a boonies area long since abandoned._

_The person finally entered her view, a girl with long white hair and red eyes, wearing some kind of tattered uniform she didn't recognize, exposing some of her to the cold, yet she like herself, she didn't seem to be affected by it. The girl looked at a flower, trying to touch it... only for it to instantly die to her sadness._

_"I see, the one behind this is you, isn't it?" Ineelana stated._

_Hearing her voice, the girl turned around to look at the Leviathan heiress, showing the sad expression on her face._

_"...Why have you come here?" She asked._

_"I think I'm the one who should be asking why you're here, ruining this place with that miasma of yours." Ineelana retorted._

_"...I'm only following my own fate, no one has the power to reverse it, so get out of where I call my home before I make you leave." She warned._

_Ineelana was not one to buy such threats like that, and feeling she needed to touch this kid a lesson, she formed a bit of ice, flinging it towards the girl. As it neared her, she suddenly looked away, and solid miasma hands formed to catch the ice._

_"Solid miasma? She isn't just creating it, but controlling it?" Ineelana said surprised._

_Taking a closer look, she saw the energy emitting from her body._

_"Wait, that isn't just mana... there's even Prana, but I thought only those tied to the Hindu pantheon could use that?" Ineelana wondered aloud._

_"No good, you're just in over your head..." The girl said in an apologetic tone._

_She clenched her hand, causing the miasma hands to shake as they united into one, and her eyes shifted into a focused gaze._

_"Turn... to dust..."_

_The miasma hand rushed at Ineelana, who retaliated by swinging hers to form a wild rush of purple ice, but Ophelia simply held out a hand to block it, only having her sleeve turn by the act. The hand struck Ineelana, with a purple explosion going off._

_"...Your fate is over, I'm sorry." She apologized._

_"Wow, underestimate people, much?"_

_The girl's eyes widened, with the ice suddenly swirling around her to cage her. Ineelana walked out of where the miasma hand struck her, with only some damaged clothing, some of which was still marked with the purple of the miasma's venom._

_"H-how could you survive that?" The girl asked._

_Ineelana chuckled at that, smirking a bit._

_"You're talking to a Devil of the Leviathan clan, to someone like us, most poisons are like taking a bath in cold, dirty water." She stated._

_The girl's eyes widened in fear, realizing she was trapped._

_""You... are you here to steal me back for them?" The girl asked, shaking heavily._

_"Who the heck is [them] exactly?" Ineelana inquired._

_The white-haired girl was surprised._

_"...What's your name kid?" Ineelana asked._

_"...Ophelia, it's Ophelia Landlufen." She revealed._

_Ineelana was surprised, that name was clearly of European origin, so why was she in America if she was on the run from... someone?_

_"Alright, what's your story kid?" Ineelana asked._

_Ophelia lowered her head, the memories of her story forcing themselves into her mind._

* * *

_Her memories brought her back to the days she lived her home country, somewhere in Europe. She planted a few flowers, right as she noticed a few Ladybugs fly towards them. She giggled at the sight, letting one rest on her finger._

_One day, the place that she lived in, which was an orphanage, was visited by men in black suits. They were clearly shady, but... when the money was shelved out, the laws meant no caretaker in that orphanage could refuse their offer, and she was the one who was taken away._

_"Please, I don't wanna go!" Ophelia cried, reaching out to her home in vain._

_What awaited her after that was pure suffering in its finest form, she was put into a secret lab, deep near the Southern borders of Canada. She was experimented on, day after day, living through the worst things anyone could do, and slowly... the cheerful girl she was slowly died, with her once brown hair turning into the snow-white color it was now._

_"The experiments are going well, it won't be long before our weapon is realized, and the Nazi will rise again." A scientist stated with a cruel smirk._

_He laughed loudly, thinking he was victorious, when suddenly... the alarms went off! Ophelia's eyes began to tighten, showing strong rage as the miasma powers she was given started to retaliate, sharing the same sentiment about being a mere lab rat._

_"Sir, we can't contain her, we can't-" Someone warned._

_It was too late, the entire building exploded, rotting into nothing alongside the rest of the land around her. Ophelia felt herself slip out of the wires that bound her, and began walking towards the nearest signs of plant like she could. Unfortunately, the moment she tried to touch one... it wilted, and she saw a few nearby animals were dead as well, all from her miasma._

_She could only shed a tear, her near-frozen suffering, but she had no way to vocalize her pain anymore... she was just too broken._

_"This is... my fate, what I'm powerless to change." She quietly cried._

* * *

_Ineelana looked at her with her eyes slightly shaking, horrified at the story she had just heard. The kind of things she went through weren't something a normal Human could achieve, especially with her strengths of using prana, and mana. The scientists were clearly ones who had access to the supernatural in some manner... the only justice was she apparently killed them, but not the group they worked for._

_"Those parasites, how dare they..." Ineelana growled angrily._

_"I have nothing, that is my fate-" Ophelia said sadly._

_The white-haired miasma wielder suddenly felt a slap across her face, making her eyes widen as the ice bindings vanished, making her feel the large red mark that was now on her right cheek._

_"I don't wanna hear that! Fate this, destiny that, unable to change whatever... I say screw it, because you're gonna get a life! I'm gonna give you a family, and a home myself, let those bastards try to come after you, and let them be damned by my hand." Ineelana exclaimed._

_Ophelia showed surprise at that._

_"If you don't think it can be changed, then I'll show you that I can give you a future you make, not your history... so, come with my Ophelia." Ineelana offered, smiling at her._

_"...Do you really mean it?" Ophelia asked, tearing up slightly._

_Ineelana nodded, and soon held up all her Pawns, which resonated with her, getting Ophelia's attention._

_"I do, let these be my way of a pinkie swear, and a way to help control your powers." The Leviathan heiress promised._

_Ophelia soon took out a hand, touching the eight Pawns._

** _【_ ** ** _In the name of Ineelana Leviathan, I call to Ophelia Landlufen. Hear my request! Lend thy soul to me, and become my Devil retainer! Stand as my warrior and foot soldier!_ ** ** _】_ **

_Ophelia felt something in her change, but she wasn't sure what, that is... until Ineelana held a flower out to her._

_"B-But it will..." She warned._

_"No, because this is your first step." Ineelana reassured, placing it in her hands._

_Ophelia saw the flower didn't wilt like the one before, making her tear up slightly before she hugged Ineelana._

* * *

Needless to say, that surprised a fair share of Ineelana's peerage, as not everyone had known Ophelia had gone through all of that.

"Even if it ended happily... that story, it was so sad." Tamara mentioned.

"Yeah, I helped Ophelia a lot, but she still can't fully let go of the view that she can't fight destiny, even after I made sure that weird supernatural group got eliminated. With her miasma and my ice, most thought it was just ice made from poison, so I didn't expose the supernatural enough to need to alter any memories." Ineelana looked at her only pawn's sad expression.

As Ophelia looked down, Stella rubbed her back.

"...She's not the only one who had to deal with her whole life changing, and changing with it." Sinon mentioned.

Ineelana blinked at that, before sighing as she recalled the story.

* * *

_A teenage girl with short, pale blue swaying hair, and a tuft of hair tied up on both sides of her forehead, with indigo colored eyes was seen living in an apartment that she owned. As Sinon was seen reading a book, she suddenly heard the doorbell ring._

_"It's me, Spiegel."_

_"Oh, coming." Sinon replied._

_She opened the door, showing a skinny boy with faded brown hair, wearing jeans, a dark yellow nylon pullover, with a dark green backpack over his shoulders, and A black baseball cap on his head... he did seem a bit sickly looking though, and there was some strange smell, but it was too hard to notice it due to the box of pastries he was holding._

_"I got some pastries, but there's a too many to eat, mind if I share a few?" He asked._

_She shook her head, and soon invited him in, after a bit of having a few..._

_"Oh yeah, I heard your team won the school relay, awesome job. I knew you'd win." Spiegel praised._

_"Thank you, but it isn't that big a deal, not like we won a national tournament or anything." Sinon waved, giving a playful chuckle._

_"...From now on, you won't need anyone to protect you." Spiegel said, a strange look on his face._

_Sinon noticed this odd tone, and soon saw him looking at her with a strange face._

_"Uh, Spiegel? Are you... feeling O-Ah!"_

_Before Sinon could even finish, Spiegel suddenly grabbed her, and she was unable to escape his grip._

_"Stop, what are you doing!?" She cried out, now completely terrified._

_"Come on, let's go to another world, even better than this one!" He laughed._

_He pushed her against her bed, and the sight of a syringe, making her gasp in a panic... it was one she recognized from occasional talks about inheriting his family's hospital, one that filled with not a drug, but some kind of poison. Now the reason he seemed sickly made sense, he was on something._

_"Get off!" She screamed, kicking him off her._

_He fell to the ground, and she quickly tried to run away, but before she could get outside... he caught up and grabbed her. However, this happened right as Ineelana was walking by, catching her attention._

_"Huh?" She blinked._

_"HELP!"_

_Hearing the sound, she quickly rushed over, hearing something through the door._

_"Sinon... Sinon... Sinon!" Spiegel said, out of his mind._

_Ineelana smashed the door down, surprising him before she kicked him in the face, and holding him down. Seeing this, Sinon showed surprise._

_"Quick, get out of here!" Ineelana shouted._

_"She's mine damn it!" Spiegel roared._

_He quickly took out the syringe, and injected it into Ineelana, surprising her a bit. As Sinon saw the horror, Spiegel didn't stop there, attempting to choke the vulnerable Ineelana, and without any choice, she quickly grabbed her nearby stereo._

_"SHE'S MINE-"_

_*CRASH*_

_Spiegel suddenly stopped moving as the stereo slammed his skull, shattering as it fell on the ground. He fell over, losing consciousness in the process_

_"Hold on, let me take a look!" Sinon ran over to Ineelana._

_"Relax, I'm alright." Ineelana reassured._

_"No, that syringe had poison in it! You could end up-" Sinon warned._

_"If its poison, then it won't kill me." Ineelana said with a flat expression, annoyed by the situation._

_"Just what makes you think you can shrug this-"_

_Sinon pulled off Ineelana's shirt a bit, causing the latter's devils wings to pop up by accident, surprising her. Seeing they were out, she pulled them back in, pulling her shirt back down afterwards._

_"That's why, I'm not Human, and Devils aren't as concerned about poisons." Ineelana explained._

_"A... a devil, what the hell is-" Sinon shook._

_Spiegel suddenly got up, catching their attention before he knocked Ineelana to the ground, and tried to grab her again. Panicking, she quickly grabbed something before swinging it at him... however, he stopped moving._

_"Hey miss, whatever you do... keep your eyes closed." Ineelana advised, realizing what would happen if she didn't._

_"Huh, why not-"_

_It only took a moment for her to do exactly what the heiress of Leviathan told her to avoid, and when she saw what was right before her... a loud scream escaped her mouth, causing her to lose consciousness._

_"Hey, calm down!" Ineelana rushed over, trying to help her._

* * *

Tamara blinked as the food she was chewing on at that moment slipped from her mouth, the last few stories had just been sad, but Sinon's? Her story was outright terrifying in Tamara's view, and she was a bit scared, though at the result of the story.

"My god, that's..." Tamara said, terrified.

"It was so painful, to live with that guilt, I just wanted to die, but I felt if I just let myself end it because of that? It felt like I'd be running away." Sinon admitted.

"That's where I came in, seeing that situation with her told me she'd never be able to live the life she had before, so... I told her that I could reincarnate her as a Devil, give her a chance to start a new life. As a result, she did take her life, because I brought her back immediately after as a Devil."

Tamara gave an odd look at that.

"I don't get it, why do that at all?" She asked.

"I worried if I just made her my Rook, she might have tried to do it afterwards, and then I wouldn't have been able to save her. It seemed better she should get it out, and then come back so I could give a way to wipe the slate by having a second chance at life." Ineelana explained.

"Oh, I get it." Tamara realized.

"Because I was able to accept it like that, I've been able to move on slightly, but that doesn't mean it stopped hurting... though I feel at the very least, I made it hurt less." Sinon stated, running her arm.

Ineelana took a deep breath, looking at Mine.

"Mine, you wanna explain your story, or should I-" Ineelana asked.

"No, I can do it, mine isn't as painful after all these years." Mine remarked.

The Leviathan heiress nodded.

"Alright, go ahead." She approved.

"Thank you. For me, it all began when Ineelana's trip had her stop somewhere in Asia." Mine began.

* * *

_Deep within the Asian country of Russia, the sight of Ineelana on a carriage as she rode alongside Yumi, was seen._

_"Thanks for offering to come with me on this trip, I don't think Asia was a place I could have searched by myself." Ineelana thanked._

_"I'm part of your peerage, it's only fair I help out when able." Yumi replied._

_Looking around the night filled sky, Yumi tried to find the signs of anyone at this dark hour._

_"So, you're sure you felt someone with a powerful Sacred Gear here?" She asked._

_"Yeah, for a while now I've had some members of my clan look around, and they noticed someone that's been jumping across Asia before landing here recently. Possibly, someone else has been trying to get her, or maybe steal her Sacred Gear, but she keeps escaping them." Ineelana confirmed as she explained the full situation._

_"Wait, steal?" Yumi questioned._

_"Yeah, there are a few ways to do that, but they usually end up with death. I have heard some rumors that the Hindu god known as Indra can remove one without killing someone, but... well, she's gotta be alive if she's still on the Human realm's radar." Ineelana explained._

_Yumi was surprised, but Ineelana knew of the supernatural a lot longer than she had, being born into it via sharing blood with one of the few who began her species. As she turned the other way, she saw someone on the ground._

_"Ineelana, look!" She exclaimed._

_Looking to see her as well, Ineelana whistled with her fingers, making the carriage rider stop for a moment. Walking over to her, she saw the sight of a girl with long pink haired as she lied on the ground, only wearing a tattered brown cloak. She looked at Ineelana with tears in her eyes, desperately trying to reach out towards her._

_The Leviathan Heiress soon felt something from her, and gasped._

_"...You're the one." She realized._

_Walking over to the young girl, she picked her up in her arms, making her show surprise before finally she felt everything go dark._

* * *

_The girl suddenly gasped for air, holding her throat like she had been choking only seconds ago. Looking at herself, she saw her rags had been changed into something else entirely, right as the sound of someone entering the room was heard._

_"Oh, you finally woke up." Stella realized._

_"Ineelana, the girl finally woke up, let her know who saved her." She called out._

_The pink-haired girl looked as Ineelana quickly walked in._

_"Glad to see you finally woke up, I was wondering when you'd rejoin the living world." She said relieved._

_The Leviathan heiress walked near the bed, sitting down by her._

_"So, do you have a name?" She asked._

_"...Mine."_

_"Your name is... Mine?" Ineelana questioned, trying to confirm it._

_"Yeah..." Mine nodded._

_Ineelana thought on that a bit, and realized due to the state she was in, she might have had to name herself. Either way, now that she knew her name, she had to drop a bomb she knew was gonna end up messy._

_"Alright then, Mine... don't freak out too much, but the moment you saw me find you? Well, you sorta died." Ineelana revealed._

_Mine went silent at that, suddenly realizing why she had that feeling having narrowly choked earlier... she had stopped breathing at one point, without feeling it catch up until she regained consciousness._

_"What!? I did? Wait, if I died then why am I still alive? Is this Heaven? Wait, but then wouldn't I still be dead? What's going-" Mina freaked out._

_Ineelana grabbed Mine's cheeks, stretching them out so she could only mumble until she ran out of words._

_"You calm yet?" She questioned._

_"Awhah" Mine replied, nodding._

_Releasing her cheeks, the Leviathan heiress revealed the only Evil Piece she had left, her Bishop._

_"This is an Evil Piece, it's a special item Devils have that lets them transform people into their servants, or retainers if you prefer saying they're a friend or equal to you. However, they have another benefit, reincarnation. As a result, if your death was only fairly recent..." Ineelana explained._

_"You brought me back to life?" Mine said in shock._

_"Yeah, I gave you my last Rook. Be lucky, I noticed you only because I had realized you had a strong Sacred Gear, otherwise I'd have been too late to help." Ineelana confirmed, pointing at her heart._

_Mine sniffled a bit, and then began crying, surprising the heiress of Leviathan heiress. Not knowing what else to do, she rubbed her head._

* * *

"Wow, so... I guess Mine's baggage isn't as bad as the others, is it?" Tamara mentioned.

Ineelana shook her head, surprising her second Bishop.

"Tamara, you don't know why she was even moving around so much in the first place, and the reason is quite simple... she had a Sacred Gear, I think you know how much define those who have them." She stated.

"I was feared due to my power, thrown across the lands like moving, living radiation." Mine stated.

Tamara sweated at that, realizing why Mine died around the moment she was found.

"Wait, were you..." She asked.

Mine nodded her head, knowing she was going to say. Tamara lowered her head at that.

"...I never experience that because of my Sacred Gear, I never knew." Tamara apologized out of guilt.

"Well of course, I found you early enough that people didn't see the signs of your Telos Karma." Ineelana mentioned.

That was the moment that everyone looked at her, making her blink.

"Oh yeah, I guess that's the one story I still need to share since you weren't with me when she joined us." She chuckled embarrassingly, clearing her throat.

* * *

_Ineelana was yawning as she and her peerage were camping out somewhere deep in Brazil, exhausted from the trip to find her last Bishop. It had been years since she added Mine, so she, and everyone who hadn't already been around her current age, had grown up since. The others didn't look any older than before due to a Devils' long lifespan._

_"Man, this place sucks, I'm getting eaten alive." She stated, slapping a mosquito midair._

_"You're the one that wanted to come here, just tough it out." Yumi reminded._

_Ineelana made gibberish sounds as she closed her hand like a mouth, making most of her peerage sweat drop at their King's... difficult attitude._

_'I hoped she'd mellow out as a teenager, not the opposite.' Sinon mentally groaned._

_Sighing a bit, Ineelana walked off somewhere._

_"Hmm? Where are you going?" Mine asked._

_"To find myself privacy, nature's calling where there's no bathrooms to use." She replied._

_Mine blushed at that, looking away._

* * *

_After going far enough, Ineelana found a spot she was comfortable enough, and dealt with nature's call. Walking out of her spot to head back, she suddenly heard something odd._

_"Hmm?" She blinked._

_"Outta the way!"_

_The Leviathan heiress looked up as known other than Tamara fell to the ground, or rather... on top of Ineelana's head._

_"What the hell kid!?" Ineelana roared angrily._

_"Me? I'm the one who said outta the way, you blunder bus!" Tamara shouted back._

_Ineelana's eye watched at that._

_"Did you just say I'm big and clumsy? Oh, that's it kid... I'm gonna kill you right now!" Ineelana declared._

_"Please, like you can-" Tamara laughed._

_At that moment, Tamara suddenly felt some of her hair get cut off, making her looked to see purple ice lodged in a nearby tree. Suddenly going white-eyed, she realized that was not an idle threat, making her scream as she ran away._

_"Get back here so I can end you!" Ineelana demanded as she gave chase._

_Before the Leviathan heiress even realized it, she got further away from the rest of her peerage just to chase after her._

_The chase continued on for minutes, and Tamara was soon hit with the unfortunate limitations of a Human, which Ineelana lacked. Falling onto her knees tired, she heard Ineelana's screams as she prepared to swing an arm._

_'She's gonna kill me!?' Tamara panicked._

_"Now, time for you to-"_

_Before Ineelana could react, something shot from behind her, making her eyes freeze up as she tumbled across the ground to the surprise of both. Looking behind her, Ineelana gasped as some Anti-Satan Faction devils were seen._

_"Oh no!" She grunted, cursing her luck._

_"To the despicable false Leviathan, we're here to end your interfering existence!" One of the Devils announced._

_They all through their tridents at her, with Ineelana trying to make an ice wall, but too weak from their surprise, and her chase against Tamara, to make it fast enough._

_'No, I'm not gonna make it!' She panicked._

_"Leave her alone!" Tamara screamed, running at her._

_Yelling at the top of her lungs, Tamara's body began to glow, surprising Ineelana as a barrier formed around her. Widening her eyes, she realized what she was seeing._

_"No way, you have the Telos Karma!?" She shouted._

_The tridents all soon shot back with overwhelming force, causing all the Devils to scream as their own weapons stabbed through them._

_Tamara panted after that, only then realizing what she had done._

_"E-Eh!?" She exclaimed._

_"One of the 13 Sacred Gears that have the power to destroy a Deity, while it's the weakest among the Longinus... to even find its wielder before me." Ineelana whispered in shock._

_She realized right then who she'd make her Bishop, and slowly got up, making Tamara shake again._

_"Relax, after what I say, killing you would be a waste." Ineelana stated._

_"Huh?" Tamara blinked._

_She saw Ineelana hold up her Bishop to her, and it glowed._

_"I knew it, you just awakened it, so a Bishop is just barely enough... kid, let's you and I make a deal, shall we?" Ineelana offered._

* * *

_The others were all waiting, before they finally heard Ineelana come back from her nature's call._

_"T-Thank goodness, we were getting worried that-" Murasaki smiled._

_However, she went silent as she saw Tamara standing next to her, giving an awkward wave towards everyone._

_"...Ineelana, who is that?" Ophelia questioned._

_"Everyone, meet my new Bishop and the wielder of the Telos Karma." Ineelana answered, smirking a bit._

_There was silence for a moment, and then..._

_"WHAT!?"_

* * *

At that moment, most of Ineelana's peerage started laughing at how odd it was, Tamara giving a flat stare that had a slight smile to it, unsure of how to react to everyone else's reactions of her backstory.

"That's so random, I can't take it seriously!" Stella laughed, slamming her fist on the table.

"I can't breathe!" Murasaki said, trying to stifle her laughter.

Mine soon fell out of her chair, coughing a bit as she almost choked.

For everyone else, they were just laughing a bit, with Ophelia... just staring, blinking as she didn't see the same joke as the others.

"Well, at least you aren't laughing." Tamara mentioned.

"I don't see what I should be, was there a joke?" Ophelia questioned.

"Nah, you're good." Ineelana remarked.

At that moment, a magic circle showing a message from Vali caught her eye, and she tapped it to reveal what it was. Everyone stopped laughing as their King read it.

"What is it?" Murasaki asked.

"Vali just verified what time the High-Class Ceremony for Issei was scheduled, so I know when we'll need to leave for it." Ineelana replied.

She quickly stood up at that moment.

"Alright, guess we should get prepared for tomorrow, follow me so we can find you all some dresses. If we can't find anything... someone grab my wallet, and we'll go shopping." She stated.

* * *

Soon, the following day had come, and everyone was dressing themselves in formal wear as prepared themselves for the High-Class Crowning Ceremony. Lilith finished preparing Vali's hair before smiling a bit.

"And perfect, you look beautiful." She said with pride.

"T-thanks mom." Vali said as she sweated a bit.

Seeing her work was done, Lilith formed a magic circle for her to walk through.

"I'll meet you all at the Ceremony Hall, I've gotta arrive fashionably early." She waved before walking through.

The magic circle disappeared, making Vali give an awkward chuckle before she looked around.

"Say, has anyone seen Issei?" She asked.

"If I recall correctly, Ayumu's helping to gel his hair down." Yumina mentioned.

At that moment, everyone heard a loud scream belonging to Issei.

"...And there's the proof, that boy's hair is as wild as the Dragon inside of him." Yumina chuckled.

"Uh... is that a compliment?" Vali questioned.

Yumina shrugged, unsure if it was herself.

Asuka walked by wearing a blue kimono that Hana lent her, noticing a few of the girls were shaking nervously, which was everyone of Issei's peerage candidates aside from Rossweisse. It didn't take long for her to piece it all together.

"Nervous about if Issei's gonna yay or nay you for his peerage?" She asked.

"...That obvious?" Yuuma sighed.

"Well, no one else is shaking except for you three, so it kinda is." Asuka replied.

They all sighed, right as Ayumu cleared his throat.

"The King has arrived!" He exclaimed.

Everyone looked to see Issei wearing a white suit, with some gold trimming on it.

"And he's also struggling to breathe." Issei whispered, his tie a little too snug.

"Aw, my boy looks so handsome right now!" Both his moms squealed.

Issei chuckled at that, soon looking at the candidate girls, and walking towards them as everyone else watched.

"Rossweisse, I get the feeling you might need to stand with everyone else." Vali mentioned.

"Huh?" She blinked.

"She's right, I've made my decision for all four of you." Issei stated.

They all flinched, beginning to sweat.

"Oh boy, I better get the ear plugs just in case..." Seiji said nervously.

Clearing his throat, he noticed how much Ravel, Yuuma, and Asia were shaking, with Rossweisse just giving a curious look.

"Alright, and my decision is..." Issei announced.

Everyone stared intensely, like they were watching one of those game shows, and then he revealed his answer.

"...I'll be letting all four of you join me."

All four of them gasped.

"R-really?" Asia asked to be sure.

"You mean it!?" Yuuma questioned.

"H-He said... he said..." Ravel said repeatedly.

"Eh?" Rossweisse said in surprise.

Irina smiled at that, hugging Yuuma and Asia.

"Congrats you two, we're all going together!" She cheered.

Vali giggled at that.

"I had a feeling, though was there any reasons for your decision? Just out of curiosity." Vali inquired.

"There was." Issei replied.

Looking at them in order, starting with his first candidate, Ravel.

"I'm not the best when it comes to strategies, and considering how you've done a good job as my manager, having you on my side means I'll have someone to watch my back, and make sure I don't do anything stupid." Ravel blushed at his compliment, leaving her speechless.

"Asia's healing skills, magic, and her barriers are all great, while she's been making great strides with learning how to fight. Also, I don't know why, but something's telling me that having her has another bonus... not sure why." Asia was also confused by that, though Ddraig had a slight suspicion.

"Yuuma, you have a whole arsenal of skills, that diversity means you can adapt to any situation I might need, and that actually would be a huge comfort." Yuuma gave a shy blush, rubbing the back of her head.

"Rossweisse, while you're the same age as most of us, you already finished college, so you have experience others don't. Plus, you were a guard's bodyguard for a while, combine that with your diverse magic, you have your own form of knowledge to help out." Rossweisse smiled at that.

Hearing those reasons, Irina looked at Issei.

"What about me, and Asuka for that matter?" She asked.

"Oh, well for you Irina, the fact you have the powers of an Angel means you can handle certain situations the rest of us can't, not to mention all of Excaliburs abilities means you'll always be the wild card that no one can fully predict with." Irina blushed at that, smiling as she hugged herself... no one made a comment about the oddity of the action to be nice.

"And for Asuka, since I can't have Vali be my Queen for obvious reasons, I need someone I know is around the same level as me if I need it. As Tiamat said, you're about as strong as me if I'm not using the Boosted Gear, so I know I'll have little reason to worry if I can't be there for the rest of my peerage." Asuka closed her eyes, flashing a smile as she giggled.

Vali chuckled at that, nuzzling against her boyfriend.

"Classic Issei, don't ever change." She smiled.

He rubbed the back of his neck embarrassingly, right as a car horn beeped. Everyone turned their attention once they heard it.

"Sounds like our ride just came." Sona remarked.

"Alright everyone, we have a ceremony to get to!" Rias announced.

Everyone headed outside, with a few people watching in confusion at the sight of various security cars surrounding one large limousine. It wasn't until Issei was seen walking towards it that anyone really reacted, and it was with shock... especially due to who saw it.

"Wait a minute, Issei!?" Katase exclaimed.

"No way, is he supposed to be cool now?" Murayama wondered in shock.

"The traitor!" Motohama and Matsuda cried, with tears of blood no less.

Aika saw it as well, but for once... she had no words.

Eventually, the entire group was inside the limousine, and it began driving off towards the rendezvous point where they'd be transported to Hell without anyone to notice them.

This was the last day that Issei would be Low-Class Devil.

* * *

**That's a wrap, and so is all of the stories for Ineelana's peerage... man, that backstory of Tamara's! *laughs* Yeah, that was a fun one to write, the odd one out among the group. For Ophelia and Mine, their stories are actually much happier compared to their canon ones, especially Ophelia's since her canon self hasn't been given the same light of hope that this one has.**

**Also, there you have it, Issei's decided to have all four of them join his peerage, and I even threw in the reasoning behind his choices, so it doesn't just seem like he picked them for no reason. Now, for at least those not in Vali's peerage, the wait for them to join him won't be much longer, next chapter just needs to have the ceremony finish, so he can gain his Evil Pieces to add them in/trade them.**

**Well, now all that's left is some insight on our main characters' pasts, and the pasts for... well, I think I've said it enough times you already know, so no need for me to repeat it again. Either way, that's all that's left between starting the Finals, and the 12 battles within them. Oh, and next chapter... you'll see something really unexpected, that's the only hint I'll give about it :3**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** =Issei's Peerage= **

**King - Issei Hyoudou**   
**Queen - Unclaimed**   
**Bishops - Unclaimed x2**   
**Knights - Unclaimed x2**   
**Rooks - Unclaimed x2**   
**Pawns - Unclaimed x8**

** Soon-to-Be Members: **

**Asuka Aoyama - Queen  
Ravel Phenex - Bishop  
Asia Argento - Bishop  
Irina Shidou - Knight  
Rossweisse - Rook  
Yuuma Amano - Pawn x2**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Senran Kagura - Murasaki, Yumi**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Stella Vermillion**

**Asterisk War - Ophelia Landlufen**

**Sword Art Online - Sinon**

**Akame ga Kill - Mine**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged**


	51. Chapter 51

**This is it, the chapter where Issei officially becomes a High-Class Devil and begins his peerage, and where the Finals will finally begin! Well... we only see them enter the stadium, but at least we'll actually begin it after this, so close enough! *summons a crowd to give a loud cheer* Not to mention, this chapter has a twist... one that will influence the Finals in some manner, so keep your eyes open for it...**

**We're gonna get some build up through the scenes of the past, and some characters new to the story are finally going to show up starting from this chapter (not all since a few can't directly meet with Issei and/or Vali just yet), ones that have little roles to play right now, but will shine once we get to the next story, and maybe... just maybe, I might be hiding some of Issei's future peerage members in here, but don't take my words as a guarantee on that.**

**Oh, speaking of Issei's future peerage members, here's something I should bring up. Issei will have at least one guy in his peerage, since he lacks the same reasons he has in canon to make it only girls. At the moment, I haven't really planned much for his completed peerage, as I don't need to give him a full set right now. Just know that I don't intend to make his peerage entirely female, as I've already done that through Ineelana.**

**Now, let's not keep you waiting any longer, time for this chapter to begin! *hits a gong* And... action!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Great Red and Ophis **

**The two Dragon God siblings, and the beings ranked as the strongest in all of the world, surpassing even the dreaded Trihexa for the simple reason of having intelligence, something the chimeric abomination lacks. Their origins in full specifics aren't fully understood, but they were each born of a concept that represents the endless possibilities of life. Their strength is enough that the True Longinus can stab a wound into them, and they'd just shrug it off.**

**Ophis is the True White Dragon God Emperor, and was born from the Nothingness of Infinity, representing... well, infinity. Her strength comes from having an endless amount of power, meaning she can unleash high-powered magic of any kind without limits, and for as long as she wants. However, this doesn't mean she's invincible, as her stamina is still finite, meaning she can get tired if she overworks her body.**

**Great Red is the True Red Dragon God Emperor, and was born from the Illusion of Dreams, representing the number zero. His strength comes from being able to make illusions a reality, or in a sense, making dreams come true. However, he's limited by one simple thing... he's lazy. Also, his real name isn't actually Great Red, but Ophis kept using it as an insulting nickname for so long, everyone thinks it is.**

**Both of them live in the Dimensional Gap, and interfere with the world so rarely, it's considered big news for either to get involved with, or at least shown interest with anything. Most of their time is spent fighting each other to kick the other out of the Gap permanently, and claim it for themselves, but not once since their births have any of their battles ended in besides a draw.**

**At the moment, both of them are currently missing since the "Three Worlds Incident", something that's been worrying the entire supernatural world...**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 5 - The Future's Past _ **

Everyone was still driving within the limousine, and eventually after driving far enough, a magic circle appeared before it and the security cars, transporting them all into part of Hell where various other limousines with their own security cars were seen.

"Wow, all of these people are becoming High-Class Devils too? Just how many passed the exam?" Asuka questioned.

"Usually, it's about a little less than 100." Rias answered.

Asuka's eyes widened at the thought of there being nearly 100 limos, and gave a whistle to show how impressed she was.

"Really, only that many?" Kunou asked in surprise.

"Well, the test is designed to be incredibly hard out of necessity, since we want to be completely sure that those who reach High-Class are fully ready to take the role. A similar choice is made with our Magician pacts, which if you choose wrong..." Vali explained, trailing off at the end.

"I think I get what you mean, no point in ranking them up if they just end up walking to their deaths." Irina said, giving a nervous laugh.

Homura looks out through the window, catching Issei's attention.

"Hey mom, what's up?" He asked.

"Just taking in the sights, and wondering how what Lilith mentioned to me, and the other adults, a while back." She answered.

Issei gave a confused look at that, making her chuckle.

"Well, since everyone else in the Alliance has been seeing the tournament, she's considering that once Vali's victory gets those Elders off their selfish asses, that she and the other Great Devils should try spreading the Rating Game to them. Not just that, but the Evil Piece tech, soon enough, it might not be unlikely for an International Rating Game Championship to happen." She explained.

"No way, as in a global version of what we're doing right now?" Bikou exclaimed.

"That... that actually sounds interesting, not to mention it could let people fight without the need for wars, and in ways like never before. Is this another way the Alliance is striving for peace?" Kuroka wondered.

"Sounds like it to me." Mio agreed.

Eventually, the limos all stop at the ceremony hall, and everyone inside began to get escorted in one by one.

"Well, this is it Issei." Vali smiled.

"Yeah... crap, now I'm nervous." Issei replied, trying not to sweat.

Soon enough, they were all guided inside themselves, most of the group was seated in the audience area, while Issei and Vali went somewhere else to have some formal wear added to their attire as, which was part of the ceremony.

Once that was finished, Vali began walking towards the main ceremony room, with Issei following behind her. Guards stood by the sides of the double door, with soldiers working as securities and other staffs around them. As the room's Devils began entering one by one, on their own or with their Kings, eventually... the moment came where a certain name was called.

"Issei Hyoudou-Akane!"

Issei gulped, realizing this was his time, and Vali held his hand briefly to encourage him. Nodding, the two walked ahead, the doors opening as the chosen music for his entrance began playing. As they walked forward, Issei noticed various the higher-ups in formal wear, many looking at him as if giving him an applause. He also noticed Sairaorg's group, including his still recovering mother, along with the other Great Devil heirs, and the other Young Devils from the tournament.

**[You've come so far in such a short time, partner.]** Ddraig smiled.

_[Show them who you are, Issei Hyoudou... the Sekiryuutei of the Blazing Truth!]_ Belzard smirked.

Soon, awaiting them on the altar was none other than Lilith, wearing the outfit that she wore when truly representing her role as the Queen of Hell. She soon cleared her throat, silencing any noise as she looked before the Sekiryuutei standing before her.

"To everyone standing here today, we're here to honor the promotion of Issei Hyoudou-Akane, the Queen of Valiana Lucifer, to that of a High-Class Devil." Lilith announced, with the crowd listening deeply.

Taking a deep breath, Lilith continued her speech.

"Earlier this year, only an a few months ago no less, Issei was brought into our world when a rogue Fallen Angel took his life, under the reasoning that he was a threat that needed to be eliminated, when he had no idea of the supernatural... and possibly never would have if she hadn't done what she did. Hadn't let my daughter, the very King of his that stands beside him right now, rushed to save his life."

That surprised many, even some of the people who know, or at least were familiar with Issei, couldn't believe their ears when they heard Issei had only been a Devil for such a short time. Realizing this, Lilith continued.

"Yes, I can see by your reactions how shocked such a revelation is, and that is what speaks even more about the accomplishments that put him here, accomplishments he wasn't given in any more... he earned them now, and not just because of the Red Dragon Emperor's power. He started with a mere rogue Fallen, but from there... everything changed with a single Rating Game against Riser Phenex."

"He faced off against Kokabiel, who brought the might of a Cerberus, an Orthrus, and a Barghest! He slew one of the traitorous Devils that brought the Great Devil Clans into heavy discrimination! He faced the White Dragon's Juggernaut Drive, and slew not just it, but the Red Dragon's that lived inside of him! He killed the Norse God Loki who threatened Hell! He helped stop an entire invasion from another world that would have left us in the hands of a tyrant! Most of all? He faced the wielder of the True Longinus, and surpassed its strongest ability, the Truth Idea."

"And all of which I spoke are simply his highlights! What most of us know, and the crown of his achievements! Before this day, we weren't sure of the decision between having him take the Mid-Class, or the High-Class Promotion Exams, but we saw the potential within him... so, we stand here today, because we chose to have him attempt the High-Class Exam, and he succeeded! He is a beacon that will inspire others to follow, and try harder to achieve what he's proven is possible!" She explained, emphasizing every word she spoke.

Many who listened showed awe, with a few among them showing the opposite. Taking a certificate in hand, and holding it in front of her.

"For these reasons, I hereby proclaim you, Devil of the Lucifer household, Issei Hyoudou-Akane... as a High-class Devil!" She smiled, holding said certificate out before him.

Getting on one knee, Issei placed his hands on the certificate.

"It would be my honor." He smiled back.

Everyone began to applaud as they began clapping heavily, with a few camera flashes going off. Sirzechs soon walked up to Vali's side, holding a cushion that held an oriental crown on top of it, prompting Lilith to raise a hand, and silence everyone. Vali took the crown in her hands, before turning to Issei who was still on his one knee. Smiling at him, she gently placed the crown on his head, and with it... officially marked him as a High-Class Devil.

Another round of applause came as the crowning ritual ended, and as Lilith smiled at Issei, she moved to the side, motioning to a curtain that rose to reveal the pride of Ajuka Beelzebub's Evil Piece system... the King Monument itself!

"Whoa..." Yuuma breathed, having not seen it before now since she closed her eyes until Issei's coronation happened.

"Issei, you have been given your crown, so as a new King... stand before the monument, and claim what you have earned." Lilith stated.

Issei soon walked up to the monument, and was handed a chessboard by Ajuka, with 15 red colored Crystals placed on every square but the King's. Once he held it in one hand, he placed the other on the Monument.

'I wonder what's gonna happen next?' He thought.

At that moment, the Monument began to glow, and he noticed his crown vanish as it empowered it, casting a magical aura over his body. The aura began to react with the crystal, making them float into the air as they suddenly all transformed into white Chess Pieces, none of which flashed to mark a Mutation Piece among them. The chessboard soon shifted into a box, with all fifteen pieces placing themselves inside.

"Congratulations, now serve Hell well as our newest King!" Lilith announced, smiling brightly.

Everyone applauded one last time, with Vali taking his hand.

"Come on, time to escort ourselves somewhere special." Vali smiled.

* * *

Eventually, Vali took Issei into a room reserved for his celebration, with those who had come to celebrate, including those closest to him, were all present in his honor. Taking a glass, Vali tapped it to get everyone's attention.

"Thank you for coming everyone, a toast to my Queen and boyfriend for his promotion into a High-Class Devil! Cheers!" Vali smiled, holding up her glass.

"Cheers!" Everyone repeated.

With that, the celebration for Issei started, with everyone either socializing, or enjoying the cuisine that had been placed before them. Having finally finished with the last ceremony for the day, Lilith walked into to join the party as she carried in the punch that someone had forgotten to bring in.

"Can't believe they only forgot this?" She said in disbelief, placing it down.

Vali giggled at that, taking a glass of it as she noticed a familiar duo of blondes walk in, catching her eye.

"Riser! Lady Phenex! Welcome!" She greeted.

"Good to see you as well Vali." Maliran smiled.

Riser didn't say anything, prompting his mother to clear her throat, and give him a certain glare. He flinched before looking at Vali.

"...Hello there, Vali." He greeted.

Vali giggled at that, making the Phenex Devil blush in embarrassment.

"I think I know why you're here, Issei's over there." She pointed to him.

"Thank you, Vali. I'll do that right now while I have the chance." Maliran thanked.

Walking over to Issei, he noticed her coming, as did Ravel herself.

"Mother! Good to see you again." Ravel greeted, bowing a bit.

"Glad to see you're doing well Ravel, I take it that you've been in great care since we last spoke. Maliran asked, getting a nod from her daughter.

Looking at Issei, the Sekiryuutei had a good idea what she was about tell him.

"Issei, I received word from Lilith you've agreed to make Ravel your Bishop, so I'm ready to trade her over when you're able to." She stated, confirming his suspicions.

"Ah, right... before that though, I have someone that I need to give a piece to first." Issei replied.

Looking around, Issei noticed Asuka talking with Kirin, and soon waved to her.

"Hey, Asuka! Can you come over here?" He called out.

"Hmm? Oh, coming Issei!" She replied.

She walked over to him as quickly as she could, soon stopping before him.

"What do you need?" Asuka inquired.

"I figured that since we're already here, I should add you to my peerage now." Issei explained.

"Oh! Alright, I'm ready whenever you are." She agreed.

Realizing he'd need her help, Vali walked over to her boyfriend, getting his attention.

"I'll show you what to do Issei, first take the Evil Piece you'll be using." She stated.

Opening his box of pieces, he pulled out the Queen, causing a few guests to notice what he was about to do.

"Alright, first place the piece needs to be held against Asuka's chest, and then just say this." Vali explained, whispered the command.

Issei nodded at that, holding the piece against his cousin as she closed her eyes, a magic circle appearing beneath them both.

**【** ** In the name of Issei Akane, I call to Asuka my request! Lend thy soul to me, and become my Devil retainer! Wake as my trusty right-hand and empress! ** **】**

The Queen turned red as it entered her body, creating a clear red copy in his case to mark its usage. Opening her eyes, Asuka tried to feel for anything different, but then suddenly felt Devil wings spring out of her back, surprising her as she looked.

"Congrats Asuka, you've officially become a Devil, and Issei's Queen." Vali congratulated.

"Thanks Vali, just one question... how do I fold my wings in?" Asuka asked, only getting them to likely shake.

Vali sweat dropped at that, giving an awkward laugh as she tried to figure out how to help her. With his Queen now decided, he turned to Lady Phenex, now free to do the trade.

"Alright, now I'm ready." He stated.

"If you're gonna do the trading now, then I should have Rossweisse in the trade so can do it all at once." Rias suggested.

"Since I don't know how it works, go right ahead." He agreed.

With that, the trio began the trading ritual, Issei stood at the edge of a magic circle in the middle, while Rossweisse stood at an intersecting point between Issei's magic circle, and one Vali stood at the edge of. Maliran did the same at an opposite circle, with Ravel in an intersecting point made by hers and Issei's. Holding out one of his Rooks and Bishops, the magic circles began to glow.

An aura matching their original King's aura glows around the two being traded, before finally shifting to Issei's as his Evil Pieces teleport into the hands of Rias and Maliran respectively. Within Issei's box of Evil Pieces, the same copies appear, marking the trade was successful.

"Well, looks like its official, welcome to my peerage Ravel, Rossweisse." Issei smiled.

"T-Thank you Issei." Ravel replied, blushing a bit.

"I'll do my best as your Rook, just as I did for Rias." Rossweisse promised.

Irina, Yuuma, and Asia sigh, knowing they can't be traded over just yet due to the rules of the Tournament.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure to trade you immediately after the match ends, there's no rule against that... there isn't a rule, right mom?" Vali replied, soon looking at Lilith.

"Nope. In fact, you could trade them after their rounds in the Finals end, since by that point they've already fought." Lilith answered.

Vali blinked before shrugging a bit, looking at the others.

"Well, guess we can do it then." She decided.

Watching from afar, Homura got all teary eyed alongside Ayumu, resting her head against her husband's shoulder.

"I know that feeling, it's pride. Our son has grown so much in the years we've been apart." Ayumu stated, smiling brightly.

* * *

_The sound of crying was heard within one of the Hero Clan villages, the sight of Homura panting heavily, her entire body sweating as he tried to regain, was seen as the sight of a baby boy was seen in her sister's arms._

**「** **Clannad:The Place Where Wishes Come True II** **」**

_"Homura, you did it, it's a boy!" Mizuki cried, showing her sister her son._

_Homura weakly looked up, seeing the crying newborn Issei, making her smile. She began crying tears of joy as Mizuki handed him over to her._

_"My boy, my son... you're here." She smiled, sniffling a bit._

_"There, there. Don't cry anymore, mommy's here now, mommy's here." She reassured, still shedding her tears of joy._

_Ayumu kneeled down by her, rubbing his son's head, and soon enough... the young Issei's tears stopped as he started to settle down. Eventually, his eyes opened up, looking at his parents for the first time._

_"There you go." Homura smiled, rubbing his cheek._

_Mizuki sighed in relief, looking at her own stomach as she hoped for a similar safe delivery in a few months. No one was able to notice due to her loose shirt, but she was 5 months pregnant, though she had yet to officially marry Daichi, she hadn't told her sister about her own coming child. Thinking of that, she realized something._

_"Oh yeah, what are you going to name him?" She asked._

_"A name, oh dear... I forgot to think of a name." Homura realized._

_Mizuki gave a silent, but awkward laugh in response to that reply. Taking a look at her son, Homura tried to see if something told her what to name him, and when she did... something in her said he was someone who which shine with the color red, with full sincerity and honesty about it._

_"Sincere... Honest... I've got it!" She gasped._

_"His name will be... Issei Akane, the [Sincerity/Honest of the Deep Red], I feel that someday, this name will truly represent him more than anything in this world." Homura announced._

_Issei babbled happily, making Ayumu smile._

_"He really likes it, I think he knows that's what his name was meant to be." Ayumu remarked._

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

_Ayumu took Issei so Homura could rest for a moment, lifting him into the air._

_"Issei, you'll do great things one day, I'm sure of it." He told his son._

* * *

_A year later, Homura and Ayumu had moved to a different Hero Village with their son, finding the environment of it better to raise the young Issei until he was older. Within the house, the young Issei laughed as his mother blew on his stomach in a playful manner. Ayumu was outside as he carried some good home, smiling as he heard the sight._

_"I'm home." Ayumu sang._

_"Welcome back sweetie, say hi to your daddy Issei." Homura smiled, turning Issei to him._

_Issei babbled a bit, then blowing a raspberry._

_"Close enough." Homura giggled, rubbing his head affectionately._

_Meanwhile, far away from the village, the sight of Rizevim alongside some of his allies was seen as he stared towards their upcoming target. Turning to the side, he looked at Euclid to get his next bit of information._

_"So, you're sure this is the place?" Rizevim asked._

_"I'm sure of it, this is the village that has the one we need to eliminate within it." Euclid answered._

_"And you're completely sure? Even I know what will happen if we attack just one village..." Rizevim asked once more._

_It wasn't that Rizevim was afraid, but right now... he was just too unprepared for such an attack._

_"Sir, you are aware of the prophecy, aren't you? Next to know one that's still alive knows the real truth behind why the Great War began, enough that that narcissist Fallen Angel's lies that he started it are the only reason no one's even bothered to find the truth." Euclid warned._

_"I know that, but you're sure this is the right place? That we must strike now before the one possibly tied to that prophecy awakens their potential?" Rizevim groaned, slightly annoyed._

_"Sir, the Hero Clan has faced Evil Dragons in the past, and succeed in slaying them! If we don't strike now, we'll be the ones slaughtered in the future!" Euclid stated._

_Rizevim sighed, finally giving in._

_"Alright then... everyone, destroy the village!" He declared, initiating the invasion._

* * *

_Ayumu screamed as his body began to glow with power, his rage at what the Devil before him had done as his rage pushed it further, stressing out his already injured form._

_"**FORCE CRYSTALLIZATION!**"_

_"Die, you filthy Human!" Rizevim shouted._

_Ayumu's eyes flashed, and he rushed ahead, catching Rizevim off guard as he was kicked in the gut. Seeing that everyone managed to get away, and those pushed near-death were being taken to hopefully get treatment in time, Ayumu decided to finish it. He was no Hero, but he'd show Rizevim why him not being one made his attack the worst choice of his life._

_"You're the one who will die! Take this, and suffer for the rest of your days, until this fire passes to the one meant to end you!" Ayumu screamed._

_Coating all his magic into his fist, Ayumu smashed it into Rizevim's stomach area, causing a sound like glass shattering as it set itself on fire, making the turning fist set ablaze with blue flames, and causing the traitorous Lucifer to scream in agony._

_"Lord Rizevim!" Euclid shouted in horror._

_The bearded Devil was launched across the environment, and seeing his chance, Ayumu cast a spell to create a huge cloud cover, guaranteeing his escape._

_"Lord Rizevim, are you OK!?" Euclid called out, rushing over to him._

_Lifting him up, he gasped in disbelief as he saw it... Rizevim's chest and stomach area had its skin twisted, permanently disfigured and rippled from the intense carbonized flames that he was struck with. Combined with the sound of what seemed like shattering glass, it was clear that all of this, and possible internal damage he couldn't see, were permanent._

_"A mere Human... with no Sacred Gear, did this... to me... we must take deeper measures, because we gained nothing!" Rizevim growled in anger, despite the pain he was in._

_"What do you mean, this village is-" A Devil retorted._

_"Don't be an idiot! They all fled, we may have left some fatal injuries, but the fact they didn't hesitate in making sure they took everybody means they're either confident, or know they have a way to keep them alive!" He roared._

_Looking at Euclid, he only had one thing to say._

_"Have them go after them, look for anyone carrying young with them as they flee... if they do, kill them immediately on sight!" He ordered._

* * *

_Ayumu grunted in pain as he trudged through the elements, trying desperately to find where his wife had gone with his son, something he had been continuing for months. Eventually, a few Youkai noticed him leave a forest, recognizing him._

_"Hey, that man, isn't he..." A Tenguu mentioned._

_"It is, that man is Ayumu Akane, he's the wife of that girl who visited Lady Amaterasu a few weeks back!" A Nurarihyon confirmed._

_The two rushed over to him, putting Ayumu on guard._

_"Wait, we're not here to hurt you, you're Homura Akane's husband, correct?" A Kitsune held out her hands defensively._

_"You know my wife?" He gasped._

_The Kitsune nods._

_"Follow us, we'll bring you to her." She confirmed._

_Helping the injured man continue on, they eventually brought him to a hidden area under Amaterasu's protection, with a small house that Homura was seen walking out of. Gasping as he saw her, he quickly moved forward despite his injuries._

_"Homura!"_

_Homura's eyes widened, and she turned to see Ayumu._

_"Ayumu? Ayumu!" She exclaimed, running over._

_"Homura..." He smiled._

_His injuries forced him on his knees, with his wife hugging him close like she never wanted to let go._

_"...Wait, where's Issei?" Ayumu asked._

_At that moment, Homura began crying, as she explained what she had to do so both of them could live, beginning the 16 years of separation from their son until that fateful day he finally found them again._

* * *

"We may have lost 16 years, but we'll be here for the rest of them." Homura sniffled, wiping her tears.

"Yeah, that's a promise." Ayumu agreed, nuzzling against her.

Lilith noticed them, taking a deep breath before flashing a happy look towards them. Though it was brief as she heard something bumping behind her.

Turning, she saw the sight of a bipedal Dragon trying to get in, but being slightly too big for the doorway. Everyone nearby stared as he kept trying to get in, briefly looking down and up at the attempt. Soon, he gave a frustrated growl.

"Damn it, stupid doorway's too small!" He groaned.

"Bova, it would be easier if you just shrank for a moment." Tannin stated, flying by in mini-form.

Once he flew past his son, Tannin assumed his Human form, and continued his way inside. Seeing this, Bova groaned in humiliation before he shrank into his own Human form.

"Miss Lilith, who is that?" Le Fay asked.

"Ah, where are my manners. This is Bova Tannin, the third and youngest son of Tannin, he goes by the nickname of [Bova the Destroyer], both because he's powerful..." Lilith explained.

Everyone suddenly heard Bova curse at something, making Le Fay's eyes widen.

"...And he's got a similar personality to Great Red." She finished, scratching her cheek slightly.

"So, he's a Dragon delinquent... peachy." Kuroka remarked sarcastically.

Lilith gave an odd chuckle at that, noticing how Bova was looking towards Issei with clear interest, something that made her wonder.

'Seems like either Bova wants to fight him, or something else.' She thought.

Vali soon walked by Lilith, getting her attention as she stared out the window, giving a longing look to the sky.

"Vali, is something wrong?" She asked.

"No, I just kinda wish... _she_ had been here to see this." Vail said sadly.

Lilith instantly realized who she was talking about, Vali's birth mother. She put a hand on Vali's shoulder, and Vali placed her own on it, memories of the one who birthed her flowing back into her mind.

* * *

_A newborn Vali was seen in her mother's arms, crying a bit as she rocked her._

_"Hush little one, it'll be OK." She reassured her daughter._

_Vali's father gave her an annoyed look, walking away as he wanted no part in what he saw as childish nonsense. However, as he walked away, a hand blocked him off._

_"Hey, get out of the-" Vali's father growled._

_He went silent upon seeing his own father, Rizevim himself, stood before him._

_"U-uh, father! Forgive me, I didn't realize you were the one standing there!" He panicked._

_"Good you're showing proper respect to me, otherwise I'd have to punish you." Rizevim warned._

_Vali's father froze up, gulping at that._

_"So, where's your little brat at?" Rizevim asked._

_Vali's father shakily pointed to where he just walked out from, afraid for more reasons than just his father's appearance now._

_"T-there..." He stated._

_"Alright, time to see the brat then." Rizevim chuckled._

_Upon walking in closer, he saw the still crying Vali, who somehow began crying more, surprising her mother. It was as if she instinctively knew the kind of horrible person Rizevim was. Upon seeing the sight, Rizevim was surprised to see Vali's mother was a mere Human._

_'...No, it couldn't be!' He thought, looking like he saw a ghost._

* * *

_A slightly older Vali ran to her mother, surprising her as she dove into her arms, crying._

_"Vali? Oh no, what happened this time?" She quickly realized what happened, rubbing her daughter's back to try comforting her._

_"G-grandpa made me kill someone!" Vali sobbed, shaking heavily._

_Vali's mother had no words for this, she could only hold her child close... her child that was suffering out of fear, one her grandfather had etched into her. If this went on, she worried one day... Vali might lose herself._

_She had little she could actively do, but that didn't mean she could do nothing._

_"Honey, do you hate doing this?" She asked._

_Vali looked up at her, nodding as she continued sniffling._

_"Then always remember that, so you'll stay true to yourself. I've seen the stories of your Great Grandfather, and there was one thing he said Devils were more than anything, free. The same freedom that let me meet your father, and bring you into this world." Vali's mother smiled, rubbing her daughter's head._

_"Mama?" Vali sniffled, a bit confused by that._

_She felt her mother hug her close, giving Vali all the warmth she could._

_"Promise me, promise you'll always remember, no matter what happens you or me." She whispered._

* * *

A single tear slipped from Vali's eye, and Lilith wiped it as noticed it.

"Mother, I didn't get it back then, but... I finally realized it thanks to everyone I've met since then, and I kept that promise." Vali said, rubbing her eyes.

"I know she's proud of you, never forget that." Lilith said, regretting she never met such an amazing woman.

Outside of the window, the sight of a Butterfly came into view, briefly hovering around the window before it disappeared again, leaving an image of Vali's birth mother smiling at her daughter.

As the festivities continued, one of the Devils in the room took a moment to go to the bathroom. One he had, he looked around before knocking on a certain stall door, making it open as he walked in to see Zekram sitting on it.

"So, did we get it through?" Zekram asked.

"Yes, none of them even know what we've done, the chances of her victory are only going to get lower from here." The Devil smirked.

Zekram chuckled at that, giving him a handshake to mark a job well done.

* * *

Soon, the night came as the celebration came to an end, and everyone prepared to go home. With Ineelana, her peerage was standing alongside Xenovia, Xuelan, Saji, and Kirin, telling them about something they would be doing for tomorrow's Finals.

"Alright, so you all agree with this?" Ineelana asked.

They all nod, making her sigh in relief.

"Glad to hear it everyone, hearing you're all on board with this makes me relieved." She said with a smile.

"Of course, if we're gonna do this Championship Battle together, then we're gonna do it right." Kirin stated, rubbing her nose a bit.

Ineelana chuckled, nodding in response.

"Right." She agreed.

At that moment, the sight of Chisato walking in caught everyone's attention, making the Leviathan heiress turn towards her.

"Oh, do you need something?" Ineelana asked the Pawn of Satan.

"I just came to give you this, we've decided who'll be facing who in the Finals tomorrow. Medaka is delivering the same matching list to Vali's side as we speak." Chisato explained, handing an envelope to her.

Ineelana took it, surprised they'd be learning the results here.

"Oh, thank you." Ineelana replied.

Chisato nodded, soon walking out of the room. Looking at the envelope in her hand, Ineelana took a deep breath, and slowly opened it to reveal the paper inside. Taking it in her hands, she finally unfolded it, seeing the order that was set.

"So, who's facing who?" Murasaki questioned.

"Hmm... I don't wanna spoil the surprise, but I will say the order we're fighting in." Ineelana replied, looking at everyone.

Clearing her throat, she began announcing the order.

"Stella, you're starting us off in Round 1. Xuelan, Round 2 is yours. Tamara, you've got Round 3. Saji, you have Round 4. Ophelia, you'll be fighting Round 5. Sinon, you have Round 6. Mine, Round 7 is your battlefield. Yumi, you got Round 8. Murasaki, Round 9 is your battle. Xenovia, you've got Round 10. Kirin, it's Round 11 you're competing in. Finally, I'm fighting the last Round." She revealed.

Everyone gave a sound of awe at the reveal.

"Wow, makes me wonder who we'll actually be fighting with tomorrow." Stella wondered.

"I bet Ineelana's fighting Vali, it's kinda obvious." Tamara remarked.

The Leviathan heiress flinched at that, making her Bishop give a chuckle before smirking at her.

"Knew it." She stated.

Ineelana gave an awkward laugh, rubbing the back of her head.

"Well, there isn't much else to do, so... everyone, let's give it our all tomorrow!" Ineelana exclaimed.

"Yeah!" They all agreed.

* * *

Soon enough, the next day came, with everyone quickly waking up as they readied themselves for the Finals. As everyone at breakfast that Homura prepared, Gabriel was seen making the finishing touches on the team's outfits made especially for the Finals. Seeing her work finished, she smiled before standing up.

"Everyone, your outfits are ready." Gabriel smiled, holding one out.

"Aw, sweet!" Mio praised, looking at them.

Everyone took a look at their outfits, showing incredible awe at the sight. Like before they each had a main color with a few silver-white areas, though in a different style to match the new design and shape they were made in.

Issei's was obviously red, Le Fay's was cyan, Asia had yellow, pink for Irina, Arthur had green on his, brown marked Bikou's, a black one was Kuroka's, purple went to Yuuma, and an Kunou's was orange. For their added members, a gray one went to Yumina, while Ravel's was blue. The last one which belonged to Vali was white, instead having black where it was silver-white to mark her as the team leader.

"Thanks Gabriel, we're gonna look totally awesome in this!" Irina praised with a big smile.

Gabriel blushed at that, looking away with a giggle. However, their brief moment of happiness didn't last long, as everyone heard Lilith screaming loudly.

"That was Lilith, why did she just scream?" Azazel wondered.

Running into view, Lilith was sweating heavily, looking at everyone with tears in her eyes.

"Quick, someone get Gebedon, or at least Falbium here! Something's wrong with Vali!" She cried, looking completely terrified.

"What!?" Issei shouted in shock.

He quickly rushed upstairs, and the rest of her peerage followed, with Kuroka taking a moment to process it before she followed, almost as if she heard an echo from what Le Fay told her back in Kyoto. When they got into Vali's room, they saw her face was flushed... only, it was flushed purple, like she was poisoned somehow.

"What happened?" Asia asked worriedly.

"I don't know, she seemed kinda tired, so I let her sleep in a bit, but when I opened the blinds after coming back in later... I noticed her like this." Lilith explained, shaking with worry.

A magic circle with the Asmodeus clan symbol appeared, and Gebedon tripped through.

"I'm here, let me see-Holy shit, that looks bad." He stated.

Everyone moved as he activated his Invader Sight, and after looking at her for about a minute...

"...No doubt, her face implies what it should be. While this kind is only meant to debilitate the body's functions, but she's been poisoned, and it's probably been in her system since yesterday afternoon." Gebedon stated, shocking everyone.

"Poisoned?" Kuroka gasped in horror.

"No way, how can that be, she was fine all day yesterday, and we had a magical barrier on the entire house for added measure! No one should have been able to do this!" Mio exclaimed angrily.

"Well, here's the one thing... based on what I can see, the poison entered her orally." Gebedon mentioned.

Everyone showed surprise, and Lilith realized something.

"Don't tell me... was it inside the punch? That's the only thing I think she could have drank it from." Lilith recalled.

"No way, if that had been it, I'd be in the same position right now, because I got a cup only a minute after she did." Irina remarked.

Mio suddenly had a thought, and gasped.

"But there's something only Vali has unlike the rest of us... the blood of Satan!" She mentioned.

That caught everyone's attention.

"Think about it, only Vali drank it and got poisoned, how else can she have been the only one affected? Someone had to have been targeting her specifically." Mio explained.

Lilith gasped, realizing exactly what happened.

"The Elders... they're trying to interfere with the match!" She shouted angrily.

"If that's the case, then we should report this, and buy time to get the poison out of her." Asuka suggested.

"No good, if we were to delay the match, it would look like we gave Vali special treatment. We could only delay the Finals when the Third World Incident happened because it caused a state of emergency. If I asked the match to be delayed, the Elders would use it to make everyone think I'm giving Vali special treatment." Lilith said with regret.

Irina thought a bit, and had an idea.

"But what if Ineelana wants Vali to fight at full power? If we mention this to her and she asks for a delay, then it could-" She suggested.

"No, we're going in as I am..." Vali stated.

Everyone looked as Vali got up, even though she was coughing heavily from the venom in her system.

"Vali, don't push yourself, right now you're-" Gebedon advised.

Vali put her hand out, and forced herself on her feet, surprising everyone as she managed to stand without falling.

"The Elders did this since they think it will keep me from winning... that's why I'm gonna fight as I am. What better way to give them the ultimate karma, seeing that I can win this tournament as I am? You said it to them yourself mom, we aren't theirs to control anymore, so I'm gonna make damn sure I prove that!" Vali exclaimed her promise.

Lilith's eyes widened at that, realizing the fires that burned in her eyes, a fire that might just be what kept her from collapsing to the ground right now.

"...Alright, I'll allow it." She relented.

Everyone gasped.

"She's right, this is what we've all been working towards, so we'll achieve it... regardless of the form we do it in!" Lilith declared.

"...Yeah, we promised to help Vali's dream happen, so let's make those Elders learn they're powerless against us!" Issei announced.

Everyone was silent, but then they saw the rest of Vali's team give the same shout of approval, with Kuroka staring in shock at what she was seeing right now. Looking down, she realized what she had to do when they reached the stadium.

* * *

An hour later, everyone was gathered in the large stadium that would be hosting the Finals' Championship Battle between Vali, and Ineelana. The amount of room was so huge, many people from various pantheons were present, although no leaders were present to keep watch on their territories in the event of the Khaos Brigade taking advantage of it.

Sitting in one area, Yasaka was seated along with Nainen in the VIP area set for family of Lucifer team, looking excitedly as they were present. To make sure their territory was safe, the Shinto Trio took watch over it while their parents watched their usual domain in their place.

"This is it, I'm excited mother!" Nainen smiled.

"As am I, nor can I wait for Kunou's match." Yasaka smiled.

The remaining VIP guests soon sat themselves alongside the Kyuubi family, with Homura smiling as she looked at them.

"Ah, you must be Yasaka and Nainen, right?" She stated.

"Why yes, yes we are. Who would you be?" Yasaka greeted.

"I'm Homura Akane, I'm Issei's birth mother." Homura greeted back, offering a hand.

Yasaka took it, with the family of those on the Leviathan team soon following, showing Griselda taking a seat by Misla, Sairaorg, and his own peerage, who were the closest thing to a family that Kirin had.

"So, the time has finally come." Griselda mused excitedly.

"I hope Kirin does well out there." Misla mentioned worriedly.

"Don't worry, she'll be alright." Kuisha reassured.

Within the waiting areas, Vali panted as she felt the poison's effect on her, but refused to give into it.

"Alright guys, this is it... the last battle before I can finally free Hell, and change it for the better." Vali panted, looking at the door.

Seeing the moment, Kuroka finally stood up, and surprised everyone with what she did next.

"...Vali, I have something I need to say to you." Kuroka said, catching Vali off guard.

"Kuroka? You're... you're talking to me?" She said surprised.

At that moment, she felt Kuroka hug her tightly, shaking as she teared up, quickly evolving into a full-blown sob.

"I'm sorry, for the last few days I've been such a fool. Hearing you killed my mother, and then what happened next, I said..." She apologized.

"No, you were grieving Kuroka, it's-" Vali tried to say.

"The way I acted was _not_ OK, and you know it! Truth be told... I lied to you, I was angry you killed my mother, even though you did save me, you were also the reason I even needed to be saved. The reason everything between me and my sister happened. You only telling Issei something is natural, because he saved you a whole decade ago, and you trust him more, while I've only known you for two years."

"The moment I heard you were poisoned, that was when I finally saw how I acted sink in... it felt like I was being punished in a way crueler than anything. You have a dream, one that could prevent incidents like the one you saved me from, just like before I pushed things away, didn't explain anything, something I need to stop doing. If I had fought still angry at you, I could have risked our victory being lost... we'd fail because of me."

"So, no more of me being the fool, it's time I be a friend like I should have." Kuroka breathed, finishing airing her grief out.

Vali blinked, and soon gave a smile of relief, hugging her back as the others all gave similar looks.

"Welcome back, Kuroka." Le Fay smiled.

Kuroka blushed at that, giving a slight scratch behind her ear as a familiar voice began the first announcement.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**Alright everyone, from the West Gate, we have the girl who saw herself as second, but now fights to be able to claim she's now as first! The Feisty Devil of the Cold... Ineelana Leviathan!**

"Alright everyone, listen closely." Vali stated, getting everyone's attention.

"We started this tournament after I pulled my clan, and those of my dear friends in the other Great Devil Clans, from the bottom of the barrel. Now, we've climbed our way to the top, no matter what happens here we **will** give it our all, because no matter how many rounds we lose, this match will end in our victory!" Vali exclaimed loudly.

Everyone nodded at that, standing before Naud made the announcement they were waiting for.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**And from the East Gate, we have the rookie who pushed through every obstacle with all her might, earning the respect of her kind like that of our former King! The Princess of Hell herself... Vali Lucifer!**

Hearing that, Vali smiled at the others, and they all nodded as their moment had finally arrived... the game began, _now_!

Putting on their team outfits, the Lucifer team stepped out into the field, followed by the Leviathan team who had their own team outfit on. As the two stood before each other, the two heiresses walked up to each other, shook hands. It was at this moment that Ineelana noticed Vali's condition.

"Vali, what are you-" Ineelana asked worriedly.

"I'll win, and prove to those damn Elders how futile their efforts are, so don't hold back." Vali smiled, despite the clear signs she wasn't.

Ineelana showed surprise, looking at Edelweiss, who clearly noticed the same signs.

'Don't let it all go to vein Ineelana, give it your all like Vali will.' She thought.

Realizing this, she nodded to her friend.

"Alright, let's do this Vali!" Ineelana exclaimed, making the Lucifer heiress smile.

Both of them walk back to their groups, and then the moment everyone was waiting for began.

**【**** Naud** **】**

**Now, let the finals... begin!**

Fireworks went off above the stadium, signifying there was no turning back for either side.

* * *

**It's finally begun! We have reached it, the Finals are happening, the Championship Battle is about to happen! You've all been very patient, and now the wait is over! As a reminder, each battle will be its own chapter, so a few of the next twelve are going to be much shorter than they normally are due to how long said fights will be. Still, I think how short they are matters little when the fights themselves are what everyone's excited for ^^**

**And there's the twist I mentioned, the Elders have poisoned Vali! Considering that Samael's poison works better on certain targets, I figured that meant it was possible to have a poison target something specific, and in this case, it's a debilitating poison that only infects a body with DNA of the Lucifer clan. How they got a poison to target that, well... that's a secret for now.**

**Originally, I was thinking about having Ineelana actually reveal who was facing who, but I figured I should save that for next chapter. Though by at least telling you who will be fighting in order on the Leviathan team's side, the surprise is who will face who. *giggles* Either way, you won't have to wait long to see which characters will be fighting one another.**

**Whoa, is that Bova? Why yes, it is! He's made an early debut, and is one of the many characters I mentioned above, the rest will appear occasionally in the audience, making comments about the match. This way, they can't be seen by Vali and Issei too early, but all of you can see them, and they won't all be canon characters like Bova, as there's some future OCs hiding in the stands as well.**

**The last thing to bring up, it seems that Rizevim knows something, and considering what Cao Cao said in the previous arc... anything goes from here, especially now that I've confirmed that Kokabiel's comment of started the Great War is just a lie he took credit for. Either way, there's a more immediate threat looming on the horizon, and Issei still has the thing he wants to tell Vali after they win.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** =Issei's Peerage= **

**King - Issei Hyoudou**   
**Queen - Asuka Aoyama**   
**Bishops - Ravel Phenex, Unclaimed**   
**Knights - Unclaimed x2**   
**Rooks - Rossweisse, Unclaimed**   
**Pawns - Unclaimed x8**

** Soon-to-Be Members: **

**Asia Argento - Bishop  
Irina Shidou - Knight  
Yuuma Amano - Pawn x2**

* * *

** -Crossover Characters in today's Chapter- **

**Testament of a New Sister Devil - Mio Naruse, Chisato Hasegawa**

**Medaka Box - Medaka Kurokami (by mention)**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged**


	52. Chapter 52

**Alright, time for the first round of the Championship Battle to begin. Right now, you only know that Stella is the first among Ineelana's side to battle, but soon you'll know not only her opponent... you'll know everyone's match ups! *cheers* Oh, and to clear this worry away before we start, I can guarantee that Vali's side won't overwhelm Ineelana's with victories.**

**For the match ups I chose, my decisions were based on a few factors. These factors were how even the match up would be, how the two characters fighting would affect each other, making sure the match ups would allow the fight to go on for a good while, and most of all... the potential for character growth on both fighters as they have their match.**

**Now, time to get this Rating Game started! Let the games... *swings a hand down from the air* Begin!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Salathavean Kingdom **

**A kingdom that existed 1500 years ago, during the time when the Ancient Gods that built the Gogmagogs were still alive. This kingdom was notable for genetic studies that were intended to grant its people a way to gain a power equal to Sacred Gears for those who didn't possess one, a process don by imbuing magic into the skin. While their success in this is unknown, they did manage to manifest powers not unlike Sacred Gears.**

**When the Ancient Gods began to die out, the entire nation quickly began to follow due to how closely tied they were, and eventually... the Salathavean Kingdom would meet its demise, though how it ended was never officially confirmed since the ruins don't imply if the damage was from a conflict, or has just been time's aging whittling at the one great nation.**

**Despite that the nation is god, the people of Salathavean have not disappeared because of a single survivor that was contained in stasis, eventually found by Ineelana Leviathan. This survivor was the last princess of the kingdom, Stella Vermillion, who possesses the power of incredibly hot flames, and being able to form a sword she calls Laevateinn.**

**Learning her nation was gone, she strove to move forward, and decided to join Ineelana's peerage as her sole Knight.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 6 - Arthur VS Stella _ **

The fireworks continued shooting off into the air, making the crowd go wild as the Championship Battle had officially began. As this was happening, Stella was seen taking a deep breath, aware that she was going to be fighting the first match.

Meanwhile on Vali's side, they were equally as nervous, with Irina looking at Issei.

"So, who do you think is going first on their side?" She asked.

Issei thought on it, he couldn't get a good look at Ineelana's team to gauge their expressions, and he didn't want to waste a Boost to enhance his eyesight far enough to look. Eventually, he gave a shrug to the Knight of Lucifer.

"No idea, and maybe it's better we don't know. Vali didn't tell us their side's order because she didn't want us to get too nervous trying to prepare for them." Issei replied.

"Yeah, good point..." Irina remarked, crossing her arms as she waited.

Once the fireworks died down, Naud spoke up again.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**Alright everyone, while our competitors know their fighting order, now's the time you learn it as well!**

Hitting a button, a screen on part of the stadium quickly lit up, and revealed the order of the twelve rounds to the public, getting their attention as the shifted their gazes towards it. The match ups were revealed to be the following...

Arthur VS Stella  
Bikou VS Xuelan  
Asia VS Tamara  
Kunou VS Saji  
Yuuma VS Ophelia  
Le Fay VS Sinon  
Kuroka VS Mine  
Ravel VS Yumi  
Yumina VS Murasaki  
Irina VS Xenovia  
Issei VS Kirin  
Vali VS Ineelana

The moment they saw the match ups, everyone cheered loudly, while the two fighters of the first round finally learned who they would be fighting in just a few moments.

"So, my first opponent is Stella." Arthur remarked.

"Arthur, kinda fitting I'm fighting another swordsman." Stella mentioned.

From the VIP box for the Lucifer team, Lilith sighed in relief.

"I'm glad the right for the match up decisions was left to my husband's peerage, they've made sure to give both fighters an equal chance." Lilith stated happily.

Asuka noticed where Issei was.

"So, Issei won't be fighting till near the end, is that because his attacks might rip the stadium apart?" Asuka asked.

"Probably, if you had seen his first use of his Blazing Soul technique..." Homura mentioned, chuckling awkwardly as she stopped midway.

The dark-haired Hero gave a worried look at her Aunt before turning her attention back to the battlefield.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**Now, let's reveal our guest judges, I present to you... the peerage of our former King, Satan!**

A hidden spot that separate two areas of the audience stands rose from the ground, revealing Edelweiss, Rinne, Jasmine, Heathcliff, Reinforce, Esdeath, Kaido, Acnologia, Rei, Uzume, Meliodas, Chisato, Ruhk, Medaka, and Lucifuge Rofocale.

Upon their arrival, Edelweiss stood up from her stand, grabbing a mic that was in front of her.

"To all fans of the Rating Game, we are here to guarantee this match will be fair, and worthy of the Finals for our first ever Rating Game competition. Now, while most of you already know the rules for the type of match, we shall now explain the rules for the individual rounds making this Championship Battle." Edelweiss announced.

Raising her hand to the screen, it briefly changed to show the rules of each round.

"First of all, to avoid these Finals from being too long, each round has a 10-minute time limit. If time runs out before one side defeats their opponent, then the match will end as a draw, and we'll move onto the next once we, and the audience vote on who did better overall. Next, voting works by the audience offering a point by simply either touching a blue or red magic circle that appears before them, while we have a larger point total we'll divide between them. I have 25 points overall, whereas my fellow peerage members each have 9 to offer."

"Now, something I want both Kings here to know. If during any of these matches, for any reason you feel something is wrong, or your team members are pushing themselves too far... you may throw in a white towel to end the match with your side's defeat. Don't be ashamed to do this, because knowing when to do this will make shows you have good judgment, and may also offer you points. For the round between the Kings, this right will be transferred over to their Queens."

"However, the most important rule overall is this. For a match to end, the opponent must either be either unable to move, or knocked unconscious. If you were to be retired in a Rating Game, you will not lose the match, and may instantly come back in provided there is still time left. Also, while a King may throw in the white towel at any time, if the competitor still feels they can fight, we shall verify and allow them to continue as long as the white towel is not thrown in." Edelweiss explained.

From a certain spot, Zekram and the remaining Elders all showed a smug expression, confident their rigging of the voting system hadn't been spotted.

"Now, before we begin, there is one last thing I must bring up. While it is true that the right to decide the winner has been chosen by you, the audience... this is _still_ a Rating Game. As such, resigning is still an option." Edelweiss mentioned.

Clearing her throat, the screen changed to show the images of Arthur and Stella, marking the beginning of their fight. Medaka stepped up, holding out a fan towards the field.

"We shall now begin the first match up! Arthur Pendragon, Stella Vermillion... please proceed onto the field!" Medaka shouted.

Realizing it was time, both of them stood up, turning towards their team members.

"This is it everyone, wish me luck." Arthur stated.

"Everyone, I don't know how this fight will go, but... I will give it all of my strength!" Stella declared.

Both their Kings smiled at them, and they walked out of their gate booths, walking onto the field as they both stood before each other. Taking a deep breath, Stella looked the Pendragon Prince, her eyes completely focused.

"Arthur Pendragon, you were once the Prince of Camelot, were you not?" Stella asked.

"I am, is there a reason you ask?" Arthur replied before asking his own question.

"Yes, I was once a Princess of the Salathavean Kingdom, I survived 1500 years in stasis before I was found by Ineelana. So, I will fight not only to disrespect her name, but I will make sure I fight to my fullest as someone who was once royalty herself." Stella declared.

"I see, I respect your chivalry, so I shall make sure to do the same." Arthur responded.

** _ Battle: Arthur Pendragon VS Stella Vermillion _ **

Arthur drew out Caliburn, brandishing in front of him.

"Serve my will, **Laevateinn!**" Stella announced.

A funnel of fire shot from the ground, and Stella grabbed a stone made of rock before slamming it to the ground, revealing the golden blade inside. Readying herself, she motioned it towards her opponent.

**「** **Fairy Tail: Tenrou Island** **」**

Kaido soon stood up, raising a hand up.

Both Arthur and Stella looked at each other intensely, with the entire crowd sweating in anticipation for the match to officially start.

"This is it, let the game... BEGIN!" Kaido exclaimed, slamming his hand down.

Taking their cue, both sword wielders rushed forward, swinging their blades at one another, causing a huge recoil to blow out, surprising everyone as they were pushed back towards their respective edge of the battlefield. Realizing a head on clash wouldn't work in this position, Stella raised her sword.

"**KATHARTERIO SALAMANDRA!**"

She swings her blade forward, causing fire to shoot off of it in the form of a flaming Eastern Dragon, rushing at Arthur. Seeing it coming, he dodged to the side, but it slammed against the magical barrier, which quickly revealed he had no safe distance.

'No choice, I'll just have to evade it!' Arthur thought.

He continued using his Knight speed to move away from the attack, which kept chasing him for a bit. Eventually, Stella dispelled it as she rushed towards the former Pendragon heir, readying her sword to finish him off.

'Come on, I can make it, I can make it!' She thought.

At that moment, Arthur's skin was coated by a diamond shell, making Stella gasp as she was knocked away, her attack bouncing off of him.

"Sorry, it won't be that easy." He stated.

Rushing towards her, he slashed Caliburn to create an energy wave, causing it to fly towards Stella. Reacting, she said something right as the energy exploded on her. Everyone gasped at the sight, thinking the match was over, when...

"I'm not going that that easily!" Stella exclaimed.

Arthur stood on guard, but he had little time to as Stella flew forward with wings of fire, and then thrust forward.

"**Dragon Fang!**"

A three-meter long serpentine Dragon, which was clad in flames, smashed into Arthur, making him tumble back before he slammed into the barrier. The crowd instantly began cheering as loud as they could, already feeling heated up by the battle.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**Incredible! This match has just started, and yet it always looks like it has more ups and downs than a teeter totter!**

Sliding back to his feet, Arthur shot to the ground, rushing around before slashing the air. Stella looked confused, only to feel his sword slash her from behind, making her scream as it left a small cut across her arms.

'He can cut me from here!?' She realized.

Arthur swung again, and Stella instantly side stepped, but the slashes kept coming faster than she could handle. There was no way for her to attack, and dodge at the same time. Arthur used this moment to try and strike her, but that's when she finally was pushed too far.

"Alright, that's it! Time to reverse the scale you shouldn't ever touch! **Dragon... Spirit!**" Stella screamed loudly.

Arthur suddenly felt a heat wave as he was flung back, with Stella roaring loudly as her sclera took a gray coloration, and her teeth gained slight fangs to them. To the surprise of everyone, her wound instantly healed up before she rushed forward incredibly fast, swinging at Arthur again.

"**Lancelot's Shield!**"

"NOT THIS TIME!" Stella roared.

As the diamond shell appeared, Stella's sword slammed into it, but this time her strength shattered through, sending Arthur flying through the air, and into the barrier's walls again. Roaring even louder, the entire stadium shook in response.

* * *

Up in the crowd, the sight of Miraka was seen as she stood by a Vampire, who both showed shock at the shaking.

"Whoa, do you feel that?" Miraka gasped, feeling her seat vibrate.

"Millarca, if this ends up dangerous, you're taking me out of here immediately." The vampire stated with annoyance.

Miraka, or rather Millarca, twitched at that before bowing slightly.

"...Yes Elmenhilde." She replied.

From within the crowd, someone with black hair and red eyes was looking at the sight, not expressing herself in the least. In fact, some of the nearby audience were more surprised by her lack of a reaction.

"..." She kept looking, silent as ever.

Ineelana quickly realized what she was about to do, and put a magic circle near her ear that reached Edelweiss.

"Quick, you might wanna have Serafall use Eternal Coffin to create a layer underneath the barrier!" She advised.

"...I'm not sure why you said that, but I'll trust your judgment." Edelweiss replied, nodding slightly.

She formed a magic circle, getting in contact with the Great Devil in question.

* * *

Stella's roar got even louder as she began emitting an extreme amount of heat, burning the area around her.

"What is this?" Arthur wondered aloud.

"Now, burn through the intense fire of my flames..." Stella announced, holding her arms out as she clenched her fists.

The veins around Stella's face, arms, and legs intensified for a brief moment as she unleashed her attack.

"**BAHAMUT HOWL!**"

At that moment, Serafall creates the layer under the barrier as a sea of flames envelops the entire battlefield, surprising everyone at the blazing firestorm the former Salathavean Princess managed to create.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**Holy shit! Are we really seeing this right now? I don't know how she did it, but the entire battlefield is on fire, and apparently it was enough that our fair Serafall Leviathan had to create an added measure to the barrier!**

Le Fay gasped, worried about her brother within the sea of flames.

"Holy shit... just how powerful is that Knight?" Irina asked in shock.

"I'm not sure, but I've noticed something strange during this whole match... Stella's clearly a Human, but her fire itself? It's like she's holding the fire of an actual Dragon, and that one trick makes her like a humanoid Dragon." Kuroka mentioned.

Vali closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.

"The Dragon Breath." She revealed.

Hearing this, her team looked at her confused.

"That's the power Stella possesses, Ineelana told me about it once... It gives her the power of a Dragon's fire, which can empower herself or her attacks. To put it simply, it's like having the strengths of a Dragon, but none of their weaknesses due to not being one herself." Vali explained.

Issei's eyes widened at that, looking at Stella again.

"Wow, it's almost like this match is between a Dragon, and the Knight that's been chosen to face it." He remarked.

"Yeah, but there is one downside that Arthur can take advantage of, provided these flames didn't end the match already." Vali mentioned.

Eventually, the ice layer was withdrawn as Stella's flames vanished, the entire stadium heating up as Stella's Dragon Spirit was dispelled, and she panted heavily from the amount of power she ended up to attack Arthur.

'I'm running low on power, my metabolism's starting to catch up... '

On Ineelana's side, Kirin noticed Stella was starting to look tired.

"Ineelana, why does Stella already look like she's gonna keel over?" She asked worriedly.

"Her powers have a downside, to use such powerful, her body needs to burn off the calories, so she had to stuff herself near the brim before this match begin. Due to her metabolism, that burn off rate is high... especially for techniques like her Dragon Spirit, and Bahamut Howl." Ineelana revealed, sweating a bit.

"So, in an official match like this one, where she can't get more food to replenish those calories, she's at a disadvantage." Xuelan realized.

Everyone continued focusing at the stadium, trying to figure out if Arthur was defeated through the steam.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Stella kept breathing heavily as she attempted to look for Arthur, and eventually once it cleared up enough... her eyes widened in shock.

Everyone soon saw what she had, an entire area of the ground had a slash mark that lacked any burns, showing Arthur standing within it, with Caliburn held out. Somehow, he had slashed through the flames, and avoided the attack completely. Both team's members were shocked, Vali's because of what he did, and Ineelana's that her attack never even hit Arthur!

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**I... I can't believe what I'm seeing, but it looks like Arthur cut through the flames for the entirety of the attack! How was that even possible!?**

Meanwhile the judges, Meliodas gave an impressed whistle.

"Well, would you look at that?" He chuckled, feeling excited over what he just saw.

"Skree!" Ruhk screeched in reply.

"It wasn't just mere swordsmanship that let him defy that attack, if he had messed up for even just a moment..." Heathcliff noted.

Edelweiss gave an interesting look at the competitors, noticing they were both tired.

"It could still go either way, it looks like to survive, he's been pushed as far as his opponent's current condition." She stated, briefly closing her eyes.

Looking at Arthur, it wasn't long before Stella realized it.

"...You completely drained yourself of nearly all your magical power just to defend against my flames, didn't you?" She questioned.

"Unfortunately, I would have lost instantly had I not, it seems you have also pushed your magical reserves near empty." He answered, realizing the same of her.

Taking a deep breath, Stella held Laevateinn up again.

"This match still hasn't ended, so... all we have left now is-" Stella began.

"-the strength cross swords until the end, and one last trump card." Arthur finished.

Both sword users slowly walked towards each other.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**It looks like this is it, the final clash between these Knights!**

As the two looked at each other, they stopped for a brief moment.

'No matter what, I'm not... going to... lose!' Stella screamed in her mind.

Shouting loudly, Stella felt an image of a black realm with chains binding her shatter, revealing white light as her power suddenly flared up, surprising Ineelana as she noticed something had changed in her Knight.

"Stella?" She said in surprise.

**「** **Sword Art Online: Gunland** **」**

Stella rushed forward, with Arthur doing the same as they clashed against each other.

"Arthur, you have been an amazing opponent, however..." Stella said quietly.

"I must win this battle, not just for myself, but for my King who gave me the chance to live here and now! She's more than just my master, she's my family!" Stella exclaimed

Ineelana's eyes widened at that, tearing up with a smile as she covered her mouth.

At that moment, the two broke off before rocketing across the entire barrier area, with everyone seeing them move around like shooting stars. The crowd cheered loudly as they got fired up, despite all that the two were doing now was clashing blades, and jumping across the barrier's walls.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**This is now nothing more than an ultimate clash between two blades, and the resolve behind them! I can't say anything other than this... show them your hidden swords fellow Knights!**

Everyone cheered even louder, with some shouting to the two fighters.

"Take him down Stella!"

"Arthur, you've got this in the bag!"

"You two are both amazing, don't let up!"

"Keep fighting!"

"Go for it!"

"This is exactly how the Championship should be!"

The two left some cuts on one another, still swinging their blades as moments where Arthur took control, and then moments where Stella had the lead, constantly switched alongside brief periods they were equal. Sliding across the ground, the two readied themselves to end it.

"This it is!" Stella shouted.

Charging all the fire she had left into her sword, she rushed forward as Arthur charged all the power he could in Caliburn. Taking the first move, he slowly swung his sword behind him, and then smashed it forward to create a giant energy slashed that headed towards Stella.

Everyone went silent as they wondered what was about to happen, and that's when Stella closed her eyes.

'All that I am, everything that my friends have made me, allow me to shoot through this barrier... with just one step!' She thought.

Opening her eyes, she instantly rushed forward, swinging her sword as the flames exploded out.

"**Desperado... FLARE!**"

A large red flash clashed with Arthur's yellow one, blinding the result of the clash within it as the audience all gasped. Soon, a huge smoke cloud was seen blinding everything inside the barrier.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Naud lost his voice briefly, and then shook his head as he pulled the mic closer to him as Acnologia got closer, taking a deep breath to clear the smoke.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**I ask everyone for their patience as we get rid of this smoke, and find out what happened!**

Eventually, the smoke cleared to see both Knights without their swords, both panting heavily as either one looked like they were about to keel over. Eventually, it was Arthur that fell onto his knees, making everyone's eyes widen as the rest of him began to fall forward.

'Vali, I'm sorry, but it looks like the first match... goes to their side.' He thought.

He fell on the ground, and once he did, Uzume quickly ran over to see his current status. Examining his body, she got the official result.

"Arthur Pendragon... has been knocked unconscious!" Uzume announced.

** _ Winner: Stella Vermillion! _ **

At that moment, everyone gave a loud cheer at the result, clapping going off across the entire area as Stella stood there, still processing what she just heard.

"I... I actually won?" Stella realized.

**「** **Chivalry of a Failed Knight: Epilogue** **」**

Panting a little more, the sole Knight of Leviathan smiled, weakly raising a hand up, causing more cheering to happen as she took in the realization she had actually won. Though, at the moment she took a step to rejoin her team, she finally hit her limit and fell over, prompting Ineelana to run over to her.

"Stella, are you OK!?" Ineelana shouted.

"...Don't yell so loud, my ears already feel like they're gonna explode." Stella said, weakly looking at her.

Whistling with her fingers, Rinne alerted Eterna to get on the field, and start healing both competitors using her powers. Looking at Stella, Ineelana gave her a proud look.

"Congratulations Stella, you did it..." She smiled.

"Ineelana, tell me... do you think, my parents... saw it too?" Stella asked.

The Leviathan heiress nodded, soon taking her healed Knight back to the Leviathan team's stands, while Irina and Le Fay help Arthur back to theirs.

"Vali, forgive me, I wasn't strong enough to win." Arthur apologized.

"No, you don't need to apologize, you still gave it your all. That's enough for me. Besides, this is only the first round, we're not done... not yet." Vali replied, smiling as she looked towards the viewing screen.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Once the cheering died down a bit, the screen showed the match ups, with a "O" by Stella to mark she won, and an "X" by Arthur to mark he had lost. After that, the pictures of Bikou and Xuelan quickly replaced it.

**【** ** Naud ** **】**

**And with that, we've finally ended the first round. I hope the next eleven will be just as exciting! To those watching at him, don't turn away, because you won't want to miss it!**

Bikou readied himself, looking at the battle that was before him.

"Alright, it's my turn now." Bikou declared.

* * *

**And the first match goes to Stella! I figured that the best way to have these fights begin was for Vali's side to lose the first one, because it not only reinforces how hard Vali's side needs to push themselves, especially with their leader being weakened by the poison in her system, but also shows Ineelana's come far to truly be the final challenge as her opponent in the Finals.**

**For that brief moment where Stella is breaking free of chains in her mind? No, that isn't her becoming a Desperado like in her series, that was just an indirect shout-out to it, as was the name of her final attack against Arthur. If anything, she was just overclocking on adrenaline to push herself, hence why she collapsed only shortly after winning the match.**

**Well, either way, this Rating Game's first match has finally come to an end. Now, Bikou has to try and regain his team's momentum against Xuelan, a very powerful Rook. How will he fair against her when in the Rating Game between Riser and Vali, the two of them never got the chance to fight? Not only that, but how much stronger has Xuelan become since said Rating Game? Guess we'll find out when their match finally begins.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

**A/N: When I introduced Millarca to the story via the Student Council Elections, she was known as Miraka by translations. As such, this story will treat Miraka as her human alias, with Millarca being her true vampire name.**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged**


	53. Chapter 53

**That first round was pretty intense, with the Leviathan team drawing first blood, victory-wise that is. Now, the second match between Bikou and Xuelan is next, so how will the descendant of the victorious fighting Buddha do against the Rook stated to have the strength of a Queen? The only advantage is Bikou has some idea of what she can do, but how effective that'll be? Well, we're about to find out.**

**Either way, he can't afford to lose here, if the Lucifer team takes two losses in a row from the get go, that's gonna do some major damage to the audience's view. Sure, losing a few matches won't hurt them in the long run, though her side still needs to prove they can actually put up a fight against the Leviathan Team before they lose again, not unlike how a team losing too many times in a row loses support... which is bad when the winner is being decided by votes.**

**Well, guess it's time to see if he can turn things around.**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Cursed Swords **

**Also known as Demonic Swords, these mighty blades are the counterpart to Holy Swords, being a series of powerful swords that surpass almost all others, yet can no longer be created due to the Great War erasing the methods, means, and people who were capable of creating them. Like their counterparts, only those who possess certain genes can wield the swords, but unlike them... the price is their life force is slowly chipped away.**

**The only one who ever could use the swords without the price of their life force was the legendary Sigurd, whose bloodline is the only one that could use them without paying it, for reasons currently unknown. There are a total of six Cursed Swords (either due to the destruction of some, or they were the only six ever made) in existence, and all are currently under the possessing of Sieg, the only known descendant of Sigurd.**

**Each sword, similar to the various Holy Swords, have their own abilities. Gram, the strongest of them all, is basically a mix of Caliburn, Durandal if the ability charge was absent, and Ascalon. Dainsleif, which forms ice pillars from the ground. Nothung, which is incredibly sharp. Tyrfing, which creates destructive bursts. Balmung, which forms intense whirlwinds. Then finally, Clarent, which creates flaming flashes.**

**Before anyone was aware of Siegfried's heritage, an attempt to create those based on his genetics was done by a group called the Sigurd Institution, who made artificial humans through those genes, with one of them being Freed Sellzen. Unfortunately, Freed showed that not only was it unsuccessful, but the people they created were unstable in some form. Their last attempt was a girl with slightly different DNA, who was sane, but couldn't use the swords either.**

**Once Sieg was discovered to be Sigurd's descendant, the swords were all given to him, and have stayed with him ever since.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 7 - Bikou VS Xuelan _ **

Once the cheering died down a bit, the screen showed the match ups, with a "O" by Stella to mark she won, and an "X" by Arthur to mark he had lost. After that, the pictures of Bikou and Xuelan quickly replaced it.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**And with that, we've finally ended the first round. I hope the next eleven will be just as exciting! To those watching at him, don't turn away, because you won't want to miss it!**

Bikou readied himself, looking at the battle that was before him.

"Alright, it's my turn now." Bikou declared.

"Ineelana, I shall fight with all I have." Xuelan declared, standing up in response.

Both fighters started heading onto the field at that moment, with Roygun using her powers to restore the damage to the battlefield. The moment the two stood against one another on the battlefield, both silently stared at one another.

** _ Battle: Bikou VS Xuelan _ **

"You remember the Rating Game between our Kings, correct?" Xuelan inquired.

"Yeah, what about it?" Bikou asked in response.

"Back then, you and I never faced each other due to our positions, and your early elimination. I'll admit I was a bit disappointed, I was curious to see how you would fight considering who your ancestor is. That's why I thank this tournament for this moment, because now..." She replied.

She moved into a fighting stance, focusing her expression.

"...Now, I finally have the chance I didn't have before, so promise you'll come at me with all you have, is that too much to ask for?" Xuelan stated.

"Not a bit, I'm fairly excited to see if you're really as strong as I've been told." Bikou smirked, twirling his Ryuu Jingu Bang into view.

The air around the two intensified, both of them slowly circling each other.

**「** **My Hero Academia: Hero A - Instrumental** **」**

Jasmine soon took a whiff of her pipe, and rose her hand up.

"Now, let the battle begin!" Jasmine exclaimed with a snap of her fingers.

"With pleasure!" Bikou smirked.

Thrusting his staff forward, the entire crowd watched as it looked like Xuelan was about to be struck, but when it neared her... she simply punched the tip, causing a shock wave as it bent upwards, allowing her to roll to the side with just enough time to dodge. The entire audience gasped at this.

"No way..." Bikou said in shock.

From within the crowd, a pair of students from Kuoh Academy were witnessed, ones that would surprise the Lucifer Team if they knew they were watching. The first was Tadami Kamo, who was currently wearing a black, red, and white-colored Onmyouji outfit, while the one beside her was Ryuuta Nakiri.

"Ouryuu, did she just..." Tadami questioned.

"Yeah, the rumors about that Rook's strength aren't just exaggeration, imagine if she had actually been made a Queen?" Ryuuta, or rather Ouryuu remarked in awe.

Rushing forward, Xuelan gives a flaming kick towards Bikou, who holds his staff out to block it. She quickly follows up with more flaming kicks, and a few fiery punches, with Bikou either parrying or evading them.

"Guys, will Bikou be alright?" Irina asked, being one of the two not aware of what Riser's peerage could do.

Kuroka looked at Xuelan, gauging her best she could.

"Well, I remember my little sister saying she's a Rook more like a Queen, so strength wise that might have Bikou on a disadvantage depending on how strong she's becoming since." Kuroka mentioned, still looking.

"However, at the same time, not only does Bikou have the Ryuu Jingu Bang on his side..." Kuroka gave a confident look towards her teammate.

Xuelan swung her foot out again, but Bikou held out his palm, making a huge impact sound against it... without any damage! The Phenex Rook was shocked, remembering the last time she occurred with Shirone.

"He can use Touki, something she lacks." Kuroka smirked, sensing Xuelan lacked usage of it.

Bikou spun the Ryuu Jingu Bang in his other hand, slamming it down against his opponent, making her spit from the shock of the impact. She tumbled across the field, slamming hard into the barrier as it shook heavily.

"And that's why you don't mess with the Monkey in the middle!" Bikou joked with a chuckle.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

At that moment, everyone suddenly went silent at that, which included even Naud. You could even hear the sound of the silence, with Rinne face palming at the sight, though the worst came from Vali, who said just the following...

"Bikou, you're an idiot." She said, not appreciating his comment.

Bikou gave a strange sound in shock, unable to believe the entire crowd had disliked the joke he had made.

"Suddenly, I think I'm starting to understand how he caused the bad relationship with Sun." Issei sighed.

"What the hell guys!? I'm supposed to be on your side, don't degrade me like this!" Bikou exclaimed part angry, part saddened.

Edelweiss slowly looked at Lucifuge, who looked back.

"You think this kid... might be an airhead?" She questioned.

"Think? I think that's an obvious answer, with airhead being the wrong term I'd use." Lucifuge bluntly answered.

Bikou felt himself stabbed by that answer.

"You're all so hurtful right now-" Bikou groaned, hanging his head down.

Everyone gasped as Xuelan used the chance to punch him in the stomach, reminding him the match was still going.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Ooh! That's gonna leave a mark, contestant Bikou forgot the match hadn't ended, and Xuelan took clear advantage of it!**

Some of the crowd showed distaste for that sneak attack, but there was no rule against them, so no penalties were given for it. Getting back on his feet, Bikou grunted before re-positioning himself.

* * *

Homura hummed a bit, examining the Phenex Rook before her, and getting Ayumu's attention.

"Honey, do you notice something about her?" He asked.

"They say she's got the skills of a Queen, don't they?" Homura inquired.

Ayumu blinked, recollecting his thoughts for a brief moment.

"Yeah, now that I think about it, that was mentioned, and Ravel even stated the claim had validity too it... why?" Ayumu was curious to why she was bringing it up.

Asuka payed attention to that, and noticed what she meant.

"Aunt Homura, you've noticed she only seems to be fighting like her piece, she's not showing the speed or magic that should prove that claim." She realized.

"Sharp eye Asuka, that's exactly what I noticed." Homura confirmed.

The other sin the Lucifer VIP spot look confused.

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Nainen asked.

Lilith took a look at her, and then realized how her punches and kicks were always infused with fire.

"I think I see what she means. While the Finals' rules have the stadium negating all Evil Piece boosts, the people with them would still have developed based on them. For a rook, their strength is that they're able deal a heavy hit, and take one in return. For a Knight, they're good with weapons, and they're extremely fast. Then with Bishops, they've got their magic potential, and better healing skills if they have such an ability." Lilith explained.

"Tell me, what boost does a Queen give?" Lilith questioned.

Nainen blinked, thinking about what he recalled from the Rating Game, then gave her answer.

"All but the Pawn, since all they do is change in the right areas into one of the other four." Nainen answered.

"Now, how many of those has she shown?" Homura inquired.

That stumped everyone at first, until Irina's father realized it.

"She's only been showing the Rook's strength and durability, nothing about her magic, or her speed!" Touji remarked in surprise.

Finally realizing this themselves, the others gasped.

"Of course, she's trying to bait him, just like she used his distraction to her advantage." Rossweisse mentioned, a trickle of sweat on her cheek.

Sun Wukong himself, way in the back of the VIP seats, stared at his descendant with little reaction.

* * *

Zekram took a sip of his wine, smirking at the sight before him.

"This is too easy, I bet we didn't even need to rig the system, her team is falling against Ineelana's forces." He chuckled.

"In the end, we'll have Lilith receive the best humiliation by having her own attempt to take us down fail." The Paimon Elder snickered.

At that moment, a familiar dog ends up hearing this, and walks over to none other than Tobio.

"Hmm? What is it boy?" Tobio asked.

While no one else understood, he barked a few times, getting his attention.

'This is what Azazel mentioned to watch out for, isn't it? Well... I guess then we should fix this deception.' Tobio thought.

Getting up, Tobio heads off to figure out the source behind the rigging, only to be apparently stopped by Diehauser.

"Uh, I was..." Tobio tried to make an excuse.

"You're gonna help try to stop their efforts, aren't you?" Diehauser answered with a question.

The eponymous Slash/Dog sweated as he apparently got stopped before he began... that is, until Diehauser's next response.

"Need some help?"

He showed surprise at that, soon turning as a few other faces walked from behind him.

* * *

As Vali's side continued watching the fight, Ravel kept looked like Bikou was still in some trouble.

"Hmm? Ravel, what's wrong?" Yumina asked.

"Well, nothing's really wrong, it's just I worry if Bikou can prepare for when Xuelan gets serious, something you guys haven't seen." Ravel replied.

This got everyone's attention.

"Think about it, she's got the strength of a queen, but usually only shows the traits of the Rook she really is. That reason is to wait for the right moment to stop holding back." She explained.

Vali blinked at that, eyes widening.

"Are you saying there's something me, and Rias' games against you didn't give her the chance to show?" The Lucifer heiress asked.

"Yeah, because you overwhelmed her and the others guarding my brother, and Shirone rendered her near unable to move by the point that Akeno bombed the gym." Ravel confirmed.

"So, what is it she can really do?" Irina asked.

"Well, it'll be obvious the moment she does it, but you'll see why she's called the Rook with the power of a Queen." Ravel replied.

As they two pushed each other apart again with their attacks, Xuelan quickly charged forward, with Bikou preparing to block her...

That's the moment Xuelan suddenly stopped moving, catching everyone off guard before she motioned to her bun wrappings. Only Riser understood what she was about to do, smirking a bit as the Leviathan VIP area looked at him.

"Why are you laughing?" Kirin asked suspiciously.

"Something tells me she's readying a second wind, or perhaps this is the storm she hides within a breeze." Sairaorg guessed, a phrasing only his peerage understood as their eyes widened.

Xuelan looked like she was about to remove them, but then... simply pulled on a string, causing them to open like a blooming flower. Her dress instantly had all the blue turn red, with her entire body emitting fire across it, surprising the Monkey Youkai.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**This is... WHOA! Everyone, I think we're seeing the hidden trump card of Xuelan, because I have no idea what she just did!**

Bikou looked nervous, while everyone in the audience gasped in surprise.

"Whoa... did anyone know Xuelan could do that?" Ineelana asked.

"No, this is new to us as well." Murasaki mentioned, a little frightened.

At that moment, Xuelan instantly rushed forward at speeds rivaling a below average knight, stopping to swing her arm and make a wing of fire strike the Monkey Youkai. Bikou silently released a scream as he was flung across to the top of the barrier, flames exploding the whole way. The crowd was silent, but then cheered loudly as the match took this sudden twist.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Incredible! I don't know how she did it, but we're seeing something amazing right now! Is the Leviathan going to continue with another victory? Is the Lucifer team finally hit the one roadblock they can't break!?**

Vali ignored that comment, looking at Bikou with a face showing all her faith in Bikou being able to win.

'Bikou, you can do this... you can... fight as only you can!' She thought.

As Bikou fell to the ground, he struggled to get back up, with Xuelan quickly rushing at him again, smashing more strikes into him in a flurry of what could be best described as nitro fisticuffs.

At that moment, the crowd's cheers began to lower, now they were worried about how one-sided this began to look, and if Bikou would come out of this OK.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Huh? The crowd's starting to go quiet, is this kind of battle seemingly too violent for them? Is Bikou's condition taking a bad turn? I don't know, but I do notice Bikou isn't trying to retaliate... what do the judges say about this?**

Said judges kept watching, with Acnologia's eyes motioning to Edelweiss.

"What do you think? Should we call something, or not?" He asked.

"Not yet, I don't think this is what everyone expects, provide the right push comes his way." She replied.

As Bikou looked like he was about to keel over, his entire team watched worriedly, until...

"BIKOU!" Vali screamed.

Bikou's eyes widened as he looked, seeing Vali cough heavily at the sight, something that most of the nearby crowd noticed, even Naud was about to say something... until he got a message saying not to by Uzume.

"Bikou, you can do this! Don't you dare give up here! This is your fight, and your chance to show who you are! You are... you are not Sun Wukong, and you should never try to be, and that's because there are things that only Bikou can do!" She screamed, coughing again.

"Vali..." Irina said worriedly, even though she knew the poison was only weakening her.

Bikou's eyes shook, and Xuelan threw another strike towards him.

Gritted his teeth, he whistles for a certain cloud to form under him, and calls the power that would turn the match around.

**「** **Real Steel: Atom VS Zeus, Final Round** **」**

"**GOLDEN ANCESTRY!**"

The Flying Nimbus suddenly flew into him, with the Ryuu Jingu Bang doing the same as it slingshot Xuelan back, surprising her as everyone suddenly cheered as Bikou's second wind, glad the match wasn't one-sided anymore.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**The tides have turn, and it looks like Bikou's turned the color of what he wants to get from this match! First Place!**

Sun Wukong smirked, finally seeing the fire that he wanted to.

"It looks like I was right to leave him in your care, Vali Lucifer." He said with pride at he saw the golden furred Bikou.

Xuelan was forced on the guard as Bikou rushed at her, tossing his hands around to use feints, combined with the Ryuu Jingu Bangs he extended from his palms, throwing the Phenex Rook completely off guard as she failed to retaliate.

"BIKOU! BIKOU! BIKOU!" The crowd cheered repeatedly.

Zekram Bael saw this, and in his anger, smashed his glass into pieces.

"Damn it!" He roared loudly.

'Looks like someone's getting pissed off.' Lilith thought with a cat-like smirk, seeing his body language.

Catching one of his staffs, Xuelan pulled the golden Monkey towards her, holding the staff while using her other fist to try repeatedly punching at him, but he simply bobbed his head with each, soon almost... dancing to dodge her attacks when he shifted to aiming everywhere else.

"Missed me! Woo! Let's go!" Bikou laughed, dodging her attacks.

Bikou soon spun to get on his head, and kick Xuelan a few times before wrapping his arms around her.

"No, you... don't!" She grunted, setting herself ablaze.

"Sorry, but that won't be enough!" He smirked.

He jumped high into the air, and then let himself free fall, the entire stadium gasped before he spun to cause Xuelan to hit the ground, taking the impact for **both** falls!

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Xuelan gave a loud gasp before her hair bungs folded back, and her body laid on the ground with spiral eyes, signaling she was now KO'd.

"The match is over, Bikou is the winner!" Rinne shouted.

** _ Winner: Bikou! _ **

The entire crowd went wild, cheering like never before, and some even feeling the stadium had begun shaking as a result of it. Vali's side all jumped up a bit, screaming in excitement as they finally took their first win. Ineelana sighed in relief, glad that Vali got a win.

'That's it Vali, keep it going, just win more than me, and the chips all fall where they need.' The Leviathan heiress smiled at her friend's team.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Now we have one win for each side, I think that proves it folks, neither side can be said to have the better chance! Anyone can win, lose, or even end in a draw if the right circumstances go their way! This is the kind of Championship we were hoping for, and boy did it deliver, with a bang no less!**

Bikou soon helped Xuelan up, moving her near Eterna so she could heal her.

"...You were hiding your strength like I was, weren't you?" Xuelan lightly laughed, unable to think of how else he beat her.

"Nope, not a bit." Bikou admitted.

She looked at him surprised, that was something she didn't think anyone would admit so casually.

"I just needed a reminder that I'm not my old man." Bikou smiled.

Xuelan didn't fully get it, but soon she felt herself laughing heavily, unable to keep a straight face at that response.

"You're really something else, aren't you?" She mentioned.

"Guess I am." Bikou agreed, shrugging his shoulders playfully.

Once she was healed, the two prepared to return to their corners, when...

"Oh yeah, let's have another battle one day, strong woman like you are ones I have a lot of respect for." Bikou stated.

"E-Eh!?" Xuelan's face lit up at that, blushing a bit.

Turning away, Bikou looked at her confused, before she looked at him angrily... while still blushing.

"You monkey baka!" She exclaimed, rushing back to the stands.

The Monkey Youkai blinked in confusion, with Kuroka laughing as she realized what just happened.

"Looks like he really is the monkey in the middle now, the middle being having any clue that he just sparked a potential romance." The Black Nekoshou remarked.

"I can't tell if that's really love blossoming, or if Xuelan's just embarrassed." Ravel replied, sweat dropping at her teammate.

Xuelan covered her steaming face, making everyone look at her oddly.

"Uh..." Ineelana had no idea what to say.

Like before, the cheering eventually began to calm itself to a manageable level, as the screen showed the match up screens, the "O" and "X" besides Bikou and Xuelan respectively. Now, both teams had a single win, and that mean support from the crowd no matter how the matches went. Readying the next match, the pictures of Asia and Tamara became the next one to appear on the board.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Now, our next match up is an interesting one. We have Asia Argento from the Lucifer Team, being their healer through the tournament with only a recent development on some offense. Then there's Tamara Harrison, who has the Telos Karma, the Longinus known for its countering abilities.**

**So, how will they fight one has little offense, and the other fights relying on it? Have they prepared for this situation? I guess there's only one way to know, so come on and take the stage you girls!**

Asia gave a nervous look, knowing it was her turn now. On the other side, Tamara gave a simple smile, readying herself as she stood up.

* * *

**And Bikou tips the scales in their favor! After the worries that developed in this chapter due to Stella's victory, he shatters them into pieces by winning! Now, each side has the ground to gain support in the remaining matches... although Naud makes a good point, how is this next match going to go between each team's non-offensive members? You might be surprised next chapter :3**

**Not only that, but because Zekram didn't bother to check for something like old Jin/Canis Lykaon being able to hear him from that far away, we got a few people who are aware of the possible rigging... although how successful they'll be in that remains to be seen, not to mention is it really the best idea for Tobio to go on a goose chase with Diehauser when we know who the original Bael could summon to Hell at any moment?**

**Either way, the Finals are already starting to heat up, and we've only reached the second round. I'd say the biggest highlight is the fact that on a random whim, and because Sun Wukong is related to Chinese mythology... I decided to try considering pairing up Bikou with Xuelan ^^ *giggles* I'm interested to see how I'll write out their potential romance, though there's gonna be little progress on it for now.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels**


	54. Chapter 54

**Each team has at least one win now, so this is the moment where the Championship's battles depend solely on how the fighters impress the crowd. That's gonna be a challenge for our dear friend Asia, who is not much of a fighter, although Tamara doesn't have that much skill in attacking without her Sacred Gear either, which is a Counter-type.**

**Ironically, that's exactly why they got matched up by Satan's peerage. Against anyone else, there would be no reasonable way for Asia to win... they'd decimate her without even trying, and the crowd doesn't want to be bored by such a one-sided fight. Though for how they'll actually fight, and still avoid boring the crowd, that's another story this chapter will tell.**

**Oh, I forgot to say this back during the fight with Stella and Arthur, but I thought I'd let everyone know that when this story is finally finished, and I can move onto its sequel, I intend to do a heavy rewrite of the earlier chapters, which I've intended to overhaul for a while now. The main reason I haven't done so before now is because I feel the current readers want to see how this first story in the trilogy is resolved before I do that.**

**Not only that, but starting next chapter, I'll start sharing a few details about the second story in the trilogy. Nothing too big, just giving you some details on what to expect, kinda like just a basic summary of certain things that are gonna happen, so it would be best described as giving you the pieces to the basic summary of the story beyond that it starts Post-Vol 12.**

**Alright, with all of that said, let's finally get to the match itself.**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Twilight Saint Affection **

**Asia's Balance Breaker, and probably what makes the Twilight Healing one of the most powerful, if not the second-best (only losing to the Innovate Clear) among healing Sacred Gears. Unlike most Balance Breakers, hers was not unlocked naturally, as the power of Light Reiryoku given to her by Mio Takamiya during the "Three Worlds Incident" helped unlock it for her usage.**

**Twilight Saint Affection's primary use is that it's basically a damage sponge barrier, absorbing all damage by negating it, while healing those inside. Despite it negates damage, it can't negate an attack itself, so an attack that would blind Asia within her barrier could be dangerous if she can't hold it much longer, such as being surrounding by a Dragon's breath attack, and not knowing how to escape it.**

**Since Asia hasn't had many instances to use it, she isn't aware of its full capabilities beyond these just yet, but Azazel feels her Balance Breaker is still incomplete, something that may relate to a strange power that Ddraig's recently began noticing from her. He does however mention that one ability she does has, yet hasn't had a chance to test, is how negated attacks affect her barrier's healing.**

**Regardless of how complete it is, the Twilight Saint Affection is considered one of the most useful Support-type Balance Breakers**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 8 - Asia VS Tamara _ **

Like before, the cheering eventually began to calm itself to a manageable level, as the screen showed the match up screens, the "O" and "X" besides Bikou and Xuelan respectively. Now, both teams had a single win, and that mean support from the crowd no matter how the matches went. Readying the next match, the pictures of Asia and Tamara became the next one to appear on the board.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Now, our next match up is an interesting one. We have Asia Argento from the Lucifer Team, being their healer through the tournament with only a recent development on some offense. Then there's Tamara Harrison, who has the Telos Karma, the Longinus known for its countering abilities.**

**So, how will they fight one has little offense, and the other fights relying on it? Have they prepared for this situation? I guess there's only one way to know, so come on and take the stage you girls!**

Asia gave a nervous look, knowing it was her turn now. On the other side, Tamara gave a simple smile, readying herself as she stood up.

While the both headed down to the field, the same black-haired girl that's been completely silent was staring at the match like usual... for obvious reasons, those near her were only getting more uncomfortable by her lack of reactions. Eneely, who was one of the nearby spectators, turned to Seekvaira, who was in the same position.

"...Does something feel wrong about this girl in your opinion?" Eneely asked her fellow heiress.

"Good, it isn't just me." Seekvaira agreed.

Despite having heard them both, she still didn't react, and that just made them feel even more unnerved by her presence.

Taking a deep breath, and rubbing Rassei on the chin, Asia heads onto the field as Tamara did the same. Asia slowly walked into view, while Tamara quickly ran into the battlefield without being aware of one tiny thing.

"Alright, let's do this-"

Tamara's lack of attention to the one thing finally happened as she stepped on her untied shoelaces, nearly tripping as she bounced into view. While she kept her balance, the crowd all gave playful laughs at the result.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Well... I guess that's one way to make an entrance, and it's probably better she trips up here than during the battle.**

Hearing that joke, everyone began laughing, including both teams, and Tamara herself. Asia gave a light giggle, not understanding the joke as well as everyone else due to her more innocent nature.

"Alright, since we've gotten that out of the way..." Tamara stated as she tied her shoe.

"You ready to fight with me?" Tamara asked, bouncing on her feet.

Asia took a deep breath, fairly nervous about what was about to happen.

** _ Battle: Asia Argento Vs Tamara Harrison _ **

"I... I'm not really one to fight, but I'll give it my all here."

Tamara gives a toothy grin at that, shifting her body stance into a fighting positions as her feet kept bouncing.

"Fine with me!" She agreed.

**「** **One Piece: Brand New World - Instrumental** **」**

"Let the match... begin!" Meliodas exclaimed, swinging his hand up.

While no one was sure who'd react first, what was truly unexpected was anyone making a move so fast, as a result...

"**Balance Breaker: Retribution of the Pandoric Evils!**"

Ineelana showed shock at that.

"She achieved Balance Breaker? Since when!?" Ineelana exclaimed.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Holy shit! It looks like Tamara's taking the initiative, but what is she about to do!?**

Tamara swung her hands down, sending whips of black lightning towards Asia, who barely managed to create a shield on her left hand to defend against the attack. Using her right hand, she quickly followed with an orb of light that rocketed towards Tamara, knocking her back as she took the hit.

'Looks like she can't use her Longinus in the same way while she's in this state... hope she knows what she's doing.' Ineelana thought worriedly.

Rolling back onto her feet, Tamara giggled a bit.

"You really do have some offense, nice! Now this match has some excitement to it!" Tamara cheered.

The crowd followed her example, with what seemed like the dull match among the tournament had that illusion shattered entirely due to both showing their offensive abilities.

"Vali, what kind of Balance Breaker does the Telos Karma have?" Kuroka asked, remembering she knew about its origins.

"Sorry, but this is the one thing I don't know about this Sacred Gear." Vali apologized, just as lost.

"I saw Ineelana's expression, she seemed surprised she used it, so I'm guessing she had to have only recently unlocked it between now, and the incident in Shinigami's world." Yumina suggested.

Vali nodded at that, though another question remained...

"I do wonder, is that lightning the actual Balance Breaker, or does she simply know lightning magic like Akeno?" She wondered aloud.

The rest of the Lucifer team gave similar worries.

Tamara quickly rushed at Asia, preparing another attack as her hands were charged with the black lightning, Asia prepared to dodge again... only for her shoelaces to suddenly untie themselves out of nowhere, making her trip.

"Huh!?" Issei gasped in shock.

"Wait a minute, could it be her Balance Breaker's power is-" Yumi realized in shock.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Tamara spun before throwing her hands up, causing a pillar of lightning to strike Asia, making her scream as she flew up before hitting the ground in a barrier she created.

* * *

As everyone watched in shock, Mio's eyes were shaking as she pieced it together.

"...Her shoelace, she untied on purpose, didn't she?" She stated.

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking."

Hearing that voice, everyone turned to see a tall and slim young man with unkempt, brown hair that is jutting in all directions, and light green eyes, looking at them. Upon setting her eyes on him, Mio gasped happily before hugging him.

"Basara!" Mio shouted happily, hugging her boyfriend.

Asuka blinked a few times as she saw Mio soon give him a deep kiss, surprised to see a fellow member of the Hero Clan appear had come.

"You were coming to watch the games? Why didn't you tell me?" Asuka mentioned.

"Sorry, it was last minute... I'm pretty sure my dad's still trying to figure out where to park his car in the Human world." Basara admitted, rubbing the back of his head in a sheepish manner.

Asuka gave an odd chuckle at that.

"So, you're the Basara my niece and Mio have been telling me about. I'm Homura Akane, I'm Asuka's Aunt, and a distant relative you in... some the family tree isn't sure of." Homura introduced, offering a hand.

"Pleasure to meet you, your sister told me about you." Basara replied, shaking her hand and then Ayumu's.

Sitting down besides his girlfriend, he looked at the two stands the teams were in.

"So, which one is your cousin?" Basara asked towards Asuka.

"See the one wearing the red outfit on that side?" Asuka said before pointing towards it.

Basara soon noticed Issei standing there, wearing said red outfit.

"Yeah, so that's the current Sekiryuutei, I can definitely see his power. It makes me wonder how much it'll flow out when he fights." Basara remarked.

"That'll be a while, he's in the second-to-last match." Asuka giggled.

Realizing they got off topic, Asuka looked at him and Mio again.

"Oh yeah, what did you mean by her shoelace was untied on purpose?" She asked.

"Oh, right. To explain that..." Mio began explaining.

* * *

Meanwhile with Yumi down by the team stands, she was explaining the same thing, with Edelweiss keeping a clear watch on what they said.

"Luck manipulation?" Ineelana repeated, hearing Yumi bring it up.

"Yeah, karma can refer to being owed what you deserve, but doesn't it also refer to luck in certain instances?" Yumi mentioned.

Ophelia nodded at that, looking at her teammate.

"It does, although why did she need to trip over her shoelace?" Ophelia wondered.

As Edelweiss heard it, she looked towards Chisato.

"What do you think, this is your area of expertise." Edelweiss asked.

"Most likely it relates to some kind of activation. Perhaps she decides if her luck is good or bad with the action she does, and maybe how frequent it is depending on how, which explains why Asia's shoes didn't untie themselves until a certain moment." Chisato guessed.

Edelweiss was a bit intrigued, and as a result, looked at Naud to try and get Tamara to explain more.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Such an interesting Balance Breaker for one of the Longinus... Tamara, would you be so kind to share how it works? We'll briefly stop the clock for this, so no need to rush an explanation.**

"Sure thing, I don't mind." Tamara agreed.

Showing her normally reflective body sheen when using her countering ability, she explained her BB's powers.

"My Longinus' powers normally make me immune to attacks if I'm immobile, shield myself and/or my allies from harm, or as I usually use it for... a counter by taking the power of an attack to send back at double the power." Tamara explained, defining her usual abilities.

"However, my Balance Breaker instead influences luck within an area I specify upon activation. The downsides are I can't discriminate between friend or foe, and that luck influence depends on what I did right before I activated it. In this case, I purposely untied my shoes to make sure I tripped when I came in, so every once in a while, everyone aside from me in this battlefield will have bad luck until I choose to turn it off." Tamara explained, defining her Balance Breaker's abilities.

Tamara then giggled a bit.

"Oh, and the black lightning? That's a secret that I gotta keep, otherwise I'm telling my opponent all my trick." Tamara giggled, playfully sticking a tongue out as she lightly tapped her head with her fist.

The entire crowd gasped at that, with a few others showing some nervousness as their theory on her power was right.

"I get it, while it is likely to trip over a shoe, it doesn't necessarily happen in an instant. Her power's affecting not just what luck, but the rate it can happen." Ineelana realized.

"No wonder it ended up a Longinus, how is a God supposed to fight against something that has a chance of messing them in an unconventional way." Sinon mentioned.

"Yeah, though that's luckily also why it's the weakest of the Longinus." Mine remarked.

On the Lucifer team's side, everyone sowed worry as Asia was in even more trouble than they had initially expected her to be.

"Asia is already pretty clumsy, this is the worst thing she could be dealing with right now." Issei stated, sweating a bit.

"Her opponent can attack with quick lightning, she has a risk of bad luck going off at any moment, and she can only heal herself if she uses her Balance Breaker... she's definitely at a disadvantage. Even if the judges chose this match up likely because neither is very offensive, Tamara seems to have overcome that before this battle, while Asia may still be struggling to fight." Ravel analyzed.

Realizing what Edelweiss said earlier, Vali held up the white towel as she debated on if she should end the match or not. Like Edelweiss said, they and the audience would likely prefer this judgment if Asia was in a situation she couldn't win.

'...Not yet, I'll wait a bit longer, Asia still hasn't try to attack back after this revelation.'

As Asia panted, getting back on her feet.

"You ready to continue?" Tamara asked.

"Y-yeah... I'm ready." Asia nodded.

Naud whistled to restart the timer, and the match resumed. Asia created a bow of light, firing arrows from it as Tamara used her lighting to slide across the ground, dodging them as if she was grinding across a rail. Upon getting up close, Asia quickly unleashed a burst of light magic like a bomb, hitting her hard.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Whoa! I've heard of flash grenades before, but I think just took it to a literal level!**

Panting a bit, she looked to see if she got Tamara, only for the Bishop of Leviathan to show she had taken damage, but was still going. Asia gasped in shock, leaving an opening for Tamara to tap her, sending a bunch of lightning through her as she was knocked back, falling onto her back.

"Asia..." Vali gasped, realizing what she had to do.

She slowly reached for the white towel, ready to forfeit the round before it got any worse. As she saw Asia try to get up, Tamara looked at her with worry.

"Hey, listen here... I don't hate fighting, but I don't love it either. There's nothing right about me just zapping you constantly when you can't properly retaliate. Even if you lose, your team still has a chance to win, it's better if you forfeit this match-"

"No, I can't do that! I'm not giving up even if Vali throws in the towel on my behalf!" Asia exclaimed.

At that moment, Vali suddenly stopped moments before she did just that, the towel still in her hands as everyone in the stadium was shocked that she said that of all things. Looking at Asia panting, Tamara couldn't find herself moving.

Taking a deep breath, Asia coated her hand in her magic before grabbing some of her hair up to just slightly below her elbows... before slashing it off. At that moment, the entire crowd gave a silent gasp, almost as if Asia told them to not make a move or sound.

**「** **Date A Live: Trust in You** **」**

"Since the day I first met my friends, since the days that I began my life as a Devil... I've been weak, and I knew that. Though it wasn't because of a healer, it was because I felt if I ever hurt anyone with the intent to hurt them, I wouldn't be any better than the people I'd be fighting. I told myself that for so long, but then I learned from a single Devil who used me for so much longer than I had even realized it that you can hurt people in more ways, and most of all..."

"What I learned was that even if you don't want to hurt someone, they can have every intent or wish to make you suffer in pain, and if you don't do anything... you'll only be letting them get what you want, because you can't expect them to regret hurting a harmless opponent who won't fight back. For that reason, I learned how to fight, in a way that fit who I am... because I was too afraid to lose who I was."

"However, that's when I met someone who was fighting because they were hurt, they lost who they were because they had fought to keep themselves who they were with all their might. I was too afraid I'd lose myself, and that's been my weakness all this time, but I can't use it anymore. So, the fact I'm still standing here and now to fight for my friends, and for Vali's dream, means I won't back down as I give everything I have to make it a reality." Asia explained, her eyes shadowed.

Edelweiss showed shock, realizing she was putting herself down in order to rebuild herself up, this was more than a fight for her... it was her greatest second chance.

"For that reason, I won't give up until I fall until the ground! You hear me, if I'm gonna lose, I'll do so knowing I gave it my all! Is that OK!?" Asia shouted towards Tamara.

The Telos Karma user gasped, while everyone else in the audience gave their own form of reaction, even Zekram and the Elders were at least caught off guard by her words. However, the gem reaction of the entire bunch came from Vali, who shook before she dropped the white towel to the ground.

"...I can't stop this match, she wants to, or rather she _needs_ to do this. Not for me, or for anyone else, but so she knows she won't lose herself just to stand alongside us and fight for the greater good." She realized, crying a bit.

After a bit of silence, Tamara closed her eyes, smiling as she realized the same thing as Vali.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"Alright then, if that's what you want, then with the greatest respect... I'll hit you everything I've got, literally!" Tamara agreed, giving a confident face.

"**Sub-Species Balance Breaker: Final Atonement!**"

The counter sheen Tamara normally used swelled into a single place, combining with her black lightning to create a volatile sphere of power that caused the entire stadium to shake heavily, making the judges all show shock.

"Oh no, with that level of power she might-" Rei realized, preparing to interfere.

Edelweiss held a hand out, surprising Rei.

"Not yet, if it does get that bad, I'll interfere myself." She stated.

Ineelana took a look at that power, and realized what she was doing, making her panic.

"DON'T USE IT, THAT MUCH POWER COULD END UP CRIPPLING HER FOR THE REST OF HER LIFE!" Ineelana warned.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY!?**

The entire crowd panics, wondering why the judges hadn't interfered, or why neither King was throwing the white towel in. As both Bishops stared each other down, Tamara stared at Asia with her confident look.

"This is every bit of power my Sacred Gear's stored up since I unlocked my Balance Breaker, now I'm about to unleash it all with this black lightning. This is the power of the atonement that Pandora owed to Zeus, and this black lightning represents that sin!" Tamara explained, revealing her last trump card.

"I've felt your feelings, so here's my response!" She exclaimed.

She screamed as she slammed her hand down, ripping the entire ground to shreds as the attack zoomed towards Asia, making everyone react differently at the potential damage Asia was about to take, when suddenly...

"**Balance Breaker: Twilight Saint Affection!**"

A barrier formed around Asia, causing the entire attack to go right by her as the barrier completely negated it, and when it ended... Asia came out completely healed! The entire audience, both teams, even the judges themselves all gasped in surprise. Tamara herself was outright speechless that her attack did no damage to Asia, despite the whole battlefield had been trashed.

Asia herself gave a confident smile towards her opponent.

"...No way, you were waiting for me to use my strongest attack all this time, weren't you? Tamara realized.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**D-did I actually hear that right? Asia Argento, who looked like she was being thrashed around this entire battle, was planning for this?**

Her entire team went white eyed, none of them able to speak a word.

* * *

Rubbing her eyes, Hana blinked a few times at the sight.

"C-Can anyone please explained this, I-I mean... I'm still... t-that is..." Hana stuttered.

"So, my theory was right." Azazel mentioned.

Everyone looked at him, wondering what he meant by his theory.

"When Asia told me how her Sacred Gear worked, I told her that it might be affected by how much damage comes her way, so the more negated damage, the faster and more effective her barrier would heal her." He explained.

"Wait, you mean... she was gambling on that one theory since the match began?" Asuka realized.

"Maybe so, but it was a risky one. Tamara was probably the best person she could have tested it on... yet to wait until that moment?" Touji remarked, sweating in shock and awe.

Asuka looked at Asia again, recalling how Issei said he'd bring her into his peerage when their fights were all over with. She smiled once that went through her mind.

"You said there was something more to her, and I think we just saw what it was." Asuka smiled.

Eh?" Basara said in confusion.

* * *

Tamara blinked a few more times, and soon smiled a bit.

"Wow Asia, you're awesome! So, let's finish this fair and square, Bishop to Bishop!" Tamara exclaimed.

**「** **Chivalry of a Failed Knight: Worst One** **」**

Asia nodded in agreement, and rushed forward with a blade of light, and Tamara did the same with her hand coated in lightning as they collided with each other. The entire crowd cheered loudly, more pumped than ever.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**This is incredible, these two are pushing themselves to new limits, and neither one is giving up! I have to admit it... I can't choose between either of them, I want them both to win this match!**

"Yeah, push it you two!"

"Make it to the end!"

"Don't give up, either of you!"

Soon, both Kings smiled at the sight, soon standing over to shout at their bishops.

"Stand up and fight, I believe in you!" They shout simultaneously.

Asia soon rushed over, swing her fists and legs around, forcing Tamara on the defensive as she had no time to activate her counter ability. When Tamara finally got an opening for a rising kick to push her back, Asia fired her light arrows again, while Tamara instantly countered them.

Even though Asia was blasted back, she held her ground as she skids across the battlefield, swinging her arm down as a rain of light spheres fell, forcing her to use her defensive ability as she had no time to be immobile. Rushing at her, Asia prepared another light blade, with Tamara ready to catch it.

"One last attack!" They both shouted.

They readied to finish the battle, when suddenly...

*BUZZ*

Everyone looked and saw the screen, where a big fat "0:00" was listed, showing they hit the time limit.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**That's it! Everyone, our first match was for the Leviathan Team, and then the Lucifer Team took round 2, but our third round is... A DRAW!**

Everyone cheered loudly, the match had been such a clash of determination, a draw ended up being the result everyone wanted, because it was too hard to see either one of them lose.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Once both fighters saw it was over, they felt themselves collapse, their adrenaline finally fading as Asia bent over on her knees, while Tamara slide onto her butt. Even their teams both showed they favored this result.

"She managed to hold out!" Issei cheered.

"Asia, you made me believe in you, and you proved how right I was to do so." Vali sniffled, wiping a tear.

"That was a splendid way to end it." Yumina smiled.

"I agree, she still won a battle, it was just a different one than the one in obvious sight." Arthur agreed.

Ineelana closed her eyes, proud of the respect Tamara showed to Asia, and the strives she took without her knowing.

"She's been with us the shortest, but I think she's put the most effort out of us all, even I can't compare to her... I mean, not only did she achieve her Balance Breaker, but a she created Sub-Species as well." She praised.

"I'm... happy, such a strange feeling." Ophelia said, shocking her team as she showed one of her few rare smiles.

Murasaki sniffled before crying, being really touched by the result.

As that was happening, Kuroka looked at Asia, remembering when the group first got to know her compared to now.

"Asia..." Kuroka whispered.

* * *

_Asia looked at Kuroka, Le Fay, Arthur, and Bikou._

_"Sorry, I bet I'm not what you were expecting... I know I'm nothing like you, I'm weak, and I can't fight, just heal you all, but I..." Asia tried to introduce, but unable to calm her nerves even a little bit._

_"...I worry how she's gonna fit in with us." Kuroka stated bluntly._

_Asia went wide eyed at that, lowering her head a bit in shame, making the Nekoshou panic as she realized that was a bad choice of words._

_"N-No, wait! What I meant by that was-" Kuroka panicked._

* * *

"I remember when you first spoke to us, to think you've grown up this far." She stated, feeling like a proud mom.

Asia looked at Tamara, both still tired.

"Sorry, I didn't hurt you too much, did I?" Tamara apologized.

"No, I'm OK." Asia smiled.

Realizing who was the more injured of the two, Asia healed her up in place of Eterna.

"Ah... thank you, that feels better." Tamara smiled.

"I don't know why, but... for once I actually had fun fighting someone. Not just that, I finally get that fighting alone won't change who I am." Asia admitted in embarrassment, but smiling at the end.

Tamara gave a toothy grin at that.

"Then we're friends now." Tamara smiled.

"Huh?" Asia said in surprise.

Tamara laughed at that reaction, getting back on her feet.

"You don't get it? We showed our feelings through this match, so now we understand each other, I think that's enough to be friends with someone, right?" Tamara said, acting like the answer was that simple... which it kinda was.

Asia's eyes widened before she smiled, tearing up a bit before the two shook hands.

"Yeah, we're friends!" She agreed.

Everyone went "Aww~" at the scene, as it touched them all in the hearts, some even crying happy years.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Oh man, that hit me right in the feels! If this had been the last match, I would have easily said this was one of the best ways for it to end, but for it to be this early? I think there's gonna be more great moments like this to come!**

While everyone else was happy, some of the Elders couldn't handle watching what they viewed as disgusting kindness, dry heaving to the sides. A few nearby audience members looked at them with an odd look. While that occurred, the next picture match ups revealed the pictures of Kunou and Saji.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Time for our fourth round! After having each team win one, and then have a draw, I think you in the audience can all agree with me that as of this stage in the Championship... what matters more is the intensity within each round in who you all vote for, right!?**

"YEAH!" Everyone in the crowd shouted.

As the field was being repaired once again, Kunou got herself ready, looking at Saji with a determined face.

* * *

**Now that's the best way to end a match like this! I think the most important thing to mention is that as of this chapter, the direction I wanna make my version's story of Asia go has been set. A character that's a kind and gentle soul, but also one able to stand up for what's right without losing herself in the process, slowly becoming a strong confident Bishop under Issei.**

**Keep in mind that she's already got some of her better powers, and she hasn't even gotten her pact with Fafnir... which I'll admit was almost put in here, but I decided to withhold a bit longer. At this stage in the story, I just don't feel Asia's ready to gain any of her dragon related powers, mainly because I feel there's still one last thing that needs to happen before she obtains them.**

**For anyone who asks why I cut her hair, and why only to the length I did, its due to how I sometimes see the length of her hair in some images. I wanted her to cut her hair as a sign of her growth, but making her hair outright short just didn't feel right, leading to it only going below elbow-length. I'm also planning to give her a new hairstyle later, so there's also that.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating**


	55. Chapter 55

**Here we are everyone, the fourth round of the Championships. This is the round that I'll say is probably the first that's fairly one-sided, why is that? Simple... because of Saji's powers, which is why Vritra earned the rank of 5th strongest being in this story, and why I'm surprised canon states he's the weakest among the Five Dragon Kings.**

**Kunou's dealing with someone who can suppress her powers, steal her energy, control shadows, and she can't rival Vritra's flames with her own like her mother's flames can. However, this is also why I had Kunou be the one to fight him. Saji was gonna give anyone he faced problems, but Kunou being the youngest of Vali's peerages means while strong, she has to fight smarter.**

**Well, now what we've gotten that point up, time for me to share the first detail about Journey of the Heavenly Dragons. That main bit is something I think a few people here will like hearing. In this story, Vali is the main protagonist, but once we start the next one... the rest of the story will have both Vali AND Issei share the spot equally!**

**The rest why it was mostly Vali before now has to do with most of the events in this first story being connected more to her than Issei, as well as completing the tournament for the sake of her wish. However, bits of last season, and a lot in this season, has slowly began showing you that Issei is just as important as she is for something else that neither of them know of just yet.**

**I guess in a sense, that was the biggest reason I had Issei become a High-Class Devil during the events of this story. I guess you can say that him becoming a King is symbolic to gaining the right to be a protagonist for the rest of the trilogy, because before now he hadn't found his own path. Now he has, and he's going to become the kind of mine that's worthy of standing by her, and eventually make their two paths become one.**

**And with that, the first detail's been shared. So, let's not wait any longer, time to start this Rating Game!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Asuka Aoyama **

**A powerful member of the Hero Clan coming from the Aoyama bloodline, with some heritage descending from the Toujou bloodline, and the younger cousin of Issei (by 3 months) through his mom's side of the family. Asuka was conceived four months after Issei had, with her mother initially hiding it out of embarrassment for doing so before she had married her husband, leading to Homura being unaware she existed.**

**Her mother, Mizuki Aoyama, had always intended for her and Issei to meet one another, but reality destroyed that plan when around the same time she was born, Rizevim attacked the village Homura had been living in a failed massacre. Mizuki was unable to confirm if her sister was alive, something that pained her to so greatly that she swore to never tell Asuka about them until she could confirm their fates, not wanting to give her false hope if their survival.**

**Unaware of her aunt, uncle, or younger cousin, but with the knowledge of her mother saying she intended to find someone, Asuka grew up under the same training regimen that all Heroes were raised by. Over the years, she became one of the stronger members of her current generation, but what truly shocked her peers was when she accidentally discovered she could wield the Kusanagi.**

**Eventually, fate would unknowingly reunite bring her to the missing relatives she didn't know of when she was tasked with heading to Kuoh Town to deliver the message of the Hero Clan's decision to join the Alliance, bringing her to Issei's home. While he was out for the High-Class exam, she revealed her mother's name to Homura, who quickly realized through having the Banishing Shift that she was her sister's child.**

**Upon gaining his Evil Pieces, she decided to join her cousin's peerage, and is now the Queen of his peerage.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 9 - Kunou VS Saji _ **

The next picture match ups revealed the pictures of Kunou and Saji.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Time for our fourth round! After having each team win one, and then have a draw, I think you in the audience can all agree with me that as of this stage in the Championship... what matters more is the intensity within each round in who you all vote for, right!?**

"YEAH!" Everyone in the crowd shouted.

As the field was being repaired once again, Kunou got herself ready, looking at Saji with a determined face.

"Kunou, a word before you go out there." Vali requested.

"Sure, what is it?" Kunou asked.

Taking a deep breath, she rubbed her head as she prepared to rip off the bandage with her words.

"Don't try to knock Saji out, you aren't strength enough to beat him that way." She stated.

Kunou showed surprise at that.

"Eh!?"

"His black flames are powerful, enough your mom could only equal them, and that's no joke when these are flames from the 5th strongest being in the world in a sealed state. Combine with his other abilities, especially his energy siphoning and power suppression, you can't overpower him. To win this fight, you'll have to instead _immobilize_ him**.**" Vali reasoned.

Hearing her mother being referenced, the young Pawn gulped a bit.

"...You only mention my mom when you're serious, so I really can't win by a knockout?" She asked.

Vali nodded at that, making Kunou chuckle nervously.

"If you want my advice, you can win if you can trap his arms and legs. I've noticed that those tentacles on his Balance Breaker have a big flaw, the only form of offense they have is their flames and their curses, so they wouldn't be able to free him if his limbs got caught in the battlefield." Issei suggested.

"Really?" Kunou asked.

He nodded, and Kunou began thinking on how she could use that info... and then, she suddenly gasped as she figured it out.

"Yes, I got it!"

At that moment, she jumped onto the battlefield as the previous fighters made it back to their team's respective stand, with her feet bouncing up in down as she gives an excited look of determination. While that was happening, Yumina thought of something.

"Hey Vali, since she finished her fight, maybe we should see if trading Asia over to Issei might help do something against the poison?" She suggested.

"Eh?" Vali blinked at that.

Ravel put a hand near her chin, thinking a bit.

"It's affecting your energy, isn't it? If it only works on your blood, maybe trading with Issei will weaken it through shifting that tainted energy." Ravel theorized.

"And better yet, since we know it only works on you, it won't weaken me at all... worth a shot, isn't it? You were already gonna trade her, Yuuma and Irina over to me anyways." Issei agreed.

"Hmm... well, I guess it's worth a try. Not sure if it'll work, but there's nothing to lose from doing it either." Vali finally decided.

As they prepared for the trade, Kunou looked on as Saji finally entered the arena.

** _ Battle: Kunou VS Saji Genshirou _ **

Equipping his scale mail, Saji readied himself.

**"{On your guard Saji, that look of hers tells me she has something planned.}"** Vritra warned.

"Not to worry, even if she can't promote, I'm aware she's a Pawn, the one piece that can surprise you if you ignore it too much." Saji reassured.

Vritra laughed at that analogy, as it was both odd sounding, yet completely fitting.

**"{Alright then, if you're that confident, then let's show them the power of the world's greatest black Dragon!}"** Vritra exclaimed, full of excitement.

Saji nodded, readying himself.

**「** **Sonic Unleashed: Perfect Dark Gaia Theme** **」**

Kunou stopped bouncing as she did the same, with Lucifuge raising his hand.

"Alright, let the battle... GO!" Lucifuge exclaimed, throwing a pointed figure out for emphasis.

Kunou quickly began running around in circles, getting Saji's attention.

"What's she doing?" Saji wondered aloud.

**"{Not sure, and that's why I don't like it...}"** Vritra stated, unsure Kunou's strategy himself.

After a bit, Kunou began running up the barrier walls, surprising the crowd slightly before she back flipped off it, and somersaulted towards Saji.

"**FOX DRAGON MODE!**"

Kunou transformed, prompting Saji to throw his hand out.

"**DELETE FIELD!**"

Kunou's transformation was quickly undone, but Kunou smiled as she slid under his legs, and the moment she was directly under him... swung her tails to burn the ground under his feet. Saji nearly tripped, and then noticed the ground under his feet had melted, trapping them in the battlefield's stone surface.

"Alright, gotcha!" Kunou cheered.

"Wait a minute, is her plan to-" Saji gasped in realization.

**"{She's not trying to defeat us by knocking us out, she's trying to force our loss by immobilizing us! Shit!}"** Vritra cursed as he saw their predicament.

The crowd was confused, but impressed by what she had done.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**I'm confused here, what is Kunou doing?**

"She knows she can't beat him in a direct fight, but I mentioned that victory is achieved by knocking your opponent unconscious, or _unable to move._" Edelweiss explained, using her microphone again.

Everyone in the crowd gasped, soon cheering loudly in response to that.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Amazing! She's clearly aware she can't use brute force, so battling with her mind instead! I just can't call which ways these matches will go anymore! This is just too much for me to predict, if I didn't have my job, I'd just be screaming out like the fans are right now!**

* * *

Mine blinked at that, looking at her teammates.

"Did I really just hear that right?" Mine asked incredulously.

"I'm pretty sure you did, and I think it makes sense if you remember what Vritra and Sona told us about his powers." Sinon answered.

Murasaki looked at Ineelana, who was deep in thought.

"I-Ineelana, how are Saji's chances to you?" She inquired.

"Hmm, well..." Ineelana wondered.

Looking at the sight of the now leg-locked Saji, and Kunou's movements so far, she only came to one answer.

"Can't say, this match's victor could most likely be decided by the one who has their concentration stay sharper throughout the whole thing." She answered honestly, unsure how to judge the fight.

"Really? You don't know how this one could go?" Tamara asked in surprise.

"How could I? None of the matches so far had either of our teams try to win through immobilizing the other fighter, so I don't really have a reference to go off of." She admitted, scratching her cheek.

Her teammates all went silent, realizing that was a good point.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

At the same time, the silent black girl from before was once again looking closely at the fight, but her eyes focused towards Saji this time. That was the moment those feeling weirded out by her silence got the shock of their lives.

"...Evil Dragon." She said, in a somewhat familiar sounding voice.

Everyone suddenly flinched at that, not expecting her to talk in any manner, or her quickly devouring some sweets she had on hand shortly after.

"..." She quietly went silent again.

"She actually just talked, and her voice..." Seekvaira whispered with a sweat.

"I know, I feel like I've heard it before, but I can't put my finger on who her voice sounds like." Eneely whispered back, her hands shaking.

Lavinia was seen waiting by the area Tobio had been in, still wondering over Jin had noticed earlier, even though she had some slight ideas based on what Lilith had mentioned to her during their last talk, though her thoughts were soon ended as a familiar group of voices entered her ears.

"Quick, where are the seats, where are they!?" A girl's voice exclaimed in a panic.

"I know! Jin, bark if you hear us!" A gruff male voice shouted.

Blinking a bit, Lavinia suddenly began giggling.

"Everyone, I think these are the seats you're looking for?" Lavinia mentioned, still giggling slightly.

At that moment, a trio of two girls and one guy noticed her, making the one girl who hadn't spoken yet smile at the sight.

The first girl had tan-brown hair in an up-do with eyes of the same color in a tsurime-like shape, and a strange bird on her arm. The second girl had black hair in short twin-tails, with green eyes in tareme-like shape. Finally, the guy had normal brown hair with yellow-brother eyes, and a strange cat on his shoulders.

"Lavinia, thank goodness you noticed us." The black-haired girl said, taking a seat by her.

"Well of course Sae, we are teammates, aren't we?" Lavinia giggled.

As the other two sat down by her, she smiled at them as well.

"Glad to see you're both doing well Natsume, Kouki." She stated happily.

Kouki chuckled at that, while Natsume noticed who was absent.

"Hey, where'd Tobio and Jin go?" Natsume asked.

"Jin noticed something, so they both went to go check it out, they should be back soon enough." Lavinia explained.

Sae chuckled awkwardly at that, knowing how much that sounded like her boyfriend.

"We didn't miss Vali's fight yet, did we?" She asked.

"Yeah, wouldn't be fair for us to miss the match of our team's unofficial sixth member." Kouki mentioned.

Lavinia shook her head, motioning to the screen.

"Vali's match is the last of the twelve, and this is only the 4th match overall. The score so far is one win, one loss, and one draw among both sides." Lavinia reassured as she explained what they missed.

Natsume sighed in relief, looking at the battlefield with an excited look.

"Nice, can't wait to see her take a name once it's her turn!" Natsumi exclaimed.

"Yeah, about that..." Lavinia trailed off.

She held up a note for the three of them to read, not wanting to risk saying anything with the Elders close by.

* * *

Kunou motioned her hands, creating illusions of herself with her Youjutsu.

"Alright, time to finish this!" All the Kunou's announced.

Kunou began running fast, preparing for all her illusions to overwhelm Saji, finishing the match by locking up his arms.

"**{SAJI!}**" Vritra exclaimed as she saw Kunou come at them.

"No, I won't let it... end like this!"

Black fire spewed off of Saji's body at that moment, burning so bright that each team felt the heat from the stands.

**「** **Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann: To Hell with Gattai** **」**

Kunou felt herself swearing as well.

"What's he doing?" She wondered quietly as she got closer.

Saji roared before grabbing his tentacles, smashing them down so they were able to pierce the ground... then unleash a bunch of black flames, heating it up before it caused a wave of black flames to break through the ground!

Everyone screamed in shock, with Edelweiss noticing they were about to breach the barrier.

"Acnologia, they're gonna bypass the barrier!" She warned.

"Right." He replied.

Shifting into his true Dragon form, he inhaled as said flames phased through the barrier, scaring the crowd before he managed to draw and devour them all away, keeping the crowd safe from incineration. Once they ended, Kunou was seen flung across the ground, her illusions fading as Saji's feet had been freed, the shredded battlefield showing how he pulled them out.

As Kunou landed on the ground, she slowly got up, panting a bit as she noticed what happened.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"Don't worry Kunou, you just need to try it again, that had to have drained-"

**【** **Naud** **】**

**And it's over! Vali has thrown in the white towel!**

Kunou was surprised by that, seeing said tail behind her with Vali in a throwing motion.

** _ Winner: Saji Genshirou! _ **

Looking at her King, she saw her flash a look of apology, and the Pawn of Lucifer sighed, nodding her head to show she understood as she walked away. Ineelana's eyes were still shaking, with her voice stammering in rhythm to it.

'My god, if he were to use that against my powers...' Ineelana thought in horror, starting to tremble.

"I'm scared..." Murasaki whimpered.

"Vritra's power, the power of the greatest Evil Dragon, the legends are true. No wonder she chose to end the match, Kunou isn't old enough to fight someone with Saji's strength." Xenovia realized.

While that was happening, Edelweiss recalled the brief glow she had noticed during the flame wave attack.

'That wasn't normal, is it really possible? Had that match gone on longer, would we have seen it, a Sacred Gear evolving into...' She thought.

"Something tells me I need to pay attention to a certain match." Edelweiss quietly told herself.

Kunou walked back into her stands, with Vali petting her head.

"I think you were right to stop me there, I might have given my mom and Nainen a heart attack otherwise." Kunou chuckled nervously.

"You did good, Saji just wasn't the right opponent." Issei praised.

Kunou smiled a bit, feeling a little better. At that moment, she looked at Vali again, only to gasp upon noticing the purple flushing on her face had lost some saturation. It wasn't that much, but it was enough to tell of a small difference.

"Vali, is your poison fading?" Kunou asked.

"No, we traded Asia over to me while you were fighting, hoping that the linked magic circles would transfer some of the poison over into me." Issei explained.

"And if the purple on her face looks less saturated, then does that mean..." Kunou gasped, piecing it together.

Yumina giggled as she flashed a peace sign.

"That's great! So, does that mean she'll be better once Irina's fight is over and you've traded everyone else?" Kunou said, looking hopeful.

Everyone gave a sigh at that, making Kunou look worried.

"While it did get some out, the amount of it was just so abysmal, so it didn't do much... I even used my Senjutsu to check the difference." Kuroka explained.

"...H-How much?" Kunou asked worriedly.

Kuroka sighed, looking away slightly.

"Probably just 5%, so it's likely by the time Irina's traded, she'll still have a whopping 85% in her system, that's only gonna give her a small burst of strength she couldn't have with all of it in her system." She revealed.

Kunou went white at that, swearing she heard the wind blowing some dust away.

"...Crud." She stated quietly.

"Yeah, the Elders did a good job with this poison, it'll take a lot more to force it out of her." Le Fay sighed, wishing she had a spell to accelerate her body's process of cleaning it out.

As they were all deep in thought, Yuuma noticed the next pictures show up, having her and Ophelia appear. Turning to the others, she took a deep breath, getting their attention as she readied his fists.

"Don't worry Vali, even if it doesn't do much, we'll give it our all to make up for the 85% we can't get out of you! Starting with me, so don't you worry!" Yuuma said with confidence.

Vali smiled at that, holding up a fist.

"Go get them." She stated, showing confident smile.

Yuuma smiled, bumping her fist with her King's.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**We had our first white towel defeat, but probably in one of the best situations to use it, so... let's see what round 5 brings us!**

As Yuuma stretched out to ready herself, Ophelia stared towards her, slowly looking at her opened hands.

"...This Championship's stakes, is this where I'll see if fate is decided by the world around me, or if I have the power to make my own destiny?" Ophelia wondered to herself, looking forward as she curled her hands into fists.

* * *

Tobio was a bit shocked as he saw the faces before him, which was none other than Ouryuu and Tadami. Diehauser seemed surprised however, wondering where Millarca was, as she was also asked to join their efforts.

"Uh... question, where's Millarca?" Diehauser asked.

"Oh, well... her one friend came with her, and said to keep her safe if anything happened to the barrier." Tadami explained, laughing sheepishly.

Diehauser groaned, shaking his head for a bit.

"Well, I guess that can't be helped." He relented, knowing he couldn't focus on that.

Tobio blinked a bit, then looked at the Rating Game champion.

"Wait, so you're already aware of this?" Tobio asked.

"Yeah, longer than a lot of people, the Elders think they're on my side, but truth is I've been a mole for Lilith... they've given me reason to." Diehauser explained, closing his eyes.

The Slash/Dog looked at his expression, one he felt briefly when he thought Sae and many of his schoolmates had died.

"...You lost someone due to them, didn't you?" He realized.

The champion nodded, opening his eyes.

"You may have heard the story about my cousin, Cleria Belial. Most believe she died under the fact she fell in love with an exorcist, back when there was no alliance to make it something people didn't need to care about, but... the truth is she and him were going to cause us to make peace sooner because of that. What really happened was my cousin learned about something she shouldn't have."

"The King Piece, just one part of many lies they've made, and one Lilith was powerless to prevent... they were both killed to keep up the masquerade, and when I learned about it, I was appalled. I wanted to break laws to expose the lies, but Lilith offered me a way to do it without it, and do even better than that for the entirety of Hell. We're standing in it right now, the prize of this tournament." Diehauser explained.

That surprised Tobio, while Jin was heard growling, instinctively hating the Elders.

"Vali's wish... that's exactly what they don't want, that's why they're trying to rig things." Tobio realized.

Tadami point at him, nodding her head.

"Exactly, and while Ineelana does have her own plan, it only works if by the time Vali faces her, they've got an even win-to-loss ratio... I think, that's only what it sounded like to me." She explained.

"Problem there is we can't guarantee that will happen, especially since right now, Ineelana has a one match lead." Ouryuu mentioned.

"That's why we're here, the Elders are too busy trying to watch her efforts fail, so they have nothing to spy on us with. The problem is where the rigging was placed, if we don't find it in time..." Diehauser trailed off, not wanting to finish it,

Tobio nodded his head, realizing what they needed to do.

"Right, now the question is where rigging device is?" Tobio wondered aloud.

Unknown to any of them, the scene zooms on where it was... somewhere they'd never be able to get to without playing into the Elders' favor.

* * *

**Ouch... Kunou gave it her all, but Vali realized it was just too big a risk, and threw in the white towel for this round. At the same time, the Anti-Rigging team is going to find the device, but it seems like their efforts aren't going to work... just where could it be that it would aid the Elders? Regardless, seems like whatever plan Ineelana's hiding will be needed to give Vali any chances of winning.**

**Since she's finally had something beyond being the silent creepy member of the audience, I'm gonna say that it's surprised me that no one's brought up this mysterious black-haired girl before now. The only thing that I'll say about her is this... whatever she's there for, and whoever she is, the only clue to her role is connected the color of her hair.**

**Another thing I'm going to bring up, since I've had trouble showing romantic moments in certain areas of the story, especially for a few certain couples, I've recently had the idea of doing a side story that will focus on it. Right now, it's still mostly in the initial developing stages, but I can say I'll only start it after I finish up this story first. This will hopefully fix this by giving me a way to focus on the main story, and the romance in it.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	56. Chapter 56

**Match 5 is about to begin, and I find this match can be best described as... *thinks* the match of versatility! Why is that you might ask? Since the Crossover, Yuuma has learned how to use similar abilities to those of the cadre, while those of you who've watched Asterisk War have seen the various forms that Ophelia's miasma can take, as well as her prana. I'm excited to see how I'll write it ^^**

**Now, time for me to share the next detail about Journey of the Heavenly Dragons. This part of the story didn't have that many original arcs in it, having two overall, though it can be considered three if you include the crossover into the mix, but for the second part of the trilogy? *giggles* Oh, there's gonna be a lot of them, so there's gonna be a lot sandwiched into the events of Vol 13-21 ;)**

**Some of them you might already have an idea for, as this season has been giving a lot of hints, so there's already a few clues to what these arcs may focus on. However, there's a few other things that I've given no hints to, meaning there's just as many unexpected things**

**Time to get this match started! *hits a nearby gong with a hammer* Begin!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Prana **

**A unique power belonging to those within the Hindu Pantheon, mainly their deities, and some of the higher ranked beings like the Daeva, most Asura, and some humans. It is a cosmic power that is said to come from the vital principle of creation's energy, different from Chi that represents the power from one's physical form, and magic which is life energy that's tapped into from the mind.**

**Being cosmic in nature, the power of prana is why the actual deities of Hindu mythology, and most of the Buddha, are said to have "cheat-level abilities" compared to the others... because they pretty much do have that level of strength, with how the prana empowers them at a massively overwhelming level compared to even the Daeva.**

**Currently, the only human who is _known_ to have access to prana is Ophelia, who was given it during the experiments that gave her the powers she has now. This allows her to defend against powerful attacks certain attacks, while boosting her body to superhuman levels, which she can overlay with the same ones she gets from being a Devil, and only hindered by pain that's made her hold back. While states that while she can add it to her magic, she can't do it to her miasma.**

**Dangerous in nature, the power of prana must be used with care, and only one Hindu God doesn't care for this rule...**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 10 - Yuuma VS Ophelia _ **

As they were all deep in thought, Yuuma noticed the next pictures show up, having her and Ophelia appear. Turning to the others, she took a deep breath, getting their attention as she readied his fists.

"Don't worry Vali, even if it doesn't do much, we'll give it our all to make up for the 85% we can't get out of you! Starting with me, so don't you worry!" Yuuma said with confidence.

Vali smiled at that, holding up a fist.

"Go get them." She stated, showing confident smile.

Yuuma smiled, bumping her fist with her King's.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**We had our first white towel defeat, but probably in one of the best situations to use it, so... let's see what round 5 brings us!**

As Yuuma stretched out to ready herself, Ophelia stared towards her, slowly looking at her opened hands.

"...This Championship's stakes, is this where I'll see if fate is decided by the world around me, or if I have the power to make my own destiny?" Ophelia wondered to herself, looking forward as she curled her hands into fists.

Taking a deep breath, Ophelia jumped into the air, landing on the battlefield in an instant, while also terrifying Yuuma in the process from the sudden act.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Uh... o-oh my, that's one way to make an entrance!**

'I think my lungs stopped working for a few seconds.' He thought worriedly.

Clearing his throat, he resumed announcing.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Alright, from what I recall right, both sides are known for their high versatility of attacks, which means these two are gonna show us quite the assortment of tricks in their efforts to win! This is the kind of show in a fight that will really shake things up!**

Yuuma gulped a bit, taking a deep breath to ready herself, shaking off her nerves.

** _ Battle: Yuuma VS Ophelia _ **

Ophelia closes her eyes, putting her hands together before they flashed, and she pushed them apart to form what looked like some kind of futuristic scythe. This caused everyone in the crowd to show surprise at the sight.

"Wait a second, is that a..." Yuuma asked in shock.

"I don't normally use it, as I already hate the amount of strength I was forced on, but I can't disrespect my King in this match." Ophelia stated.

Holding it forward, she let the audience get a clear look at her weapon.

"This is the [Gravity Phantom], my Sacred Gear." She revealed.

**【** **Gravity Phantom** **】**

**【** ** A sacred gear that takes the form of either a scythe or sickle based on its shape. It can manipulate gravity similarly to the Gravity Jail, but can only increase the effects of gravity, there's no duration limit, gets stronger if the affected is smaller, and can shoot orbs made of gravity to attack ** **】**

The entire crowd gasped at that, surprised at the revelation she had been hiding a trump card all this time.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Holy shit! That's surprising to say the least, but regardless of the fact, it just became clear that Ophelia has something new she's revealed for this fight! Just how will her opponent react to this!?**

Yuuma took a deep breath, readying herself as she formed two light spears in her hands.

**「** **Asterisk War: Play with Me** **」**

"Like this, come at me Ophelia!" Yuuma announced.

Ophelia closes her eyes nodding a bit.

"If that is what you wish, I have no right to stand against it." She agreed.

"Alright, now let the match..." Uzume raised a hand up.

She swung it down, causing a few lights to blast from the sides of the judge stand like faux fireworks.

"BEGIN!"

Yuuma rushed ahead, taking the initiative.

Seeing her charge, Ophelia lifted her Sacred Gear up with both hands, her eyes glowing as it generated a bunch of orbs, sending them flying at the former Fallen. Raising one of her light spears, she tried to attack one... only for her to nearly tumble as her hand was nearly sot to the ground from a sudden weight.

'Wait a second, those orbs are-' She realized.

She had little time to think as she rolled away, seeing a hole form in the stadium as the orb revealed its nature, smashing a perfectly spherical crater from the gravity that made it. The crowd began cheering as Yuuma began using her reflexes to dodge the various gravity orbs.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Holy crap! I see where the name comes from, her Sacred Gear's sending pure gravity out to attack her opponent!**

Yuuma panted as she looked at her opponent, who still had the same sad look on her face.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

'Her face, why does she look so sad?' She noticed.

An image of her once making that same face flashes across her mind, and the mere sight of someone else having it, someone else being forced to live with the same pain she once had...

It made her sick to her stomach.

'I don't know why she's making that face, but... I'm gonna make it disappear somehow!' Yuuma resolved.

* * *

Within the crowd area, the VIP area of Ineelana was shown, with Liban giving an intense look at the Sacred Gear that shared similar power to his own.

"Liban, she can manipulate gravity like you, what else do you think she can do?" Coriana asked.

"...I can't be sure, but I think she can at least increase it like I can, but she's not trying to." Liban mentioned.

"You can call me paranoid for saying this, but it almost seems like she's limiting herself intentionally." He remarked.

This surprised a few of the people around them, but Griselda quickly realized what she meant.

"Not everyone likes their full strength, power can feel like a curse, perhaps she's one of them?" Griselda theorized.

"You'd be right normally, but not here."

Everyone turned at Lady Leviathan, the current head of the Leviathan clan, as she said that.

"My daughter knows better than anyone the real reason she's not doing this... in fact, she's the only one that understands, the only one who saw the source of that look on her face." Lady Leviathan answered, pointing out her expression of surrender.

Everyone looked closer, noticing how Ophelia's expression looked defeated, as if she had relented to something bigger than anyone could understand.

From another spot in the crowd, Mittelt was seen sweating as she sat by Kalawarner's side.

"Come on, Yuuma! Show that girl you're not gonna lose to her!" She exclaimed.

"It won't be that easy, you do remember her other power, right?" Kalawarner reminded her.

"Huh? What other pow-" Mittelt asked.

She soon froze, remembering that she hadn't used her Sacred Gear before this match, and what her real power was...

"...Yuuma, be careful!" Mittelt warned in a panic.

* * *

Yuuma stood up, breathing heavily before tightening her fists, rushing ahead with a charge. The entire crowd showed surprise at her sudden action.

"Get ready Ophelia, here I come!" She announced loudly.

**「** **Asterisk War: Opening 2** **」**

Ophelia sighed, seeing this fight had an obvious result.

"It seems that fate... truly can't be defied, and I wanted to believe." Ophelia sighed, looking away sadly.

Ophelia formed more gravity orbs, swiping them forward. Yuuma keeps charging, and taking a deep breath, she quickly manages to dodge them one by one despite the little room she had, making Ophelia's eyes widen as she turned to notice. The crowd went wild at that.

"She... dodged them?" Ophelia breathed in surprise.

"**Fell Inferno!**"

She unleashed her dark pink holy flames, prompting Ophelia to raise her free hand.

"**Hands of Venom.**"

Her aura went purple as her poisonous powers manifested, creating hands of miasma to catch the flames within them. She prepared to crush them, only for Yuuma to toss a light spear at her, making Ophelia react as it barely nicked some of her hair off.

Ineelana and her team noticed Ophelia's sudden surprise.

'Ophelia's never been caught off guard in such a way before, I don't know what lit this fire in Yuuma, but... wait, is she trying to save Ophelia!?' Ineelana's eyes shook as she started to piece the puzzle in front of her.

Ophelia soon gasped as Yuuma prepared to swing a palm with holy lightning at her.

"**Fell Lightning!**"

"**Miasma Explosion.**"

Before Yuuma could hit, an explosion of miasma went off, sending Yuuma flying as she was hit a bit by the poison's effects. Ophelia looked at the sight, only to be shocked as Yuuma just seemed to ignore the venom clearly marked on her body, standing tall as she began rushing at her again.

"She's not stopping, but why? By this point she shouldn't be able to stand and fight anymore..." Ophelia asked in confusion.

As Yuuma rushed again, she gathered a bunch of gravity spheres together, creating a giant one that hovered over her.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**HOLY SHIT! What do we call an attack like that!?**

The crowd gasped in a similar way, and Ophelia motioned it down.

"**Phantasmal Meteor.**"

She launched at Yuuma, who to everyone's shock, flew at it.

"What is she doing!?" Vali and Ineelana screamed in disbelief.

"That look on your face, I will... make it disappear!" Yuuma exclaimed her declaration.

Ophelia's eyes flinched slightly at her words.

"**Fell... BLIZZARD!**"

Yuuma held her hands out, creating her dark pink blizzard as she tried to push against the giant sphere, something everyone went silent towards as they watched it. While initially it looked like she was losing, the recoil pushing her to the ground... she gave a might shout, soon actually pushing the gravity sphere into the air, where it exploded against the top of the barrier!

Everyone gasped loudly in shock, unable to believe the sight they had just witnessed. Despite it exhausted her to do so, Yuuma pushed the giant gravity sphere back.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Ophelia herself showed shock at that, looking at Yuuma.

'My strongest gravity sphere, and she blasted it away... just who is she, why is able to keep going? Why hasn't she fallen despite all I've thrown at her?' She thought, feeling something strange heat up in her chest.

At that moment, the sight of a ladybug flying near her was seen, surprising her as she landed on her finger.

'A... ladybug?' She thought.

_"If you don't think it can be changed, then I'll show you that I can give you a future you make, not your history... so, come with me Ophelia."_

Yuuma charged at her again, readying another pair of light spears.

'Is this... has she kept going because she has reason to win?' Ophelia's eyes widened, as if she found the answer.

Looking at the Ladybug in her hand, which had no way to protect itself, and then remembering her past. Ophelia finally did the one thing no one ever expected from her, she made... a determined expression!

Ineelana, and usual peerage, all gave silent looks of shock at that.

**「** **Asterisk War: Brave New World** **」**

"If all it takes is to try, for just this one instance... I will try!" Ophelia shouted.

Ophelia's begins to emit light red particles, causing Ineelana to recognize them.

"That's her Prana, she's actually using it!" She exclaimed.

As Yuuma got close, she felt a wave of the power push her away, followed by the Gravity Phantom glowing brightly as Yuuma felt her body getting heavier, as gravity just kept getting stronger around her. Looking up, Yuuma saw it... that face was gone.

'Yes, I'm breaking through, now to win this match and break that face away for good!' She thought, struggling to push herself up.

"Yuuma Amano, wasn't it? With the greatest due respect... I'm afraid I have to end this match now, so don't resent me for making me fight seriously in response to your efforts." Ophelia remarked.

The former Fallen chuckled at that, struggling to stand.

"Of course not, because I'm still gonna win this!" Yuuma replied.

Forming a single light lance, Yuuma pulled herself out of the gravity field, rushing as she formed her holy flames and holy lightning in each hand, preparing to combine them into one single attack.

Responding to her, Ophelia generated her miasma again as it turned into a single gigantic hand, but this time... it took a more yellow-orange color, making the audience give a quiet awe at that sight. Even Vali's side was shocked at the sight.

"It changed colors?" Issei said in shock.

"It's like the purple represented negativity, but right now she seems positive, so..." Le Fay remarked.

"I agree, this is how a bad power can become something greater under good people." Vali smiled in response.

Yuuma clapped her hands together.

"**Fell Firebolt!**"

"**Kur no Gia!**"

The clash between pink-colored lightning with fire surrounding it, and the now "purified" miasma caused heavy shock waves as each fought for dominance. Yuuma and Ophelia before shouted loudly, trying to overpower the other.

Eventually, Ophelia managed to push more power through her prana, causing Yuuma's eyes to widen as her attack rushed towards her. A large explosion went off, soon getting everyone's attention.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Yuuma stood for a moment, soon falling over to the ground, unable to move her body from the effects of her attack.

** _ Winner: Ophelia Landlufen! _ **

"Yuuma has been immobilized, that means the victory goes to Ophelia Landlufen!" Uzume exclaimed.

The entire crowd cheers loudly, with Ophelia panting heavily, opening her palm to show the lady bug was still safe in sound, smiling before it flies off, leaving the danger zone it had unknowingly placed itself in.

At the same time, Yuuma who had regained slightly movement was seen crying, getting her attention at the sight.

"Vali, I'm sorry... I wanted to help her, but I cost us the match because of it." She apologized, covering her eyes with her arm.

Ophelia's eyes widened at that, looking towards the judges really quick.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Well, that's a wrap for the 5th match, with the Leviathan Team still in the lead! Now, let's get ready for-**

"H-Hey, that's my mic!" Uzume complained as Ophelia grabbed it.

Clearing her throat, everyone looked at the sole Pawn of Leviathan in surprise, wondering what she was doing.

"Everyone, I have something to say before the next round... near the end, I only managed to win because my opponent just couldn't stand the sad look on my face. She was fighting not just to win, but to save me." She announced.

This shocked everyone, with the Elders looking annoyed.

"Now, she's crying on the floor of this battlefield, feeling that in doing so, she sacrificed a win for her team. She had no reason to do what she did, but she still chose to help me, help me break a pain I held for years because I didn't think I could make my own destiny. Because of her, I know now how wrong that was, so I implore you... maybe she didn't defeat me, but she's as much a winner as I am, so let her know it in some form, because this is how I'm letting her now." Ophelia explained, looking at her with a smile.

Yuuma looked at her with surprise, her eyes still tearing up.

At that moment, claps started from Ineelana's team side, and then Vali's, and before anyone knew it... the entire stadium was clapping for the former Fallen, cheering loudly despite the results. Feeling all their support, Yuuma's eyes teared up again, and she cried in response, but with a smile on her face as she did.

"Yuuma Amano, thank you... I won't waste what you've taught me, never again." Ophelia whispered, heading back to her team's side.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Now that's what I call a good sport, both sides have a chance to score more points, but they did the right thing! That's the kind of people we need in this world! Another round of applause for them both!**

Everyone clapped again, with the Elders clearly annoyed.

"Shut up... Shut up!" Zekram growled, covering his ears.

Helping her back to their stand, the Pendragon siblings both gave her smiles showing they were proud of the results she ended up with. Vali patted her head once she was back in the stands.

"You did the right thing, and did well, great job." She smiled.

"Vali..." Yuuma sniffled.

Rubbing her eyes, her team brought her into a group hug.

On Ineelana's side, the Leviathan heiress showed shock as she looked at Ophelia, who was now smiling for more than briefly, as if it was there to stay.

"Ophelia..." She said quietly.

"Ineelana, you were right all along, so thanks for not giving up on me." Ophelia smiled towards her, her eyes closed for a moment.

Blinking at that, Ineelana chuckled before smiling.

"Don't thank me, it was you who how to forge your own destiny in the end." She replied.

* * *

Tadami was using some of her skills to sense for disturbances, but no luck in sensing the rigging device.

"No good, it isn't here either." She sighed.

"Worse, it seems like Ineelana just won again, so now she's ahead by two wins instead of just one." Ouryuu grimaced, having just gotten the notice from Lilith.

Tobio scratched his head, with Jin sniffing around for anything.

"Come on, there's gotta be a way." He stated, trying to keep everyone's spirits high.

Diehauser looked towards the stadium, hoping beyond hope that things would manage to go in their favor, when he suddenly noticed something odd.

"Huh?" He walked towards it, wondering what he just noticed.

* * *

With everything calming down, and Vali and Issei initiating a trade for Yuuma to help clear a bit more of the latter's poison, Naud cleared his throat as he continued the announcement that was cut off by Ophelia.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**OK, now that we have that done, I think we should get ready for today's sixth battle!**

Following his choice of words, the next fighters appeared on the screen, it was Le Fay and Sinon. Noticing this pair, both fighters got ready for the first battle in the tournament where the two fighters didn't share the same Evil Piece type.

"Vali, we might be behind, but I swear to you that from here, I'll reverse the scales in our favor." Le Fay smiled, promising a win.

"Go get them, you can do this!" Issei encouraged.

Everyone held up a hand, prompting Le Fay to run by and high five them all, empowering her vow to finally win another match for the Lucifer Team's side.

* * *

**Ineelana's team are no pushovers, they've managed to score another win, but our friends in the Lucifer Team will not let that put them down. Yuuma wanted to help her opponent despite the risk to her chances, and now that fire has been passed down to Le Fay, so she can give it everything she has to achieve victory in the sixth match.**

**Looks like something has just been noticed by Diehauser, but what is it? A clue to the rigging device, or something else entirely? Regardless of what he found, the Anti-Rigging team is still going strong in their attempts to stop the Elders' cheating. Oh, speaking of those Elders... it seems they're apparently "allergic" to kindness. *snickers***

**Despite this loss, I think Ophelia said it best near the end, Yuuma still won in the people's hearts because she put her own ability to win in jeopardy just to help Ophelia. Realizing that, Ophelia made sure to convince more people to try and vote for her that round, so I'd say that's something to be proud of. There are many ways to win, and this is one example of that.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	57. Chapter 57

**After five rounds, our sixth fight is here, the first fight where the two competitors don't use the same Evil Piece. So, how will a fight between a Bishop and a Rook go? The only thing I can say is these two fighters are both long-range types, so we can probably expect a lot of smoke and explosions from their magic and gunshots. *chuckles* Yeah... not much else I can say about that ^^;**

**Now, time for me to share the next detail about Journey of the Heavenly Dragons. Compared to this story, which almost always has the setting within Kuoh Town, or within Hell, you'll be seeing the characters going to other places regularly. If you remember my promise about expanding the world the story takes place in, this is the story that fulfills the promise. That's the most I can say without diving into actual spoiler territory.**

**With that said, time to begin the next battle!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Magical Orders - The Magician Guilds **

**While Humans as a majority have no involvement with the Supernatural unless they have Sacred Gears, have a Deity as one of their parents, or get reincarnated under one of the Four Great Powers that make up the Christian Pantheon, there are two types of Humans who have larger involvement in the supernatural without falling into one of the following classifications.**

**One of them are the various villages that house the heroes of the Hero Clan, who are humans that have trained their bodies to a level that's considered superhuman, and the other? The Magicians of the various magic orders, of magician guilds as some call them. By rebuilding the structure of various magic, starting with the Devil magic due to the tradition of pacts started with Mephisto and Faust, they learned how to use magic like most supernatural races.**

**Most of these are managed by Mephisto himself, alongside a few other trusted individuals that he trusts, though there's one group of Magicians that are considered terrorists, and currently the members of the Khaos Brigade's least-known group, the Magician Faction. There are also some families who have a Magician lineage not too dissimilar to the Hero Clan's bloodlines, which include Faust's ancestry, and is half of the heritage within the Pendragon name.**

**Similar to the Hero Clan, those who have magician ancestry live far away in remote areas, especially after the events of the Puritan Witch Hunt long ago. Despite common belief, witches and Magicians aren't separate beings, and are one in the same, only being described as different through their outfits, with Le Fay being someone better described as a Magician, where Lavinia's outfit has more resemblance to a witch.**

**It's also possible for a normal human to become a Magician if they lack magic potential through hard work. One notable example of this is Issei's birth father, Ayumu Akane, who was a normal Human before meeting his wife, and became a Magician through various attempts to make his own "Devil Clan Power" so the speak through his Force Crystallization, allowing it to be inherited by Issei.**

**The most infamous Magician at the moment is Walburga, the leader of the Magician Faction, and the Incinerate Anthem's possessor.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 11 - Le Fay VS Sinon _ **

With everything calming down, and Vali and Issei initiating a trade for Yuuma to help clear a bit more of the latter's poison, Naud cleared his throat as he continued the announcement that was cut off by Ophelia.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**OK, now that we have that done, I think we should get ready for today's sixth battle!**

Following his choice of words, the next fighters appeared on the screen, it was Le Fay and Sinon. Noticing this pair, both fighters got ready for the first battle in the tournament where the two fighters didn't share the same Evil Piece type.

"Vali, we might be behind, but I swear to you that from here, I'll reverse the scales in our favor." Le Fay smiled, promising a win.

"Go get them, you can do this!" Issei encouraged.

Everyone held up a hand, prompting Le Fay to run by and high five them all, empowering her vow to finally win another match for the Lucifer Team's side. She soon jumps into the stadium, summoning her broomstick to be ready.

Meanwhile with Sinon, she looks at Mine as she did some maintenance on her usual gun.

"Got everything in order?" Sinon asked.

"Yep, should be at peak performance for you, so give it everything you've got out there." Mine replied, handing it to her.

Hoisting her Hecate II's strap over her shoulder, she walks into the stadium.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Alright, this match should be interesting, it's a clash against a Magician, and someone who relies on its complete opposite through a technology-based gun that's only enchanted to have unlimited ammunition. Makes me wonder how this clash will go?**

"Alright, are you ready for this?" Sinon inquired.

Le Fay spins her hand around, bringing her staff into view as her magician outfit overlays with her team uniform.

** _ Battle: Le Fay Pendragon VS Sinon Asada _ **

"Yeah, never been ready as I am right now!" Le Fay said with a smile.

"Alright, then so am I." Sinon replied.

She swung her strap off, taking her gun in both hands as she readied her scope.

**「** **Sword Art Online: Luminous Sword** **」**

Acnologia morphed his one hand into a dragon claw, aiming it up towards the sky as both fighters got ready.

"On my mark, ready?" Acnologia stated.

"...START!"

He blasted a fire ball out, making it explode as each fighter took their initiative. Le Fay got on her broom, flying around as Sinon took her first shot, barely missing her as Le Fay's eyes widened.

'Oh man, she's not likely to miss!' She realized.

"**Raging Fire!**"

A few magic circles with a fire sigil formed, blasting out a large blaze towards Sinon.

Adjusting her scope, Sinon's eye glowed, creating red lines that hinted their targeting path, and a green circle to focus her aim. Locking on, she rolled out of the way of a few, while firing at the rest. The flames all exploded, with Le Fay having to dodge a shot or two.

"OK, this might not be as easy as I was expecting it." Le Fay said, her eyes currently white circles from the fear she was feeling.

Thinking a bit, she snapped her fingers as she got an idea, forming a magic circle for an earth spell on the ground.

"**Create: I summon from the deep earth, create my loyal guard, I name thee... Goliath!**"

The stones around the magic circle began to rise, creating a being made of rock and some armor, a bit of said armor glowed in response.

"Goliath, keep me safe for a moment!" Le Fay commanded.

The stone creature moved to cover her with his body, and the crowd was surprised what she was planning.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Hmm? It looks like that Golem she summoned is trying to keep us from noticing her plan, what is she up to?**

Sinon quickly aimed her rifle, blasting the Goliath with all she could, but it was sturdy and held up.

"Crap, its defenses are too high for me to quickly whittle down." She realized, sweating a bit.

"**Oh, great vast land, holding the fiery core of the world's warmth, shift the ocean's tides as I create a great storm. Unify the light of the sun with the night of the moon, and unite together to represent not just the surface, but the world beyond...**" Le Fay chanted an aria, moving her hands to write a custom spell.

Everyone gasped at that.

"Le Fay's using a custom spell, but what kind is it?" Arthur questioned.

"Let's see... she mentioned the land, earth's warmth, ocean tides-" Ravel thought aloud as she recalled her aura.

Sinon realized the danger she was in, and rushed to find an opening to shoot through, or a weak spot to destroy the Goliath in time. She moved from her current spot, and began climbing up the golem's body to find it.

"**...Gathering the celestial force above, and the lively force below it, unite as one power, and come forth to overcome my enemies!**" Le Fay finished her aria, completing the magic circle.

As Sinon prepared to act, the Goliath's body broke, forming a swirl of rocks that circled her along with fire, water, wind, light and shadow.

"**Heaven and Earth - Grand Strike!**"

All six forces shot at Sinon, making her gasp as they slammed into her, causing a bright flash that forced everyone to shield their eyes, but still allow them to somewhat see what happened.

* * *

From the Lucifer Team's VIP stand, everyone was shielding their eyes, with Lilith creating a dark shroud over hers.

"Was that really just a custom spell!?" Asuka shouted, her eyes squinted as her arm shielded them.

"Definitely, but I think she used a lot of spells to make it!" Ayumu answered.

The Slash/Dog group covered their eyes as well, with the strange cat and bird shielding their master's eyes.

"Lavinia, how many spells did she use in that?"

"I'm not sure, but for those six elements, that has to be the minimum, but she could have fused multiple types of each element for more effect!" Lavinia answered, recalling her brief magic teaching sessions with her.

* * *

_Le Fay had her eyes blindfolded, focusing on making a few spheres of water, and holding it while using magic to support herself on top of a pond's surface._

_"Magic relies on your mental strength, so being able to balance and focus on multiple things is how you'll increase your magic potential." Lavinia tutored, watching her progress._

_"Is this... how you taught... Vali?" Le Fay asked, struggling to not lose focus while speaking._

_"Yeah, there was an incident five years ago where Vali ran into me while in her journey with Baraqiel, Penemue and Bikou. Since she was already training, they chose to aid us, and I taught Vali her skills in magic. I knew the strength of her mental from a glance, and I helped her focus it, shape it into her skills as a wizard-type fighter." Lavinia explained._

_Le Fay began to slip, nearly dropping her water spheres as part of her feet submerged into the water._

_"Keep calm, don't let any mistake throw you like that, if you falter, just regain yourself. Even if you trip, you can avoid falling over, so keep standing tall." Lavinia advised._

_"O-OK... I can do this, I can... do this!" She told herself._

_At that moment, Lavinia noticed something, making her eyes widen as she saw it._

* * *

Lavinia saw the light begin to fade.

'Le Fay, just how much did my lessons help you improve?' She thought.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As the light faded, Sinon was seen slightly smoking, with Le Fay drained from her magic. Everyone in the crowd gasped, as it looked like Le Fay was wide open.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Could this be it for Le Fay!?**

Sinon fired her Hecate II, and... just heard a click, making her pale as she kept trying to fire it. Sweating a bit, she looked at her gun, then went blue in the face as she realized it had locked up from the force of Le Fay's attack.

"Uh oh..." She realized.

"Wait, is that your only weapon?" Le Fay asked.

Sinon hung her head, realizing she wasn't able to fight back anymore, while Mine groaned.

"Aw man! The one thing that could make it lock up ended up being a powerful spell like that?" She complained.

Realizing she wasn't able to fight anymore, she realized the only logical thing she could do.

"I can't fight back unless I could repair this within the time limit, but I can't... I have no choice but to resign, she's completely and utterly defeat me." Sinon stated, accepting her loss.

** _ Winner: Le Fay Pendragon! _ **

The Elders all had their eyes twitch as the crowd cheered.

"Alright, you heard it everyone, with her resignation... Le Fay wins the match!" Rei shouted excitedly.

"Yay!" Le Fay cheered, bouncing a few times before running over to her team.

Sinon sighed a bit, walking over to her team, and then bowing to her King in apology.

"Sorry about that, pretty embarrassing for me to have to lose like that." Sinon apologized.

"Don't worry about it, I mean... who could have predicted that would happen?" Ineelana remarked, the others nodding.

"Even if it's annoying that it happened, she's not wrong." Mine sighed, placing a hand on her forehead as she shook it.

Sinon blinked a bit before trying to stifle a giggle.

"S-shut up!" Mine exclaimed, blushing angrily.

"Now, now. No need to get fussy..." Murasaki sweated as she tried to calm her down.

Le Fay soon jumped back into the stands, giving her brother a hug.

"Everyone, I did it! I got us a win!" Le Fay cheered.

"Yeah, you think our good luck jammed her rifle?" Issei joked.

"Maybe?" Irina giggled.

Kuroka chuckled a bit, looking towards the screen as the pictures of her and Mine appeared on screen. Getting off the wall she was leaning against, she cracked her neck a bit, and then a few other parts of her body before ending with her knuckles. Mine readied her Sacred Gear, shifting to a certain rifle attachment.

"Looks like it's go time." Kuroka smirked.

"This match is mine!" Mine smirked as well.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**And here we go, match lucky number 7 is here!**

The two fighters gazed at each other, ready to begin the next match against each other.

* * *

**I'll admit, this battle was fairly short compared to the others, but considering who Sinon is, a normal rifle without magic seemed the best way she could fight, meaning an unexpected overload like that one was gonna cost her the match. True, I could have also had the bow she uses when using her ALO character, but the issue there was against Le Fay? Unfortunately, arrows wouldn't be as effective as the shells of a rifle.**

**Still, I think for a gunslinger, she gave a bit of trouble for Le Fay until she pulled off her use of creating her Golem. Since the coming events will reach the arcs where the Vali Team starts to show up more often, I needed to give her a replacement to Gogmagog (as those are mooks for the Khaos Brigade forces), and Fenrir. As a result, I decided to give her a Golem creating spell, her replacement for Fenrir is... not gonna be as impressive when it appears ^^;**

**Good news is that the Lucifer Team is finally regaining their ground, now only behind by one loss instead of two, but they still have another match to win before they can tie the win ratio again, and that can chance if Ineelana's side wins again. With another six matches, the Finals can still go either way, so Vali better hope that lucky number 7 favors Kuroka in the next match.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	58. Chapter 58

**Lucky match 7 is about to begin, and we've got the calm and collected kitty, or rather Nekoshou in this case, against the very easily pissed off, Sacred Gear using sharpshooter of the Leviathan team. *giggles* Wow, I just realized how opposite the two are from one another, if only Mine had white hair, then I could have actually said that opposites collide for this match ^^**

**First thing I'll mention, you don't have to worry about this chapter being as short as the last one, because the Le Fay VS Sinon match was honestly so short because of how limited I was with Sinon compared to the rest of her team. I'm lucky Le Fay gave a good excuse for why she'd have to eventually lose, it was a good thing I had decided for those two to fight in a match.**

**Oh, and in case anyone asks, the reason I'm getting these chapters out so fast is because aside from their length, while this is the seventh match overall, I've actually finished a few chapters ahead because the chapters for all the matches are interlocked. As of this chapter's uploading, I'm already working on the Irina Vs Xenovia battle. The only reason I don't submit them all at once is because I'm trying not to overload you with all of them at once.**

**Now, time for me to share the final detail about Journey of the Heavenly Dragons. In this story, you've noticed a few things mentioned by Cao Cao, who has the only bit of God that still exists (his will) within the True Longinus, and he seems to know a few things. During the flashbacks of Vali's birth mother, and Issei's birth parents, the actions made by Rizevim seemed almost... like he was afraid.**

**While the last bits of this story will dig into that a bit more, none of the true answers to those will be in this story. Let's just say, he has much more up his sleeves then just trying to revive Trihexa... much, much more. Can't really say much more than that because of spoilers, but let's just say that there's a big reason why this is a trilogy, and not just two stories that will end on the Azazel Cup adaption.**

**I hope these details have peaked your interest for the next story. There's quite a bit that'll be revealed, and that it'll hint for what will come in "Dawn of the Heavenly Dragons", so, with all of that said... time to begin the next battle!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【** **】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Longinus Rules for Evil Pieces **

**The most unique thing about the Longinus is how they relate to Evil Pieces when being reincarnated, as their power, among many other factors, doesn't follow a set pattern like you would believe them to. To most, a Longinus of the Low-Tier would slowly rise up for the potential to be reincarnated, but the truth is that is actually quite inaccurate.**

**The evidence is seen with the weakest of the Longinus, as when Ineelana reincarnated Tamara, the Telos Karma possessor, she only need a single Bishop. Yet when Esketanus reincarnated Eterna, the Innovate Clear user, he was forced to use his Queen, showing a clear difference. Ajuka even stated upon examining Eterna that her power ranked at nine pieces overall.**

**When this fact reached Ajuka's attention, he began further study of the Evil Pieces through the two Longinus users, and eventually found that the Longinus broke the normal rules of those with Sacred Gears when it came to reincarnation, possessing their own. This further complicated the Longinus Gears, and eventually became one of the rare few topics that Ajuka admitted was beyond his understanding.**

**While he gave up trying to fully figure out these rules as a whole, his study did have him notice a few factors he believe had some explanation. Not only did the host's own strength matter, but so did the powers within the Sacred Gear, and even the spirits within them. Beings like Ddraig and Albion had the power to destroy God and Satan, and their Sacred Gears limited how much of that power could be used, while Pandora wasn't very strong.**

**If there was any conclusion that Ajuka came to, it was that among the three tiers, some took few pieces, while others took many, all for the sake of Balance that maybe the Will of God can influence from the True Longinus, or possibly something these Sacred Gears are doing of their own will to protect the world. Whatever the real reason behind it is, the word may never know.**

**Although, if it's too complicated for Ajuka to figure out, maybe it's something people are better off not knowing...**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 12 - Kuroka VS Mine _ **

Kuroka chuckled a bit, looking towards the screen as the pictures of her and Mine appeared on screen. Getting off the wall she was leaning against, she cracked her neck a bit, and then a few other parts of her body before ending with her knuckles. Mine readied her Sacred Gear, shifting to a certain rifle attachment.

"Looks like it's go time." Kuroka smirked.

"This match is mine!" Mine smirked as well.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**And here we go, match lucky number 7 is here!**

The two fighters gazed at each other, ready to begin the next match against each other. At that moment, the both of them finally walked onto the field, with Kuroka taking a deep breath as her eyes focused. At the same time, Mine held out her Sacred Gear.

"**Kuro Mode.**"

"**Roman Artillery!**"

Kuroka's body transforms, while Mine's Sacred Gear begins lightning up, charging its power to make parts of the rifle's body glow.

** _ Battle: Kuroka Toujou VS Mine _ **

As both side stared each other down, both with serious expressions on their faces.

"Get ready little kitty, you'll be licking your wounds after this match ends!" Mine declared.

"Oh? That was uncalled for, who pissed in your cereal?" Kuroka replied curiously.

Mine blushed at that, while most of the audience, even Naud himself, and a few of the judges all tried not to laugh... they were failing very badly.

"Shut up!" Mine screamed angrily.

Edelweiss sighed, realizing she had to get the crowd under control, raising a hand to cast her greatest ability.

"**Rule of Grace.**"

All of those laughed unknowingly had an aura placed on them, one that Lilith quickly noticed.

"Oh boy, the audience is gonna feel this one in a moment..." Lilith chuckled nervously, looking away.

"Huh?" Homura blinked in confusion.

Edelweiss' eyes glow.

"We shall play a game where you must laugh, those of you who break this rule will all feel a brief, but painful cramp in your stomachs if you fail to stop laughing... five seconds before I cast this contract." She stated.

At that moment, a massive cry of pain shot from the audience, making them all stop laughing as most of both teams' members gained white eyes, shaking a bit fearfully.

"What... the heck... was that?" Issei asked worriedly.

"That's Edelweiss' greatest ability, the [Rule of Grace], it causes her to bind someone to a condition should she beat them in some kind of game or competition. After she does that, she binds a contract onto them, if they break this contract, they are afflicted with a penalty of her choice, provided it isn't meant to intervene with fate." Vali explained, shaken from actually witnessing it.

"Fate? Oh, like in the same way Nia couldn't kill someone, or affect their romantic feelings?" Bikou recalled as an example.

"Yeah, like that." Vali nodded.

The two fighters went silent after that, looking away from each other.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**OK... I think most of us just got karma, so... how about you girls just start the match while I try to shake off this pain in my chest.**

Naud fell over, making everyone hear it via the microphone.

**「** **Akame ga Kill: Yami o Kiru** **」**

Ignoring the announcer's brief collapse, knowing it wasn't serious, the two fighters readied themselves.

"Alright, let's get this started." Kuroka stated.

Kuroka vanished from view, but Mine quickly realized where she went, motioning her Roman Artillery towards it before unleashing a blast.

Surprised she was caught, Kuroka used her Senjutsu to briefly block it with a Hinotama, helping her dodge the blast in time. Panting heavily, she looked towards Mine who gave a smirk towards her in response.

'She knew exactly where I was gonna go, her eyesight's just like Sinon's... no, it could be better because of her Sacred Gear!' The Black Nekoshou thought.

Turning her current rifle attachment, making it pop before it flashed away, putting a new one in her hands.

"Alright, let's see how you handle the big guns!" Mine exclaimed.

Mine began firing a storm of energy arms, making Kuroka begin to back flip away from the attacks, shifting around as she sweated a bit.

"Damn, I wish I had that prana stuff like that Ophelia girl does!" Kuroka growled, wishing she could just use some power to block the attack.

"Ha! How do you like that? Run all you want, because I've got you in my sights now!" Mine cackled, getting too excited.

Ineelana's peerage all gave awkward chuckles at the sight, while their team's allied members just blinked in confusion over the sight they had no idea was normal to their group. At that same moment, Naud finally managed to get back up, looking at the sight.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Incredible! Kuroka's on the ropes, right now this cat's desperately trying to hold onto her nine lives, for this match at least, but it looks like she's gonna slowly have them whittled before her notice!**

Kuroka dodged another wave, but while she did it... she motioned some of her fingers below everyone's notice.

* * *

Near the Lucifer VIP area, Gabriel heard the sound of a familiar panting as she turned, seeing a very busty girl with ash-blue, eyes and ash-blonde hair. Regaining her breath, she looked at Gabriel, putting her hands into an apologetic position.

"Forgive me Lady Gabriel, I ran a little late. I didn't miss too many matches with our former church members, did I?" She apologized.

"Only one Mirana, but I luckily had it recorded, so you can watch it later." Gabriel smiled.

"Gabriel, who is this little lady?" Lilith asked.

Gabriel blinks, giggling with a slight blush as she realized her ignorance in sharing this detail.

"Oh dear, did I forget to mention this?" Gabriel realized, rubbing her head in embarrassment.

"Everyone, this is the Ace of my Brave Saints, Mirana Shatarova." Gabriel introduced to everyone.

"Hi there." Mirana waved with a smile.

Sitting down by her King, Mirana looked at the match before them, noticing Kuroka's predicament.

"How long has the one with black hair been in that position?" She asked.

"Since around the match's beginning, which was not too long ago." Irina's mother mentioned.

Mirana looked back, and noticed Kuroka's fingers.

"Hey, what's she doing with her fingers?" Mirana wondered aloud.

* * *

Clasping her hand, a hidden Youjutsu symbol forms, and Kuroka takes an attack after a failed attempt to dodge. Tumbling across the ground, Mine switched the rifle attachment again, aiming the Roman Artillery at the Nekomata.

"Sorry, but that's checkmate." Mine announced.

"You sure? I think this is still Check."

Mine blinked at where that voice came from, only to see Kuroka behind her, using her tails to lock her arm's movement. Mine gasped at the sight, clearing noticing Kuroka was clearly in front of her, even the audience felt surprised as it was like Kuroka had been there all along... yet hadn't.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**I... I am so confused right now!**

"Ah, so that's what she was doing, her finger motions were to secretly use a Youjutsu technique, creating an alteration of perception. Most of the audience can't even tell their senses are being tricked in such a subtle way." Rei realized, impressed.

"Skree!" Ruhk screeched.

Mine tried to act, but felt a Hinotama barely hit her from the formerly down Kuroka, making her unsure what to do. However, she eventually concluded that the one by her had to be an illusion when she felt her arm's movement loosen.

"Gotcha!" Mine smirked.

Before anyone could react, the Kuroka behind her used a black flame strike against Mine's exposed backside, making Mine gasp as she was knocked forward, her twin tails coming undone as she was flung onto her back.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The other Kuroka fades, making everyone in the audience confused.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**What just happened!?**

Uzume took her microphone in hand, preparing to explain what was going on.

"Very few likely noticed, but when Kuroka was bent over, she motioned her finger to make a Youjutsu spell. That moment she apparently failed to dodge? She didn't fail at all, she unknowingly affected perception within the barrier. The Kuroka everyone saw fall? That was just a fake, and Mine didn't even notice." Uzume explained.

Once that was revealed, everyone began to cheer loudly, excited at the sudden turn in the match. While that was happening... Mine was staring at the sky, looking almost broken as she began to recall something.

'This is... yeah, it reminds me of that time.' Mine thought.

* * *

_Mine remembered how she kept running, trying to escape the strange beings chasing after her, barely managing to get away. She kept coughing, with the stress continuously piling on her body as she pushed it passed its normal limits, slowly killing her due to her lack of rest._

_The brief moments she could stop, within Human territories, she tried to look for help, but because of the heritage she had, and her young age making her unaware... she just got tormented, abused, and people threw things at her._

"I was chased, and it was killing me... while people called me things while beating me up, eventually leaving me on the ground by myself. I gazed at the sky, no one ever stopped, and no one ever helped, not until she came."

_The moment Mine saw Ineelana flashed by, reaching her hand out only moments before her body finally gave out, making her black out for the brief time she was dead for._

"When she saved me, and the time passed, I realized something..."

_Mine, now wearing actual clothing while her cleaned up hair flowed in the wind, looked up at the sky, soon noticing some Devils giving Ineelana crap as part of the free discrimination they were able to pull without anything to get them in trouble. Gasping at the sky, she looked at the sky, making a resolve as her face gave a look that her refusal to surrender._

"I would never let anyone suffer the discrimination we had, it isn't right."

"Ineelana saved me from those dark days, but not everyone is as lucky, and some fade away without ever getting the chance."

_Mine screamed as she jumped off the balcony, making those same Devils look up in shock as Mine's falling form was set to land on them, making the Devil bullies scream._

* * *

Mine gritted her teeth, grabbing her Roman Artillery, the rifle attachment currently on popped off, and part of the Roman Artillery opened up.

"...I will not lose here!" Mine screamed, standing on her feet.

**「** **Akame ga Kill: Incursio** **」**

The crowd gasped at the sight, soon cheering loudly as she got up, making Kuroka look at her with intrigue.

"**BALANCE BREAKER!**"

**【** **Naud** **】**

**She's going for it, her Balance Breaker's coming!**

Her eyes focused, a burst of energy spiked out from her Sacred Gear.

"**GO, PILE BUNKER!**"

"This is it!" Mine screamed, swinging her rifle towards Kuroka.

A beam fires out from the Roman Artillery, making Kuroka quickly dodge it, and many ducked their hers as it nearly looked like it would break the barrier. She swung it in an attempt to hit Kuroka.

'Ineelana!'

She kept swinging, though Kuroka kept dodging, causing her Sacred Gear to release steam as it began to overheat.

"Her Sacred Gear's pushing its limits!" Ophelia exclaimed.

"No, stop it Mine!" Murasaki warned.

Seeing the sight, Ineelana knew what she had to do, closing her eyes.

"Sorry kid, but... this match's winner is me." Kuroka stated, holding up her hand.

Combining her Senjutsu and Youjutsu with her black aura, she creates a symbol below Mine, making her gasp as a giant explosion was about to go off.

"No! I can't accept this, if I lose her... how will I fulfill my promise to Ineelana? I have to win, this isn't the end! Go ahead, give me your best-" Mine screamed.

At that moment, a white towel was thrown in front of Mine's view, making her freeze up before she instantly blacked out.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The crowd went silent at that, with Ineelana rushing onto the field.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**That's... that's it! Ineelana has thrown in the white towel!**

"The match is over, the winner is Kuroka Toujou!" Lucifuge announced, holding out her arm towards her.

** _ Winner: Kuroka Toujou! _ **

Everyone cheered as the match ended, while Kuroka panted as she reverted to normal. With Ineelana, she finally reached Mine, holding her in her arms as she rubbed her cheek, making her wake up at the touch.

"...Ineelana, why?" She begged, tearing up.

"You don't have to push yourself like that for my sake, I have gone through a lot, but you're not my shield, or my sword. How would I feel if you pushed yourself hard that something happened? I won't let my family sacrifice their lives for me." Ineelana said quietly.

Mine's eyes shook at that, crying a bit.

"Really?" She sniffled.

Ineelana nodded at that, rubbing her head.

"I told you before, you, and everyone else in my peerage... you're all like sisters to me." She smiled.

"...Thank you, thank you!" Mine cried, wiping her tears.

That brought most of the audience to tears as Ineelana carried Mine back to the stands.

"Oh, you know something? I think your old bull crap actually made an impression on me." Ineelana chuckled.

"Seriously!? The first thing you say to me after that touching moment is that?" Mine shouted angrily.

"I said you're like a sister to me, that includes sisterly teasing." Ineelana chuckled.

Mine groaned loudly, but still smiled despite it.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Now that was tender, I didn't think both sides would toss the white towel in during this, but there you have it! Now, time to begin the 8th round!**

Once both sides had their fighters return, the next pictures revealed Ravel and Yumi's onscreen. The two both looked across to the other stand, a deep focus in each of their eyes as everyone realized it...

A battle between a pair of Bishops, one of fire and ice, was coming.

* * *

**Mine had a chance at winning, but if anyone remembers how she was left comatose when she fought against Budo, I think you know why I had Ineelana throw in the white towel. There's no point in winning a simple tournament match if it leaves you in such a state, maybe a war, but that's not what this is, and Mine had been pissed off enough she could have done it.**

**Either way, with this victory, the two teams are once again tied up, and their win ratio is even. Now, the next match up is between Ravel and Yumi, a pair of bishops with opposing elements. One has the powers of a Phoenix by her Devil blood, and the other a Yuki-Onna through her Sacred Gear. This is a fight I've really been excited for, so I hope it ends up being a good one.**

**Oh, and if you've been wondering about the status of the Anti-Rigging Team, you'll see them again next chapter. I haven't shown the for a while because I couldn't show them just yet. Luckily, once we get to the next chapter, that blockade is finished. Either way, for now... get yourselves psyched for the next match, since Ravel's facing her first battle as a member of Issei's amperage!**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	59. Chapter 59

**When someone asks you this: "Who would win when it's fire against ice?", usually people say that fire is the one that would win. However, I think anime shows that result can be thrown out the window if the ice is right, or the fire just lacks a real flame to it. So, with that in mind, who will be the victor in this instance when we have the flames of a phoenix/dragon against the icy winds of a Yuki-Onna?**

**Well, we don't have to wait much longer to find out, because Ravel and Yumi are about to answer that question for us! *chuckles* To further add to the irony, each of them are Bishops under a King that wields the same element, since Issei's got fire power of his own through Ddraig, and Ineelana's got her special ice as part of her Eternal Coffin ability.**

**Due to the efforts of Le Fay and Kuroka, the Lucifer team has had a two-match victory streak, and evened out their win-to-loss ratio, so... can Ravel be the one that makes their winning streak become three in a row? Now that she's part of Issei's peerage, this is the match where she'll be showing the Rating Game world the true strength that she never got to use under Riser.**

**Oh, someone mentioned this to me after last chapter, but that whole Lucky 7 thing I mentioned? They thought I did it intentionally because being black-haired Nekoshou, which is basically a black cat, that Kuroka being in the match was symbolic cause they mean bad luck. While admittedly, that would have been a unique thing, I forgot that one form of bad luck when I made the chapter, so... unintentional symbolism I guess ^^;**

**Now, get ready everyone, because a storm's coming this match! *hits the gong* Here we go!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Phoenix Tears **

**A special healing potion created by the Phenex Clan, who are the only ones able to create it among Devils, and the many Phoenix Familiars they possess. Out of the many traits the Phenex clan shares with the actual fire bird that Satan based their abilities off of, they have literal tears that can instantly heal injuries, purge most kinds of poisons, and allow a severed limb to be reattached. However, they can't restore the loss of blood and organs like healing-type Sacred Gears.**

**The biggest difference between tears of the Phenex Clan, and an actual Phoenix, is that the former need to put their tears through a process to create the healing effect, and certain conditions need to be met when those tears are made. First, a Phenex clan member needs to stand in a magic circle that has undergone a special ritual, then a cup that has gone through the same, and then cry one tear at a time into it.**

**Upon doing this, special water placed within that cup mixes with the tears, turning it into a successful Phoenix Tear. However, this is where the hard part comes in... these are tears that have to be shed with an empty mind. According to Lord Phenex, this is because tears with emotion are "a person's own tears", which fills the tears with what the water is supposed to give it, making the process unable to succeed.**

**Phoenix Tears are not easy to make when done so through a Phenex Clan member, as due to the clear mind condition, one wrong action could result in an unsuccessful attempt to create the tears. Alanira Mammon has also shown that while she was able to make a few tears in a rush job, forcing herself to cry mean she was limited in how many she had to force her eyes to shed tears without putting any emotion into them.**

**Phenex Tears are allowed in Rating Games, but no more than a maximum of two can be given among a team, and they must both have the same amount to make it fair. Most of all, those of the Phenex Clan are forbidden to use them because they'll always have a member who can regenerate on their own, which is the only time only one side can have them if any are available for use, a choice made by Alanira herself due to being the former heiress of the clan.**

**This liquid is a special treasure of Hell, and probably one of the few advantages they have against the Khaos Brigade.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 13 - Ravel VS Yumi _ **

The others followed Diehauser as he went towards a certain spot, getting their attention.

*Woof*

"I'm not sure either boy, let's keep a close eye until we see what he found." Tobio told his Sacred Gear.

Diehauser touched part of the wall, and then...

『DNA ID: Diehauser Belial, Access permitted』

A hidden chamber suddenly opened, surprising the group as they saw a hidden pathway to... somewhere.

"What... the living... Hell!?" Ouryuu exclaimed.

Diehauser quickly realized what it had to be if it registered his access as allowed.

"This must be something related to the Elders, since I'm a mole under them, and they think I'm their ally..." Diehauser realized.

"Come on, there's something here they don't want those they don't trust to find, and this is the only chance we'll likely have." Diehauser ordered, making the others nod.

They all go in, sliding down to a hidden location somewhere that no one but the Elders knew of.

It looked to be some kind of Special Ops type room, one that even the Rating Game Champion himself hadn't been in, most likely because by the time he may get permission... the Elders would have likely achieved everything they wanted to.

"Whoa, this kind of place is..." Ouryuu said, sweating a bit.

"Yeah, it's like one of those movies where secret agents are involved." Tadami remarked, answering his thought.

Jin sniffed a bit, growling as he moved near a door.

"What is it boy?" Tobio asked.

A small group of Devils come in, noticing the group inside.

"Intruders, call the Elders now, kill them all!" One shouted.

As they prepared magic circles, Tadami quickly tossed out a scroll, forming a bunch of symbols that cause them all to fizzle in advance. They all gasp before they try to run, only to run into a barrier that blocks them off.

"What!?"

"Sorry, but no one with a wicked heart can escape from an Onmyouji's judgment." Tadami declared.

"Also, you made a bad choice trying to threaten the Nakiri Clan's current head." Ouryuu warned.

Raising his hand, the Devils all screamed as the aura of a golden-yellow Dragon growled at them, sending them all flying with a pulse as it roared. Tobio quickly turned to Jin, the Canis Lykaon's spirit looking at him.

"Jin, there may be more, take out everyone you can, immediately." He ordered.

Jin barked at that, soon vanishing into the shadows.

Many Devils were slaughtered by the canine Sacred Gear, Ouryuu, and Tadami's efforts. As that was happening, Tobio kept guard around Diehauser as he searched around the various machines, soon noticing a computer with protection.

"Hmm... sorry Elders, but you made a mistake trusting me." Diehauser stated, holding his hand out.

"**Worthless.**"

The protection was immediately dispelled.

『Welcome back, Zekram Bael』

Diehauser began looking at the information in question, and saw something.

"Damn, we can't go after the Rigging Device... she has to be aware it's there anyways-"

He soon noticed something else among Zekram's personal files.

"Wait... yes! Looks like there's something else here we can use, we just need to wait until the right moment." He smiled as he saw the way to finally use their blackmail to make not Lilith, but themselves have the people turn against them.

"Crap... Diehauser, I don't think we're out of the woods just yet." Tobio warned, getting a message from Jin.

Diehauser looked at where they had come in from, and sighed.

"**Worthless.**"

He closed off their way in, so no one would notice it.

"We'll have to fight our way through, what do we have?" Diehauser asked.

"It looks like... some kind of chimeric monsters?" Tobio explained.

In another room, Jin growled as he saw the sight of many Naberius Clan experiments, one's that Kuroka never learned her master had created.

* * *

Once both sides had their fighters return, the next pictures revealed Ravel and Yumi's onscreen. The two both looked across to the other stand, a deep focus in each of their eyes as everyone realized this was a battle between fire, and ice.

"Alright Ravel, guess this is the first Rating Game you're fighting as my Bishop." Issei remarked.

"I won't let you down, Issei." Ravel promised.

Taking a deep breath, Ravel undid her twin tails, which she did as a mark of her resolve, as she took to the field. Yumi slipped her fan from under her sleeve, opening it before splitting apart into two, both of which were a newer model.

"Whoa, I see my father got those ready, and sneaky way to present them." Ineelana said in surprise.

"Of course, even as your Bishop, I'm still a ninja." Yumi replied, changing into her battle outfit.

Yumi vanished, reappearing with the field, with both competitors looking at each other.

"I expect a good match from you, and hope you respect I must give it all for my team." Ravel stated, bowing slightly.

"I was going to say the same, so I'm glad that we can both understand that." Yumi replied, bowing as well.

Both raised their heads, readying themselves.

** _ Battle: Ravel Phenex VS Yumi _ **

Everyone was already cheering, the match up being a clash of two elements was an exciting prospect to them.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Alright everyone, this match is hot vs cold! Let's see if fire or ice is gonna win this clash!**

The two fighters show their elements in response to that.

**「** **Date A Live II: Hurricane** **」**

Intense fires burned on Ravel's side of the field, while Yumi swung her fans, showing some icy winds blowing around her side. Reinforce held up her hand, looking at both fighters before swinging it down.

"Begin." She announced.

Ravel blasted her fire forward, causing a fireball to blast of it.

Reacting to it, Yumi rushed forward, sliding across the ground as it freezes below her, and disappearing as the fireball nears her, reappearing behind the Phenex Devil before readying her fans.

"**Black Ice.**"

Yumi's fans spin before releasing an ice lance from the force.

"**Phoenix Fire!**"

A burst of fire shoots out, melting the lance, and causing some steam to blind her.

'It was too cold, crap!' Ravel realized, looking around.

"**Black Ice.**"

'Wait, that was... the right!' Ravel thought.

Ravel flapped her wings, getting away from the attack just in time, panting heavily as Yumi looked at her.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Whoa! I didn't think Ravel could get out of that one, but she managed to avoid it! Bravo young Phenex!**

"I agree, I didn't think you'd be able to dodge that while being blinded." Yumi praised.

"Well, my mom says I'm good with predicting my opponent's actions." Ravel admitted quietly enough to avoid being heard.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Diving towards Yumi, she covered herself in flames, with Yumi preparing for the next attack she used against her.

* * *

Jin began using its sword to slash against the abominations that were trying to attack it, howling in response. After a bit, the others caught up to Jin's location, getting the Sacred Gear's attention, while they all gave horrified looks at what they saw.

"My god, what are those things?" Tadami said in horror.

"I've heard a Devil in the Naberius clan that once was the master of Kuroka Toujou because she became a member of Vali's peerage, and he did experiments like this to his peerage." Diehauser explained, looking at them.

He sweated a bit, knowing his ability wouldn't work when he had no idea what these mutated beings were like.

"I thought she had mercy killed them all, but maybe the people in his peerage were just test subjects, and he was part of the conspiracy of the Elders... I can't even tell who these people were anymore, just that they've all been turned into monsters against their will." Diehauser grimaced, feeling sorry for them.

"Can we... save them?" Tadami asked sadly.

He shook his head, and everyone realized the only thing they could do, was end their suffering.

"Here, allow me to do this..." Tobio decided, with Jin walking by him.

"**Night Celestial Slash Dogs.**"

The wolf-like armor appeared across his body, the others all closed their eyes in respect, with Tadami cupping her hands together, hoping the souls would rest in peace soon enough. A loud sound was heard as streams of darkness attacked them all, leaving no traces of them.

Seeing his work done, Tobio took a deep breath, with Jin giving a worried look towards him.

"It's alright Jin, those people probably wanted it by that point." Tobio reassured, briefly flashing to see a motionless Sae in his arms.

The group prepared to leave, only for Tadami to notice something.

"Hey, what's this?" Tadami wondered.

"You see something?" Ouryuu asked.

She walked near a container deep in the room, rubbing to see a person not like the Naberius abominations.

"I see... yeah, it looks like a person, a girl." Tadami looked deep inside the pod.

* * *

As the two fighters neared each other, Ravel swung her arms down. Yumi's eyes focused in response, waiting for the right moment to attack.

"**Flaming Phoenix Wing!**"

"**Ice Pillar Fan.**"

As Ravel unleashed two shifts of fire with her arms, while Yumi began dancing a bit, her fans held out as whirlwinds of ice formed, freeing the ground below her as they countered Ravel's attack. The Phenex Bishop gasped before Yumi swung a fan forward, striking her with ice.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Yumi just won that clash of attacks, that's gonna leave a mark on the fiery Ravel's chances!**

As Ravel skid across the ground, she panted a bit, getting back up.

Looking at her, Yumi folded her fans, turning it back into one.

"I believe neither of us have gone full out, have we? Let us end this at our strongest states." Yumi suggested.

Ravel took a deep breath at that.

**「** **Fairy Tail 2014: Strike Back - Instrumental** **」**

"...Alright, just know you asked for it." Ravel agreed.

Both of them began glowing, making the crowd begin cheering as the fighters prepared to take it up another notch.

"**Phoenix Dragon Mode!**"

"**Balance Breaker!**"

Ravel's hair and flames became a deep crimson red as her eyes sharped, while Yumi's hair grew out slightly before it became ice-blue, and her fans were replaced by a sword of ice. Everyone's cheers became as loud as screams in response to this.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**THIS IS IT! AN ULTIMATE CLASH OF WILLS, NOW LET'S SEE WHERE THEY TAKE THIS BATTLE!**

Both fighters unleashed their elements, and the clash of flames and a blizzard were so intense, there was no steam to be seen. It was like the elements had so much pride, to let any steam appear would be a sign of weakness.

Ravel quickly flies forward, blasting waves of small fireballs at Yumi, who quickly counters and begins cutting through the fires with her ice sword.

"**Blazing Breath!**"

Ravel gives a mighty shout, slamming the ground to make fire burst out the ground causing the entire battlefield to start melting as the streams of fire to rush towards Yumi.

"**Dark Blizzard!**"

Yumi twirls her sword around in circles, blocking some of the flames, though a few still hit her, before creating cyclones of ice that freeze parts of the battlefield. Ravel put out her hands, feeling the ice freeze her slightly, with the rest being blocked by her fire burning it away. The crowd kept cheering as they both stood within a spot on the half-fire/half-ice battlefield with their elements.

Panting heavily, both of them realized they had little time left, and had to finish everything with one final attack, so they began pouring all their strength into their chests, preparing for one last strike.

"**WHITE WIDOW!**"

"**PHENEX SALAMANDRA!**"

Yumi spun around, causing her ice to take the shape of a spider, which quickly began moving forward.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Creepy Crawlies! That's one arachnid I'm glad to not be near right now, because it might give new meaning on a "Frost Bite" in this match!**

Meanwhile with Ravel, she jumped up, her flames taking the shape of an Eastern Dragon with bird-like qualities, roaring as its body spewed Ravel's normal flames as a fiery mane, and fins lining its back.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Now that's one fiery foe that might heat things up! Now, which side will win it!? Is it fire... or is it ice!?**

The icy spider jumped against the dragon, making it slam hard into the barrier before making a web thread out of snow, and swinging around to continue its attack. Following it, the dragon spun to coil around the icy bug, soon shifting its swinging path before using its entire body as a whip against it. The spider landed on the ground, but got to its feet before spinning, making an icy cyclone.

"This match-" Yumi shouted.

"-Is mine!" Ravel exclaimed.

The dragon roared as it spun against the icy cyclone, soon blazing like a meteor, and opening its mouth wide. The icy spider's attempts to push it ended in vain, and then finally... the dragon crashed against it!

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

After a few seconds... the spider of ice broke apart, sending Yumi flying out of it, where she reverted back to normal as she landed on the ground. She tried to get back on her feet, but midway through her attempt, she collapsed back onto the ground.

"Yumi can no longer battle, the victor is Ravel Phenex!" Esdeath announced.

** _ Winner: Ravel Phenex! _ **

Everyone began cheering as Ravel breathed heavily, reverting back to normal before giving a bright smile, proud of her achievement.

"I did it, I... I won..." Ravel smiled.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Ravel just gained the Lucifer Team a third victory in their winning streak, and that means... the Lucifer Team has finally gained the lead in overall victories for the first time in this Championship Battle!**

The crowd cheered against, even louder than before, making Zekram look annoyed at the apparent support on her side.

"Issei, I did it!" Ravel cheered, running back to her stands.

"Awesome job, I think that'll show everyone the newest King in Hell's already got a great team he can depend on." He smiled, closing his eyes for emphasis.

Murasaki helped Yumi back to the Leviathan Team's stand, looking at her with a smile.

"I think you did really well Yumi." She said.

"I know, she pushed me further than I'd ever expected to, and now... it's your turn." Yumi replied, reminding her of who was fighting next.

Murasaki panicked at that moment, looking to see her picture on the screen alongside Yumina's.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Here comes our ninth match, we're almost all the way through this great Final match, so let's keep this rhythm going!**

"O-oh god..." Murasaki said quietly, now completely nervous.

* * *

**Considering that she went right into the stadium to help Yumi back into the stands, I think we can define this situation as being "out of the frying pan, and into the fire", because her match being next mean she's literally in the fire of the battle zone, which is even more symbolic when Ravel torched the field during her round. *chuckles* Don't worry Murasaki, it won't be as bad as you expect it to be.**

**Well, Ravel won the match, and now Vali's team has finally gained the lead for the first time in the Finals, and with four matches left, this is probably the moment where they need to shine since they finally gained it. Luckily, it seems the crowd is favoring Vali's side, though the question now is how will that affect the Elders' plans when the matches come to a close?**

**I think the Anti-Rigging Team is giving us a clue, as Diehauser's found something interesting within an area belonging to the Elders he never knew of before, and it seems Edelweiss is aware of the rigging device... so why isn't she touching it? She might have a reason, so I guess we'll see soon enough. Now, I think the biggest mystery is just who did Tadami find inside that capsule?**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	60. Chapter 60

**After eight matches, we've finally gotten to the last of the matches before the big three, so time to really let things loose with this one! We have the tricky teleporting fighter Yumina, facing off against Murasaki, the shy and timid kunoichi! How will this fight end up going? We know that Murasaki's dealing with the problem of her Sacred Gear, which limit her out of the safety of everyone, and herself... she's the one with the disadvantage here.**

**The upside is that Yumina isn't likely to push her far enough that she unleashes her Sacred Gear's power, so she shouldn't fall to its dark influence from any extreme stress. Either way, it seems like Vali's team has a better chance this round, but that doesn't necessarily guarantee the win. Even if she's not much of a fighter, Murasaki won't be going down out without a fight.**

**Now, let's see how the Leviathan Queen does against the eventual new member of Vali's peerage? Let the battle... *releases a firework into the air* begin!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Catastrophe Core **

**One of the most dangerous Sacred Gears in existence, being another one of the darker kinds like Tomoe's Muramasa to wield, albeit because of the nature of its powers, rather than causing harm to its wielder. It is currently held by Murasaki, who has been shaped into who she is as a result of possessing it, and the act that awakened it from dormancy long ago.**

**Catastrophe Core is a Sacred Gear that gives the user the power to channel energy that comes from their darker, more negative emotions, unleashing them a dangerous amount of force they can use it various ways. While dormant, it causes strange changes to the body, causing abnormal skills, such as the ability to make one's hair, or certain equipment, move like it's alive.**

**She awakened this Sacred Gear when during her training, back when the ninja village she and Yumi came from was still intact, her father pushed her way too hard. All of that stress, her fear, her sadness, and even the slight hints of anger in her heart... it well up within her, surging into a burst of energy only forewarned by her eyes becoming pools of darkness... then the entire village being erased.**

**Only Murasaki, and Yumi due to being outside the range, survived the destruction. For who knows how long, the two were on their own until Ineelana encountered them, becoming the first two members of her peerage as a result. However, Ineelana quickly saw her powers were too volatile to train in a normal manner, having to let her overcome her own issues before she could use them, something made hard by the deaths she accidentally caused.**

**As the years went by, Murasaki showed little progress in controlling her powers, enough that Ineelana decided when the Rating Game Tournament began that she shouldn't let Murasaki fight unless absolutely necessary. This was proven when she faced Gebedon, and she went crazy during the battle, although it revealed her powers have become somewhat tamed since then.**

**Either way, the Catastrophe Core is a dangerous Sacred Gear, one that might be better off never activating its Balance Breaker.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 14 - Yumina VS Murasaki _ **

Murasaki helped Yumi back to the Leviathan Team's stand, looking at her with a smile.

"I think you did really well Yumi." She said.

"I know, she pushed me further than I'd ever expected to, and now... it's your turn." Yumi replied, reminding her of who was fighting next.

Murasaki panicked at that moment, looking to see her picture on the screen alongside Yumina's.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Here comes our ninth match, we're almost all the way through this great Final match, so let's keep this rhythm going!**

"O-oh god..." Murasaki said quietly, now completely nervous.

"Muri, don't be nervous, you can do this." Yumi reassured her.

**「** **One Piece:Hito no Dokuro ni Tee Dasuna** **」**

Blushing at her nickname, she took a shaky deep breath, soon nodding at her. Turning around, she lifted her hair up, prompting Ineelana to toss a few large shuriken over to her, placing them on the Leviathan Queen's hair.

"Now go out there, and show them what you can do, that you're not a prisoner to the darkness of your Sacred Gear." Ineelana smiled, trying to encourage her.

Murasaki shook a bit more, but nodded.

"...I'll try, I promise." She whimpered, trying her best to show courage.

Meanwhile with Yumina, she stretched her body a bit, warming herself up so she'd be at optimal teleporting condition.

"Alright, I'm ready." She stated, pumping her fists up.

"Go get them, girl!" Kunou cheered, holding a fist out.

Yumina giggled at that, giving her a fist bump, and then back flipping herself onto the field, soon swinging her body so she'd face towards her opponent with a confident look. Murasaki gave a less confident one, clearly frowning as she was shaking in fear.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**It looks like both sides are ready! One is full of confidence, and the other is mustering the little she has so she can stand and fight in this battle!**

Yumina motions her hand towards Murasaki.

Gulping a bit at the gesture, Murasaki swings her arms, making her hair move, and the shuriken attached to it start spinning.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Looking at both sides, Esdeath readied her hand.

"Let the next match commence!" Esdeath announced, snapping her fingers.

** _ Battle: Yumina Lucifuge VS Murasaki _ **

"Here goes!" Yumina exclaimed.

Yumina instantly teleported out of view, scaring the timid kunoichi as she tried to look around for her.

**「** **One Piece: Saigo no Tatakai** **」**

The Lucifuge heiress appears in front of Murasaki, making her gasp before she throws a punch at her!

"...Psyche!" She giggled, disappearing before it hit.

"Huh?" Murasaki shook in fear.

Yumina reappeared behind her, making a kick motion towards her opponent, before doing the same thing again.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Oh my, it looks like Yumina's teasing her opponent! Even I can't tell where she'll actually attack from.**

Murasaki curled into a ball, shivering as she held her head, and closed her eyes at Yumina's many fake outs overwhelming her. Eventually, Yumina stopped disappearing, and rushed forward.

"And now for the real deal!" She announced.

Murasaki soon felt herself get kicked, and she flew across the field, tumbling a bit before looking at Yumina, who quickly rushed at her with incredible speed.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Feeling scared, Murasaki screamed before she began spinning in circles, her hair stretching out as the shuriken attached to them neared Yumina, making her eyes widened as she teleported out of the way of the storm of blades being swung around with her hair.

"Oh boy..." She stated worriedly.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Yikes! Looks like Yumina can't get through that, not without tiring herself out through overusing her Phantom Shift!**

Yumina chuckled at that, surprising Naud and the audience.

"**Mirage Shift!**"

Yumina rushed forward, turning intangible, and just going tight through the attacks! Everyone gasped before the audience went wild.

'She can turn intangible!?' Murasaki thought in horror.

"Sorry, but looks like this match up favored me!" Yumina stated, jumping into the air.

Forming darkness magic cross her hand, she dove at Murasaki, regaining her tangibility as the Queen of Leviathan panicked.

"**SHADOW STRIKER!**"

Murasaki screamed as she got hit, being sent flying into the air.

* * *

The crowd was cheering loudly, while those in the Leviathan VIP box look worried.

"She's completely out-matched, even if most of it is because she's intentionally holding back due to her Sacred Gear's power..." Kuisha said as she bit one of her nails slightly.

"You're talking about her Sacred Gear, right?" Coriana inquired.

Kuisha closed her eyes, lowering her head a bit, and that was enough for Coriana to take as a yes.

"I don't blame her, being a Sacred Gear myself, I know the power behind her abilities is similar because it all comes from the same source. The downside is in comparison, her power is more dangerous, and she has to withhold it unless she could master it somehow... something she isn't guaranteed to do." Regulus remarked sadly, in his human form.

Looking at the battlefield again, Misla looked at Murasaki.

'Is this a power beyond anyone's control?' She thought.

'She's gone through many struggles, and she's still standing here, if that power is one she can't command, she needs to find a way to make that power her own strength.' Sairaorg thought, believing she could win against her own dark power.

* * *

As Murasaki landed on the ground, Yumina landed on the ground, watching her slowly get up, when all of a sudden... the timid kunoichi began to shake, a distortion forming in her voice. Yumina looked at her worriedly once she heard it, while some of the audience's cheers going silent.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Uh... hey, does anyone know of Murasaki's alright? She doesn't look that good.**

"No, oh god no... Yumina actually managed to push her that far!?" Ophelia said fearfully.

Murasaki's body began emitting its dark aura, with her eyes taking their form of two deep pools of darkness, and her voice become a distorted echoing scream as her Catastrophe Core threatened to go out of control.

** _Destroy everything! Rip it apart, bring catastrophe to those who wrong you!_ **

"Oh crap!" Yumina began sweating, trying to back up a bit.

"...N-no! Don't lose control, d-don't lose control!" Murasaki gasped, holding her head as she tried to fight it off with little success.

Everyone could only stare as Murasaki began battling her own Sacred Gear for control, and it looked like she was losing as her hair started to take the shape of shadowy claws. Ineelana began to shake at the sight, thinking she should throw in the white towel again.

Unfortunately, she noticed Vali had the same idea, and because of that, neither was able to bring themselves to do it.

'If one of them had tried to do it in advance, it would have happened, but seeing the other fighting with their towel makes it too hard for either to consider it. Neither wants to lose, and there's no guarantee they'd have a draw... it's the one time a white towel usage not being done can be excused.' Edelweiss thought, gritting her teeth slightly.

"...MURASAKI, DON'T LOST TO YOURSELF!" Ineelana screamed.

Murasaki's eyes froze at that, looking towards her King as she felt her power slowly creep its control of her even further, and soon noticed the rest of her team beside her.

"That's right! This power is yours, that Sacred Gear isn't your master, and it never will be!" Stella exclaimed.

"Please, we've come all this way together, don't let your fight end here!" Yumi begged.

"I fought against my own darkness, you can do it too, and you can win!" Ophelia shouted.

"You let that darkness take over, and I'll smack you until I can knock it out!" Tamara yelled.

"We believe in you!" Sinon encouraged.

"You're the Queen of this team, aren't you? Then fight like one!" Mine warned angrily.

Murasaki's eyes shook at that, hearing her team's words trying to reach her, even as she felt herself losing to her power.

** _Why bother listening to them? Just give in, destroy them all! Destroy, smash the world apart, and rip it to shreds!_ **

?

Murasaki felt her power try to control her more.

"N-no... I won't, those are my... friends, my... family!" Murasaki grunted, pushing against Sacred Gear's control.

** _You will do as I tell you, give in! The darkness is here, stop trying to say it's not, all that waits for you is despair like it always has!_ **

"I... said..." Murasaki breathed out.

As the darkness tried to creep up onto Murasaki completely... a small light shined in her heart, causing the darkness to suddenly shake with pain.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

** _WHAT IS THIS!? NO, STOP IT! GET THAT HOPE AWAY FROM ME!_ **

Murasaki screamed louder, and suddenly everyone saw the darkness in her start to change.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**I... I... what?**

"Murasaki?" Ineelana breathed, wondering if she was seeing a miracle.

**「** **One Piece: Reborn! The Straw Hat Pirates** **」**

Within Murasaki's body, the black core that represented her Sacred Gear began screaming in pain, soon transforming entirely as the darkness within her burst away, changing it into a white-colored core shining with light.

** _NO! YOU WERE... SUPPOSED TO FALL... TO THE NEGATIVITY IN YOUR HEART!_ **

The negativity within her burst away, with her resolve finally destroying it as her Sacred Gear changed from the Catastrophe Core, into the [Miracle Core] as it awakened a new power! Panting a bit, Murasaki's eyes showed two pools of light in her eye before her power vanished, exhausted over what she just did.

"She... she just..." Yumi's voice shook as she couldn't find the words.

"Did she just alter a Sacred Gear!?" Tamara exclaimed in shock.

"No, I don't think she changed it, more like... she dispelled corruption that was within the Sacred Gear!" Ophelia explained, still in awe.

* * *

Azazel thought a bit, and suddenly realized something.

"Could that really have been it? Was this Sacred Gear changed because of some kind of dark power?" He wondered aloud.

"Like it had been corrupted?" Mirana mentioned.

"Remember the stories behind Muramasa? If you take that into account, then maybe it wouldn't be unreasonable to say most Sacred Gears with dark natures could be the same, I mean it's only a theory right now, but still..." Azazel mentioned.

Asuka blinked upon hearing that, looking at Murasaki again.

"Well, whatever it was before, I think Murasaki just proved that corruption can be purged. This must be her Sacred Gear's true form." She remarked.

* * *

Murasaki soon took a deep breath, looking at Yumina.

"It might be weird of me to say this, but... I think you helped give my friends the strength they needed to encourage me, to break the curse on my own power." She stated, still panting as she cracked a smile.

"Uh... thanks I guess, so are you still good with going on?" Yumina chuckled embarrassingly, followed by her question.

Murasaki got up on her feet at that moment, taking a deep breath.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Looking at Yumina, she spun her shuriken again, giving her answer as the crowd cheered in response.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**This is it! Murasaki has her second wind, now let's see it blow across this battlefield!**

Yumina rushed forward with incredible speed, readying black orbs in her hand. Taking a deep breath, Murasaki moved her hair before gathering purple energy between them, finally drawing her Sacred Gear's power of her own control while lacking any fear in using it.

"**Core Breaker!**"

She launched it out, while Yumina simply teleported away from it... only for the orb to quickly turn, homing in on her movement.

"A seeker attack!?" Yumina gasped.

"**Core Breaker!**"

The Lucifuge heiress turned, seeing Murasaki fire more of those spheres at her, forcing her to teleport more.

'Quick, I gotta get near her!' She thought.

Murasaki noticed Yumina run by her, and then teleporting behind her. Gasping a bit, she guarded herself as her own attacks smashed into her body. When the smoke cleared, she noticed the black spheres that Yumina often used floating around her.

**「** **Naruto Shippuden: Douten/Heaven Shaking Event** **」**

"Wait a second, aren't these-" Murasaki sweated, recalling what Ineelana warned her about.

"You did well Murasaki, but now the time for me to win has come!" Yumina shouted.

At that moment, the violet-haired kunoichi noticed Yumina rapidly teleporting around her at incredible speeds, creating many illusionary counterparts of herself as she found herself surrounded.

"**Phantasm... SCHISM!**"

Murasaki gasped as the illusions all prepared to smash her with a phantom pain strike.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Can she dodge that attack!? I don't think she can, looks like Yumina might win this match!**

Everyone gasped, wondering what the result would be, and then Murasaki closed her eyes as her power drew out again, making Yumi gasp as she realized what she might be doing.

'Could it be? Is she going to try a controlled version of...' Yumi thought in disbelief.

"**MIRACLE FORCE!**"

*BURST*

The illusionary copies of Yumina all gasped as a mass of energy spread out of her body, forcing the real one to turn intangible as all the copies were swallowed up. The real one slid across the field, running away from the energy wave coming towards her.

Once it faded, both fighters were shown coughing up heavily, nearing their last breathes.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Both of them are on their last legs! Neither of them is giving an each, and it is thrilling! This is the kind of match that pushes you to the limit, so the question is... Who. Will. Hit it. FIRST!?**

Yumina chuckled at that comment, looking at Naud.

"I can answer that right now..." Yumina replied.

At that moment, everyone saw Yumina suddenly fall onto her back, surprising everyone.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Murasaki was surprised at that, with Yumina sighing as she slumped onto the ground with a smile.

"...I will, because I overdid that last attack, you won because I didn't think my best attack could have been countered by you at that one moment." Yumina laughed, somehow perfectly fine she lost.

** _ Winner: Murasaki! _ **

After being silent for a bit, walking up to her.

"I'm surprised, how you didn't think you had the strength, if you pushed me this far." Yumina questioned, honestly surprised.

"...I was always weak, my father seemed to treat me like a nuisance, I couldn't even throw a simply shuriken right." Murasaki began explaining.

Everyone went silent, listening to her, with Ineelana and Yumi both went silent.

"Nothing I ever did was good enough, maybe it was because no one believed in me, or I didn't believe in myself, but I don't think that would matter. Although that's something I think people should know, I stand here now because people were there for me when no one else was, and Ineelana even trusted me with her strongest Evil Piece. After all, I think anyone can make anyone possible, if someone like me could... someone who was apparently a failure." Murasaki stated, looking at the crowd.

"Isn't that why everyone fought up to this point? You have dreams, so don't let reality put you down, because there are people who will raise you." She smiled.

At that moment, she soon collapsed herself, making Yumi gasp as she rushed onto the field. Yuuma soon got on the field to help Yumina.

Smiling a bit, Chisato raised her hand up.

"The winner is Murasaki!" Chisato announced.

At that moment, rather than cheers, everyone began clapping in response to her victory. Some crying tears of joy at her words. Edelweiss looked at the crowd, seeing a new light in them, with Lilith smiling for similar reasons.

"I tried to win two fights when I was competing, although I couldn't do it. Guess that was because Murasaki was the one who needed to win two more than I did." Yuuma smiled, looking Murasaki's way as she headed back to the Lucifer Team stand.

Finally bringing Murasaki back to the Leviathan Team stand, everyone looked at Murasaki's unconscious form.

"Murasaki... you did it, thank you... thank you for not giving up." Ineelana smiled, crying a bit.

Taking her hand in hers, she saw her KO'd form give a slight smile.

"Take a good rest, your fight is done, and when you wake up... your life will finally be yours to live." She smiled, rubbing her head.

As that was happening, the pictures of Irina and Xenovia appear on screen, and both of them looked at it in response, soon smiling as the two friends had another chance to settle their score. Both drew their swords in advance, with Vali looking at her Knight in response.

"Whoa, Irina... you seem like this was a destined deal kind of battle." She mentioned.

"Xenovia and I have clashed multiple times, but to this day... we've never had a chance to decide the real winner in a fight between us. This is our chance to finally do just that." Irina replied, smiling in anticipation.

As she headed to the field, her teammates went white eyed, sweating with worry.

"Oh boy... Vali, am I the only one thinking this might go past being a normal, friendly match?" Issei asked in concern.

"I think we all feel that way." Vali replied with equal concern.

Both fighters soon head onto the battlefield as it finished being repaired, the wind blowing in response.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**A clash between two legendary sword wielders, who will win such a battle?**

Both fighters held out their swords as they shined.

* * *

**Now that battle makes both sides tide once again, leaving only three battles left. As you might have noticed in the start notes, these next few matches are called the "big three", my reasoning for that is because among Vali's group, I consider Irina, Issei, and Vali as the strongest members in her peerage, being weakest to strongest in that order. So, the last few members fighting on Vali's side are the ones who have the best chances of winning their matches.**

**However, all three of them also have opponents who can easily face off against them, making it fairly even. Like Irina just mentioned, she and Xenovia are so equal that they've never had a decisive match against each other, so this is the first time they'll actually get a genuine result, be it one of them wins, or they tie against each other. For Kirin, her Sacred Gear lets her adapt to her opponent, meaning Issei's techniques aren't gonna be as effective against her.**

**I don't think I need to say anything about why Ineelana's gonna be challenging for Vali, considering the debilitation poison still in her system, and the fact that Leviathan represents Envy, meaning among the sins... Leviathan's second only to Lucifer. I know most people I've asked agree with me, as when I questioned them if Leviathan or Satan would be Lucifer's right hand among the seven sins, they all chose the former.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	61. Chapter 61

**I'm not sure if this is the most accurate term for this situation, but... I guess this is the Quarterfinal match among the Championship Battle? *shrugs* Well, there's only two more after this, so I think it's technically correct, sorta. Either way, this match is the battle between Irina and Xenovia, the clash between the Excalibur, Durandal, and Joyeuse blades to see who can come out on top!**

**This is probably one of the battles that is the most straight forward overall, since it's a clash between blades, sword against swords. Not only that, but like it canon (at least according to the one DX story where they redo the match with Riser), they have a score to settle between them. At the very least, that'll make them both more competitive and serious about the match... which is also worrying a lot of people as seen by the Lucifer Team's reactions**

**Well, let's start this clash of blades! *brandishes a kendo sword, only to hit myself on the forehead* As for me... I'll start getting a bandage on my head ^^;**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Holy Swords **

**The ultimate swords an exorcist can get their hands on, and the counterpart to Cursed Swords. Like their counterparts, there has never been another one since the end of the Great War, but unlike their counterparts, currently have more overall that still exist, despite having confirmed losses during in comparison. As the name implies, they are swords surging with the holy attribute, and have unique powers to them.**

**What makes Holy Swords truly unique is there's no downside to wielding them like those who wield their counterparts, but in exchange, they're also much harder to wield overall. This was eventually proven through Valper Galilei to be the result of certain genes that are required, and that those who are born with them can wield any Holy Sword, although certain swords do better under a specific user, like Xenovia with the Durandal.**

**Among the Holy Swords that have been destroyed, most of them have been confirmed to be the blades that once belonged to the Knights of the Round Table, with a few others having been lost, but with less information about what caused their ends, or their names. In the present, only a total of eight Holy Swords still exist, with only seven of them currently in possession across six wielders.**

**The most powerful of them is Caliburn, which can only be wielded by the Pendragon family bloodline, being truly unbreakable, and able to cut through dimensions, allowing passage into the Dimensional Gap if needed, its current wielder being Arthur Pendragon. Excalibur, which is the second strongest, and able to use the powers of speed, blessings, mimicry, invisibility, illusions, destruction, and control, but broken into seven blades before being reformed, and latter given to Irina Shidou.**

**Durandal, which is stated to be on par with Excalibur, able to control pure energy, and almost able to cut through anything, but also very hard to tame without strong willpower. It is currently in possession of Xenovia, who also possess the Joyeuse, a blade that enhances the reaction time of the one holding it, allowing them to react in situations they normally couldn't.**

**Hauteclere, a blade that can purify the souls of those it slashes, which is currently in the possession of Jeanne d'Arc Yuuto. Ascalon, a Holy Sword that has the power to slay Dragons, which is in Issei Akane's possession, although altered so he could use it without the right gene combination through his Boosted Gear. The Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, a blade that cuts through anything and manipulates the wind and weather, which is wielded by Asuka Ayoma.**

**Only the Totsuka no Tsurugi, a Holy Spirit Sword from ancient times, has its current whereabouts unknown, though it's implied to currently be with the Hero Clan, and in someone's possession.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 15 - Irina VS Xenovia _ **

As that was happening, the pictures of Irina and Xenovia appear on screen, and both of them looked at it in response, soon smiling as the two friends had another chance to settle their score. Both drew their swords in advance, with Vali looking at her Knight in response.

"Whoa, Irina... you seem like this was a destined deal kind of battle." She mentioned.

"Xenovia and I have clashed multiple times, but to this day... we've never had a chance to decide the real winner in a fight between us. This is our chance to finally do just that." Irina replied, smiling in anticipation.

As she headed to the field, her teammates went white eyed, sweating with worry.

"Oh boy... Vali, am I the only one thinking this might go past being a normal, friendly match?" Issei asked in concern.

"I think we all feel that way." Vali replied with equal concern.

Both fighters soon head onto the battlefield as it finished being repaired, the wind blowing in response.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**A clash between two legendary sword wielders, who will win such a battle?**

Both fighters held out their swords as they shined.

"Alright Xenovia, time for me to finally win and settle our score!" Irina exclaimed, glowing with holy energy.

"Sorry, but that honor will go to me!" Xenovia replied, glowing with shadow energy.

Everyone gulped a bit as their auras flare out.

** _ Battle: Irina Shidou VS Xenovia Quarta _ **

The three holy swords react to their users, and Naud nervously began his announcement.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Uh... good luck to the both of you?**

Edelweiss shook her head as Chisato raised a hand.

**「** **Metal Gear Solid Revengeance: It Has to be This Way - Instrumental** **」**

"The match shall now... begin!" She announced.

Irina used her greater speed with Excalibur Rapidly's power to take the lead, rapidly swinging against Xenovia as she screamed. The Knight of Gremory begin moving both her swords to parry against the blows as Joyeuse's ability helped her react to Irina's increased speed, but compared to most Knights she fought with, it was clear she was being overwhelmed.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Whoa! While Xenovia's normally parried against the speed of a Knight, the power of Excalibur means that Irina's twice the Knight when it comes to speed, is her flurry of attacks too much for even her Joyeuse's ability to handle!?**

"Yeah! That's how you do it Irina, show the world a taste of what your made of!" Kunou cheered.

"You're doing great, keep going!" Issei shouted.

Grunting a bit, Xenovia spins, swinging Durandal as the Knight of Lucifer sees an explosion over her view. The entire crowd gasped before cheering loudly, only for the smoke to suddenly vanish as six copies of Irina run alongside the original, slowly disappearing and reappearing as they begin to blink in and out of view.

"Come on, show me what you've got!" All seven of Irina exclaimed.

Xenovia shifted her position, drawing the holy energy of her two swords together to create a bright flash. Seeing the holy wave coming, the Irina group gathered together, soon holding up their Excaliburs as they shifted to give a shield like appearance.

"**Excalibur Defender!**"

The aura of Excalibur Destruction shot off, repelling the strike that aimed at them.

Seeing a direct attack wouldn't work, Xenovia quickly jumped overhead, appearing behind the copies of Irina before rushing forward, swinging both her blades as each one of them was forced to parry and move out of the way. Xenovia shouted as she rushed her swings even faster, pushing the all seven of Irina to the limit.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Oh man, this match is like watching a lottery! With all of these moves they're showing, I can only guess what the jackpot's gonna be, is it gonna be Irina, or will it be Xenovia!?**

As their clash intensified, they began becoming blurs of their holy energy as it they began moving even faster, eventually causing such a big flash within the barrier that the crowd's cheering went into overdrive. however, Meliodas started to feel a bit worried about how big the flash of holy energy was starting to get.

"...Hey guys, am I the only one starting to get a bad feeling this holy energy could get out of control?" Meliodas asked with a scared expression, remembering how much of the crowd comprised of Devils.

"All in favor of having Sirzechs strengthen the barrier?" Edelweiss asked, raising her hand up.

The rest of the judges do the same, leaving 15 hands raised up, and their decision made. Edelweiss quickly formed a magic circle to call him.

"Sirzechs, we'd like you to raise Barrier layers 2-4 up as a precautionary measure." She warned as she watched the match progress.

In response, three extra barriers form with the first, causing four of them to overlay as the holy energy between the two kept firing off. Irina used Excalibur Mimicry and Destruction's powers together, having her clones disappear in an explosion, and then having her sword extend into multiple whips to slam the ground, ripping it apart.

Feeling the ground shift, Xenovia tried to keep her balance as Irina rushed at he, doing a frontal somersault slash towards the Gremory Knight. She was unable to block it, cutting sliced up a bit (luckily, the stadium kept her from being purged by Excalibur's power) before being pushed back.

'I must say, she's done well mastering the Excalibur's abilities.' Xenovia thought.

"**Twin Blade Storm!**"

Xenovia began spinning, causing two dual spirals of holy energy to fly out, making Irina gasp as she was hit by both, and cut up a bit as she tumbled across the battlefield.

Quickly getting on her feet again, although almost dropping, she panted a bit.

'I didn't expect that at all, but I'm not giving up!' Irina thought.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The two rushed at each other again, preparing for their next round of attacks.

* * *

"Hey, what's this?" Tadami wondered.

"You see something?" Ouryuu asked.

She walked near a container deep in the room, rubbing to see a person not like the Naberius abominations.

"I see... yeah, it looks like a person, a girl." Tadami looked deep inside the pod.

Diehauser took a look at it, and when he did... his eyes widen as if he had just seen a ghost.

"...Diehauser, what's wrong?" Tobio asked, surprised at his reaction.

"...Notice anything about that girl's appearance?"

Everyone decided to take a closer look, the girl inside looked to be around high-school age, having a modestly buxom figure, though being a bit shorter than most girls her age. Her eyes were closed, hiding their green color, but her gray hair was recognized, being a similar shade to Diehauser's own-

And it was at that moment they suddenly stopped their train of thoughts, piecing what they had just seen. Diehauser looking shocked. Someone that was around Rias' age. Contained in an Elder owned facility. Same hair as Diehauser. The clues all came together, revealing there was only one possibly answer to this girl's identity... despite everything that claimed she was dead, apparently trapped in what seemed to be a forced cryosleep, was Cleria Belial!

"That girl... is your so-called dead cousin!" Tadami exclaimed in realization, shocked beyond all comprehension.

"WHAT!?" Ouryuu exclaimed in shock.

Tobio just stood there, with his mouth hanging wide open, and Jin... fainted on his side.

"T-this doesn't make any sense, why would she be here? If the Elders wanted her dead, why would they-" Tadami panicked.

"She must have used her Worthless ability on herself, so everything they used to make her seem dead wasn't, that's the only explanation for why they'd keep her living." Diehauser answered, giving a shaky glare at the capsule.

"Huh?" Tadami was confused.

"Remember the cover story? They were killed at the same time, if Cleria faked her death to try exposing the truth, the Elders learning she survived would have caused suspicion if she was proven alive. However, there was as much of a risk just trying to finish the job." Tobio realized, knowing this kind of tactic from his time working for Grigori.

Tadami's eyes widened, realizing that made sense.

"Not just that, I bet this capsule might be trying to use her clan ability for their benefit. Look how easily I got through Zekram's protection, imagine what they could stop using the Belial Clan's power?" Diehauser added, having a few scary thoughts already.

"Then... shouldn't we get her out?" Tadami suggested.

"I don't think we can, we don't know how this machine works, one wrong move it could be set to finally kill her." Ouryuu warned.

That made Tadami sweat a bit, realizing he had a point... though it gave her another idea.

"Wait, if she's still alive in here, then at least taking this to public view would shred the Elders' credibility!" Tadami realized.

Diehauser nodded in agreement, looking for a way to safely move the capsule.

"You're right Tadami, because Zekram was among the council for both factions that decided on their deaths." He replied.

Eventually, he gets it off, though finds it a bit heavy.

"...Oh boy, a little help?" He groaned.

"How much does that thing weigh for someone like you to find it heavy?" Tadami wondered aloud, blinking a bit.

* * *

Irina and Xenovia clashed once again, feeling more slash against them from their latest rush, with both panting heavily as they neared their limits.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Whoa, both of them look like they might faint at any moment, could the next move that hits decide this?**

Looking at each other's condition, the two Knights stare at each other, with the Lucifer Knight smiling a bit as she looked at her opponent. Readying her sword once more, she made a suggestion.

"Hey, Xenovia? I think he's right, so why don't we finish this up?" She offered.

"...Fine by me." Xenovia smirked, after pausing for a moment.

They each took a moment to stare each other down.

**「** **Asterisk War: Ayato's Primacy** **」**

Taking a few steps forward, the crowd went silent from the anticipation as the two slowly neared each other. As they slowly neared each other, the sight of Ineelana focused on Xenovia, and Vali focused on Irina, was noticed. Others gave similar looks as the tension of their slow movements came to their attention.

At that moment, Irina slammed Excalibur into the ground, causing a huge crater to form! Using that moment, both sides began to rush forward, instantly marking their choice to take action, with Irina quickly rushing at Xenovia, and managing to fling Joyeuse from her hand.

"Oh no!" Xenovia gasped.

"I've gotcha now!" Irina smirked.

Xenovia quickly jumped, spinning a bit as she parried with Durandal, and catching her second sword in the air before landing a distance away. She rushed forward, sending more of the battlefield flying as Irina briefly tapped the ground, rushing at her. As Xenovia shouted for a slash, Irina slipped through using an Excalibur Nightmare illusion, followed by the debris around them moving like a cyclone was blowing.

"This is-" Xenovia realized.

Irina was seen running past the rocks before disappearing from view, making Xenovia grit her teeth.

"She used Excalibur Ruler's power on the debris!" She realized.

"Over here!"

"No, I'm this way!"

Xenovia turned to see Irina appearing in multiple places, each of which flickered between visible and invisible as she began forming holy slash marks in the air, making the shape of a star, and causing Issei to realize what she was doing.

"I saw her doing this the day I agreed to make her my Knight, that new attack she was working on!" He realized.

"What does it do?" Yuuma asked.

"I don't know, she hadn't managed to finish creating it, but I bet she has if she's using it now." Issei explained, looking back at her planning.

Xenovia instantly began rushing forward, preparing for her signature attack. Landing at that moment, Irina used Excalibur Mimicry's power to gather the slashes, forming a seven-pointed star before twirling it to shape Excalibur's blade in a similar way.

"**CROSS CRISIS!**"

"**SEVEN STAR SWORD STRIKE!**"

Holy energy exploded throughout the whole barrier, making no one able to tell who won as the shocked faces of the audience, VIP sections, the Elders, judges, Lucifer Team, and Leviathan Team all flashed by in rotation for a good minute or so.

Both fighters turned to each other, looking like nothing happened, and then... both suddenly fell over, their eyes changing into spirals as everyone in the audience gasped.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Looking at both sides carefully, the results were then announced.

"It's a double knockout, this match has ended in a draw!" Meliodas revealed.

"A..." Ineelana said in shock.

"...Draw?" Vali breathed in surprise.

The audience was equally silent, and then a massive uproar of cheering went off, with everyone still excited at the end result.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**This! Is! Unbelievable! Who could have seen this result coming!? These two titans of the swords clashed hard enough that they actually managed to bring themselves to a tie, and it was thrilling!**

Both Knights had their team's respective leaders help them back to the stands, where they soon shook of their dazes.

"W-what happened? Wait, who won?" Irina said groggily.

"Neither of you, the match ended in a tie." Vali explained.

The Knight of Lucifer's eyes widened at that, looking at the screen to see an "=" placed for each of their brackets like with Asia and Tamara, making her freeze up as it switched to Issei and Kirin's pictures.

"...A TIE!? Oh, COME ON!" Irina groaned loudly.

"Uh... if it helps, while it was a tie, I think Xenovia tipped over just a smidgen earlier." Issei mentioned.

Irina blinked a bit, relaxing into a smile.

"I'm counting that as my victory in our competition!" Irina cheered.

Everyone sighed in relief, glad that bomb was defused, regardless of if Issei had been honest or not. (He had)

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Now, it's time for the-**

"Wait, just a moment!" Issei called out.

Everyone showed surprise at that.

"I know my match is next, but mind giving us a minute? We need to prepare real quick." Issei requested.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Uh, well... if the Leviathan Team doesn't mind waiting, then we could allow it.**

"I don't mind, truth be told... I could kinda use a moment to prepare myself." Kirin admitted with embarrassment, her cheeks showing a slight blush.

"Very well, when both competitors appear on the field, then we'll officially begin the next round." Edelweiss agreed.

Everyone sighed, with Vali and Issei standing up as they created the magic circles to trade Irina.

"Alright Irina, time for you to entrust your sword to Issei, it was a good run having you by my side up until now." Vali smiled.

Irina nodded, tearing up a bit.

"I'll promise I'll keep doing you proud through Issei's peerage." She promised.

Everyone smiled at that, and soon the trading process happened, causing one of Issei's Knight pieces to appear in Vali's hand upon completion. With this trade, all the members that Issei had recently planned to add/trade into his peerage had joined him.

"It's official Irina, you're now Issei's first Knight." Vali smiled, a bit more of her purple flush fading away.

Irina smiled as Yuuma and Asia hugged her, and Ravel gave a proud look by their side.

Seeing the sight, Yumina walked over to Vali, finally intending to ask the question she had been unable to ask her before.

"So, what piece are you planning to make me?" Yumina asked.

"Well, truth be told... I'm not fully sure just yet. Maybe it might help if you told me which piece you think you'd be best as?" Vali admitted honestly, shrugging a bit.

Yumina blinked a bit, holding a finger up silently as she wasn't sure herself.

"Uh... truth be told, I don't know either." Yumina admitted.

"I see... well, I guess I'll need to think on it a bit more before I actually give you an Evil Piece. I've already gotta consider who will be my substitute Queen if I were to face Issei in a Rating Game." Vali had a bit more to think about before Yumina joined her.

With Kirin, she had rushed into the bathroom, hiding in a stall as she used magic on her clothes, which had been covered in sweat due to her slight nervousness over facing Issei as her opponent. After finishing with the cleaning, she sprayed some deodorant to clear the rest of her smell off.

"OK, I'm ready." She told herself, taking one last breath.

Kirin began rushing over to the battlefield, which had just finished being fixed up, as Issei readied to enter the field. The next battle between two Dragons was about to start, and it was clear this would be one of the most memorable fights during the Championship Battle.

* * *

**Yep, I had them tie. The reason for this had to do with the same DX story I mentioned in the start notes, they didn't get a clear winner either, so I figured that a draw was the best result for them in this match. Honestly, the two are both such great fighters, trying to choose one of them to win over the other wasn't something I could do when it was this kind of match.**

**And now, Issei no longer has to worry about his candidates waiting to join him anymore, though it seems that Vali has no idea what piece she should give to Yumina, who is just as unsure based on the ones she has. I will say I have decided, I just can't have her join Vali's peerage yet because that's a major spoiler... can't say anymore, I mean it 0_0**

**I think the biggest thing, something that a few of you may have already realized after Tadami noticed it, was the reveal of who was in that capsule. *giggles* Well, there you have it, Cleria's been alive (albeit she's in a frozen coma) all this time! This was actually hinted back during Lilith's one explanation in Season 4, and now the echo has reached out to this chapter to reveal it.**

**Well, after a long wait, we finally have Issei's round up next, and against the match I've really wanted to have happen! If you recall, my original plan was for Sairaorg to face Vali in the Finals, but I changed my mind because I couldn't bring myself to give Ineelana a loss after all her efforts. That's why I chose the rules for the Finals, so she could join Ineelana during it, because I still wanted the fight I had planned for them to happen... now, we've finally reached it! :3**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	62. Chapter 62

**Now, here's one of the two matches that I'm pretty sure most of you have been waiting for, Issei VS Kirin! It's the power of the Red Dragon Emperor: Ddraig, against the legendary blue Adapting Dragon: Bahamut! This is the first time throughout the entire Finals, and the only one at all, where two Dragons are gonna duke it out, so this is the most explosive fight!**

**I mean it, for one, those of you who've been waiting for another Diabolus Dragon moment? You'll see it, because Issei needs it against this kind of opponent ^^ *giggles* However, I think something else in the match will get your fancy better, something that was hinted a few matches back, so if you've been keeping watch on the things everyone in the stadium's been saying, you might have caught it already.**

**This fight also marks the moment that Issei participants in a Rating Game as a King, even if he's not the one actually being the King in the game. As a result, this match is more than just his fight with Kirin, he's literally showing everyone what he's capable as a new High-Class Devil, which also means all the members of his peerage are gonna see how he handles that first hand. *squees* I'm gonna love writing this chapter, and the next one!**

**We've got two Dragons here, so there's only one thing to say here... Dragons of Red and Blue? *puts on a Qipao Dress, and then kicks a nearby gong* Get ready to fly through the sky!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** The Great War **

**The massive conflict between the Angels, Devils, Fallen Angels, and Demons that happened an eternity ago, but ended around the same point the calendar switched between the BC and AD year system. It was a massive conflict that encompassed the entire world, and many still question how Humanity never got involved as a result, which has led to some strange theories in the present.**

**Because of the massive scale of the war, many supernatural races were forced to take sides, and other various pantheons/mythologies were occasionally dragged or hit by the conflict, with some being wiped out entirely, or put on the road to it (like the Ancient Gods who made the Gogmagogs), one example being the Elves who sided with the Devils while having a bad relationship with the Demons according to Mio's word.**

**During the war, many events happened, the most notable being the arrival of Ddraig and Albion, which forced a ceasefire between everyone to stop them, but ultimately required God to seal them within parts of their own bodies that he transformed into Sacred Gears that would eventually become two of the earliest of the current 13 Longinus.**

**Eventually, the war would end after who knows how long, and so many losses that even in the present, the entire Supernatural World is still unable to list them all, with all sides so ruined, and no winner to even have a side declare a Pyrrhic victory. Worse of all, during the conflict, both God and Satan were apparently killed in an attempt to seal away the dangerous Trihexa, while the remaining Great Devils were all slain, leaving the Angels and Devils without their deities.**

**No one truly knows how the Great War started, or who the catalyst was. Before the Peace Summit, the now deceased cadre of Grigori, Kokabiel, claims to have been the one to have caused it, but Rizevim states this was just him feeding his ego, implying that either he knows the truth, or at least a clue towards the true cause behind it. The only other clue is that the Great War happening was enough that no world destroying events like Ragnarok can now occur.**

**Whatever caused the Great War, the effects of it still seem to echo, and Rizevim intends to resound it through freeing Trihexa.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 16 - Issei VS Kirin _ **

With Kirin, she had rushed into the bathroom, hiding in a stall as she used magic on her clothes, which had been covered in sweat due to her slight nervousness over facing Issei as her opponent. After finishing with the cleaning, she sprayed some deodorant to clear the rest of her smell off.

"OK, I'm ready." She told herself, taking one last breath.

Kirin began rushing over to the battlefield, which had just finished being fixed up, as Issei readied to enter the field. The next battle between two Dragons was about to start, and it was clear this would be one of the most memorable fights during the Championship Battle.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Oh, I've got news everyone! It seems Kirin's ready, and now that Issei's prepared, we can begin this match once they both get on the field!**

Eventually, Kirin did a catapult jump over the stands, landing within the center area as Issei finally walked inside of it, looking at his opponent before stopping closely near the center as well. Looking at each other, the two walked towards each other.

"Issei, before we begin... I just want you to know, how long I've wanted to battle against you. I'll admit I'm terrified, but I won't falter here. To truly see my strength, I must face someone above me, that's what you and Ddraig are compared to me and Bahamut." Kirin stated, smiling with respect.

**"=Yes, it is an honor to fight the younger generation of my kind, especially those who were able to surpass even me. I regret that I never got the chance to face you in my original form="** Bahamut agreed, adding his own words of respect.

Issei chuckled before holding his left hand out, shaking Kirin's as she held out her own in response.

"Glad to hear it, I remember the determination you showed back during our adventure in the Elves' homeland, and how you got Sairaorg to truly show his full strength in the Semi-Finals. I'll make sure to respond to your strength and feelings with all of my own." He promised.

**"[Same from me Gramps, I'll show you the power of the Red Dragon Emperor, and nothing less than my full power!]"** Ddraig smirked, excited for the challenge before him.

They smiled at each other, walking away to get into a fighting distance.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Now that's what I call good sportsmanship, what a better thing for such an anticipated match! The two hosts of one of the world's third strongest beings, and the world's fourth strongest being... this is a clash for the ages! Alright, to all of our fans in the audience, let me hear it... Are! You! READY!?**

"YEAH!" They screamed in excitement.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**I can't hear you!**

"YEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAH!" They screamed again, cheering even louder.

** _ Battle: Issei Hyoudou-Akane VS Kirin Yamagari _ **

**"[WELSH DRAGON... BALANCE BREAKER!]"**

"**IMPACT TYRANT!**"

Kirin's body changes in response to her Sacred Gear activating, while Issei equips his Scale Mail.

_'[Issei, a little heads up]'_ Belzard alerted.

'What is it?' Issei asked.

_'[Don't use the Diabolus Dragon form until the latter half of the fight, you haven't used it past the one transformation, so you can only handle using it for about 5 minutes right now.]'_ Belzard explained.

'I see, thanks for letting me know.' Issei mentally nodded.

Both fighters readied themselves, and then Edelweiss rose up a hand, looking at the two.

**「** **Sonic Forces: Death Egg Robot - Final Phase** **」**

She quickly swung it down, making a powerful gust as she did.

"Battle Begin!" She exclaimed.

"Let's go!" Issei shouted.

Kirin rushed ahead, followed by Issei as they quickly began the match through an intense flurry of fast-paced punches, instantly making the entire battlefield shake in response to their incredible power raging out. Even the four layers on the barrier were starting to show signs of a struggle against their durability. Noticing this, Edelweiss make a magic circle to call Sirzechs again.

"We're gonna need all the barriers, and this time it isn't as a precautionary..." She stated, feeling a bit annoyed as her hair blew all over her face.

The last three layers overlay, and the two Dragon users are quickly pushed back from the force.

"Come on Ddraig, we gotta push harder!" Issei shouted.

**"[You're speaking my language now!]"**

Issei roared as he began surging his power up to its limits.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

**"[CRIMSON DOMINATION FIST!]"**

Kirin readied herself as Issei boosted towards her at top speed, her eyes focusing.

**=ADAPTION=**

At the moment Issei prepared to punch, Kirin reacted in advance, with her skin glowing slightly to defend against the blow.

**[PENETRATE!]**

**=ADAPTION=**

Kirin's arm caused a rebound effect, pushing her away in time to avoid her defense being smashed through. Issei was surprised at that, but still expected it, and quickly rushed ahead as he prepared for whatever might come next.

'I'll admit, she's impressive, I didn't think she'd be able to do that.' He thought.

'Man, I'm really pushing myself... this guy's no joke.' Kirin thought, panting a bit.

Issei jumped up into the air, and his armor opened its hidden mouth slot.

"EAT THIS!" He shouted.

Breathing out his fire, Kirin's eyes widen in response, soon shifting her feet.

"**Grand... IMPACT!**"

**=ADAPTION=**

Smashing the ground, huge slabs of stone flung at the Sekiryuutei, who quickly flew around, or punched his fist through the rock gale that had been launched his way. Kirin smirked as she looked at her fellow Dragon, and began rushing ahead.

'Regulus, our training payed off in the end.' She thought.

* * *

_Sairaorg's peerage was watching Kirin train alongside with Regulus on an old mountain formation out in the middle of nowhere, with the former wearing weights everyone as she coughed heavily, being pushed to the limit as the Longinus' Spirit ran her ragged through his efforts._

_"Stand up Kirin, this is only one part of the struggle you have to overcome." Regulus stated._

_"Regulus..." Kirin breathed, looking at him._

_"Bahamut's power is to adapt to the environment, the very lands that sit on this Earth. Just as Ddraig and Tannin are Dragons of fire, Albion is one of ice, Vritra represents the darkness, Fafnir represents metal, and Tiamat represents raw energy she produces as flames, the power of Bahamut comes from the element of stone itself. If you can't master this power, you can't call yourself a true wielder of Bahamut's power." Regulus stated, giving a fierce look._

_Kirin gritted her teeth, pushing herself up._

_"Don't you dare... say I'm not... serious about this!" Kirin screamed, her body glowing blue._

_Regulus smirked, realizing he successfully pushed her far enough._

_"I'LL LET YOU SEE IT YOURSELF, YOU STUPID CAT!" Kirin screamed, making the mountain rumble._

_"W-wait, Kirin, I think you might be overdoing-" Regulus sweated, not liking what the mountain shaking had begun to imply._

_At that moment, the entire mountain glowed before shattering apart! Once the dust settled, Kirin breathed heavily, soon laughing as she pointed towards Regulus, feeling a bit of pride at the power she showed._

_"Hah! See that Regulus, I totally... just..." Kirin trailed off as she saw exactly what she had done._

_She saw everyone a bit dazed as they were caught under the debris of the former mountain, with Regulus crawling out from a bit of it. The host of the legendary blue Dragon's eye twitched as she saw the sight._

_"...OK, not to self. Pissing you off might not be the best idea for training." He mentioned, blacking out immediately after._

* * *

Preparing to kick Issei, she stretched her leg out as it glowed with a blue aura.

"**Strike Fang!**"

Her leg began rotating like a drill, and right as she neared Issei, he grabbed her foot, tossing her behind her. The audience cheered as the match's intensity kept increasing, with the battlefield almost in ruins by their overwhelming attacks, and the first layer of the barrier slightly cracked.

**[BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!] [BOOST!]**

"**FLAME WAVE!**"

A wave of fire flies at Kirin, though she smirks as she prepares to counter, and begins spinning.

**"=Wait, Kirin! Don't use that-="** Bahamut warned, realizing this would end badly.

"**SANDSTORM!**"

A cyclone of sand hits the fire, however... the entire audience realized what Bahamut had only moments after their elements collided, with the sand turning into shards of glass! Kirin panicked, soon running away from the hazard she accidentally created.

"Sand and fire make glass? Why didn't any warn me!?" Kirin exclaimed.

**"=WHAT DO YOU THINK I WAS TRYING TO DO, GENIUS!?="** Bahamut shouted, both angry and annoyed.

Once she dodged the attack, both she and Issei prepared for their next attacks.

**[BOOST!] x50**

**=ADAPTION=**

Their auras flared, and the audience went wild.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**THEY'RE ABOUT TO FIRE OFF SOME MAJOR ATTACKS! I CAN FEEL THE ENERGY SHAKING THE STADIUM FROM HERE, AND THEY HAVEN'T EVEN USED THEM YET!**

Both of them roared, instantly releasing their attacks.

"**MAGMA BARRAGE!**"

"**RAINING AVALANCHE!**"

The entire barrier was filled with intense heat and rock chunks, smashing into each other, with barely anyone in the audience able to make out the two, even more so as the recoil of the wind passed through every layer of the barrier, making them scream from the force.

* * *

Asuka drew out Kusanagi, making a gale to try and lessen the storming winds blowing against those in the Lucifer Team's VIP area.

"Incredible!" Asuka grunted.

"Just how much power are they both emitting!?" Mio asked loudly.

"These are two of the strongest five beings when their wielders haven't even awakened their full power, such overwhelming strength!" Rossweisse grunted.

Lilith nearly fell over, soon grabbing out to catch Nainen when she was nearly blown away.

"And if I'm right, Issei hasn't even used _that_ yet!" Lilith stated.

"...That!?" Basara questioned.

"His newest, and right now his most powerful ability!" Nainen answered, climbing back into her seat.

She nearly flies off again, only for Tiamat to fly in, catching her before she landed in the BIP seating in her Human form.

"Looks I made it in time to see something big, let's take a look to see what that something is!" Tiamat said excitedly.

'I'm not sure if I should be worried or not about her saying that.' Asuka mentally sweat dropped.

* * *

Soon enough, the tow attacks imploded on each other, slamming both fighters into the barrier's walls. As everyone in the audience felt the wind die down, they saw both fights get back up, not looking anywhere near tired.

**"[...Ah! Partner, it looks like 5 minutes have passed, time to whip it out.]"** Ddraig stated.

"Alright, then time to cut loose!" Issei declared.

Kirin looked at Issei oddly, seeing him suddenly walk forward a bit before stopping, holding out is arms.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The audience gave a similar reaction, only stopping once Issei crossed them, his aura flaring out heavily as he prepared to activate his greatest ability. Silhouettes of his predecessors quickly passed by, all beginning to activate the power alongside him.

"**[I, who has awakened! I am the Heavenly Red Dragon who discarded the title of Domination! I shall walk the road of righteousness by having infinite dreams, and become the Crimson King of the Future! I promise you all, I shall reveal the path with true crimson light!]**" Issei and Ddraig chanted together.

"**[DIABOLUS DRAGON - GOD!]**"

A bright red flash went off, making the audience all give shocked gasped as they saw Issei's Scale Mail shattered, then replaced with an evolved form that resembled a Dragon even more than it had prior, with a few traits that matched Ddraig's body.

Kirin gasped at the sight, with Bahamut having gone entirely speechless, even all of the Elders were giving horrified looks at the power.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**W-what is this? I've never seen our Sekiryuutei use this power before now, is this the ace in the hole he's been saving? Whatever it is, that name... Diabolus Dragon, I can only imagine the power tied to it.**

Issei readied himself, opening part of his chest plate as a green orb was seen, followed by his armor shifting its blasters into view.

**[BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x? [BOOST!] x?**

**[LONGINUS... SMASHER!]**

"LONGINUS SMASHER!?"/**"=LONGINUS SMASHER!?="**

Kirin looked around, trying to run as fast as she can in hopes to make Issei miss, or at least let his attack limit his actions while she prepared to attack him. After seeing him not act, she took a chance to strike him.

"You're mine!" Kirin exclaimed.

"...Think again!" Issei announced.

Kirin suddenly noticed his blasters converging with the chest orb, and a mass of power was aimed towards the ground.

"Oh no!" Kirin exclaimed.

"=Kirin!=" Bahamut shouted in worry.

**=ADAPTION=**

Kirin guarded herself in midair as Issei fired off his attack, blinding everyone as it was released, making the audience scream at the immense power being used. Kirin was eventually flung through the air, slamming hard into the roof of the first barrier layer, making it crack even more before she fell to the ground.

Issei's chest plate closed itself, and he turned to Kirin's down formed.

"Ddraig, think that ended it?" Issei asked.

**"[Not sure, but that power had to have been more than Bahamut could fully adapt to, there's no way that didn't leave her with some massive damage.]"** Ddraig answered honestly, since the Diabolus Dragon's power was still new to him.

Everyone watched, seeing Kirin struggle to get up, but clearly showing she was getting on her feet.

"I... I can't fall here, I won't!" Kirin grunted, shaking as she got up.

"I promised that, I would keep fighting, until I... became stronger than who I was before! Until I can't muster any more strength, I will face you... with all my strength... Red Dragon Emperor!" Kirin exclaimed.

A powerful burst went off, surprising everyone as they saw it, with Edelweiss' eyes shrinking as she noticed.

"That light, it's..." She realized.

Kirin screamed as he unknowingly formed charged power form her Sacred Gear.

"**LONGINUS SMASHER!**"

Issei was frozen in shock as he was hit by the same power he had just used, but not as intense. The entire crowd went silent, as that only meant one thing.

"The Impact Tyrant, it just... evolved into a Longinus!" Acnologia said in surprise.

Kirin saw Issei slam against the barrier, surprised at what she just did.

**「** **Akame ga Kill: Incursio Evolves** **」**

Looking at her hands, her voice stammered.

"B-Bahamut, did I just..." She asked in shock.

**"=Kirin, this the proof of how far you've come, the path you chose="** Bahamut realized, closing his eyes.

Kirin's eyes widened at that.

**"=I know it, you are the one... I feel my full power awakening!="** Bahamut began to feel power surging in him.

Kirin's eyes began watering.

"Are you saying, that I..." Kirin couldn't believe what she was hearing.

**"=DO IT KIRIN! AWAKEN THE BALANCE BREAKER, SHOW THE WORLD WHO YOU ARE!="** He roared, his eyes flashing as they opened.

Hearing this, the Pawn of Bael began to feel her aura tremble.

With a mighty echoed roar, that aura exploded, announcing to the world what she was about to do.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**SOMETHING BIG IS COMING!**

"**BALANCE BREAKER!**"

Bahamut's form took shake through her aura, but this time that aura shook before the elderly form of the Dragon suddenly shredded apart, being replaced with a younger one that showed the great blue Dragon in his prime.

"She achieved the Impact Tyrant's Balance Breaker!?" Ineelana gasped.

"The first to ever do so, just what kind of power are we about to see?" Vali wondered, sweating in awe.

The aura forced itself into Kirin, and her usual transformation extended, with scales forming on her arms, cheeks, and legs. Her hands and feet turned into Dragon claws, an eye like gem formed on her shirt, with the cloth marking rims around it, and genuine Dragon wings sprouted from her back.

"**RAGING BAHAMOOT INCURSIO!**"

"In... credible..." Issei gasped.

At that moment, Kirin's wings flapped as she stared at Issei.

"Come at me... ISSEI!" Kirin screamed.

She flew at Issei, who rushed at her in return, making the two have their auras blast at each other as they neared each other.

**=EQUALIZER=**

**[BOOST!] x?**

They clashed, causing the entire stadium to shake.

"I WON'T LET YOU BEAT ME!" Kirin shouted.

Their auras grew larger, causing blue and red to smash against the barriers, getting everyone's silent attention and awe.

*KIRIN'S SCREAMS*

*ISSEI'S SCREAMS*

Their auras kept collided, making the barrier's form shift around in every direction.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**I... I... THIS IS JUST TOO INTENSE! I CAN'T SAY ANYTHING IN RESPONSE TO IT!**

The two Dragons butted heads with each other, refusing to give the other superiority in this fight.

"I WON'T LOSE TO YOU EITHER, I HAVE PEOPLE THAT I HAVE TO WIN FOR! PEOPLE WHO LOOK UP TO ME NOW! SO, I CAN NOT, AND WILL NOT LOSE!" Issei shouted.

The faces of Asuka, Ravel, Asia, Irina, Rossweisse, Yuuma, and Vali all quickly pass by.

"I SWEAR! VICTORY WILL BE MINE!" Both Issei and Kirin shout with everything they had left.

They slammed their fists against each other, with the barrier's layers all threatening to break as they began cracking, everyone still watching silently before it all came to end as those fists slipped by, causing a double strike not unlike a cross counter!

*BUZZ*

As time ran out, both fighters fell to the ground, losing their respective forms as they crashed into the ground. Everyone's eyes widened at the result that just happened.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Edelweiss went silent for a moment, soon standing up as she announced the results.

"By both means of a double knockout, and the time limit running out... this match is a draw!" She announced.

Unlike before, such a result gave silence from the shock.

"They... tied, in both possible ways?" Ineelana said in shock.

"Holy shit, if anyone had said this was gonna be the match's result before it began, I would have called them crazy for it... yet it actually happened right before us." Vali breathed, shocked beyond belief.

Eterna quickly rushed onto the field to heal them, while the repair team began doing their best to fix the damage to the barriers, and the stadium.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**I... I have no words, that match was just so intense... yet to know now we have 14 Longinus? That's amazing!**

Edelweiss closed her eyes, knowing he was a bit far off.

"For now, but I could tell that fourth match shows even 14 will be the wrong number soon." Edelweiss stated.

"So, you think that last moment was-" Chisato inquired.

"Had that match continued, we'd have a 15th Longinus already, it's only a matter of time... the world's starting to change, and this is the proof." Edelweiss answered.

Looking at Vali, her gaze soon shifted to the sky.

"...though is this the first sign of the Prophecy, or just a prelude to something that will be its true catalyst?" She whispered to herself.

Soon enough, the battlefield was fully repaired, and both competitors were brought back to their Team's stands, fully healed up. A moment after waiting, Issei found himself awake, shaking his head to remove the grogginess.

"Whoa... huh?" Issei blinked.

"Welcome back, that was an impressive match you pulled off." Kuroka remarked.

Issei blinked a bit, soon realizing he had passed out.

"Oh god, did I lose!?" He asked worriedly.

"No, you and Kirin actually had a draw, both by a time out _and_ a knockout." Kunou giggled, explaining the actual result to him.

"Whoa, seriously?" Issei said in shock.

Meanwhile on the Leviathan Team side, Xenovia took Kirin in her arms, the Bael Pawn still KO'd, much more exhausted than her opponent due to awakening her Balance Breaker, and her Sacred Gear's evolution into a Longinus.

"I'll take her back to Sairaorg, now go and fight in the last match without any worries." Xenovia stated, with Saji, and Xuelan standing with her.

"Right, I want to thank you all for getting me this far, and now... the time for me to help Vali free Hell from the Elders is here." Ineelana smiled, turning to face the battlefield.

They all nod, soon heading to the Leviathan VIP area.

Now, came the moment of truth that she knew she had to do, with her peerage looking at her worriedly. Raising her hands up, she took a deep breath, looking at them.

"Everyone, this is it... the moment I talked about." Ineelana stated.

"I just want you to know, regardless of what happens, I'm glad we fought this far together, and when this is other... we've still won through how we grow together. We'll make a bigger dream than the one before!" Ineelana exclaimed.

Each member of her peerage made their own expression of support, smiling in their own ways.

"Yeah, we know that, so go out there and do what you have to." Stella stated.

Ineelana smiled, soon taking a deep breath as the pictures of her and Vali appeared on the screen for the final match. She slowly walked onto the field, seeing Vali's poisoned appearance had lessened, but not vanished.

'Vali, you managed to keep us tied, so thank you, because... you've given me the means to render their rigging useless!' She thought, looking at Edelweiss.

Edelweiss noticed, nodding a bit.

'Alright, this is it... the final ace in our sleeves, now time for you Elders to have a taste of your own medicine!' She thought.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**This is it, the final match! Time for us to give the Final-**

"HOLD IT!"

Everyone in the audience was surprised, including the Elders, upon hearing Ineelana's shouting.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Oh, uh... is there something wrong?**

Ineelana took a deep breath, and with it... place the ace her thoughts just mentioned.

"With how far we've come, and all the blood, sweat, and tears my team has shed... I can't find myself winning just because of people voting for my victory! Because of this, and the fact our teams have tied scores, I request that this last match's victor be the ones that win!" Ineelana exclaimed.

The Elders' eyes nearly bugged out in shock, surprise, and anger at that claim, while the audience showed shock at that.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**SAY WHAT!?**

Vali showed surprise at that, only for Ineelana to make a hand motion to her, cluing her in there was a reason for this.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**H-HOLD ON! You can't just ask for the match rules to change out of nowhere, I mean what about the votes so-**

"We approve."

The audience and Naud all show shock as Edelweiss and the other judges spoke up.

"Provided that Vali agrees to her request, we shall allow it. However, we also won't let the points from your votes go to waste, so we'll use them like this... the one who has been given more votes so far will be allowed to request an advantage of their choice for the special final battlefield we've hidden underneath the current one." Edelweiss explained.

The audience thought on that a bit, and that's when Zekram angrily growled, standing up.

"No way, after all of this, I refuse to see the-"

"Yeah! Go for it, stick true to the Rating Game!"

He suddenly turned in shock as an audience member said that, and then... more followed.

"Yeah! Make it truly all or nothing!"

"The last match was amazing, give us something greater to end this Championship with!"

"Go for it, I wanna see it!"

"Yeah, a Lucifer VS Leviathan for the win would be awesome!"

As Zekram heard all of this, he sweated in shock, looking at Ineelana... causing his eyes to shrink as she gasped at the horrid realization. She had been controlling them, and they had fallen for it.

** _"That shows why your efforts are doomed to fail, even if my daughter doesn't win the Finals, the hearts of the people are slowly changing, but yours won't change with them... they aren't yours to control anymore." Lilith's voice echoed._ **

Zekram growled as those words she spoke rang through him, as if they were waiting to ambush him at this moment. Seeing this, Lord Bael put a hand on his shoulder, getting this attention as he had a more calmed expression.

"Let them say this, we still have the blackmail we can throw out the moment this match ends." He stated.

Zekram blinked, then smirked as he sat back down, confident they still had one final trump card unaware that it was slowly being torn apart without their notice. As Vali saw the crowd cheering, she saw Ineelana turning to smile at her.

"Ineelana, you..." She realized.

"Edelweiss knew since the match started that the Elders bribed some people, and had a rigging device to make sure I'd get more votes. She just pretended not to notice so we'd have this moment." Ineelana explained.

The heiress of Lucifer couldn't believe it, since this entire Championship Battle had started, Ineelana had planned with the judges to create this moment, just to create a chance for her to win. Seeing this expression, Ineelana had only one thing to say.

"Vali, just know this... I'm glad you and I met, because not only did you become my friend, I truly got to fight by facing you." Ineelana smiled.

She held out a hand to her.

"Now, let's truly change Hell together, through this one Final match." She stated, her smile not fading in the slightest.

Vali teared up a bit, remembering all the words everyone told her before they arrived at the stadium.

_"Together, no one's gonna bring us down!" Issei promised._

_"Vali, I know you'll achieve your dream." Le Fay smiled._

_"You've given me so much, and I know you'll give that to everyone else." Asia encouraged._

_"My sword is by your sword, even now." Arthur stated._

_"We're all here because of you." Irina smiled._

_"Show them who you are!" Bikou said, flashing a thumb's up as his teeth sparkled._

_"It's time I be a friend like I should have." Kuroka stated._

_"Let's see this to the end." Yuuma smiled._

_"Vali!" Kunou cheered._

Vali took Ineelana's hand, nodding her head as she smiled.

"Alright, let's do this... one match takes it all!" Vali agreed.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Well, there you have it! It's been decided! This final match is now going to decide the victor by who wins alone due to everyone's words!**

Everyone cheered, and their cheers sounded the one truth...

The last battle, and Vali's last blockade to free Hell, was about to be shattered for good!

* * *

**Take that you Elder bastards! You put your faith in someone who used you as much as you've used so many others, and now your rigging means squat in helping Ineelana win! Give the Leviathan heiress a reward for that, and a standing ovation to Lilith for her words meaning the most at the best possible moment! Now, everything Vali's been working towards can be a reality, all she needs to do now is win this battle!**

**And wow, now we have not just a 14th Longinus, but confirmation that Saji's close to awakening the 15th. Most of you have asked me before if we'd see this happen, and back then I said it was in consideration, but now? *smiles* Now, it's become a reality, and they're not the only two that'll go through this, but I'm not saying which ones, other than canon has already hinted one possible candidate ^^**

**We've been waiting for this for a long time, and now... Vali is about to fight the Finals, though she has to do it while poisoned, weakened, the risk of what will happen if she loses, and the pretty much guaranteed fact that Ineelana's gonna have more votes, meaning she'll be choosing the advantage for this last battle. Everyone, cheer her on, because the daughter of Satan is finally going to reclaim the one thing Hell was almost meant to be... free.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	63. Chapter 63

**OK, before I say anything else... *wheezes tiredly, and falls to the ground* Holy crap, who knew preparing the 12 chapters for this Championship Battle in a row due to their interlocked nature would push me so far? I feel like I just ran a marathon, but with my hands! Had these chapters all been my usual minimum, I'd understand being this winded, but most of these chapters were either a fraction of my usual ones.**

**Well, I'll just consider that a testament to how hard I worked on them all, and now... that proof is here with the deciding battle between Vali and Ineelana! While she may be suffering from a debilitating poison that she could only get 15% out of her body, and is currently incredibly weak, she's going to be doing the same thing that Issei was... not giving up, and pushing herself to win, no matter how much strength she needs to succeed!**

**This chapter will have the most among all the Championship Battle chapters, because with how the last eleven have been building it up, this is the chapter where the Elders will finally fall! So, how will I finally crush those bastards and give them what they deserve? Oh, I think what I have in store will be more than satisfying enough, so get ready to see them break down once I get far enough. Plus, if that isn't enough... Vali's got a surprise to show you this chapter :3**

**Now, with all of that said... *takes out sunglasses and puts them on* Time to end this game, because there's only one King that can win.**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** The Prophecy **

**A mysterious subject that has been brought up as of recently, so mysterious that as of right now, the only people who are confirmed to know about it are Edelweiss, Rizevim, Euclid, and certain people allied to the other two. However, it's implied due to Edelweiss knowing that Satan knew of it before his death, and Cao Cao has also hinted he may know it, implying God did as well due to his will surviving within the True Longinus.**

**The nature of this prophecy is strange, only seemingly hinted by events yet to come, while possibly also relating to the unknown origin of the Great War, which is still unknown even in the present day. Even among those who know of it (or maybe just Edelweiss, as how much Rizevim's group knows hasn't been clarified), it isn't known what this prophecy is even about. A coming storm? Saving the world? Trihexa's return? Not a single answer is in sight.**

**Even less is known about what's within the prophecy itself, but that doesn't mean the entire thing is a complete enigma... there is one clue. Apparently, based on Rizevim's past actions, the prophecy has some kind of connection to Issei and Vali, or at the very least, the Dragons sealed inside of them. This is further reinforced by Cao Cao, who has mentioned something that hints God told Ddraig and Albion something important, but they have since forgotten.**

**Whatever the prophecy is, Edelweiss thinks that it won't be much longer before its importance finally forces itself on both the Human, and Supernatural Worlds.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 17 - Vali VS Ineelana _ **

Vali took Ineelana's hand, nodding her head as she smiled.

"Alright, let's do this... one match takes it all!" Vali agreed.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Well, there you have it! It's been decided! This final match is now going to decide the victor by who wins alone due to everyone's words!**

Everyone cheered, and their cheers sounded the one truth...

The last battle, and Vali's last blockade to free Hell, was about to be shattered for good!

'Vali, this is it... you've finally made it.' Vali thought to herself.

The image of Satan flashes through her head, and she tightens her fist, readying her resolve to win this match as she took a deep breath.

'No holding back!' She promised herself.

'She's fired up, even if I can't just let her win, I know she'll give me a good fight.' Ineelana thought, looking excited by Vali's expression.

As they stared each other down, Naud took a drink of water before clearing his throat.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Alright, let's see who got more votes, and the right to gain an advantage for this battle!**

Edelweiss and the other judges hit a button, showing the score for each heiress.

Vali: 10,384 | Ineelana: 12,637

**【** **Naud** **】**

**And the honor goes to Ineelana!**

Zekram looked surprised, the gap should have been triple that due to their rigging giving her triple points, just how many people had been favoring Vali over Ineelana? He clinched his fist in anger, glaring at the young Lucifer heiress.

"Hmm, what should my advantage be?" Ineelana thought.

"I know! Judges, I want our battlefield to be the same one that our ancestors first met on!" Ineelana requested.

That surprised a few, as such a battlefield didn't give her an advantage. The savvier people realized she had chosen it for a different reason.

"Alright then, Uzume? Rei" Edelweiss motioned to the redhead, and one sitting next to her.

"Got it!" She replied.

Rei nodded in response to that, followed by the both of them forming a magical screen as they typed something in. This action caused the stadium to suddenly shift as the audience stands moved around, while the battlefield extended in length. The ground began glowing as it began morphing, while the re motioned stands were refitted to be a new outer rim that fit the extended battlefield's size.

When the field's transformation ended, the two heiresses were now standing in what had become a large city-like area. This was the place that Satan, back in his days as just Lucifer, and a then human Leviathan had first met each other.

"Wait, I'm confused... how did they meet here?" Issei asked, realizing this place was too high-tech based on the time period in question.

"I'm not sure, this is weird." Irina agreed, scratching her head.

Edelweiss noticed the reaction of many, and stood up in response to this, knowing it would have to be told once the Elders were dethroned from power.

"I understand your confusion, and we promise to explain latter, but know this... what you see was truly where Leviathan first met our King during his days as just Lucifer. This is the noble battle ring that this last battle of the Rating Game Tournament will take place in!" Edelweiss announced, looking towards the audience.

The audience decided to accept what she said, and focused as the two fighters readied themselves for their battle.

** _ Battle: Vali Lucifer VS Ineelana Leviathan _ **

As they did, Edelweiss taped a button, and the timer set for the match suddenly expired, surprising everyone as this now meant only one thing... there was no time limit for this match! Considering the nature of the match, it made sense, so the audience cheered excitedly.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Oh yeah, I saw that one coming! This match won't end until one of these two powerful Great Devil descendants falls to the ground completely! This is definitely the final match, I feel my blood pumping, and my adrenaline racing high! Come on you two, show us what you've got, because this time I'm just gonna watch the match like the rest of the fans!**

For emphasis, Naud tossed away his microphone, cheering like any other fan.

**「** **My Hero Academia: You Say Run** **」**

Edelweiss chuckled at the announcer's antics, then stood up as the barriers reformed, holding a hand up alongside the audience as they all prepared to start this match together.

"Alright everyone, say it together!" Edelweiss requested.

"LET THE FINAL BATTLE... BEGIN!" Everyone shouted together, swinging their hands down.

*BUZZ*

At that moment, both Great Devil heiresses raced ahead, initiating the greatest battle the two would ever have. Doing her best to shrug off the poison's effects, she took a deep breath.

"Albion!" Vali shouted.

**"(Vanishing Dragon... Balance Breaker!)"**

Vali's scale mail forms, and she instantly flew forward, going past Ineelana who had to keep her ground as the Lucifer heiress began flying up the buildings surrounding them. Chuckling a bit, Ineelana began running forward.

"Alright, if you wanna sky fight, I'll give you one!" Ineelana exclaimed.

Shifting like she did a switch on a skateboard, and ice path forms under her, this time not needing her hands to create it. Everyone cheered as the Leviathan heiress quickly spotted Vali in the air.

"Here goes!" Vali stated.

"**ABYSSAL WHIRLWIND!**"

Black streams of Vali's Primal Abyss fly out at Ineelana, who quickly shifted, only for her ice path to be hit. Everyone gasped at the sight, only for Ineelana to flip, and mid-flip...

"**MIST FIELD!**"

A bunch of dark mist formed in the sky, and Ineelana's flip finished... only for everyone to gasp in shock as despite being in midair, a new ice path formed!

_'[We just saw that, right!?]'_ Elsha asked in surprise.

* * *

In the audience, everyone was still shocked, with Esketanus and Suzattin staring at each other before looking back on the battlefield.

"Gebedon, can you figure out how that mist let Ineelana do that?" Niruili asked.

"I'll try." Gebedon replied, his eyes focusing.

Using his Invader Sight, he focused his vision towards the mist, and soon noticed it was moving like a water flow.

"That mist, I think it's acting like water, that would mean she's able to make ice on it even if in midair because water floats on water!" Gebedon realized.

The Mammon and Belphegor heirs look at him in shock.

"So, she created water-like mist? Whoa..." Niruili was in awe, as Ineelana had never shown any signs of making a technique like this before.

Like always, the black-haired girl was watching the match in silence, but this time... the people near her began scooting away as a dark aura representing the anger she wasn't expressing or vocalizing. Anger that seemed aimed towards Vali, with her vision red like she was seeing something she needed from this world.

"...You wanna move someone else?" Eneely asked the Agares heiress.

"Yes, and right now." Seekvaira agreed.

* * *

Ineelana kept dodging any attacks Vali through at her, flipping side to side like she was grinding across rails in a Sonic the Hedgehog game, shifting left or right, and even binding to create a spiral as she evaded all of the Lucifer heiress' attacks.

"Sorry, but you've gotta do better than that Vali!" Ineelana remarked.

**"(Incredible, I didn't know she had trained this much in such a short period of time.)"** Albion stated, impressed with her results.

Vali didn't respond, having to admit her Dragon was right... then at that moment, she screamed as she felt a tightness in her body, with the poison's affects reacting to her.

'Oh no, this is bad... not now!' She thought.

Ineelana turned, channeling her ice between her cupped hands.

"**Nightmare Freeze!**"

A sea-serpent made of purple ice shot from the opening in her hands, slamming into Vali as she crashed through a few of the city buildings, breaking their glass as one began to completely collapse. The audience went wild as the display of power, with Vali screamed as she fell towards the ground.

As she did this, her predecessors all watched as she fought through the pain, each having their own thoughts about her efforts.

**"What is she trying to prove?"**

_"She's just an inexperienced fool, whatever fate she gets she deserves."_

"It was her mistake to deny the Juggernaut Drive, and now it's gone... let that be her sin,"

"{Just lose this fight.}"

"(Yeah, let someone who'll listen to us replace you!)"

"[Why did Albion choose you!]"

"=I bet he's the real idiot in this="

"\\\Freak!\\\"

"**O**n**e** w**h**o **u**n**d**e**r**s**t**a**n**d**s** n**o**t**h**i**n**g**,** c**a**n **n**e**v**e**r** a**c**h**i**e**v**e **a**n**y**t**h**i**n**g**.**.**.**"

Elsha listened to this, and walked up to the possessor who spoke last.

"**W**h**a**t**?** D**o** **y**o**u** h**a**v**e** a **p**r**o**b**l**e**m** E**l**s**h**a**-**"

The strongest Hakuryuukou decked them in the face, surprising the other souls as they saw the act happen. Elsha panted, showing something that no possessor ever thought they'd see on her face...

Anger, pure unbridled anger.

_"(THE REAL IDIOTS HERE ARE ALL OF YOU!)"_ Elsha screamed.

They all froze at that, feeling her anger intensify.

_"(Look at all of you, just plain stupid battle maniacs who think sacrificing themselves is some meaningful, or honorable thing! Even Ddraig and Albion never fought to kill each other like all of you assholes! Now, when someone thinks differently, someone who wants to live, and actually gets along with the one who gave us this power, you treat them like shit because of it?)"_

_"(She's accomplished way more than you have, she chose not to fight, she destroyed the cursed Juggernaut Drive, she lived through the shit her grandfather put her through and was able to recover instead of staying a broken shell! She's fighting for something noble, and asking for nothing in return! The Sekiryuutei loves her, and she lives him back, and you act like that's the greatest sin?)"_

_"(By what I'm seeing? The real sinners are you, because I loved the Sekiryuutei of my time, and you still pushed me to end my life, to live with the tragic end that keeps us apart because I can't go see him through the Boosted Gear! That was your selfishness, she's done everything I haven't, she is the virtuous one, no... she's a better Hakuryuukou than all of you combined!)"_ Elsha tore into each of them, letting her words as the strongest Hakuryuukou silence them.

They all had no way to react to that, her words towards all of them? It was like being stabbed through the heart and living through it, over and over, undying... something that was partially true as remnant souls of the past.

_"(If that isn't enough proof, the Sekiryuutei's predecessors have already accepted his path, that's how they formed his power, but all of you? If this is the only path you'll follow, I'm ashamed I ever had the Divine Dividing, because there's nothing special about this power... it's just a home for bastards like yourselves.)"_ Elsha stated, dealing the finishing blow.

All of their eyes widened at that, like they were pieces of glass she shattered just by screaming.

Meanwhile, at the same moment, Vali's eyes widened as she shouted, flying out of the building she had crashed into, still looking completely OK. The Elders showed shock at that, surprised she was still standing.

"But how!?" Zekram demanded.

Vali panted a bit, feeling the pain subside.

"Albion, why am I not feeling the venom as badly?" She questioned.

**"(You can thank me for that, since this is part of original breath's elemental composition, I'm using the fact you gave me your heart to limit the effects. I can't do anything to it weakening your power, but as long as your scale mail's equipped, I should prevent any pain from hindering you. It just took me a while to get it working.)"** Albion explained.

Vali sighed in relief upon hearing that, readying herself to continue the fight.

"Albion, remind me to thank you for being my partner more often when this fight ends." Vali smiled.

**"(No thanks needing, I'm glad to call you my partner as well, and that's enough.)"** Albion smiled back.

Vali flew forward, shouting as she formed two dark spheres in her hands.

**(DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!) (DIVIDE!)**

**"(VENOM STINGER!)"**

The spheres explode, turning into purple magic circles that unleashed a storm of energy needles.

Ineelana didn't need any more than the name to realize she needed to avoid those stingers, and back flipped off her ice, forming an ice barrier around her to defend against it. Once it was done, she froze her feet, using it to run back up a building until she got back into the range of her Mist Field.

**「** **Insert Song** **」**

Ineelana caught her breath as she stood on the field, feeling a bit tired after what she just did.

'Looks like that poison isn't doing too much to affect her performance, Vali really is stronger than she looks... then again, she is a Lucifer.' Ineelana thought, looking towards her friend and opponent.

"Now, get ready for-"

Before Vali could finish, she suddenly felt her body shaking, surprising the Leviathan heiress, and the entire crowd. Even her team was stunned... all while no one noticed something that Zekram had pressed in his hands.

'The poison isn't just meant to target your bloodstream, say goodbye to your scale mail!' He smirked, pressing again.

**'(What's going on here? This is... no, something's interfering with the scale mail's wavelength!)'** Albion grunted in pain, feeling its effects on his body.

At that moment, Vali fell from the sky as her scale mail forcefully broke, making everyone gasped in horror as she crashed into the ground from what was at least a 200-foot drop.

"VAAAAAAAALIIIIIIII!" Issei screamed in horror.

Ineelana's eyes shook at the sight, only realizing the Elders could have done this.

"Now, time for a third thing to finally force her out of submission." He laughed.

He went to press it again, only to see that the device he had was gone, he turned to see the black-haired girl was holding it.

"H-Hey, what are you doing-" Zekram demanded angrily.

She smashed it right there, surprising him.

"Only... me." She said with quiet malice.

"But-"

The girl's eyes focused, and Zekram gave a silent scream as heavy force hit him, without the Elders noticing as the girl reappeared back where she was sitting. No one had even noticed she left the spot, or what she did with Zekram.

'Damn... didn't know she was that much of a brat, but fine.' He relented, growling at her.

Vali's body shook, trying to get up from the ground. Ineelana slid down, looking at her as she didn't take the chance with her downed form, and the audience just watched in understanding... no one felt they would take that same chance unless they were an uncaring bastard due to what happened.

* * *

Asuka looked at Lilith worriedly, wondering what just happened to the White Dragon Emperor.

"Lilith, why did her scale mail just break like that?" She asked.

"I... I don't know, but I think I know who the guilty party is in this instance." Lilith answered, her body shaking as she tightened her fists.

Rossweisse thought for a bit, gasping.

"No way, did the poison take into account the power of Albion?" She guessed with confidence.

Everyone in the Lucifer VIP stands gasped at that, looking at each other.

"Those filthy bastards! I thought they were just cruel, but they're just sick selfish pieces of shit!" Nainen screamed loudly.

"It won't be enough, not to stop her." Yasaka said with confidence.

Nainen looked at her mom, blinking a bit.

"I remember when she came for training, this is far from enough to defeat her... I know it is!" Yasaka said, still keeping her confident look despite the slight sweat on her face.

* * *

Vali struggles to get on her feet, coughing heavily as the poison's intensity hammers down on her.

'No, is this it... am I... gonna lose? Am I gonna fail?' Vali thought, her vision blurring.

"VALI! STAND UP, VALI!" Issei screamed out.

Vali's eyes widen, gasping a bit.

'Issei?' Vali's eyes shook, and her vision regained its focus.

Looking towards where his voice was.

"Come on Vali, don't you dare give up! Please!" Issei begged.

"Didn't you tell me yourself 7 years ago? If I'm gonna protect you, then who's gonna protect me!?" He shouted.

Vali's eyes widened again, and giving a focused look, she starts pushing herself back up.

'That's right Vali, get up! Remember what the last seven years were about!' Vali reminded herself, grunting loudly as she kept pushing herself up.

At that moment, she remembered bits and pieces from those said years.

* * *

_Vali was standing by Yasaka, who was looking at the sheet Penemue showed her, the Fallen Angel in question keeping Kunou occupied in another room._

_"So, you're from the Lucifer bloodline, but your mother was a human. I see the potential in you, so it kinda surprises me you never developed it before." Yasaka stated, looking at her with interest._

_"I... had someone give me an aversion when I was younger." Vali admitted, hanging her head down._

_Yasaka stuttered a bit, realizing she accidentally hit a sore spot._

_"But now, you've changed your mind?" She asked._

_Vali nodded, looking at her directly._

_"Alright, so what kind of training would you like to do here?" Yasaka asked._

_"...The best you have." Vali answered._

_"Wha... Vali, if you haven't really trained or exercised before, that might be too much. Why do you look so serious about this?" Yasaka questioned worriedly._

_"Because, I... have a promise to keep, a promise to protect someone dear to me." Vali revealed._

_The Youkai leader was surprised, and soon stood up._

_"Alright, then the best training you can get is from me, but it will be hard. Understand?" She asked._

_"I'll endure it._

* * *

_Within an area of Mount Meru, the sight of an 11-year old Vali running was noticed as Bikou watched from afar, with Sun Wukong looking at her as he slammed his staff on the ground. A huge boulder suddenly formed on her back, making the Lucifer heiress grunt from the strain of the added weight._

_"Push it, faster you wimp! Faster!" Wukong shouted._

_"I'm... no... wimp!" Vali panted, pushing herself to run faster than when she lacked the building._

_The two showed shock at that._

_'Just how far is she pushing herself? Just what kind of determination does she have?' Bikou thought._

_Vali shouted as another rock was placed on her, and she kept pushing herself as she started going uphill._

* * *

_While wearing a blindfold in her eyes, and having her hands tied to make balancing herself more difficult, a 12-year old Vali focused as she tried to walk across the surface of a large lake. Lavinia was watching from afar, seeing her progress as she made it 1/4 of the way across._

_"You're a wizard-type Vali, I can see it in your eyes, the mental strength from what you endured is the proof of it. Train your focus, your balance, your entire mental being." Lavinia advised, looking at her._

_'Don't just think, feel it... feel-' Vali thought._

_She lost focus, and fell into the water, making Lavinia sigh at the sight. However, she noticed Vali pull herself back to the surface, soon preparing to try again._

_"Wait, don't you wanna take a rest?" Lavinia asked._

_"No, I can do it this time... I know it!" Vali replied._

_It took her another 15 tries, but eventually she made it over, with Lavinia impressed by her tenacity._

_"Vali, you seem pretty driven." Lavinia remarked._

_"I am, I have someone I've promised I would protect." Vali panted, exhausted._

_"...Ooh, is it a boy?" Lavinia giggled._

_"What does that mean?" Vali questioned, not getting it._

_Lavinia blinked, giving an awkward laugh at the realization Vali had yet to understand the concept of romantic love. At that moment, a magic circle appears by her, getting her attention, and making Vali curious._

* * *

Vali take a few deep heavy breaths, and as she did.

"I won't... give in..." Vali told herself.

"I said that, I... would win!" Vali encouraged herself.

She stumbled, but kept pushing herself up, surprising the Elders with how she didn't go down.

"Come on Vali, get up... you can do it." Ineelana whispered, begging for her to succeed.

Her legs wobbled, and then...

"I said... I'd change Hell... for the better!" Vali promised herself.

At that moment, Vali's eyes lost their light, focusing themselves as she clenched her fist.

Her predecessors saw how far she was going.

* * *

_An unconscious Vali suddenly awakened as she felt water splash on her, showing Kunou had done it._

_"Wha?" She blinked._

_"Get back on your feet Vali, we're not done yet." Yasaka encouraged._

_Vali was surprised._

_"W-why? I'm just collapse like this again, why put up with me?" She asked._

_Kunou flicked her forehead._

_"Ow!" She rubbed her head._

_"Didn't you said you have someone you're doing this for?" Kunou asked._

_Vali gasped at that, soon pushing herself back up._

* * *

_A 14-year old Vali pushed hard to form a variety of magic spells as Gondul watched over her._

_"Keep going Vali, just a few more spells." Gondul alerted her._

_"I won't... give... in!" Vali replied hoarsely, almost out of magic._

_She raised her hand again, preparing another spell as her hand shook, struggling to make the magic circle._

_"I-Issei... I will... I will make it through this, gain the... strength to... p-protect you!" Vali coughed, refusing to give in._

* * *

_Within the Pendragon's territory, Arthur noticed the 13-year old Vali finish the latest bout of training she was given by one of his father's aid. However, moments after resting on the ground, her cheeks swelled as she was about to throw up from the strain that finally caught up to her._

_Suddenly, Le Fay appeared, giving her bag to release her launch in. As she took a heavy breath, she noticed the young wizard holding up some water to her._

_"Le Fay..." She breathed._

_"No matter what anyone says, I think it's amazing you won't give in, I wanna be as inspiring as you one day." Le Fay smiled._

_Vali was surprised by that, shedding happy tears before taking the water._

_"Alright, how about you and I train together." Arthur offered._

_"Really?" Vali said in surprise._

_Arthur nodded, offering a hand to help Vali up, which she took._

* * *

_A 14-year old Vali rushed across many rooftops, following Penemue as within a magical barrier, they were practicing parkour across the many buildings of New York City._

_"Come on Vali, go faster!" Penemue advised._

_"Right!" Vali shouted, crouching a bit to gain speed._

_She jumped across another building, suddenly overtaking the female cadre, with Baraqiel watching in surprise from a distance._

_'I will... make it... through this!' Vali screamed in her mind, taking another large leap._

* * *

At that moment, Vali's face focused, and she suddenly stomped the ground hard enough to crack it, making Ineelana look surprised as Vali suddenly shot forward, smashing her fist into her right shoulder.

'What the, that strength... but her face shows she's still poisoned, right?' She thought, surprised by the force of Vali's blow.

The Leviathan heiress had little time to think as Vali suddenly kicked her in the gut, making her slide back.

"Holy shit, are you seeing this?" Bikou remarked.

"She's striking even harder, what's going on here?" Kuroka wondered aloud.

"Vali, I don't know what's happening, but... go for it, go!" He encouraged.

Motioning her hands, Vali screamed as she blasted out a burst of white magic, which Ineelana barely dodged as it smashed the nearby building. The crowd cheered as the Elders were completely confused at her current movements.

'She's still poisoned, how is she moving like that!?' Zekram demanded, trying to figure out what was going wrong for them.

Vali soon shouted loudly as she began to well up magical power.

* * *

_A now 17-year old Vali was standing with Lilith, preparing to leave for Kuoh Town, now that she's finally completed her training journey after over 7 years' worth of efforts. Lilith put her hands on Vali's shoulders, prepared to impart words of wisdom._

_"All these talents you have, that alone won't stop you from one day facing a situation unlike any other, and I know you know why. He's still out there, and one day he will return, when that day comes... you'll have to fight him, but you aren't alone. You have friends, you have that boy you trekked past this trial form, and now you have your peerage to support you when that day finally comes."_

_"However, your training has yet to end, because to truly face him, you must overcome his hold, and then hopefully your fear. That man has no power over you, and he never will. He may have tried to make you a machine he could control, but you formed independence that ripped it away. You almost broke, but you repaired yourself, and you'll keep growing stronger every day, in both your body, and your heart."_

_Vali was surprised by the words she was hearing, and Lilith kept going, nowhere near done._

_"I know the strength of your spirit, and so does everyone important to you, not just them either... everyone who trained you still has faith in your strength. You've endured so much already, this is nothing, and I know just how strong you are inside, even if you don't know it yet. Just remember this, no matter what happens... you are a Lucifer, that means within you is the blood of the man who successfully managed to stand against God. That strength, is the freedom you're fighting for!" Lilith finished, a bright smile on her face._

_Vali's eyes shined at that, and nodded her head, promising to herself she'd make sure to remember those words one day._

* * *

Vali screamed louder, the ground below her cracking as more magical power began to surge, making Ineelana sweat as she slowly backed away from her.

"OK, standing up-close is a bad idea, really bad idea!" Ineelana said shakily, now really worried about what she was doing.

'Those Elders, can't not... cage... my...' Vali thought, subconsciously channeling more power without realizing it.

Everyone saw her body keep glowing with a brighter white aura, generating more power as she looked like she was a reactor, only with the explosive force of a supernova.

With one last scream, she flared all of that power out, and from it... her skin suddenly forced out all of the poison in her system, sending it flying through the air. As that happened, Issei, then Ineelana and Lilith at the same time, ending with Zekram... gasped as they saw the purple liquid rain down.

"...Huh?" Vali suddenly regained the light in her eye, unaware of what happened as if she had been acting on just instinct for a while.

Looking at her body, she clasped her hands, no longer feeling weak anymore. The young Devils all kept focus, wondering what just happened themselves, until finally...

"That looks like some kind of poison." Eneely noticed.

"Eh?" Seekvaira said in surprise.

"It was purple, and it came out of her body, how could it not be poison? If it had been a spell, we would have seen a magic circle, but it looked like it came out of her skin, like she sweated it out all at once." She mentioned.

At that moment, some of the crowd was wondering about this, with Zekram nervous for multiple reasons.

'How could she have expelled that!?' The Bael Clan Elder thought in disbelief.

* * *

Time froze for Vali as she felt herself in her mind, looking around in confusion.

"Albion, why am I here?" She asked.

**"(Oh, thank goodness, I was getting worried after what happened.)"** Albion sighed in relief.

Vali blinked at that, and then felt Elsha tackle-hug her, making her feel awkward as she blushed.

_"(Yay, you beat the venom! Great job Vali!)"_ Elsha cheered, hugging her closer.

Vali blushed more, clearly uncomfortable by the situation.

"H-hello Elsha..." Vali replied.

She giggles before grabbing her shoulders, surprising the current Hakuryuu.

_"(You have some guests who want to meet you.)"_ Elsha smiled.

"Eh?" Vali blinked.

Turning her around, Vali saw all her predecessors looking at her, making her gasp.

"Y-you're all my..." She realized.

One of them stands before the others, looking at her.

**"Why do you fight?"**

Vali showed a bit of surprise to that question.

_"Yes, what reason do you avoid the same road as us, why do you choose to live with the Sekiryuutei, why do you not fight him? What reason is it that you don't fight?"_

Vali blinked at that, soon looking at them.

"It's simple, because I have something worth more than all of that, something to protect." Vali explained with a smile, holding a hand near her heart.

"Something... to protect? Something... worth more?"

She smiled brighter, looking up towards the sky of her mental landscape.

"Issei, when I was young... he saved me, he gave my life full of darkness and doubt a new light. He gave me a miracle, a miracle called hope. He made me who I am, that's something I'll always be thankful for."

They all stared at her, feeling something within this begin to crack, invisible binds that held them to the curse... one that only their souls were keeping alive.

"{What have we... ever fought for?}"

"(For the White Dragon's sake?)"

"[...No, that wasn't it, having his power didn't mean fighting on his behalf... did it?]"

Vali nodded at that, confirming their thoughts.

"=The Red Dragon... those who once wielded his power have created their own, and it was because they let go... yet we've foolishly hung on to our hatred="

"\\\Maybe... maybe this girl can create a new path for us, a better one than the one we've been blindly staying on all this time\\\"

"**I**f **y**o**u** a**l**l **w**a**n**t **t**o **b**e**l**i**e**v**e**, **t**h**e**n**.**.**.** I **s**h**a**l**l** w**a**l**k** i**t** t**o**o**!**"

At that moment, Vali saw the chains that were unseen break through all of them, and a familiar light began to glow on her hand.

**"(...The curse, it's been broken!)"** Albion stated in shock.

At that moment, Albion saw a vision, unaware that Ddraig was seeing it in the same time. With the Red Dragon, an illusion of God appeared, but with him... Vali saw her father, Satan!

"Dad!?" Vali said in shock.

**«Satan: Albion, listen well... one day you'll understand the reason you were sealed inside here, the fact you're seeing this now is proof you are only steps away. To the current possessor in here, no... to the one I should be calling my daughter, promise me you'll see him achieve this, because I believe in you»**

Vali's eyes watered a bit at that, soon sniffling as she covered her mouth.

"Father..." Vali said quietly.

She sniffled before wiping her eyes, and nodding her head to mark her promise as the white light appeared.

* * *

As time resumed from the events in Vali's mind jump, and soon... tears shed from her eyes, catching Ineelana's attention.

"I understand now, and for that reason... I'll keep walking forward!" Vali shouted, her aura flaring out.

**"(I, who has awakened! I am the Heavenly White Dragon that discarded the title of Supremacy! I shall break through the chains of all doubt as I destroy the shroud of darkness, and become the Ivory Queen of Hope! I swear to you all, that I shall create a miracle that shines brighter than a silvery-white glow!)"** Vali and Albion chanted together.

Issei's eyes widened as he heard that chant, realizing what she was about to do.

**"(DIABOLUS DRAGON - LUCIFER!)"**

A bright white flash went off, making the audience look excited upon hearing those words, while the Elders all nearly had heart attacks! Vali's scale mail appeared before dissolving away, quickly replaced with an evolved form that resembled a Dragon even more than it had prior, with a few traits that matched Albion's body.

"She... she did it!" Issei cheered.

**'[No way, this is... is it related to what I just saw?]'** Ddraig gasped, Issei having not seen the meeting he just had within his own landscape.

Ineelana stared in shock, unable to believe what she just saw.

**「** **Nanoha Series, Vivid Strike: Starry Wish - Instrumental** **」**

At that moment, Vali readied herself, determined to test her new power.

"Ineelana, this is where the real fight begins, so let's do this!" Vali exclaimed, smiling under the helmet.

"...Yeah, give me all you've got!" Ineelana replied, smirking in response.

The audience cheered as both sides rushed forward, with Ineelana sliding around, causing storms of ice chunks and blizzards to strike the empowered Dragon. Vali however rushed right through, barely taking any damage.

'Vali, whatever you did... this is the you I wanted to fight, now show me your strength!' Ineelana requested.

Ineelana guarded herself as Vali unleashed a storm of magical beams, sending her flying through most of the landscape, and shattering even the nearby buildings into pieces in an instant. Gasping a bit, she nearly fell back, but managed to keep her ground.

Once she regained her sighting of Vali, she gasped as she rushed forward, and created a wall of ice to guard herself... only for it to shatter!

"TAKE THIS!" Vali exclaimed.

**(DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x? (DIVIDE!) x?**

Ineelana realized her strength was about to be sapped away, and created layers of ice walls before sliding away, making more as she tried to evade. However, Vali kept flying through them all, trying to reach Ineelana as fast as she could.

**"(Vali, you don't have much time left in this form, you'll have to hurry!)" **Albion warned.

"Right!" She replied.

Vali punched right through the, even flapping her Sacred Gear's wings a few times, shattering the ice as she neared Ineelana.

"Oh shit!" Ineelana shouted, realizing she was about to be decked in the face.

**"(SUPREMACY WING... CRASH!)"**

Ineelana was hit by both of the Sacred Gear's wings, making her cough out spit as her eyes briefly froze up.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As Vali's Diabolus Dragon dispelled, the heiress of Leviathan went flying high, and then smashed into the ground hard, creating a crater where she landed... followed by all of the windows in the entire battlefield shattering, and the buildings breaking apart!

However, what truly shocked the audience was all the layers of the barrier finally took too much stress from the combined 12 matches, as well as the lessening of their effect from being expanded, all from a simple ripple of energy that spread out from the Leviathan heiress' impact.

"Oh shit, this might be bad..." Edelweiss said worried.

"No, I think we'll be alright, feel how much power they have left?" Acnologia pointed out.

The audience was still in awe at what just happened.

Everyone then noticed Ineelana got up, making everyone cheer as they saw the Leviathan heiress hadn't been defeated just yet.

"Wow, you... really are the descendant of Leviathan..." Vali panted heavily.

"Yeah, the same... goes for you..." Ineelana wheezed painfully.

On each team's stands, they both noticed their King's current states, surprised at how far they were pushed. Staring with the members of the Leviathan Team...

"Ineelana, I've never seen her survive this long... this kind of tenacity could have challenged Sairaorg..." Murasaki said in shock.

"Yeah, but I can feel it... she's literally got just a tiny bit of power left." Tamara replied worriedly.

Meanwhile, with the people on the Lucifer Team's side...

"Can she keep going?" Arthur questioned, seeing her current state.

"Diabolus Dragon uses a lot of power, I remember my first use left my totally winded, I think she's only got a little bit of strength left." Issei stated, clearly aware of current state.

The two heiresses look at each other, still tired and exhausted.

**「** **Nanoha Series, Vivid Strike: Future Strike** **」**

Looking up, Ineelana gave a smile towards Vali.

"I've got no magic left, so... let's end this the only way we can." She stated happily.

"Yeah, it's a deal... Ineelana." Vali agreed, smiling as well.

Everyone went silent, wondering what was about to happen next, and then they saw the two fighters rush at each other. At that moment, the two of them... began having a mere fist fight! Everyone was shocked at this, wondering why they were doing it.

"What?" Naud said in surprised.

"No magic, just attacking without any form of defense or dodging." Niruili realized.

"Then, wouldn't that mean..." Gebedon gasped.

"This is all their remaining strength." Suzattin commented.

Ineelana felt a kick knock her back, before she rushed forward again, shouting loudly.

"I can't believe they're pushing so hard even now." Esketanus said in shock.

"Oh yeah, that's how you fight!" Zephyrdor exclaimed.

"Incredible..." Seekvaira remarked.

"Right now, I can tell this is their will to win, trying to keep one final stand until they lose all of it, and finally fall." Eneely smiled, excited where the match had gone.

The audience began cheering as Vali was struck in the head, nearly falling over. At that moment, both stood to catch their breath before rushing ahead once more, continuing their desperate clash with their remaining strength.

Cheering them both on, the audience just screamed in excitement, and Edelweiss watched as she recalled a similar fight between Satan and God.

"...The match will end by who wants it more, and I can tell who that is." Edelweiss smiled.

The two rushed ahead, their fists meeting in an even strike as they slid across the ground, and the two ran ahead, rushing at each other one last time for the final clash. This was it, and everyone knew it.

**「** **Insert Song** **」**

The first to throw her attack was Ineelana, who began recalling a certain memory of hers.

* * *

_Vali stood before Ineelana, who gave a grouchy look as she looked away._

_"So, you're finally leaving huh, I knew you'd wanna hurry out of this place eventually. Fine! Just go, I know you don't care!" Ineelana shouted, tearing up as she tried to deny she was sad._

_"...This isn't a goodbye, we will meet each other again. Also, I promise you won't have to struggle much longer, or be discriminated as you have all these years." Vali replied, soon walking over to her._

_Before she realized it, Ineelana was being hugged by her, by the front no less. She was so surprised, her grouchy facade disappeared with a shocked look._

_"I'm so glad, you called me your friend, even if not by words. I'm gonna change Hell, so you, Niruili, Gebedon, Suzattin, Esketanus... you, and everyone else will never face this suffering again. I will make it happen, no matter what!" Vali exclaimed, crying a bit._

_For the first time that she could remember, Ineelana shed genuine tears from her eyes._

* * *

Ineelana's strike hit against Vali's arm, pushing it back as she began shedding tears from her eyes.

'Vali, what is it that's always made your heart so strong?' Ineelana wondered.

As she felt the punch push against her, Vali grunted, refusing to let it through as her own memory flashed through her eyes at that moment, as if to answer Ineelana's question.

* * *

_Vali saw the few memories with her mother when she wasn't crying, and both of them were genuinely happy._

_Following that, the memories of her time living as Azazel's daughter, with the occasional visits from Penemue, and sometimes Lilith when she could sneak a visit._

** _"I remember, everyone who's been there for me all this time, giving me the love of a family."_ **

_She remembers when she and Lilith made that promise to free Hell from the Elders together, and when she befriended the other Great Devil heirs._

** _"The goals I strode to achieve together with them, and most of all..."_ **

"Vali, what is your greatest dream?" Lilith's voice echoed, asking her the most vital question of her life.

_The sight of all her efforts in training, and everyone's proud looks when she succeeded, how she managed to become the strong woman she had wanted. The kind of person who could protect Issei the same way he promised to protect her._

_At that moment, she found herself in a black area. A spotlight was shining over younger self, who looked near-broken from her eyes, and splatters of blood over her._

** _"My past can never be changed, what's already happened can't be rewritten."_ **

** _"The people I've lost will never come back, even with the Sephiroth Graal, there are souls I can't find... as well as ones that are no longer here to be saved. I have to look to the future, not regain my past."_ **

_Her younger self suddenly gasped as if she noticed something._

** _"From now on, I have to move forward, because I want to let the world know the one thing I learned. An important treasure that I must share with everyone that can hear it. That simple treasure that I gained 11 years ago..."_ **

_The darkness vanished as a white light shone over her, changing the scene to the environment she was in when she first moved to Kuoh Town. Her eyes regained their light as she teared up, looking at what was right in front of her._

_What that one thing before her was... a young boy with short, messy brown hair, and brown eyes._

"Hi there, my name's Issei."

_The young Vali began crying, feeling those four simple words change her life, dispelling the darkness of her despair... giving her hope. The young her soon said the words that would mark her finally shedding the last of her fears, as she finally found the answer to Lilith's question._

** _"I want the world to know... that just one simple act of kindness, is enough to save people no matter how lost they've become!"_ **

* * *

With one final push, Vali managed to shake off Ineelana's punch, and her own set of tears fly out. The moment she saw them, a reflection of everything was seen through them, as if showing Ineelana, her peerage, no... everyone what was in them.

'So, that's the reason... your heart is so strong.' Ineelana realized.

"This is... IT!" Vali exclaimed, her first words as the fear born by Rizevim was shattered from her psyche.

Ineelana was hit heard, making herself gasp as she was caught off guard by her thoughts.

Then, charging the small bit of strength she had left... Vali threw one last punch, striking Ineelana right in her abdomen with all her might. Once it did, she didn't make a sound, as her last bit of strength finally faded away.

Falling to the ground, everyone watched in silence as she was caught by Vali, who soon landed on her knees, panting heavily. Looking at her, Vali gave a smile.

"...I kept my promise to you, mom." She stated.

"That's it, the fight is over! The winner of the Rating Game Tournament is... VALI LUCIFER!" Edelweiss announced, slightly cheering with her declaration.

** _ Winner: Vali Lucifer! _ **

The entire crowd went wild, cheering as the screen revealed Vali, and the pictures of her entire team surrounding, as "WINNER!" appeared below her image. Needless to say, Lilith was smiling as she cried happy tears, while the Elders went as they saw the one thing they had done everything to stop... completely succeed!

"SHE DID IT!" Issei screamed happily.

"She actually won!" Lilith screamed for everyone to hear.

The Great Devil heirs hugged each other in a group hug.

"Vali's amazing, she did it! She beat all the odds!" She cried happily.

In the Leviathan VIP corner, Sairaorg smiled.

"So, she's the new champion among the rookies... you earned it, and because of your wish, mine will also become a reality." He smiled.

"Mine too, I'll be able to finally make the school I've dreamed of." Sona agreed, trying not to scream like a young school girl.

Growling a bit, this was the moment that Zekram Bael finally decided to act.

"I REFUSE TO ACCEPT THIS!" He screamed.

Everyone suddenly looked at him, as he pointed to Lilith.

"Everyone, you're so-called Devil Queen, she's not who you think she is, because she's been lying about the-" Zekram exclaimed.

"Shut it you bastard, you're just trying to lie so you don't have to answer for every lie you've spun!" Eneely shouted.

He was suddenly surprised by that.

"I agree, that's why I need to ask this..." Edelweiss replied.

"...Can you explain this strange device I've noticed under the judging table since this Final Match began?" Edelweiss asked, revealing it to him.

The Elders all showed shock, the horror settling in as they realized Edelweiss had _known_ it was there all along.

Zekram tries to speak, but Edelweiss reacts as her eyes glowed.

"**Rule of Grace: For losing a simply coin toss to me you paid little mind at the one bar night, you will not be allowed to speak until someone within the crowd responds to you.**"

Zekram's eyes widened as he remembered that night he ignored, right as his mouth suddenly forced itself closed, unable to re-open. Following that, someone gasped as she saw the device Edelweiss held in her hand.

"Hey, I recognize that kind of device... it's a rigging machine! Not just that, it looks like one of the devices from MY clan!" The current Astaroth heiress exclaimed angrily.

The audience began mumbling as they suddenly realized the higher votes for Ineelana, and why she asked not to let votes win.

"Y-you can't prove anything, what proof is there that we put it-" Zekram tried to deny.

"Give it up, you're finished!"

The Elders all turned as they saw Diehauser walk into view, their supposed ally... which is what they'd say if it had.

"Ajuka, show those files I sent you!" He ordered.

The screen soon showed a lot of shady dealings that Zekram had a hand in starting, or approving. Many Devils suddenly gasped as they recognized some names, and began reacting angrily... because they were names of their loved ones.

"Also, if you need further proof... look at this!" Diehauser shouted.

They revealed the frozen canister showing Cleria Belial, this even surprised a few like Lilith, who couldn't believe she was seeing the Belial heiress.

"She's... alive?" Lilith said in shock.

The Elders were forced into silence, with all that was happening now... they had _no_ defense to use without a risk of it being turned against them.

Seeing her moment, Lilith finally stood up.

"This is it Zekram, now I can finally reveal the truth without you having any way to turn my people against me! So, let me show you how I rally them to my side! Diehauser, give it to me!" Lilith held out her hand.

Diehauser tossed the King Piece he had, surprising people at the Evil Piece that shouldn't exist.

"This is a King Piece, it's an old Evil Piece that predated the King Monument, and one you only had to hold to use... a supercharged Queen Piece of you will. However, we learned the enhancement was just too powerful, so we had them disposed, but a few remained we couldn't retrieve in time. In the Rating Game's current Top 10, the players ranked 2-6 are all cheating through using one so the Elders can keep their pockets full via making their placements never chance! Diehauser only has one because I asked him to be a mole for the Elders!"

"Also, I think most of you saw that purple stuff Vali expelled? That was poison! That machine, the rigging device you saw? It was being used so Ineelana would have more votes no matter what, she and Edelweiss knew this, so she had the match end as it did because she refused to let cheating ruin these Finals! This poison only worked on her, and was in the punch of Issei's celebration party!"

"However, the true crime they made? Remember how Loki got into the Rating Game arena, and no alerts ever showed up for him at the edge of Hell? I'll tell you plain and simple, he was let it! He was given a gate right in here, the attack was his fault, and it was just to have Vali knocked out of the tournament because her wish ruined everything they've been trying to keep, what's being destroyed right before them!" Lilith finished, panting heavily as the truth finally came out.

At that moment, an uproar happened as everyone looked at the Elders, raging at the lies they had hidden from them.

"You bastards!"

"How dare you do this to us, we're not your tools or puppets!"

"Kill them so they know how the ones they killed feel!"

"Liars!"

"Murderers!"

As this was happening, each team's peerages ignored it, rushing to their respective Kings as a bunch of Devil guards grab the Elders to take them to their punishment.

"Ineelana..." Murasaki said softly.

Rubbing her cheek, the Leviathan heiress slowly opened her eyes to see her Queen.

"...Hey Muri, is it over? Are the Elders finally known as the criminals they are?" She asked weakly.

"Y-yeah, they are, and it's all thanks to you." Murasaki smiled, crying happy tears.

Her peerage gives the tired Leviathan a group hug, and she smiles as she looks at all of them.

"Everyone, thank you for trusting me up to this point, I'm glad... that all of you are part of my peerage." She said, sniffling as she breakdown into a happy sob.

Vali smiled at that as her peerage hugged her closer, all of them going "Aww~" at what she said.

As that was happening, Issei gave Vali a hug, surprising her as she hugged back.

"Issei, I did it... I really did it." Vali smiled, crying happy tears.

Looking at Edelweiss, Issei motions to her, and she realizes he wants to announce something. At that moment, Naud suddenly realized he needed to get everyone's attention.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**Everyone, it seems Issei has something he wants to say, and he'd like all of us to hear it!**

Taking a deep breath, Issei looks Vali straight in the eyes, making her blush.

"Vali, I have something to say to you." Issei declared.

"W-what is it, Issei?" Vali asked, blushing more.

He sweated a bit, and prepared to say it.

"Vali, w-" Issei tried to say what he had been waiting to say, but...

Zekram screamed at that moment, breaking off the guards holding him.

"If this is how it's gonna be, then Hell can die with all of you!" Zekram screamed with rage and malice.

He clicked his teeth, revealing a hidden switch as he bit down.

At that moment, a magic circle related to the Hindu Pantheon suddenly opened up, making everyone's eyes react.

* * *

Within the region of Mount Meru, the sight of Shiva trying to keep watch of anything funny was seen, only for a screaming Asura to rush into view.

"Lord Shiva, we don't know how, but Indra just vanished out of nowhere! Worse, we can't follow where he went to!" He warned.

"What!?" Shiva exclaimed in horror, knowing what this had to mean.

Gritting his teeth, he looked at the Asura.

"Quick, we've gotta get to Hell! That bastard's about to kill the two Heavenly Dragons, and he's likely right where they were sent!" Shiva ordered.

"Right, I'll go tell Brahma and Vishnu immediately!" The Asura responded.

However, right before he could leave, many magic circles appear as an army of Gogmagogs suddenly dropped into view, along with many more forces at their side.

What made it worse? It wasn't just Mount Meru, all of the Alliance's allied pantheons and groups were facing the same problems. With one fell swoop, the leaders of the other factions were completely cut off from being able to go to Hell and aid them against Indra.

* * *

Meanwhile in Hell, everyone sees the magic circle reveal the one God that no one wanted to show up... that's right, Indra himself had arrived.

"Well, look who opened the front door for me!" Indra laughed in a cocky manner.

"Looks like some shit got in your way, oh well... time to crush a girl's dreams. Sekiryuutei, Hakuryuukou, you've become too strong, and now you challenge my right to the name of Heaven. I'm afraid you leave me no choice, but to kill you!" Indra gave a sinister smile.

Indra unleashed his power, making everyone freeze up in horror at what was about to happen.

The tournament may have ended, but now the real fight had only just begun...

* * *

**Damn those Elders! They finally got hit by karma, and then they pull this crap out! Not only is Indra now in Hell, ready to annihilate our main couple, but the rest of the Alliance's forces are being attacked so they can't come in help! The few Gods that could deal with Indra are all unable to come, so now all that can stop him are everyone present, yet the Lucifer Team is exhausted, and there's so many innocents who could be caught in the crossfire!**

**I just love making you hate the Elders, don't I? Good news is after what the public revealed, they've been crushed, and exposed for who they really are.**

**Well, there you have it... Vali won the Rating Game Tournament! She expelled the poison with her own will! She's finally shed her fears against her stupid abusive grandfather by realizing the light Issei give her, and her dream to share it with the world! Most of all... she achieved Diabolus Dragon, and the curse of the Heavenly Dragons is broken!**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	64. Chapter 64

**After coming so far, this is it everyone, we're about to end Season 5, and then instantly go into Season 6! The battle against Indra is about to start, and with it... the mark of the entire world in-story changing in response! After all, with Vali winning the tournament, Hell's going to be changing no matter what happens, the fight with Indra will just resonate alongside that since I think most of you already know what'll happen to him by the time this chapter end.**

**Plus, while last chapter had him cut off due to Indra's arrival, you're finally gonna learn what Issei intended to say to Vali, something a few of you have likely already figured out simply based on the scene, or already figured out long before that. If you haven't, well... since this chapter's gonna reveal it anyways, here's the one hint I can give you without directly giving it away: "Echoing"**

**Oh, and at the end of chapter... I'm gonna have both a special announcement you'll all enjoy, and most of all? *gives an excited smile* You're gonna get a sneak preview of a scene from the first chapter of "Legend of the Heavenly Dragons: Re-Imagined" (which still lacks an official name, but is getting close), so I hope you all enjoy the Season 5 finale ^^**

**Now, time to end this season with a heavenly showdown!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative.

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Longinus Evolution **

**For as long as anyone can remember, there have only been 13 Sacred Gears that could be classified as the Longinus, but as of the match between Issei and Kirin in the semi-final round of the Rating Game tournament... it was finally been proven that a Sacred Gear can truly evolve into a Longinus! With it, the Longinus Evolution has become a real phenomenon.**

**Currently, alongside the Impact Tyrant, which is now the official 14th Longinus, there are two Sacred Gears confirmed to have the potential to evolve in the same manner. The first is the Cursed Malebolge, which Edelweiss mentions would have evolved first had the fight with Kunou not been forcefully ended by Vali throwing in the white towel for her, and the Forbidden Balor View, which has kept growing stronger unconsciously over time.**

**Since the phenomenon is still fairly new, there hasn't been much of a chance to see how the evolution changes these Sacred Gears beyond granting them usage of the Longinus Smasher, especially since Kirin unlocked the Impact Tyrant's Balance Breaker for the first recorded time in history, making it unknown if it was affected by the transformation, although Bahamut state that it hasn't... at least not yet.**

**With the coming threats that may be arriving in the future, the power of these new Longinus may be the difference between victory, and defeat for the Alliance.**

* * *

** _ Season 5, Finals Arc: Chapter 18 – Indra Strikes _ **

Zekram screamed at that moment, breaking off the guards holding him.

"If this is how it's gonna be, then Hell can die with all of you!" Zekram screamed with rage and malice.

He clicked his teeth, revealing a hidden switch as he bit down.

At that moment, a magic circle related to the Hindu Pantheon suddenly opened up, making everyone's eyes react as descending from it... came the one God that no one wanted to show up.

That's right, Indra himself had arrived.

"Well, look who opened the front door for me!" Indra laughed in a cocky manner.

"Looks like some shit got in your way, oh well... time to crush a girl's dreams. Sekiryuutei, Hakuryuukou, you've become too strong, and now you challenge my right to the name of Heaven. I'm afraid you leave me no choice, but to kill you!" Indra gave a sinister smile.

Indra unleashed his power, causing it to smash down against the stadium, and making everyone panic as it hit. Seeing this, Lilith's face gained an angry look as she turned to everyone.

"Get the non-combatants, and those injured to safety! Don't let any clans with only a single heir be targeted! All fighters, gather and attack Indra now!" Lilith ordered.

Everyone scurried to follow her orders, all while the Elders prepared to escape within the chaos.

"We'll just wait everything else, and when the chaos ends, we'll assume control." The Paimon Elder laughed darkly.

"Come on, let's get out of here." Lord Bael smirked, preparing to walk away.

As the Elders all prepared to leave...

"...Smash."

Suddenly, they were all hit against the ground, with some of the stadium's debris falling all over them. They all looked shocked as the black-haired girl staring at all of them with the same expression she had for 99% of the Finals.

"Sorry, but your purpose here is done."

Everyone saw Zekram was the only one not in the rubble, walking by the black-haired girl's side.

"Zekram, what are you doing!?" Lord Bael demanded angrily.

"You played your part, and you completely failed. I'm afraid that I can't tolerate that... nor can Rizevim." Zekram stated, glaring at them with indifference.

"WHAT!?" The Elders exclaimed.

The black-haired girl looked at Zekram, who sighed as he held up a sphere of Destruction.

"Disappear beyond the grave, you failures." Zekram said, marking their demise.

The Elders all screamed as the first Bael completely annihilated them with his Power of Destruction, soon taking the black-haired girl's hand as they walked off.

"You were very patient, how about a chocolate sundae before we return?" Zekram offered, ignoring her one moment in Vali's match.

"Yes." She replied.

* * *

Deep within the Dimensional Gap, the sight of Ophis groaning was seen as she regained consciousness. Opening her eyes, she saw that she was being bound by some kind of strange dark energy chains, and when she tried using her infinity powers to destroy it... the chains instantly glowed, nullifying their usage.

"What is this?" Ophis said in shock.

"DAMN IT!"

She turned to see Great Red growling, having just had the same result with his own powers. He attempted to bite them off, but had no luck.

"Oh, don't even bother, those chains have been made from my power, so you can't escape."

The two Dragon deities looked to see the same strange figure that had come to the gap to capture them.

"You let us out of these, or I'll devour you!" Great Red demanded.

"Oh please, you'd only be doing me a favor, and it won't matter soon enough." The hooded figure smirked, showing his oddly colored teeth again.

"Pray tell why that would be?" Ophis questioned.

The figure began laughing at that, pointing behind them, showing the sight of the Dimensional Gap swirling oddly.

"Because, the Dimensional Gap will soon fall... and you'll die with its end!" He revealed, cackling maniacally.

The two Dragon Gods froze at that, the laughter of the hooded figure still echoing through their ears.

* * *

Indra smashed the ground, unleashing a massive amount of Prana as more of the battlefield was ripped in an instant, with Lilith using her Primal Abyss to suck in all the debris flying at everyone. Looking at the damage so far, she turned to the Great Devils and Diehauser.

"Most Gods say all of you combined should be able to rival Indra's strength, combine that with Diehauser and we should be able to overcome him!" Lilith stated.

"Alright then, let's kick this God's sorry ass to show him why he made a mistake attacking Hell!" Alanira stated, smashing her fists together.

All seven of them fly at Indra, while Lilith turned to Satan's peerage.

"We need to stay at the ready, just in case anything happens! Gabriel, Azazel, help with the evacuation, try to get into contact with your factions and see when they can get here!" Lilith ordered

"As you command." Edelweiss nodded, placing her left fist over her heart.

Gabriel and Azazel nodded, heading off to help everyone evacuate as they tried contacting the other Seraph/Cadre from Heaven and Grigori. Lilith soon turned to Mio, grabbing Kuisha as the latter was attempting to flee.

"Kuisha, I need you to go with Mio, visit every faction of the Alliance and get their help! If the Hindu pantheon hasn't noticed Indra gone, then I worry Shiva not noticing isn't a simple coincidence, so hurry!" Lilith requested.

"But Miss Lilith-" Kuisha replied, wanting to stay with her friends.

Lilith's body shook, and Kuisha could realize how panicked she was, it's likely sending the Great Devils into a battle was something even she worried wouldn't work... she was drawing straws at this point. Feeling Mio's hand on her, she took a deep breath.

"...Alright." Kuisha reluctantly agreed.

Kuisha used her Power of Hole to create a portal, and the two jumped through it. The rest of the group still near Lilith looked at how nervous she looks, and Vali could easily tell a more terrified face was hiding under it.

'I bet she hasn't been in this kind of situation since the Great War, I can only imagine how scared she is, how much she had to think over every decision in nearly an instant. What's gonna happen to all of us?' Vali thought, looking towards the explosions from the battle zone.

"Everyone, considering who Indra is, we can't just expect him to go down easy... he'll keep going after Issei and Vali, so we have to gather all our strength... at least until someone with the power to beat him can arrive. Right now, the scary truth is we're currently all that stands between Hell's destruction!" Lilith shouted, trying to look strong.

To everyone who had any means to currently fight back, they quickly gave determined faces, steeling their resolve.

"We will not let our home fall!" Lilith exclaimed loudly.

"YEAH!" Everyone shouted in reply.

* * *

Falbium released a surge of powerful magic blasts at Indra, with the Hindu laughing as he only used minimum effort to dodge them. Using his Punk Rocket ability, he accelerated across the walls, yelling as he activated his Invader Sight to find an opening.

"There!" Falbium shouted.

"...Oh, so you'll attack from there?" Indra mentioned with a smug look.

Before Falbium even unleashed his attack, Indra threw the right barrier to counter it, and then swung his knee into his chest for the follow up he had planned. The other Great Devils all showed shock at that. In an instant, Falbium was smashed to the ground, and rendered incapacitated.

"How!? Falbium was using the Invader Sight, there's no way Indra could have countered like that!" Alanira exclaimed.

Indra laughed at their efforts, with the remaining six fighters all sweating nervously at their opponent.

'Wait, I've got it! I'll just take some power with Draining Robber, that'll give the chance for an opening to let Diehauser render his Prana useless! Lilith let him study Ophelia's just for this occasion!' She thought, readying her plan.

"You think that plan will work?" Indra answered her.

Alanira showed surprise as she unleashed her Draining Robber hand, only for him to push his hand forward.

"Here, take all you want!" Indra cackled, willingly pouring out his power.

"No, it's too much!" Alanira panicked.

She screamed as the power overloaded her, and as Diehauser quickly took his chance, Indra empowered his Prana, shifting its nature to render the Worthless ability ineffective. Before the Rating Game Champion could react, Indra blasted a powerful magic burst, slamming into him as he was hit through the stadium, being flung for miles as his unconscious form crashed into part of the city named after Lilith.

While disoriented, Alanira was suddenly attacked by Indra, who smashed her arm off. She screamed as it began to heal, only for him to laugh as he let his aura smashed into her body. Feeling the mental strain on her body, she instantly screamed, soon collapsing as her arm finished healing.

"No way, three of us taken out like it was nothing?"

Growling a bit, Roygun screamed as she used her Will of Creation to form chains around Indra's body, making him give a bored look as Serafall released her shadowy ice across his body, followed by Ajuka strengthening it with his Kankara Formula.

"Now!" Roygun shouted.

"**ABSOLUTE ZERO!**"  
"**UNLIMITED ARCITECH!**"  
"**PERFECT THEORY!**"

The three unleashed a combination attack, with the ice sifting and attacking him from within, and the chains binding him shifting into various weapons, with both of them being boosted by a visible formula in the air, compressing the ice's size to amplify the damage.

"I'd like to see him get out of this one." Roygun smirked, confident they got him this time.

"Very well, I'll do that!" Indra stated.

The three gasped before Indra instantly shattered all three, followed by unleashing a stream of Prana towards them all.

"Everyone!" Sirzechs shouted towards his friends.

They all screamed as they were smashed through parts of the stadium, instantly losing consciousness before they fell to the ground.

"No... everyone..." Sirzechs gasped.

"Weak, and you're supposed to be the stand in for the Great Devils? Please, you're just a mere fraction of who they were!" Indra mocked, a sinister look on his face.

Sirzechs scowled at him a bit, and soon his aura began to flare out.

"**AURA OF DESTRUCTION!**"

Sirzechs' begins to transform as his Power of Destruction begins to take the shape of his body, and then spiral out of control as it rushed at Indra. His voice roars as his uncontrollable power is aimed at the Hindu God of War.

"Oh, seems you have some bite to you, however..." Indra glared a bit, letting his eyes focus.

Looking at Sirzechs' mind, he began predicting where the streams would appear.

"...I've already won."

Rushed around them without any hitting them, Indra used his Prana to smash through Sirzechs' body, blasting through his form before his power stopped moving... stammering a bit, Sirzechs reverted back to normal before falling.

"Now, time to kill some Dragons." Indra chuckled darkly.

* * *

"Wait, what!?" Rei gasped.

Everyone looked at Rei as she looked at a magical screen she was using to monitor the Great Devils' battle.

"No, this isn't... Indra's already defeated the Champion and all the Great Devils!" Rei warned, making everyone gasp.

"Big brother... no..." Rias gasped in horror.

"My sister, the others... are they still alive?" Sona asked worriedly.

Rei sighed as looked to the side.

"Yeah, but that just shows he didn't see them as a challenge, he knew he'd win from the moment he began. The proof is before us, they were only fighting him for a few minutes." She stated, gritting her teeth a bit.

"No way, then how do we defeat him?" Niruili asked worriedly.

Lilith sweated a bit, unsure of what to do. At that moment, she felt Edelweiss touch her shoulder, surprising her.

"We can't let him fight here, we're still too close to innocent civilians. Keep running, and get closer to the out-lands, we'll buy you some time." She stated, looking at her fellow peerage.

"Edelweiss..." Lilith breathed.

"Satan was our master, we shall protect his home even if we must die to do so, now go!" Edelweiss shouted, but smiled at her after.

Lilith teared up, soon nodding before turning around.

"You heard her, get as far away from all the populated areas!" Lilith ordered, running ahead.

Everyone quickly followed a Satan's peerage readied themselves, the most drastic change being Uzume who had a new hairstyle, and her red hair become orange. As she noticed Indra near them on the horizon, Edelweiss changed into her battle outfit.

"Heathcliff?" Edelweiss requested.

"Right." He replied.

He raised his shield in the air, making it glow as energy spread out from it.

"**Shield of the Aegis!**"

Indra suddenly noticed a barrier around him, and while he tried to break through it, he found himself unable to as he hit is face on the one side. He turned to see Satan's peerage glare at him, with all of the Pawns showing a promotion to Queen from their auras.

"Really, more annoyances to deal with? Fine, I'll just have to smash you like I did those pathetic fakers." Indra chuckled.

"Sorry, but I'm afraid we're much stronger than they were." Edelweiss stated.

Acnologia roared has he took the lead, firing a massive blue burst of magic from his mouth. Indra simply held out his hand, blocking it to the Dragon's surprise, and while the God was pushed back, he smirked before with a loud shout... he slammed the attack back! The black and cyan Dragon was struck with his own attack, being flung back as he was knocked onto his back, soon slamming into the barrier.

"Damn it!" Rei grunted.

"Come on, let's do this Rei!" Uzume exclaimed, not looking afraid.

Rei nodded, and they quickly smashed into Indra's body, he tried to attack back... only for them to quickly move out of the way. At that moment, Acnologia roared as he got back up, rushing at the God.

"How annoying must you be!" Indra shouted.

Indra fired a blast, but Ruhk blasted his wind to hold it as he flew Meliodas up, who then did a spin slash with his sword to strike the attack. At that moment, the attack shot back, surprising Indra as it slashed across his arm, leaving many cuts as his eyes shook.

"A counter ability!?" Indra said in surprise.

"Looks like you aren't as perfect as you think you are." Meliodas grinned.

Indra growled, preparing to attack, only for Lucifuge too teleport before him, and then past him. He found his movement locked as Chisato blasted a large magical burst at him, sending him flying to Medaka, who's hair glowed pink as she smashed her fist through him.

'Damn it!' Indra growled, pouring out his Prana to defend himself.

Indra pushed her away, rushing at the Pawns as they gathered together... only for Kaido to stand before him, taking no damage as he struck.

"What?" Indra was surprised by this.

Various bits of ice suddenly cage him, slowing him down as Esdeath froze him.

"And you claim to be so strong, I think the trouble you're in says otherwise." Esdeath smirked.

Reinforce and Heathcliff charge their respective blades with power, and create energy waves at the Hindu God of War, followed by Jasmine and Rinne unleashing a powerful magical attack, powered by wind and earth magic respectively. As Indra was pushed across the ground, he roared, blasting out his aura as he attempted to strike forward with a large energy burst...

However, Edelweiss instantly appeared before him, using her sword to stomp him midway.

"You are not as powerful as you think you are, splitting Vritra's soul did not mean you overcame here, and I can assure you that if you continue you attempted murder of the Heavenly Dragons... you will die." Edelweiss warned.

Indra's eyes twitched, and then he suddenly began to laugh, soon pushing even more Prana out of his body as she pushed her back.

"WRONG! I AM THE STRONGEST, THOSE WHO OVERCOME BEYOND THEM ARE THAT, SOMETHING ONLY I HAVE ACHIEVED! THAT IS WHY I ALONE MY POSSESS THE TITLE OF HEAVEN!" He laughed in an insane manner.

He continued the attack that Edelweiss had blocked early, and in a mere instance... Heathcliff's barrier shattered as all of Satan's peerage was instantly stuck down, forcing them all back into their default forms. Indra laughed before he resumed his chase, with Edelweiss weakly raising her head.

"...Lilith, this is all we can do, please don't let our efforts be in vain." She begged, soon blacking out.

* * *

After a long trek through the lands of Hell, most of Lilith's group finally made it to an area far away from any civilians.

"OK... I think we finally made it far enough, the question is... did we get enough time?" Lilith panted, wondering how the others were doing.

"Ma'am, something tells me we're about to find out." Eterna said nervously, pointing at the sky.

Everyone turned, looking in horror as Indra flew through them, ripping through the entire area as he did, and then... he smashed the ground, sending the slab of land everyone was on flying. Where did it land? Well, the worst possible place it could.

It was near where everyone had been evacuating to, making them all panic as Indra neared them once again.

"You honestly thought you could get away from me? You're all fools, so now it's time I show you how much for letting your two Dragons dare challenge my title!" Indra cackled, charging his power out.

"DAMN YOU!" Lilith roared.

In a single moment, everyone noticed Lilith creating various magic circles for a custom spell, surprising even Indra as she released it.

"**CATACLYSMIC VOID!**"

A powerful dark burst struck Indra, making him cough in pain before the energy continued to dig into him, attempting crush him.

"This won't hold me!" Indra roared, releasing a pulse of his aura to break it apart.

Her eyes widening, she unleashed more magic at him, smashing him back even further.

"Mom!" Vali shouted.

"I have to buy time for everyone to evacuate! I can't let this happen... no, I have to seal this monster away for good!" Lilith screamed in anger, drawing out more power than she had in the past two millennia.

Raising her hand up, Lilith unleashed her Primal Abyss, attempting to seal Indra inside of it forever. Unfortunately for her, the Hindu God of War simply rushed forward, going around it before she had a chance to properly show a horrified reaction. In a single motion, he smashed smashing her to ground, making her eyes go blank as her forehead began to bleed.

Everyone gasped in horror as the people of Hell saw its Queen, one of the strongest if not _the_ strongest Devils currently alive, get defeated in a mere instant. Seeing the sight, Vali's hands shook, her teeth gritting as she finally had it.

"Now... you will die, Mother of all Devils!" He screamed victoriously, slamming an energized fist to kill her.

**"[DIABOLUS DRAGON - GOD!]"**   
**"(DIABOLUS DRAGON - LUCIFER!)"**

The God of War didn't even have a chance to near her as a flash of red and white struck him on each rib incredible heard, an indent was left in each as he suddenly was shot through an entire field of buildings. Everyone watched as the two Heavenly Dragons were in their strongest forms, cheering as the tides looked like they were turning.

As he got up, coughing as he noticed the indents on his chest were still present on his torn shirt, he gritted her teeth angrily.

"Damn you... you dare tarnish me? Fine, I'm already going to kill you anyways, so I'll just make your suffering twice as long now!" Indra declared.

He rushed at them, and they quickly flew away, making him chase after them... only for them to stop, and both scream a mighty roar as their auras smashed into Indra, making him fall back a bit before regaining his footing like he avoided tripping over.

"What? Impossible, how is your power increasing!? Indra demanded.

"You did all this, just because you believe we're threatening to take your title of [Heaven], and nothing more!?" Issei growled angrily.

"Only God has the right to that, and you're forgetting we're Devils, so let us show you the title of [Hell] destroying that mantle you're so proud of!" Vali screamed.

The rushed at Indra, with the cruel God zooming at them in response.

"DIE!" Indra roared loudly.

He prepared to read their minds while they were cocky, however...

"\\\Grapple him from behind, and then toss him towards the other\\\"

**"We'll sneak him from the left!"**

"(A deck in the face!)"

Indra's eyes widened, feeling dozens of thoughts all at once, distracting him as both Dragons smashed the sides of his face, causing Indra to fly in a sideways spiral. Forming his blasters, Issei charged a familiar attack. Vali did the same, charging from the tips of her wings, but both of them revealed a hidden chest plate with a green/blue gem glowing.

"What's going on? Why am I reading so many minds at once!?" Indra screamed in rage.

Both of the strongest past possessors laughed at that.

_"[I knew it, Indra has the power to read mines, and then use those to activate a future prediction power!]"_ Belzard smirked.

_"(Too bad for you, while you might be fighting two bodies, there's dozens of souls who'll be expressing their thoughts here, so you can't know which ones are the ones you should be reading!)"_ Elsha giggled.

Indra's eyes widened at that, realizing they turned one of his best strengths into a fatal weakness.

"Now, taste our combined strength!" They announced together.

**"[(LONGINUS... SMASHER!)]"**

They both unleashed their Sacred Gear's true power, and Indra quickly moved out of the way, however... they surprised everyone by grabbing it, and redirecting the twin blasts as they split apart, chasing towards where Indra was, making him scream before they all hit him, and smashing him into the ground. Smoke went off as a few people coughed, the twin Dragons panting.

**"[Careful kid, not much time left in this form.]"** Ddraig advised.

**"(About a minute left, so make it count.)"** Albion replied, agreeing with his counterpart.

The two nodded, and prepared to get closer, only to hear Indra laugh a bit.

"No, you're going to waste those whole minutes, otherwise..." Indra stated, walking out of the smoke with two silhouettes beside him.

Everyone gasped, especially Issei, as they saw Indra holding Hana and Seiji by the necks! Neither of them realized when they struck him, they sent him flying near the location where his adoptive parents were standing.

"That sleazy little shit!" Eneely growled.

"Everyone, stop him now!" Asuka shouted as she drew Kusanagi

Indra glared at the crowd that was charging towards him, and his eyes focused.

"SILENCE!"

With his scream, Prana exploded out like a wave, sending everyone flying through the sky as they were flung around like rag dolls across the everywhere. Tightening his grip, he looks at the Sekiryuutei, and Hakuryuukou with a sinister smile on his face.

"Now, you waste that time you have left, or I kill them both." Indra warned, tightening his grip once more, starting to cut off their air.

The two couldn't say a word, barely able to breathe right now, and unable to tell Issei not to trust him.

"Issei, he won't keep his promise, we should rush in and save them!" Vali suggested.

"I... I know that, but... but..." Issei said, his voice trembling.

Vali realized that expression on his face, it was the same one she made when her parents were about to be killed by Rizevim. Even though the solution was obvious... the fear of any action that could risk his family was too much for him.

And what scared her most? She had a good feeling that something might happen, but she was just as clueless on how to act.

'If I make a wrong move, they're dead... damn it!' Vali thought, sweating heavily.

Issei grit his teeth, lowering his arms, realizing she had no answers, the Lucifer heiress did the same. Their Diabolus Dragon forms soon dispelled, making Indra smirk.

"That's right, good little Dragons, and now for your reward." Indra stated, releasing his grip.

**「** **Fire Emblem Fates: Mikoto's Death** **」**

Issei's adoptive parents were released back onto the ground... before he smashed his palms onto the spot where their hearts where, causing a surge of Prana to pulse from them. Everyone looked in horror, their eyes going blank as while no one saw any damage, the blow had been fatal.

Lilith finally regained consciousness, and slowly raised her head to see the sight, making her give a similar reaction. Laughing in a mocking manner, Indra looked at the two he just mortally wounded. As his adoptive parents tumbled closer to them, Issei ran to them.

"MOM! DAD!" Issei screamed.

"No..." Vali covered her mouth, unable to believe Issei was about to experience the same pain she once suffered.

Issei kneeled by them, lifting them up slightly as she shook them.

"Come on, speak to me... don't you dare die!" Issei begged, starting to tear up.

"Issei, we're... so sorry, we let this happen. Just promise that... you'll keep the ones you still have safe, no... matter what." Seiji coughed.

Issei's body shook.

"Don't talk like that, you aren't allowed! We still have so much to do, didn't you say we'd go finish before school started again? I'll be in my third year, come on... you still have to see me graduate. You still haven't heard what I was going to tell Vali." Issei said in denial, crying more.

Hana raised a hand to Issei's cheek, making his eyes shrink as he felt it was cold.

"Issei, always remember that... we... love you..." She smiled, for the last time.

At that moment, both of them slowly slumped to the ground in slow motion, making a quiet thud as they finally met their ends. Issei's voice stammered, trying to deny it, but slowly losing the fight. As this occurred, the members of Issei and Vali's peerages, starting with Vali herself, all gave blank stares at the sight, unable to say anything at what just happened before them...

Then it finally happened, Issei screamed in anguish.

"MOTHER! FATHER!" He screamed in anguish.

Vali stared at the sight, feeling her anger well up, and gritting her teeth heavily. Everyone else nearby suddenly cried, despite having barely known them, or not at all... Indra's act was enough that any stranger would have cried unless they were completely heartless.

"You monster... how dare you!" Lilith stated, crying heavily at what she couldn't prevent.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Indra kept laughing madly.

"Aw, is the little Dragon crying? I guess with such a broken heart, you won't have the strength to fight me now-"

Indra's sentence would never finish, with Issei and Vali rushing at him in a split second. Smashing his fist, and foot, into his face with such force... everyone saw what looked like a fourth of his teeth flying out!

Coughing in surprise, he was suddenly tossed to the side as a wave of their respective colors blasted behind him as a wave even greater than the ones in their Diabolus Dragon forms. As he slowly got up, he turned in surprise before looking at the two in shock, seeing their auras flare up heavily, with everyone still surprised by what they had just done to the Hindu God of War.

"What... the hell is... going on? You're not even wearing your... armor?" Indra said, his voice now having a lisp in it due to his missing teeth.

**「** **My Hero Academia: Jet Set Run** **」**

The two were silent as their power kept flaring up, only for Issei to unleash a familiar set of flames from his mouth! Indra was confused, until he suddenly felt his hand get burned, and suddenly devouring in an instant. As he screamed in horror, he used his Prana to force it out, seeing the now black stump that was his right arm.

"Oh my god..." Lilith said in shock, realizing what those flames were.

"That fire, it was Ddraig's! How is this possible!" Tiamat realized.

Looking at Vali, she noticed the similar aura she was emitting, which could only mean...

'No way, can it be possible?' She thought.

Indra suddenly felt nervous, but he kept a strong facade as he laughed at the two, ignoring his now useless black arm.

"You think that's enough!? Please, even if you have that, you're nothing compared to me at that level of strength!" Indra exclaimed, his vanity as strong as ever.

"Wait a minute, something's off here." Gebedon realized, activating his Invader Sight.

As he did, both Heavenly Dragon wielders stared at Indra.

"Indra, you just made the biggest mistake you ever could, get ready... to meet your end!" Issei roared, with his power exploded even more.

Vali joined him, and soon their power kept going up, surprising everyone, including Indra, as their power kept getting higher... like something within them awakened from the intense rage they were feeling over Indra's act.

"What's going on? Why is their power still increasing, how is... wait, this level of strength, no!" Indra suddenly realized what was happening, and then...

Everyone saw him show _fear_!

"He's terrified, just what's happening?" Seekvaira questioned.

"Holy shit, everyone... their strength, it's-" Gebedon said, his eyes shaking as he began seeing the results.

He couldn't even find his voice, making everyone look at him.

"Gebedon, just how strong have they become?" Lilith asked, her eyes shaking at her daughter's power.

He took a deep breath, and tried his best to speak.

"It's the level of Vritra, no... Bahamut, no... it's... it's..." He stuttered.

"It's the same as their Dragons!" Gebedon revealed.

Everyone's face quickly flashed by showing ones of absolute shock, eventually ended at Indra as he heard the realization of their new strength.

"That's impossible!" Indra said, refusing to believe it.

Issei looked at Vali.

"You ready to destroy this bastard for good?" He asked.

"Gladly, I can never forgive him for what he's done!" Vali agreed.

They both rush forward, smashing into Indra as he flies across the lands of Hell, with the two chasing after him in streaks of red and white light. Everyone stared in shock, unable to react other than silent awe.

'My god, Indra was right about them surpassing him, but... it was only because he made them!' Lilith thought.

**[BOOST!] x?**

Issei boosts his speed, and slams an entire mountain's weight in punches against Indra, hammering him towards Vali.

**(DIVIDE) x?**

Indra's strength was slowly being drained away as Vali unleashed a blast of magic at him, sending him higher.

"You're not getting off easy, we'll make you feel every bit of agony you gave to my parents when you mercilessly killed them!" Issei shouted.

"Trying to destroy us is the worst decision you've ever made, and you'll pay for it with a fate worse than death!" Vali screamed.

Indra's eyes shake, and he gives a mighty roar before vanishing from where they planned to strike him, soon reappearing in another spot as he grabbed his face, pulling on it tightly.

"You think I'm afraid of you? You're wrong! So, I'll send you to the grave with my true form!" Indra roared.

He ripped off his skin, revealing a body of pure Prana underneath it. Said form was almost like his muscular interior, but if it was made of energy, with a secondary mass of aura being like his armor/support. Holding out his hand, a symbol revealing Trihexa formed, and he gave a ghastly shriek as he empowered himself, flaring out even more energy.

"I think I get why the Hindu deities got cheat like abilities now... they're literally living Prana, how much more of a cheat is that?" Esketanus said nervously, his entire body sweating.

Indra gave the same shriek, rushing at them.

"SEKIRYUUTEI! HAKRYUUKOU! PREPARE TO MEET YOUR ENDS!" Indra shrieked louder.

"Bring it!" They exclaimed loudly.

They both rushed at him, the Hindu God of War roaring as he eyes glowed a fierce red, unleashing an entire storm of Prana at them. Everyone gasped as it looked like he was starting to overpower them... until they both released a powerful aura, taking the shape of Ddraig and Albion. The auras chomped down against the Prana, shattering it apart to Indra's disbelief.

**"[You think you have the power to defy us? You're just a vain brat that throws tantrums if things don't go his way!]"** Ddraig screamed, his mouth emitting steam to show his anger.

**"(This world has no need for you, today... you shall die!)"** Albion shouted, giving a rare instance of heavily expressing himself.

Indra's eyes tightened.

"I killed Vritra! I can see the truth about Shiva's actions! You immature brats have no right to defy me! I'm in the right, and you will obey me, do you understand me!?" Indra explode, finally hitting his breaking point.

As he prepared to attack again, Issei rushed by, blasting a Blazing Inferno fireball, destroying Indra's right arm. The Hindu God screamed in pain, followed by Vali unleashing an icy mist of Freezing Miasma, taking out his other arm.

"Wrong Indra, and do you know why? Even if somehow you were right... That doesn't make you in the right!" Issei shouted.

"And that's because..." Issei rushed at him, readying a fist as he summoned Ascalon, which was glowing red with power.

He slashed across Indra, making an energy cut on his body before it clashed.

"There's no way for you to justify this destruction... or for making my parents no longer draw life!" Issei screamed angrily, throwing his fist at Indra's face.

Issei's punch hid so hard, some of Indra's body began to leak out mist.

"N-no... this can't... this can't be!" Indra whimpered as his power faded, and he began feeling his fear consume him.

Issei rushed at him.

"This is it!" Issei shouted.

"Wait!"

Issei looked to see Vali fly at him, looking at him in the eye.

"This is my home he attacked, just like Loki did... this time, let the right to ending such a horrible God by mine." Vali requested.

Issei looked at her, and while he wanted to kill him, Vali ending him would likely be even worse considering she was the Princess of Hell, the title opposite to why he justified attacking them.

"He's all yours." Issei nodded, making Vali smile.

Indra's eyes widened at that.

"N-no, you dare insult me like..." Indra coughed out, followed by screaming in pain.

Vali rushed at him, preparing for Albion's ultimate ability.

"I won't... let this... happen!" Indra coughed, preparing to fly away.

"**Blazing Inferno of Scorching Flames!**"

Issei breathed fire behind him, cutting off his escape. The Hindu God of War's voice shook in fear, turning to see Vali ready to unleash her own breath, and then...

"**Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom!**"

The icy mist rushed at Indra, slamming into his body, and everyone saw Indra unleash his final scream.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Indra's body fully broke apart.

His soul was then seen being consumed, marking his full demise, followed by all of his power exploding apart, scattering who knows where before it vanished from view.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

At that moment, both Issei and Vali panted, landing on the ground as everyone watching stood there in silence. Turning around, Issei walked over to everyone, a bit unsteadily, and then... raised his hands to mark their victory.

Right at that moment, everyone cheered loudly as Indra's demise.

"I don't believe it, they just... destroyed one of the most powerful beings in the world." Homura said, unable to comprehend what just happened.

Lilith trudged over, with Naud helping her due to her limping left leg. After trudging far enough, she looked at her daughter, staring silently as she saw that confident smile on her face.

"Vali..." Lilith whispered happily, tearing up as she recalled how much she changed from the self she first met her as two years ago.

Everyone gathered around Issei and Vali, cheering for the heroes of Hell up close and personal.

"You were awesome!"

"Wow, are you really as strong as your Dragons now?"

"Can I get your autograph?"

"I wanna be just like you when I grow up!"

As the two smiled at the sight, Issei soon began to fall over, making everyone look in surprise before Vali caught him. He looked up, seeing her smile at him.

**「** **Chivalry of a Failed Knight: Ikki's Declaration to Stella** **」**

"I'm so proud of you, Issei." Vali whispered, giving a warm smile.

"Thank you, Vali." He smiled back.

As he felt her embrace, he had only one thought fly through his head as a brief memory of his adoptive parents flashed by.

'Mom, dad... I miss you, but I'll keep moving forward, so that no one ever forgets you.' He thought.

However, it was a moment after he remembered there was something he hadn't told Vali yet.

"Naud, do you still have a way for everyone to see and hear us, I still have something to tell Vali." Issei asked, making everyone remember what was about happen before Zekram summoned Indra to attack them.

"O-Oh, I do! One second!" He replied.

Summoning a magic circle, he summoned a microphone and camera, soon making magical screens to broadcast what was happening across all of Hell.

"Uh... I-Issei, what are you-" Vali blushed, wondering why Issei wanted everyone to see what he was about to say.

Taking a deep breath, he looked at Vali directly.

"Vali..."

"Will you spend the rest of your life with me?"

Vali blinked at that not sure what he meant, while everyone else gasped as they did understand what Issei had just, their eyes going white, especially her and Issei's peerage. However, after a few seconds, her eyes widened at she realized it.

He didn't get on one knee, or hand her a ring, but... he had just proposed to her! Covering her mouth, tears of joy fell from her eyes before she began shedding them, all without closing her eyes once, before she moved her hands away, giving her answer.

"Yes, yes! I can't believe you chose this time to ask me!" Vali agreed, finally closing her eyes as all her tears fell out.

Everyone cheered loudly at that, clapping their hands or flailing them in the air.

**【** **Naud** **】**

**I don't believe it! Issei Akane just proposed to our princess, and she just said yes! I repeat, the Princess of Hell just accepted her Queen's proposal!**

At that moment, the two Dragon wielders gave a loving hug and kiss, with their parents all sniffling at the sight.

"Took them long enough." Homura said, her voice nearly cracking.

"Yeah, kids these days." Ayumu chuckled, sniffling again.

Lilith didn't say anything at first, remembering the claim she made to Issei after he admitted his feelings for Vali.

"...Take good care of her, Issei." Lilith smiled, shedding more tears.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As everyone celebrated this moment, they were oblivious to the events that were about to happen next, and how Hades would initiate them, but for now?

This one moment before them... it was theirs, and they'd treasure every second of it.

* * *

**That's right, you saw it! Issei had been planning to propose to Vali all this time! *cheers* I won't say when they'll marry, so how soon or how late they'll do that is something that you'll need to guess. That moment was just so sweet, I didn't have the heart to end the chapter with Hades beginning his next move, since for those who don't remember...**

**When we reached the end of Season 4, Indra made a promise that if he died, Hades would get his power, not taking said promise seriously because he thought he wouldn't die. Unfortunately, Hades saw the shadow of death coming for him, something that just happened. Main point, that's how Season 6 will start, since I wanted this season to end on a happy note with our twin Dragons' engagement.**

**It was really hard for me to kill off Issei's adoptive parents, but I figured that to have the two awaken the full power of their Dragons (strength wise that is, and I'll say now they'll need it because of what's coming...), something really tragic had to push their rage to a breaking point. In the end, I had to kill Issei's adoptive parents, and I chose them because he's much closer to them due to the years they've spent.**

**Now, time I finally explain the story behind this black-haired girl, since the fact Zekram mentioned Rizevim when they left is enough that I can share it. Well... at least the part that isn't a spoiler for JOHD. Anyways, some of you asked me once how Devil-Lilith's appearance would influence the appearance of Dragon-Lilith, and back then I had no clear answer on that.**

**However, that is no longer the case. I can only confirm she isn't a Dragon without giving too much away, but that girl is essentially this version's story of Dragon-Lilith, albeit in an incomplete state, hence why she doesn't talk much. That should already give you some idea of what her backstory will be like, but there's a lot more, though that won't be happening until we visit the Vampire territory like in canon.**

**Alright everyone, before I give you all that brief sneak peak, time for that special announcement I'm about to make. I think most of you might remember how I said that the Re-Imagining isn't a remake, but an AU of this story, right? Well, then I'm happy to announce that not only is the Re-Imagining gonna happen, but... *does a drum roll* I'm also planning to make a remake!**

**This was my first big story, and I'm glad with how it turned out, but with how the older chapters are written? I worry trying to overhaul them might run into some problems, and that's when recently I realized something. There are some ideas I liked, some I didn't, some details I feel I could have done better, and even some changes I could have made, so I figure that I'd fix it up via a remake ^^**

**One thing about the remake, and Re-Imaging, is the fact that similar ideas will be used between them, but each story will be fairly different. The remake will take a similar path to this one, and like the original, will NOT be a harem. The Re-Imagining on the other hand, which will have a different name upon its official creation, will have a harem, and is a much different story. You'll see a slight clue to that difference in the sneak peak scene below the pairings, so...**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**

* * *

Re-Imagining Sneak Peak:

It was a sunny morning in Kuoh Town, and the sight of a girl with silvery-white hair tied in a blue bow near the bottom, and soft blue eyes was seen. She breathed lightly as she jogged through the streets, eventually stopping by a juice machine, tapping a magic circle that appeared upon nearing it.

Taking a deep breath, she looked to see she beat her last checkpoint recorded by 5 seconds.

"Yes!" She smiled, pumping her fists up.

At that moment, she saw the magic circle in question expand, changing into a square shape as she saw the sight of a 7-year old girl with a similar face to hers, messy black hair going to her elbows that she tied in a ponytail, and the same blue eyes.

"Hey big sis, if you hit this checkpoint, then does that mean..." The girl was nearly pouting as she waited for the answer.

"Yep, I'm almost home." The silver-haired girl smiled.

The younger sister cheered, flapping her arms three times as she did.

"OK, I'm gonna make our favorite then, mom and dad are gonna be home soon, so we can all eat together!" She cheered.

The older sister giggled, smiling at her little sister's antics.

"Alright, I'll start heading back now, bye."

She hung up, and soon prepared to head back, only to hear the bushes rustling a bit.

"Hmm?"

Turning to look, she saw a girl around her age crawl out, looking heavily bruised like someone had beaten her. Gasping at her injuries, she ran over to help.

"Hey, are you alright?" She asked, reaching out to her.

Once the girl in question looked up, she gasped, and screamed before throwing a pink holy sphere from her hands. Not expecting the attack, the silver-haired girl held up her hand, dispersing the attack as the injured girl ran off.

"A Fallen Angel? Oh no, this is bad..." She sweated as she grabbed her phone, instantly tapping a certain contact.

"Hello? Yeah, it's me... just saw a Fallen here, and I'm still not back in Kuoh Town yet. Please, keep your eyes on Issei as much as possible for the next few days." She replied to the person she was calling.

After hearing something back, she nodded.

"OK, thank you. I'll be back soon."


	65. Chapter 65

**Before we begin today's chapter, I need to announce something important that relates to this story.**

**Recently, I've started getting some story ideas I've been unable to figure out before now finalized, and as I've done that, stress has begun to set in. However, it's not for the reason you might be thinking. After pondering for a bit, I finally realized what the problem was, so now I know how to fix it... that's where this message unfortunately comes in, because that fix-up relates to the LOHD series in a certain way ^^;**

**See, I don't like to accept ideas offered to me by others because often when I do, I'll feel the need to be equal in accepting them all, which is a problem if two ideas contradict to create a paradox. A story needs to be written by the way the author feels, as it's their story, and I can instinctively tell that if I began accepting such ideas... it would push me into never finishing any of my stories, denying them proper endings.**

**However, that's where I recently realized something else, that I've unknowingly let certain things that have been said influence me anyways through a different degree. Things like the romance not being fairly prominent despite the genre, and wishing more of it would show, kinda small things overall. Those things were what made me think I should start that Romance side story I mentioned a few chapters back.**

**Everyone has their own way of writing, or viewing certain genres. In my case, I feel the romance genre doesn't just mean the story is focused on love between at least two characters, but when such love is vital to the story, something that is clearly present in this story since a majority of it revolves around Issei and Vali not just being the hosts of the Heavenly Dragons, but how their roles are influenced by being in love with each other.**

**After realizing that, I realized there are a few stories I still need to plan on, and others that I'm not sure I actually want to do now. That's where this comes into play, I need you all to know that this means LOHD: Re-Imagined, the LOHD remake, and the romance based side story are all in consideration of being axed as I figure out if I truly want to do them, or let a few words influence me into writing them when I actually don't want to.**

**To give you an idea on these stories, right now LOHD: Re-Imagined, and the remake, have a very low chance of being axed, as I've already got plenty of ideas for them planned, but it isn't guaranteed just yet. On the other hand, for that romance based side story, the reverse is true, meaning it has a high chance of being axed right now, so don't be surprised if a future chapter has me reveal it's not happening.**

**I have to do this in order to clear my mind, and be able to keep riding, including this story. As I'm sure to all the people reading this story, what matters more is this story gets its ending, as it's come a long way since it began. Thank you for taking the time to listen, and I hope you'll enjoy any future DxD stories of mine. Now, time to begin the actual start notes for this chapter.**

* * *

**This is it everyone, time to finally begin the last season of "Legend of the Heavenly Dragons" through the last major event it can do, and that is... the final battle against the Khaos Brigade, and Hades' forces! Some of you seemed to have mistaken last chapter as the end for this story of the trilogy, but it actually wasn't, so don't ready yourselves to switch to the JOHD theater just yet ;)**

**Now, the first big thing I'll get out of the way? Back in Season 4, a few characters in the many young Devil peerages didn't get the chance to properly shine as a result of certain match ups, Niruili being a big example since her team was facing Sairaorg, whose focus on strength over magic was the worst type of opponent she could have face. This time, everyone gets a chance to shine (including those Indra blazed through), masters and peerages.**

**Since this chapter will begin showing it, I won't say how it will happen, but... this season will completely change the in-universe world of this story forever with the actions Hades is about to take. I mean it, nothing will ever be the same after this chapter, and that's why this season is such a fitting one for the last one of LOHD, so... come on everyone, time for us to finish this first saga of the Heavenly Dragon series!**

**Let's get this chapter started!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative, or a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Jingu Hades **

**One of the few female members of the Hero Faction Elites, possessing a Freezing Archaeopteryx with a Sub-Species Balance Breaker as her Sacred Gear. The one major difference between her and the other members is while they're acting as moles for the Khaos Brigade, she is genuinely evil, being the adoptive daughter of Hades who acts as a reverse mole for his sake.**

**Jingu's story is entirely unknown, with the only things she can remember being that she was born in an unknown area of Japan, and apparently shared blood with an old Empress of Japan. She had apparently been abandoned at birth, and lived on her own, quickly discovering something that she seemed to have gotten from her ancestor... a violent disposition.**

**Eventually, she was found by none other than Hades, who took her in as his daughter. Over the years, the God's influence only made her even worse, turning that violent disposition into a joy of doing horrible things and hurting others. Upon the formation of the Khaos Brigade, he asked Jingu to find a way in to help him possibly initiate some upcoming plans of his, eventually being scouted by Cao Cao for the Hero Faction.**

**Currently, none of the other Hero Faction Elites are aware of who Jingu truly is, or the kind of person she really is. However, that's about to change.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 1 – The Invasion Begins _ **

Deep in Tartarus, Hades was seen sitting on the chair within his personal chambers, currently doing nothing to the point that some Grim Reapers could mistake his lack of motion as him having fallen asleep. That state didn't last much longer, as he suddenly lifted his head, feeling something different in the air.

"Hmm, this feeling..." Hades realized.

At that moment, a bunch of Grim Reapers suddenly fell over as they saw a sudden flow of power shoot through Tartarus' caverns, all of which headed towards Hades. Seeing it come closer to him, the Greek God of the Dead began laughing heavily.

"It took long enough, but it's happened!" Hades exclaimed, his eyes showing a smirking motion.

"The shadow of death has claimed Indra, and now his power... IS MINE!" Hades hold a hand out, motioning to grab it.

The massive amount of power flowed into Hades' bones, making him shake heavily as his body began to glow, and he screamed from the sudden surge entering him. Hearing his screams, Pluto quickly flew into the area.

"My lord, what is-" Pluto shouted in worry.

He saw the sight of what was happening to Hades, surprising him. After a few minutes, Hades' bones became a sharp white color, and grew in size, as if they had become more muscular in a sense. Looking at his hand, the ruler of Tartarus laughed a bit, soon looking at Pluto.

"M-my lord?" Pluto asked in surprise.

"Pluto, I have something I need you to do." Hades stated.

"Y-yes my lord?" Pluto responded as he tried to realize what just happened.

"Gather Orcus, Nemesis, and Thanatos here, as well as the rest of our Grim Reapers. Then, get into contact with my daughter and tell her to contact my [special client] for me. Finally, I give you permission... to unseal the Dragon Eater." He ordered.

Pluto gasped at that last one, if he wanted to unseal that monster, then that would mean...

"No way, are you implying what I think you are?" Pluto inquired.

Hades began to chuckle darkly, his eyes glowing a bit.

"The time has come, I have no need to fear a threat from that Devil Queen anymore, I am now beyond her! The time to finally correct this world has come! It is time for us... to declare war, and invade!" Hades announced, laughing loudly.

* * *

***Pokémon XY&Z Theme plays***

**(*guitar strumming begins*)** Issei was seen suiting up for battle, summoning his Boosted Gear onto his head. Vali did the same as she summoned her Divine Dividing wings, and as both turned to the screen, their peerages appeared besides them.

_[The Rating Game Tournament has been one, and now the might Indra efforts have been destroyed through his death, with Issei and Vali having now obtained the full power of their Dragons. The reward, the ability for Vali to achieve her dream, and her new engagement to Issei. Unfortunately, they are unaware of the threat Hades is about to bring to Hell, which will echo into the rest of the world...]_

**(*heavier echoing guitar strumming*)** One by one, the many Devil heirs and heiresses appear, with a color matching their hair, or close to it, through various slides across the screen. Some of the faces included Issei, Vali, Rias, Sona, Zephyrdor, Eneely, Seekvaira, Ineelana, Niruili, Gebedon, Esketanus, Suzattin, Sairaorg, and many more before they all spread out into stars, forming the words [Legend of the Heavenly Dragon - Season 6] on it.

_[...The time left until that moment? None, because it begins now!]_

**(Run! Through the fields of Hell as the dark sky shines with a bright new sun!)** The young Devils were sitting on a field as they had a large picnic, their peerages sitting with them. All of a sudden, Asuka exclaimed in shock, making everyone look as she pointed to a sun rising, making the sky the same color as the Human world's.  
**(Faze through the darkness!)** Vali spins into view, with Albion and Elsha by her side, as well as a third hidden silhouette.  
**(Here is our land's brand-new day!)** Issei flips down onto the ground, with Ddraig and Belzard by his side, also having a third hidden silhouette with him.

**(We've run... through every obstacle, and now we must pave a new future!)** The sight of the Grim Reaper army was seen, with Hades walking into view, his body radiating a powerful aura from the power he absorbed from Indra.  
**(Breathe like Heaven!)** Hades stands in a black screen with his best Grim Reapers standing behind him.  
**(Spread our message through the world!)** Jingu gives a cruel expression, with her Freezing Archaeopteryx landing behind her, releasing an icy mist around her.

**(This is the path we've chosen to walk, but no one said it would lack a sacrifice!)** As the 10 Supernova's peerages were seen fighting against the Bandersnatch army, and the twin Dragons faced off against the Jabberwocky... the faces of Belzard, Elsha, Ddraig, Albion, Great Red, and Ophis overlay across the screen, flashing by in that order.  
**(Even the greatest hero can fall! Even they could suddenly die!)** The monsters were defeated, but something half-human, half-serpentine Dragon lurches towards the two Dragons, blasting them with a purple stream.  
**(But I know you'll take up my mantle, so please stand up tall... it falls to your efforts now!)** Issei vanished instantly, but Lilith ran towards Vali as she continued falling, only to fade into air right as she caught her, and the Mother of Devils screamed into the sky as tears left her eyes. Homura and Ayumu appeared behind them, also crying before a light showed both Great Red, and Ophis' magic circles.

**(Whoooaaa~)** In response to the sight, everyone instantly gave a driven look, rushing at the massive army standing before them.

**( D **x **D )** Rassei flies by the screen, a flag with the symbol tied to his tail flapping through the wind.

**(Call all of the Angels! Devils! Demons! And Fallen Angels too!)** Vali's peerage, led by Yumina, begins the attack against the Ultimate-Class Grim Reapers, slamming against Thanatos, Nemesis, Pluto, and Orcus in sequence, while dealing with any added Grim Reapers in their way.

**( D **x **D )** Tannin flies by the screen, the same flag tied onto his tail.

**(This is our... alliance's time to show its true strength and unity!)** The remaining Gogmagogs all form, rushing across the field as Shalba makes his appearance, holding up his hand to reveal the Trihexa symbol as it transforms into something hidden in a black shadowy cover.

**( D **x **D )** Yu-Long flies by the screen, the same flag tied onto his tail.

**(And even if the hero dies... they can rise up from the ashes once again!)** A red and white shadow showing Issei and Vali was seen crossing into the Dimensional Gap, with the hooded figure laughing as he revealed himself, starting to disrupt the entire Dimension.

**(*a few guitar strums*)** In another area of Hell, the sight of Asuka's eyes widening in response to something quickly went off, and she readied herself by drawing her signature sword.

**( D **x **D )** Fafnir flies by the screen, the same flag tied onto his tail.

**(There's no despair that can destroy our hope for good!)** Asuka back flips across various magical beams aimed at her, swinging the Kusanagi as various gales take out her attackers. Eventually, she lands by Issei's peerage, along with Tiamat who all have fierce looks in their face.

**( D **x **D )** Vritra flies by the screen, the same flag tied onto his tail.

**(Call the twins Dragons to sound the next stage!)** Hades, Shalba, Jingu, and the rest of the Khaos Brigade's forces all stand together as they're all replaced by some king of giant skeletal monster with glowing dark-blue flames burning across its form.

**( D **x **D )** Bahamut flies by the screen, the same flag tied onto his tail.

**(The Dragon of Dragons' power will lead us to a new tomorrow!)** The sight of Ddraig and Albion, followed by Great Red and Ophis, finally ending with Issei and Vali. The scene starting in nothingness, then the Dimensional Gap, and finally the battle occurring in Hell.  
**(The first saga of a grand story is about to end, and then our second tale will begin!)** The two Heavenly Dragon hosts jumped into the air, their auras swirling to create an unseen magic circle. A bright flash went off, with a single black silhouette revealing its purple eyes, and emitting an unidentifiable color of light.

**( D **x **D** \- **D **x **D** -** D **x **D )** All of the dragons carrying the flag flew by at once, their flags untying from their tails before they multiplied to swirl across the screen like a work of art.

**(Go! Fight for the future, and don't you dare stop for any reason now!)** The people in Earth watch as stardust sparkles across their lands, amazed at the unseen wonder they were gazing towards.  
**(Come on everyone, say it together now...)** Issei and Vali appeared on the screen together, looking at each other as they held the other's hand.  
**(This is the story of... this is the story of... this is the story of...)** Everyone else slowly appears besides them gathering in one big image shot before a mixture of colors fire off, ended with a loud camera shutter sound.

**(The Legend of the Heavenly Dragons' story!)** A picture showing the entire Alliance was seen, with Issei and Vali flashing peace signs, the latter laying her head against Issei's shoulder.

* * *

As everyone celebrated the moment, Yumina suddenly realized something, and tapped Issei on the shoulder. This got his attention as he and Vali stopped their kiss, making him turn to look at the Lucifuge heiress.

"What is it?" Issei asked.

"Your adoptive parents' bodies are still lying where Indra killed them, shouldn't we go pick them up to prepare a proper funeral for them?" Yumina suggested.

The Sekiryuutei's eyes widen as he finally remembered that detail, making him face palm.

"Aw man, I forgot about that! That thing about adrenaline making you forget the most obvious things really is true." Issei realized, feeling kinda bad over how careless he had been.

"Probably a bit of that [anger makes you dumb] thing as well." Yumina agreed, nodding her head.

"...I just realized that my husband's peerage, Diehauser, and all the Great Devils are still likely lying where Indra defeated them. Come on everyone, time to play pick-up." Lilith groaned, realizing they forgot about them as well.

In response to that, everyone saw the mess that Hell had been left in, and in response to that...

"Lilith, I don't think pick-up is the right term you should be using here." Asuka remarked, scratching her head a bit.

The Devil Queen groaned in annoyance at that.

"We just lived through an attack from one of the strongest 10 beings in the world, and we've had a few casualties, and many injured... do you really have to be picky with terminology right now!?" She shouted annoyed.

Lilith suddenly blinked as she realized who she sounded like.

"Oh god, now I know how Leviathan always felt." Lilith realized in horror.

"Hey mom, maybe we should get you a nice cup of herbal tea?" Vali suggested, chuckling nervously.

"Yes, please do." Lilith agreed, realizing how stressed she was.

* * *

Within the Hindu Pantheon's land, the sight of a Gogmagog army, along with numerous creatures no one had ever seen before, were fighting against the Trimurti. Whatever the unknown creatures were, they could only best be described as some kind of strange... bionic spheres maybe? Shiva unleashed waves of his Prana, smashing through the army as he regrouped with his fellow Gods.

"Damn it, could Indra have really planned this much under our noses?" Brahma questioned.

"I haven't heard from Jeanne, so I don't think Cao Cao's team knows of this either" Vishnu replied, sweating nervously.

Shiva gritted his teeth at that moment.

"We don't have time for this, move aside you two!" He screamed angrily, his aura flaring.

Sensing his rage, his fellow Gods quickly moved out of the way as he unleashed a powerful orb of Prana at the army, which quickly enlarged to replicate a small-scale meteor impact. Looking at the attack, the enemy army was instantly annihilated.

After confirming there was no more energy signatures left, giving them a moment of reprieve, the Hindu Destroyer God breathed out in relief.

"We're good for now... Brahma, can you lock on Indra's Prana signature?" Shiva questioned.

"On it." Brahma nodded, tapping his fingers on the side of his head.

Focusing his powers a bit, he searches for Indra... soon gasping as he realized Indra's signature didn't exist anymore.

"Indra's signature... I can't sense it!" Brahma announced in shock.

"What!?" Vishnu exclaimed in disbelief.

"That can only mean... Indra was killed?" Shiva realized.

His eyes flashed, using a similar ability to Indra's future predicting, and letting him see how the Heavenly Dragon duo finally ended him with their newfound strength.

"...I don't believe it, the very people he tried to kill ended up taking his lives." Shiva told his fellow Trimurti.

This surprised them even more, how such a powerful deity in their fold had such a karmic fate.

"Just how much power did they have? Defeating Indra like that, there's no way they were as strong as when we last met them." Brahma wondered.

"Maybe power wasn't the cause? For all we know, maybe they managed to unlock their Dragons' legendary breaths?" Vishnu suggested.

Shiva quickly sat down, looking at the sky.

"...No doubt about it, this is the glimmer of a future I saw during the Great War. It had been real all along." The Destruction God stated.

His fellow Trimurti looked at him confused.

"What glimmer? You're not making any sense?" Vishnu stated.

Shiva didn't respond immediately, knowing why he'd seem that way, after all... the only ones who had known were no longer of this world.

* * *

_Shiva looked as a powerful burst of holy and shadow energies gathered together, with God looking shocked as Satan stood by his side with the other Great Devils. Before them all was some kind of shadowed amalgamation. Despite this, it was clear what this creature's true identity was based on the legends._

_"Lucifer? Why are you here, I thought you said that you would only-" God said in surprise._

_"I'll never forgive you, but... I can respect you for standing here and now, willing to amend and atone for your faults. That's why I'm here, because this isn't a task you can take alone." Satan explained, looking at the Angel deity._

_He looked at God, smirking a bit as he showed his signature pride._

_"So, can you admit you'll need help... father?" He questioned._

_God blinked, chuckling a bit before he looked forward, the monster before them growling as it slowly walked towards them._

_"We must seal it away, no matter the cost!" God shouted._

**「** **Yugioh - Darkside of Dimensions: Atem Returns** **」**

_All of the Great Devil put up their hands, creating six black chains with their power, while a white one formed through God's, and quickly following that... another six came out of nowhere, but all Golden in color. The beast in question roared in pain, suddenly feeling something very wrong._

** _W_ ** _h**A**t... **W**h**A**t **I**s **H**a**P**e**N**n**I**n**G**? **S**t**O**p **T**h**I**s, **L**e**T** m**E** g**O** y**O**u **M**i**S**e**R**a**B**l**E** p**A**r**A**s**I**t**E**s**!**_

_The Hindu God of Destruction's eyes widen as the beast is slowly layered with thousands of seals, slowly encasing it into something._

_"This is... what's going on? I saw the future, our world is doomed to end, I should just end it on our terms. At the very least, that will let us-" Shiva questioned, unable to comprehend this would work._

_At that moment, Shiva's ability to see the future began, shocking him as he saw something he never expected. Before him stood a world with the supernatural races of each pantheon, and the gods tied to them, living together in unity... with the sight of a boy and girl standing in the place of God and Satan respectively. Behind them, appeared many more people, including God and Satan themselves, but most of all? He saw himself among them._

_It was a future, far away from the now. However, that alone was what shocked Shiva, the very fact... there was a future waiting!_

_'No way, this is... the world was always rumored among the many pantheons to eventually end in some apocalyptic event, such a conflict and this monster seemed that way, but... is that future being defied? No, it's-' He thought._

_"You will not destroy this world!" God screamed._

_"See what two opposing forces can do together, because we choose to use our light and darkness... to defy the end! That is our freedom!" Satan screamed._

** _N_ ** _o **W**a**Y**.**.**. **Y**o**U** c**A**n'**T** d**O** t**H**i**S**, y**O**u'**R**e **W**e**A**k**L**i**N**g**S**! h**O**w **C**a**N** y**O**u **H**a**V**e **S**t**O**p**P**e**D**.**.**. **N**o**O**o**O**o**O**o**O**o**O**o**O**o**!**_

_At that moment, parts of the amalgamations body broke apart, causing its voice to devolve into just instinctual roars. Everything that broke off began flying around, falling into certain objects, one of which looked to be a very familiar blade. The being's body began forcefully curling, soon being trapped in some kind of sphere that fly off somewhere, disappearing to what few knew as the [End of the World], the singularity that connected all worlds._

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

_Shiva could only stare at what had happened, before suddenly being recovered by a specific Asura._

_"Lord Shiva, I've got you!" The Asura exclaimed._

_'That was... yes, the world itself has found a new way, and I must do the same. No more bringing the end, not when it isn't inevitable anymore.' Shiva thought, forming his resolve._

* * *

Shiva got up, looking at the other two members of the Trimurti.

"I think the time for you to know has come." Shiva stated.

"Uh... Shiva, are you feeling OK? This is an unusual way of acting, even for you." Brahma said in concern.

"I assure you that I'm fine, this simply has to do with why I decided to not follow my decision of eventually ending the world. The faith I gave to the prophecy." Shiva remarked.

The two showed confusion at that.

"The prophecy?" They both repeated.

"Yes, one very few know. This prophecy speaks of-"

Before Shiva even had the chance to say anything, a sudden rumbling is heard, getting the trio's attention as the remains of the army suddenly begin shaking.

Shards of the Gogmagog, and sphere creatures, rose into the sky before blinking away. Following that, their lingering energies start to reform, restoring the Gogmagog army in the forms of Leo's Super-Gogmagog, while the spheres themselves... they strangely transformed into what looked like living armors based on Dragons of various colors, Mio even noticed the old appearances of Issei and Vali's scale mails among them.

"What is this?" Vishnu said, sweating in worry.

The army roared before charging forward again, swarming the three as they prepared to fight again.

'Something's not right here, why are there more forces fighting if Indra's dead?' Shiva wondered, starting to get a bad feeling.

* * *

Georg was sitting in an area of the Hero Faction's base, seemingly trying to increase his focus through meditation as a certain sound got his attention. Opening an eye, he saw a magic circle form, revealing a magical creation flying through before landing on a finger held out.

"Let's see..." Georg mused.

The creature vanished into his magical flow, letting him see recent events, which included the death of Indra. His surprise quickly formed upon his mind fully registering it, and he quickly got back on his feet, running to Cao Cao.

As he ran through the area, he unknowingly passed Jingu, who gave a dark smirk.

"Oh, something tells me that I'll be getting some interesting news soon." She chuckled quietly, seeing a magic circle form by her.

"Ah, right on cue." Jingu smirked even more, a darker look around her eyes.

Cao Cao was polishing his Sacred Gear when he saw his number two run in, getting his attention.

"Georg, what's going on?" He asked.

**«We have an... interesting development»** Nuada mentioned.

Georg soon regained his breath, adjusting his glasses as he looked the True Longinus' wielder.

"Indra has been destroyed, his attempt to kill the Nitenryu only caused his own demise." Georg revealed.

"What!?" Cao Cao replied in shock.

The True Longinus' body glowed, the spirit inside humming a bit.

**«To achieve that, it can only mean one thing... the curse if the Heavenly Dragons was broken»** God's Will replied.

Cao Cao looked at his Sacred Gear, quickly realizing what this meant.

"It seems that our bets were right, and I think we've gotten as far as we could within the Khaos Brigade's ranks. I think it's time to tell Jeanne we're ended the mission." Cao Cao remarked.

"Yes, this seems to be as far as-"

Before Georg could finish, a Hero Faction member coughed heavily as she walked into the room, bleeding in a few places from cut wounds. Ice was also covering her form, like pseudo-frostbite. The two looked in horror as she fell to the ground, prompting the Hero Faction's leader to help her up.

"Who did this to you!?" Cao Cao demanded.

The girl tried to talk, but couldn't get any words out, holding her mouth as she started to cough heavier. A bit of blood dripped below her pinkie, making Cao Cao worried.

"Here, this isn't the best, but it's all I have on short notice." Georg held a potion to her, one to help heal at a very weak level.

Cao Cao helped her drink it, and soon began to breath normally, with her wounds healing, but not the lingering damage left on her body.

"J-Jingu... out of nowhere, she began attacking everyone as she tried to find Leo. We couldn't stop her, she killed some of us, and then took him away in some strange magic circle I didn't recognize. I'm so sorry, we've let you... down." She explained, crying in shame.

She quickly blacked out, making the two freeze in shock.

"Jingu did this!?" Cao Cao said in horror.

"No way, was she a reverse mole all this time?" Georg theorized in worry.

**«I don't agree, if it had been a reverse mole, we should have still known it... she had to be under someone else, perhaps someone only aiding us without being a member in the manner Loki had»**

Cao Cao gritted his teeth, looking at the descendant of Faust.

"Georg, gather the others immediately! I have a bad feeling right now..." He ordered, a nervous sweat on his face.

Georg nodded, quickly using Dimension Lost's mist to move faster than he could run.

**«Something tells me you know where she went»** God's Will realized.

"The timing is just too perfect, if Georg was rushing here to give me that info, that's the only place she could be right now..." Cao Cao answered.

* * *

After a long trek through the damaged areas of Hell, everyone left unconscious, or even possibly comatose for a few unfortunate civilians, and especially the deceased who were unable to survive Indra's rampage... the survivors all began gathering them before meeting in a temporary base of operations Lilith led everyone to. The new Astaroth heiress, known by the name of Amalya, had Cleria's capsule in tow, which luckily didn't take any fatal damage that risked killing her.

"...How bad was Indra's attack in the long run?" Lilith asked a member of her peerage.

"3852 were injured, about 3 dozen are currently comatose, and... we lost about 100, none of them were children, but a few of them were current lords or high-ranked members of Devil society." Enku revealed in a solemn manner.

This caught everyone's attention, horrified at the damage.

"My god, are you serious?" Amalya asked in disbelief.

"I know my Pawn well enough, he isn't kidding... I mean, look at who we were facing?" Lilith sighed in response, placing a hand over her eyes.

Taking a deep breath, she moved it off her face, looking straight up.

"Well, since the fight's over, we'll have time to figure out who died among them. Vali's dream means we have to completely restructure Hell's current government out of the mess that it's been left in for the last 2000 years, especially since I'm not letting Lord Bael or his wife run the clan anymore." She followed up.

"Actually, about that... aside from Zekram who's still MIA, it seems the Elders were all murdered." Ayumu revealed.

Everyone showed surprise at that.

"They're all dead? But how?" Lilith shouted.

"Since they summoned Indra here, I figured that in the confusion, they'd end up trying to run away. That lead me to cast a tracking spell just to keep an eye on them, but it was only about a minute in that I felt the spell lose everyone except for Zekram. After that, he seemed to discover my spell and cut it off." Ayumu explained, looking guilty for letting him escape.

The Devil Queen grit her teeth upon hearing that, as while the Elders' deaths were ultimately good, Zekram managing to leave annoyed her greatly. Not to mention the fact only he was alive implied only one thing...

'Why did he kill them in the first place? Damn, all of this is happening at once, I can't figure it out at all.' She thought.

A sudden scream is heard, catching everyone's attention as a Devil soldier ran in, holding himself like he was injured... yet there wasn't any sign of a wound on him! Bennia's eyes quickly widened, seeing something no one else could.

"Hey, what's wrong? I don't see any injuries on you!" Vali inquired worriedly, trying to help him.

"I don't think this is an illness, he looks too healthy." Issei replied, sweating nervously.

Bennia got closer, making everyone go silent as she looked.

"...His wound is on his soul, a Grim Reaper did this to him." Bennia revealed, knowing her own kind's main ability.

The Devil Guard looked at everyone, his eyes looking bloodshot.

"L-lady Lilith, they came from the horizon, they're... t-the Khaos Brigade! Not just them, but an entire force of Grim Reapers, and even more! They're coming!" He screamed out.

The Devil Guard fell to the ground in horror, clutching his wounded soul as he continued giving pained shouts, scaring everyone due to a combination of his words and the words they were connected to... everyone saw Lilith's expression as the horrid truth hit her.

"...The Grim Reapers attacking us, alongside the Khaos Brigade?" She stated quietly, looking at the ground.

"Lady Lilith, is this what it sounds like?" Natsu asked, though he had a feeling he knew the answer already.

Lilith clenched her fists, glaring at the ground.

"Yes, Hades is declaring war against Hell, and he's allied himself with the Khaos Brigade... damn it!" She slammed her fist down on her seating.

Bennia's eyes were shadowed, knowing what this meant for herself.

"The Great Devils, and Satan's peerages still haven't regained consciousness, while I'm still recovering from Indra's attack..." Lilith quickly began looking over their situation.

"Azazel! Gabriel! Please, tell me you've made progress calling your factions' forces for backup!" Lilith pleased, hoping they had succeeded.

"No, I've been completely unable to make contact." Azazel said with a somber look.

"Neither have I, that worries me..." Gabriel said fearfully.

Lilith sweated at that, looking at her peerage.

"What about the rest of the alliance, we have to have someone we can reach!" Lilith shouted desperately.

"Sorry, there's no such luck there, not to mention that Mio and Kuisha still haven't come back from trying to reach them." Beowulf regretfully answered.

"...No way, so we're completely alone out here?" Lilith realized in horror.

A bunch of explosions went off, getting everyone's attention as Gebedon looked outside, quickly gasping.

"They're already getting close!" He warned, completely petrified with fear.

Outside, the sight of Hades running alongside of Grim Reapers who were flying by came into view, they were still a good distance away, but every moment clearly showed them getting closer to the land of the race they were intending to wipe out.

However, the bigger worry formed immediately before the area everyone was currently at, showing the entirety of the Khaos Brigade's forces appearing all at once, with only the Hero Faction being absent from their ranks.

"...Is it alright if I use the f-bomb right now?" Niruili asked, shaking in fear.

"If everyone said it at once, I wouldn't blame you." Esketanus replied, sweating.

The Beelzebub heiress shook at that.

"Good, because I don't think even that word fits how dead we are." She replied back.

"Seriously!?" Suzattin shouted.

"I think this is enough of your nonsense, so called Devils."

Many Devils gasped at the familiarity of the voice, showing the sight of a handsome man dressed in black armor with a cape, possessing long brown hair that went down to his hips, and many bangs covering his right eye.

"Finally, the Khaos Brigade's leader finally shows his face... how long as it been since your actions echoed across these lands, Shalba Beelzebub!?" Lilith exclaimed with rage.

"Don't throw my name around so lightly, despicable fake Devil Queen." Shalba glared hatefully.

"I'll throw it however I want! Your actions spit on Beelzebub's name, a friend I won't let you tarnish any more than you already have!" Lilith glared, her aura flaring up.

Shalba glared in return, with Niruili shaking as she hid behind her friends, not having the same courage that Gebedon had when he killed Creuserey. Their glare showdown wouldn't last long when a familiar icy dinosaur dropped into view, showing Jingu riding it as her true face finally showed itself.

"Took you long enough." Shalba remarked.

"Don't blame me, you're the one that said to make sure it was thorough." Jingu replied, giving a dark smirk towards the people she was staring at.

Seeing the Ice Empress of the Hero Faction Elites on their side, Jeanne's hands shook with anger.

"Jingu, why the hell are you here, and on their side!?" She demanded, confusing her brother a bit.

"You really think you have a right to ask me questions? After all, you were the one keeping in touch with me and the others, I think your friends should find that more suspicious than me being here." Jingu replied, giving a dark smile.

"You what!?" Rias exclaimed in shock.

Jeanne's eyes widened as she realized her mistake, turning to see most of her allies look at her as if she was a different person.

"I... I can explain, I swear!" She stated with full honesty.

Jingu smirked, using her fingers to blow a loud whistling sound, distracting everyone.

"Alright, come on out everyone! Use all your power to destroy Hell!" Jingu announced, her eyes glowing.

Heavy shaking was heard, making everyone scream as the sky went dark, showing debris falling as a bunch of the Super-Gogmagogs suddenly appeared, all smashing their arms across their bodies as they began warming themselves up. A bunch of metallic eggs soon began to fall, immediately cracking open, and hatching into living scale males based on Dragons, with Vali gasping as she noticed some looking like her Juggernaut Drive.

"You call this place Hell? Sorry, but right now, I think the more fitting description for it would be... Pandemonium!" Jingu announced, laughing maliciously.

And with that one sentence... all of Hell was officially swallowed into Hades', and the Khaos Brigade's war.

* * *

**Well, things just went to hell for all of Hell... Indra's power finally reached Hades, who just initiated his massive invasion alongside the Khaos Brigade. The Devils just learned how bad Indra's attack had damaged them in terms of their people, and those who were caught just for being there to watch the Finals, and this invasion happened at the worst time, with some of their best still out of commission.**

**On top of that, Cao Cao has finally realized Jingu's true colors, but he was too late... worse, she decided to take Leo with him. I don't think I need to explain her reasoning for that, especially considering they aren't among the already dangerous forces that have summoned themselves already, forces they have to fight without the rest of the alliance who they're currently cut off from, and by similar ones going by the Trimurti's issues.**

**Quite the surprise from Shiva there, not just learning the reasoning behind him decided not to destroy the world as he eventually intended was because it was meant to be an act of mercy, but that he's currently the first deity confirmed to know of the prophecy. Considering who else knows of it, we can at least confirm he isn't the prophecies originator, despite having the right trick to be its creator.**

**As a quick reminder, Nuada is the consciousness sealed within the Dimension Lost. I mentioned this back during Ch 32's concept talk, so if anyone needs to recall who is living within each Longinus, all you need is to check back there. I figured from this point in the story, if I brought that up in the first place, I should probably have them actually interact with their hosts at least... totally missed that chance during the Asia VS Tamara fight ^^;**

**Just as an added mention, I said in the same concept talk that not all of them could speak with their hosts. I haven't retconned that, so I think it's better to say that at the time I said it, that was true... which is all I can say due to a spoiler for this season. Keep that in mind for now, because it will end up being important at a certain point.**

**I know this chapter might have felt like everything came out at once, but that was kinda intentional. Season 6 is meant to be the closest the story's gotten to a full-scale war, so a majority of it will be the characters fighting for the sake of keeping their friends/families/allies alive, while protecting Hell from being destroyed while they're still trapped inside within it. Things are about to get hectic, so let's wish our heroes luck for the battles to come.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	66. Chapter 66

**Alright, first chapter of the new year! Happy 2018 everyone! Tohka Yatogami here to finally my 2018 year of writing, and doing it with a new chapter of Legend of the Heavenly Dragons! *giggles* I hope everyone's enjoying the new year so far, because I am, especially since nothing bad at the start of the year to hint the same problems my family dealt with. (You don't get that unlucky with two hurricanes attacking extending family 0_0)**

**Well, before I go too off tangent, time to begin the first Start Notes of the year! Last time I saw you all, the people of Hell just survived the attack on Indra, although learned the cost of victory was fairly high. Too bad for them, luck was not on their side, with the Khaos Brigade having just began a war through a full-scale attack, but the worst is that Hades and his army of Grim Reapers are coming.**

**That's especially bad, a Low-Class Grim Reaper can match a Mid-Class Devil, so what about a Mid-Class Reaper? Worse, what about a High-Class Reaper!?**

**For now, the Khaos Brigade is the only threat that's within their fighting range, but Jingu's with them as well, and there's still no signs of the kidnapped Leo. Not to mention, Jeanne is now under suspect because of Jingu blabbing what she did, which is enough of a problem for the group as the upcoming invasion as the fact that every Pantheon seems to be under attack by Super-Gogmagogs and animated Scale Mail armors!**

**So... yeah, things are really bad right now.**

**Bad enough that I'm gonna say this now, because the spoilers for it are within what happens, not this part I'm about to say. *breathes* In the past 5 seasons, whenever we've had character deaths, they were either someone nameless, or villains who you probably didn't care if they did. However, in this season? *claps hands* All bets are off, because you're going to see named characters die on the heroes' side as well.**

**I've realized that all this time, I've had Valerie nearby, and her power is to resurrect the dead. I need to give cases where she can bring back the deceased, and cases where she can't, and since Hades' forces are slowly nearing... the Grim Reaper's ability to cut into souls through their scythes gave me the perfect chance to counter her Longinus' power.**

**Well, before we start today's chapter, I should explain one last thing I just realized I forgot to say something important about the story last year. *laughs embarrassingly* Right now, Issei and Vali do have the same level of strength as their Dragons, but that's not the only thing that made Ddraig and Albion as powerful as they were, so neither of them have claimed their former spots as the 3rd strongest beings in the world. The story would be over if I did that 0_0**

**Best way to explain it, well... for one example, they don't have their Dragons' scales, so they aren't as durable. Had Indra managed to actually hit them during their fight, it might have not ended the way it did. I'm not saying their fragile, but don't expect them to take a hit that a dragon could, as their Scale Mails only protect them so much.**

**Now that we've cleared that all up, and I've said everything... time to begin this chapter! *lights a firework into the sky* Let's go!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking in narrative, or a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, an announcer, or giving a brief summary of a weapon/equipment/ability

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Sephirot Graal **

**One of the many Sacred Gears labeled as a Longinus, housing the soul of the legendary Sir Galahad, and probably the most legendary among them for its origin, and its powers. Before it was a Sacred Gear, it was the Holy Relic known as the "Holy Grail", being the grail that Jesus Christ drank from in the Last Supper, and a legendary item in Arthurian Legends.**

**This Sacred Gear lacks any real offense, having only the Longinus Smasher to truly attack with, but what makes it dangerous is not only is it one of the Three Longinus to be a Holy Relic, but it's ultimate ability is something many who have suffered the deaths of loved ones would want more than anything... the power of resurrecting the dead, without restrictions or consequences!**

**Although the Sephiroth Graal has the power to revive people, its powers are not omnipotent or absolute in any manner, and there are restrictions to its abilities of reviving the deceased. Among these rules, the most important thing overall is how the Sephiroth Graal can even revive the deceased, which is through their souls, just like a Dragon can.**

**Even its other abilities have restrictions, with Akeno having once mentioned that Valerie can't remove weakness to holy elements, or ones that a person is given via birth/reincarnation (although its implied this is because she hasn't achieved its Balance Breaker), having only been able to remove Issei and Vali's weakness to Dragon Slayers because they gained it via different means.**

**As for the restrictions, they are...**

**1\. Someone whose soul has reincarnated can't be revived, because they've been reborn as someone else, and can now only be reborn in that form.  
2\. One who dies of old age can't be revived, as their bodies would quickly die again. Valerie's ability to possibly restore someone to their prime can't walk around this issue.  
3\. If a soul is destroyed, then the Sephiroth Graal has no method of restoring its owner.  
4\. While the user can make themselves harder to kill, they can't revive themselves if someone succeeds in killing them.**

**Ultimately, while the Sephiroth Graal is powerful enough to be ranked as a Mid-Tier Longinus, its powers still aren't any more invincible than the other Longinus are.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 2 – Heroes Once Again _ **

A familiar icy dinosaur dropped into view, showing Jingu riding it as her true face finally showed itself.

"Took you long enough." Shalba remarked.

"Don't blame me, you're the one that said to make sure it was thorough." Jingu replied, giving a dark smirk towards the people she was staring at.

Seeing the Ice Empress of the Hero Faction Elites on their side, Jeanne's hands shook with anger.

"Jingu, why the hell are you here, and on their side!?" She demanded, confusing her brother a bit.

"You really think you have a right to ask me questions? After all, you were the one keeping in touch with me and the others, I think your friends should find that more suspicious than me being here." Jingu replied, giving a dark smile.

"You what!?" Rias exclaimed in shock.

Jeanne's eyes widened as she realized her mistake, turning to see most of her allies look at her as if she was a different person.

"I... I can explain, I swear!" She stated with full honesty.

Jingu smirked, using her fingers to blow a loud whistling sound, distracting everyone.

"Alright, come on out everyone! Use all your power to destroy Hell!" Jingu announced, her eyes glowing.

Heavy shaking was heard, making everyone scream as the sky went dark, showing debris falling as a bunch of the Super-Gogmagogs suddenly appeared, all smashing their arms across their bodies as they began warming themselves up. A bunch of metallic eggs soon began to fall, immediately cracking open, and hatching into living scale males based on Dragons, with Vali gasping as she noticed some looking like her Juggernaut Drive.

"You call this place Hell? Sorry, but right now, I think the more fitting description for it would be... Pandemonium!" Jingu announced, laughing maliciously.

The Khaos Brigade forces all began charging forward!

Realizing the situation they were in, Lilith gritted her teeth before looking at everyone.

** _ Battle: Hell VS the Khaos Brigade, Hades, and the Grim Reapers _ **

"Everyone, don't let them through! Attack!" Lilith shouted.

The Young Devils, their peerages, and everyone else still in fighting condition all took charge at the Khaos Brigade's forces. The scale mails and Super-Gogmagogs all took the lead while the actual KB forces floated from afar, attacking everyone from a distance.

Asia held out her Balance Breaker to help the non-combatants get out of danger, soon letting Rias' Yumi form a barrier to protect them all with her Sacred Gear. Feeling herself a bit drained, Asia slumped to her knees.

"Thank you..." She smiled.

"I'll keep everyone safe, focus on healing everyone still on the battlefield." Yumi replied, readying her Lumen Shekhinah just in case.

Asia nodded her head, trying to get on her feet, only for her to feel herself pulled on them as she noticed Azazel standing before her.

"Azazel?" She said in surprise.

"Here, I think you'll need this more than I do." Azazel stated.

He dropped the Dragon Downfall Spear into her hands, surprising her a bit that he'd give her the Artificial Gear he had kept all this time.

"But... Fafnir's your partner?" She said, feeling unworthy of holding it.

Azazel shook his head as he looked at her.

"Not anymore, I can tell you'll use it better than I ever did, and in a way... it's a late apology I owe you." He reasoned.

"Apology?" Asia repeated.

"Regardless of what it brought you, I'm still to blame for what Raynare did to you. Yet you've gained so much courage to stand up and fight on your own. After what you managed to during your match with Tamara, there's no doubt in my mind that I was meant to pass this on to you." Azazel explained, walking off soon after.

Asia showed surprise at that, looking at the spear in her hands.

"...Fafnir, I hope you'll lend me your strength." Asia prayed, holding it close to her.

**«...I shall»**

* * *

Rossweisse crossed her arms before unleashing a dozen beams, hitting a bunch of Scale Mails from a distance. Taking a moment to recover, she soon gasped as a Super-Gogmagog prepared to charge her, forming her to hold up her spear in defense. The monster prepared to fire a beam from its eye, making her shake in fear, until...

"Hands off!"

A familiar blade cut across its head, making the golem spark before it broke apart, revealing Irina behind it as she quickly jumped behind Rossweisse, pressing her back against the Valkyrie.

"Thanks for the save, that was too close." Rossweisse remarked.

"No problem, although... I don't think we're in any better position right now." Irina replied, starting to pant.

Rossweisse looked at her worriedly, knowing exactly why Irina could be so fatigued right now. She had just fought Xenovia to a tie during their match in the Finals, and then Indra's rampage had everyone running, and fighting a bit before Issei and Vali took the majority of the battle against him... she was on fumes, and the same had to be true of Ravel, Yuuma and Asia.

Even Issei had to be tired after everything, so that meant among his peerage, only she and Asuka were fighting full strength.

'I really hate to think it, much less say it, but things don't look good for us in the slightest.' Rossweisse reluctantly acknowledged.

Tannin breathed his fire across the battlefield, mowing down some Scale Mails before more began crawling through, unfazed by the fires he unleashed upon them. The Dragon showed surprise before Enku charged through, slashing them apart.

"Tannin, do you feel it?" Enku questioned.

"I do, these scale mails aren't normal. While they're nowhere near Ddraig and Albion in their power, they still exceed us Dragon Kings. That kind of power could only belong to..." Tannin answered.

The black silhouettes of seven dragons flashed through Tannin's mind, all gathering on a white background.

'No, that can't be... can it?' Tannin thought worriedly.

As that was happening, Jingu sat on her Sacred Gear as it walked across the battlefield. As she did, she noticed something that got her attention, making her give a cruel smirk as she did, getting on her feet.

"Freezing Archaeopteryx, there's something interesting in there... take it!" Jingu ordered.

The Sacred Gear screeched in response, jump across the air, and smashing down on the ground near the spot. Lilith quickly gasped, realizing what she had landed by, and growling angrily.

"GET THE HELL AWAY FROM THERE!" Lilith demanded with rage.

"Oh, you're angry that I'm here? Then sure, I'll get what's in here away from Hell." Jingu mocked as she snapped his fingers.

"NO!"

The Freezing Archaeopteryx smashed through the building that contained all the dead bodies, getting everyone's attention as Issei looked that way. His eyes widened in horror as Jingu grabbed the bodies of his adoptive parents', making her look at them oddly.

"Oh, dead bodies? Was all of this caused by Indra?" Heh, guess he did a bit more damage than we thought." Jingu smirked, giving an icy look as she hatched a thought.

"GET AWAY FROM THEM!" Issei screamed as he rushed at her.

Jingu tossed a bow to the ground, forming an icy wall that Issei smashed into, knocking him back before it shattered.

"You know, I'm actually amazed... amazed that you're so stupid to forget about your one little countermeasure for something like this." Jingu mentioned, looking at Valerie.

"The Sephiroth Graal can revive the dead, can't it? And yet you've left all these dead bodies here. Wow, is it possible you actually forgot you could do that? If it is, the sheet irony of this moment is all the sweeter for me! To have such a great power to undo all your tragedies, and you don't even use it! I wonder how many families you left grieving because you either didn't use it, or you completely forgot to use it!" Jingu laughed, tearing down the Dhampir's pride.

Valerie gasped in horror, tearing up as she realized the fact she could have brought Issei's parents back, brought everyone they lost back, and... brought so many other that died since the Khaos Brigade first surfaced.

"W-what have I done? No, what haven't I done? I could have... I could have saved them." She realized.

Jingu gave her cruelest smile at that moment, channeling a strange energy in her hand that Bennia quickly recognized.

"That power... quick, someone stop her now!" Bennia shouted.

Having the most speed among everyone, Irina used Excalibur Rapidly's power alongside her Knight trait, zooming to reach Jingu before she could do what she was about to.

"Sorry, I don't think so." Jingu said, her eyes glowing.

The Freezing Archaeopteryx unleashed a roar, freezing the space around Irina, and making her stumble. Jingu gave her wicked laugh as the energy she made extended out, slashing right through the dead bodies.

At first, it didn't seem like anything had happened, but at that moment, small wisps that gave familiar sounds to the ones made by Vali activating her Juggernaut Drive, and the echo of the parts of Kiba's comrades in the one crystal, were heard. Those wisps soon shattered apart like glass, everyone was a bit confused, while Bennia fell to her knees, grunting angrily as she teared up.

"Bennia, what just happened... what did she do?" Vali asked, her whole body shaking.

"I don't know how she learned it, but... she attacked their souls, the greatest weakness of the Sephiroth Graal is it can only revive the dead if their souls are intact. What Jingu just did was guarantee that their all gone forever!" Bennia revealed, sobbing in anger at being unable to stop it.

**「** **Fire Emblem Fates: Mikoto's Death** **」**

That one sentence hit everyone like a crashing wall, bringing many to tears as the small glimmer of hope their loved ones could have been saved by Valerie... was destroyed before they could even feel it.

However, the worst reaction came from Issei, his body generate a ton of power from his anger before he screamed.

"I KILL YOU!" Issei screamed.

Issei prepared to strike Jingu with a lethal fiery punch, but she simply held up his parents' corpses, forcing him to stop in place as he saw it.

"That's right, you're too soft to hurt the even when they're gone!" Jingu mocked.

She kicked him where the sun didn't shine with all her might, making her cough out as he crashed near Vali.

"ISSEI!" She cried out.

"Don't even try to fight back, everything you care for will be destroyed, and in the name of my father... the Great God known as Hades!" Jingu announced, cackling loudly after she revealed it.

Jeanne's eyes widened at that.

"What... did she just say?" Jeanne breathed out, her entire body shaking.

Jingu glared at everyone, raising a hand up.

"Now, how about we finally destroy them all, Shalba?" Jingu suggested.

"Stop wasting time already and do it." Shalba glared.

"Alright, just calm down already you grump." Jingu intentionally pressed Shalba's buttons to make him growl a bit.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The traitorous Hero Faction Elite swung her hand down preparing to command the army to swarm the Alliance's forces, but at that moment...

*SLICE*

Jingu's eyes widened as she screamed in pain, covering the newly formed hole in her arm as a familiar spear flew past, and then made a U-Turn to its thrower. Upon seeing it, Vali's eyes shook in disbelief.

"That's the... True Longinus!?" Vali said in shock.

Jingu's teary eyes looked in anger towards a certain spot, realizing who did this to her.

"EVERYONE, AIM UP THERE NOW, KILL THAT BASTARD RIGHT NOW!" Jingu demanded with rage that scared even Shalba into silence.

All the Khaos Brigade forces begin aiming where she commanded them, and right as they did, they completely missed the sight of a certain mist creeping behind them.

"Quick, get in." A familiar voice whispered.

"Huh?" Asuka blinked in confusion.

"Just get inside!" Jeanne shouted at whisper level.

Realizing their situation, everyone in the Alliance got inside, with Jingu only realizing right then what was going on.

"No, stop them!" Jingu shouted.

Unfortunately, it was too late. The Dimension Lost mist moved everyone into a different part of Hell, and the daughter of Hades growled for a bit, her body shaking with anger before she screamed out towards the sky.

** _ Battle: No Result _ **

"I HATE YOU ALL!"

* * *

Everyone was soon inside the Dimension Lost mist, taking a moment to recover themselves, while Asia and Valerie did their best to heal everyone... although it was clear Valerie had taken a heavy hit to her self-esteem, due to what Jingu had said and done.

"I... I had the power to save them, and I didn't use it. I'm so pathetic." Valerie cried, her tears pouring on the ground.

"Valerie..." Asia said sadly, not having the words to help her feel better.

Asuka looked around the mist, wondering just where they were. After taking a few moments, she looked towards Issei.

"Issei, what is this exactly?" She inquired.

"It's a mist made by the weakest of the High-Tier Longinus, known as Dimension Lost." Issei explained.

"Wait, you mean we're inside an Longinus!?" Asuka exclaimed in disbelief.

He chuckled a bit, rubbing his cheek a bit.

"It's a long story, I'll tell you about it later." Issei promised.

He hung his head down at that moment, causing Asuka to realize how he was hurting right now. She didn't know his adoptive parents for that long, but she could tell they were as close to him as his biological parents. Losing them? That was hard on its own, but to hear the chance they could be save and lose it entirely? That was even worse. Then to truly put the cherry on top, Jingu used them like as a shield, just to keep him from attacking her.

'...He's hurting, and in a way I doubt any of us can relate to. Even if I believe things will be OK, that won't undo the pain of his loss.' Asuka thought.

At that moment, Issei felt his cousin hug him from behind, making him look as she cried a bit herself.

"...Asuka, thank you." He sniffled, hugging her back.

"Just promise me, promise that you won't die here, no matter what happens next!" She begged, her body shaking.

"OK." Issei agreed, nodding slightly.

Meanwhile from a distance, Jeanne was giving a distance yet spiteful look, unable to believe who Jingu really was.

'When I gave her my spot in Cao Cao's group, she just seemed serious, the kind of person who could help the others stay on track... how could I have been so blind? How couldn't I see she was such a deceitful bitch!' She thought, closing her eyes in anger.

"Hey, Jeanne!"

The Maiden of Orleans' reincarnate turned around, seeing Kirin look at her angrily.

"Kirin, what's-" She replied.

"You damn traitor! How could you turn on all of us like that, your own friends, your own brother? How could you have been helping the Hero Faction all this time!? We trusted you, so why did you do this!? TELL ME!" Kirin roared furiously, holding Jeanne by the neck.

Jeanne coughed a bit, only barely avoiding being a choke hold, or being pushed to blacking out.

"Wait, just calm down K-" Rias tried to ease the situation.

"Shut your damn mouth Rias!" She screamed.

Everyone showed shock as the Gremory heiress went silent.

"Maybe you might let her off the hook for something like this, but not me! Diodora got he deserved for what he did, so don't you dare try to make an exception for this scum!" Kirin shouted, pointing her finger at her.

"Hey, that was uncalled for! You haven't even given her the chance to talk, much less Jeanne!" Saji shouted angrily.

"We need to stop fighting, this won't help us at-" Sona tried to intervene.

"If you're defending her, maybe you're a traitor too!" Zephyrdor accused.

"What!? how can you say that!" Rias shouted.

Vali was horrified at the sight before her. At that moment, everything began devolving into chaos, and everyone began fighting each other. Just a simple word from Jingu seemed to divide the entirety of Hell.

However, that's when she suddenly remembered what her words did to Valerie, and realized something else had to be going on. She looked at Yumina and her peerage.

"Vali?" Yumina said in response.

"Restrain everyone!" She ordered.

While they weren't sure why, the situation was enough they didn't question it. In mere moments, everyone that was fighting each other, verbally or physically, found themselves bound by either Kuroka's Youjutsu bindings, Le Fay's earth spells, Kunou's flames, or in Kirin's case... a simple leg lock by Yumina.

"Stop fighting each other, all of you! Do you want the Khaos Brigade to win because we all turned on each other, and they didn't even have to lift a finger!?" Vali screamed angrily, glaring at everyone.

That look on her face, and the words she chose to spoke, were just enough to make everyone stand down in shame. Walking over to Jeanne, Vali helped her to her feet as she held her throat.

"You alright?" Vali asked.

"...I think my life flashed before my eyes, so not really." Jeanne coughed out.

Taking a deep breath, she looked at everyone, including her brother and her best friend. Closing her eyes, she reopened them with a focused look.

"I'm not a traitor, and I swear my life on that. Enough that Vali's peerage, and some of Issei's, can vouch me for this... I did help them find Yasaka after all." Jeanne stated.

Yasaka blinked at that, having not been aware of this part, but kept listening to Jingu's story.

"Cao Cao's group is part of the Hindu pantheon, they were being moles for the Khaos Brigade. I was asked to be their intermediary because for a time... I had Jingu's place in the Hero Faction Elites, but I left when I needed to do work in the church, trying to find Valper. That's why I was shocked to see Jingu there, because... she shouldn't have been helping them like she did!"

Everyone gasped at that, which is when Issei finally pieced together Cao Cao's words.

"The real traitor is Jingu, she betrayed them!" He exclaimed.

"And if you knew what the Hero Faction was doing, then... does that mean you know why they even needed Yasaka? They never hurt her, and they gave her back so easily, now I'm even sure they told you about Yasaka, so you could help us find her." Vali asked, looking at Jeanne with eyes hoping to trust her.

"I do, they may have told you they were trying to free Trihexa, but... the opposite was true. They were trying to restore the seal to its prime, and make it so your grandfather wouldn't be able to free that monster, and Yasaka's connection to the Leylines was the only thing they found could have been strong enough to do it." Jeanne revealed.

Now that ended up being the moment that horrified everyone who had accused Jeanne... her involvement wasn't as direct as the other Hero Faction Elites, but they were trying to protect the world.

"I don't get it, if they were helping, then why go this far?" Yasaka asked.

"Be honest with me everyone, do you honestly think there are some things you could do that don't look like what would normally be heroic? Things that could be noble and for the greater good, but have you viewed as pariahs? As something other than a hero? That's what Cao Cao's group decided to do, for sake of keeping others' hands clean of such stigma, he and his group stained their hands with it."

"I only left because by inheriting Joan of Arc's spirit, I couldn't do that... that's why I had chosen Jingu to take my place before I left for the church. I thought she was like me, only with the strength to dirty her hands, I... I never knew she was really the bad guy. I'm not a traitor, but I guess it is my fault." Jeanne lowered her head in shame.

Jeanne teared up a bit, with Kiba putting a hand on her shoulder, and everyone felt even more guilty over what had happened moments prior.

"Whoa, I... I guess I never thought of it like that." Kirin admitted, rubbing the back of her head.

"This reminds me of something me and Xenovia learned from Vasco Strada during our training, there was something he said that was like this..." Irina mentioned.

She soon began recalling the memory.

* * *

_A young Irina, who had shorter pig tails and an older version of her old Exorcist outfit that exposed her navel area, was standing alongside a younger Xenovia, who had longer hair that lacked her signature green streak. Standing in front of them was a younger, but still senior aged Vasco, back when he still had yet to give the latter Durandal based on the shape of his sheath._

_"The two types of heroes, what do you mean? Aren't there just heroes?" Irina asked._

_"You two are still young, so I can't blame you thinking things are so simple. However, the one thing you must learn most is why the reasons people like us exorcists exist, because the world can't be viewed in terms of only black or white for everything." Vasco explained._

_He stood up, making the two exorcists blink at him confusingly, and then at each other before turning their attention back towards him._

_"Ask yourself this, but don't say it's because God made them fall... why do Angels, Fallen Angels, Demons, and Devils all exist? Why is it not just Angels and Devils when there is no god for the Demons or the Fallen? Furthermore, why are they not just solely Light and Darkness, but a different mix between the two?" Vasco gave question after question to the two like a flash of lightning._

_Following those questions reaching their ears, both of them found themselves unable to vocalize any answers at all._

_"See? Once you actually think about in another manner, its suddenly not as simple. Most people get that Lucifer just hated God's guts, and then became Satan in the process, but the reasons behind Cassiel and Azazel forming their respective factions? Not as simple, or obvious for that matter. That's the same thing that comes to how various kinds of heroes exist."_

_"The one thing I've mainly learned through my own experiences over this is, in a general view, heroes are something that are decided by the people. Someone that's a hero is people who do good things and save others, while villains are bad people that do horrible things and harm others. That point of view isn't wrong, but there's a deeper meaning to it. What if someone that looks heroic in public, actually uses that image to hide their darker nature? That's a villain no one knows is a villain."_

_"And that's how multiple types of heroes can exist. Just as there are villains that can look like heroes, there are heroes that can seem like the bad guys with their actions, regardless if they're helping people." Vasco finished his explanation before looking at the two._

_"I'm confused, why would people call themselves the bad guys if they're helping people?" Xenovia questioned._

_Vasco wondered how to word this, and then snapped his fingers._

_"When you don't have light, a blackness covers the Earth, that lack of sight can be terrifying, especially because of what can hide within it. We usually have this amended by the light we get from the sun during the day, and the moon during the night. The sun would be the heroes you're more used to, just like the sun clearly gives us light and lets us see everything, the heroes we view are ones who are just as good, people that wouldn't do anything considered bad under any reason."_

_"However, say that unless something that would be seen as bad happened, a lot of innocent people could die. The part about their lives being at risk could never be known, so their acts may never have the noble or heroic intent behind them known. Things like assassins killing tyrants, spies preventing wars, even the Atomic Bombing of Japan depending on how you view it are all such things."_

_"During the night, the moon gives us light, but it can't ease us like the sun... it can sometimes give us no light, so it's hard to view it in the same manner as the sun. The best way to define it as a whole, there are some heroes who have to dirty their hands, so the people who can't don't have to. That's why there's more than one kind of hero, because there's one kind as obvious as the shining sun, but that can be hidden, just like certain sides of the moon."_

_While Xenovia still didn't get it, Irina gave a wide expression at that, recalling something from a video game she played with Issei once._

_'There are people who dirty their hands, so we don't have to... is that the same thing as this?' Irina realized._

_She thought about it more, not realizing how important it would be in a few years._

* * *

As the memory ended, she looked back at Vali.

"It made me really wonder a lot, so when I saw came back during the Kokabiel thing and saw Issei was with you, while I figured he became a Devil, I thought that maybe there was a reason he was one beyond just joining you. I'm glad I did, considering you're the reason he's still alive right now." Irina continued, smiling at the end.

"Aww, that's really sweet of you Irina." Vali smiled.

It was only at that moment that Yumina asked the question that someone should have a while ago.

"...Hey guys, if this is Georg's Dimension Lost mist, then where the heck is he?" She mentioned.

At that moment, everyone gave flat looks before some of them became worried ones, and everyone looked at Jeanne. She gulped a bit as she looked around.

"I don't wanna be paranoid because I've never seen this before, but maybe this might have been a trap, and we should get out of here ASAP before something bad happens. So, someone find an exit right now!" Jeanne shouted.

"Like this one?" Issei remarked, pointing at an opening on the mist.

Jeanne blinked a few times, chuckling a bit.

"Oh, uh... how long has that been there?" Jeanne asked.

"The entire time." Asuka replied.

"...I'm gonna go through now and pretend I didn't just here that." Jeanne gave a forced laugh as she ran out.

* * *

Everyone soon reappeared in a different section of Hell's massive land mass. Taking a look around, there were no signs of the Khaos Brigade forces, of Hades for that matter.

"Thank goodness, it was not a trap... although that still leaves the quest of where the heck Georg was." Jeanne stated.

"We didn't see Cao Cao throw his True Longinus, maybe they're trying to piss Jingu off so she doesn't follow us?" Yumi suggested.

Jeanne blinked a bit, shrugging her arms a bit.

"It could work." Jeanne remarked.

Taking a deep breath, Lilith looked at her fellow leaders.

"Well Gabriel, Azazel, I think the first thing we need to do is come up with a plan. We don't have any way to contact our allies, so we're all on our own until we can somehow get through, or Mio and Kuisha pull a miracle." Lilith stated.

"Yes, that is a problem right now." Gabriel agreed, leading her head on her right hand.

"I guess the first thing is to figure out how to properly fight an army like the ones that could find us any moment? Especially Hades, if Jingu gave us any indication... they could leave most of us dead without any way for Valerie to bring us back." Azazel brought up the primary point.

As the three tried to think, the sound of magic blasts firing near everyone went off, making Lilith grit her teeth.

"Damn it..."

Shalba descended into view, revealing the Khaos Brigade forces with him, but not the fake scale mails or Super-Gogmagogs, which could possibly be explained by Jingu's current absence. A few bugs flew beside him, having likely scouted them out.

** _ Battle: Hell VS the Khaos Brigade _ **

"Honestly, that little Ice Princess annoys, so that little episode of hers gave me the perfect chance to hunt you all down. Hiding was never the Old Satan Faction's strong suit." Shalba said with closed eyes, opening them with a strong glare.

"Shalba, the rest of your fellow traitors are gone, and you'll follow the same if you don't stand down right now!" Vali shouted.

"Trying to talk down to me just because you share blood with the Devil King? Useless, I don't even care about this land anymore. The others may have wanted to continue making a world for Devils, but I no longer have that wish." Shalba sneered.

All the young Devils looked at him in confusion, with Vali raising an eyebrow in a worried manner.

"This land... it's just a disgusting curse, and you're the filth that's infected it beyond saving! I shall become the poison who will devour the Underworld! Those Devils who declined me... I have no business with such a Hell, and I don't care about it anymore. I don't care about the authority, or who possesses it, I'll just use all of my power to destroy it all!" Shalba screamed with rage, holding out his hands.

A magic circle appeared from the ground, and soon some gigantic insects appeared, all marked with the Naberius clan crest to show their mutated nature.

"Oh come on, just how many things did my old master decide to distort in the name of his so-called science?" Kuroka shouted angrily.

Niruili nearly lost her lunch at the sight of the mutated bugs. While her clan did kinda have some connection with insects, this was going past an extreme one shouldn't cross, and only Shalba would break such a taboo.

"Now, destroy this land, destroy all that falls under the name of Devil!"

"Kill them all!" A Khaos Brigade Devil shouted.

They all charged at the group, with a mutant bee-like creature instant firing an egg sack into the air, creating smaller versions of itself that flew towards the Alliance forces.

"Everyone, get ready! All non-combatants, recovering fighters, or injured... fall back!" Lilith shouted loudly.

All groups got to their respective places, with Yumi forming another barrier as she readied her bow. The mutant bee drones all smashed into the barrier, and then sting into it... secreting a poison that caused it to crack.

"SHIT!" Yumi panicked, trying to fire her arrows at them.

But there were just too many, and they quickly grabbed her body, as well as all of the injured/recovering/non-combatants.

"Help!" Gabriel begged, one of them preparing to bite her head off.

"There's too many, can't handle them!" Azazel grunted as he tried to stop one's pincers from stabbing into him.

Issei blasted out fire towards the mutant bee drones, but they got around him too fast, and Vali soon found herself facing the same issue. Everyone was soon swallowed up into the insect swarm, and literally everyone, as even Tiamat, Tannin, and every other giant member of the alliance forces were contained by the insect armada. Shalba stared at his easy victory.

"Now, die like the maggots you really are." He waved at them, signaling the bugs to kill them all.

They all lurched in their own ways to do the deed, when...

"**Sterling Light!**"

A rapid fire of light aimed at all the clan symbols on the bugs, destroying them all instantly, and freeing the captive Alliance forces. The queen of the bugs tried to make more, only to suddenly be hit by a dancing flame, burning the queen bee into nothing.

"That voice, and that flame!" Jeanne realized.

"Hope you don't mind the assist, Jeanne!"

Some flames swirled to the ground, revealing the sight of Mulan piggybacking of Menes, who quickly jumped off the latter once they arrived.

"Impossible, why are you two here!?" Shalba roared angrily.

He motioned his hand, and a swarm of large mutant dragonflies dove down, only to be blasted by a potent holy beam. Everyone gasped as a majority of the Khaos Brigade's members, and the bugs Shalba commanded, were destroyed by a Devil purge.

"Simple, because that Ice Princess you mentioned was a traitor, so it's time we fight along our real allies." A familiar male's voice stated.

Everyone turned, seeing the Dimension Lost mist reveal Cao Cao and Georg.

"Sorry for being late, I wanted to make sure Jingu was playing cat and mouse for a good while." Georg stated, soon removing his glasses to show he was serious.

"Cao Cao! Georg!" Jeanne shouted happily.

"Apologies Jeanne, we'll catch up later. For now..." Cao Cao whistled using his fingers.

Some of the other Khaos Brigade forces found themselves attacked by chains, shadows, sword slashes, explosions, illusions, and petrification. At that moment, the remaining Hero Faction Elites showed themselves.

"Just because the 10 of you are here, doesn't mean you'll stop me!" Shalba shouted.

Jeanne giggled, making the traitorous Beelzebub look at him.

"I'm sorry, but when exactly did Cao Cao mention how many people he brought with him?" Jeanne mentioned.

"Let me answer that, and the answer is... I didn't." He smirked.

Shalba had a bad feeling form in his gut, and he quickly found it was right as he saw the remaining members of the Hero Faction. Some of them were as revealed as the Elites, while others were wearing hoods for some unknown reason, but all of had their Sacred Gears ready to attack him.

"Attack!" Georg ordered.

Shalba quickly formed a magic circle to escape, causing him and his insect forces to vanish as the rest of the Khaos Brigade's Devils to be annihilated, while the Angels, Fallen, and Demon had a few of their forces flee before they met the same fate.

** _ Winner: Hell! _ **

"Yeah, you better run!" Tamara warned.

* * *

Moments later, the Alliance forces soon stood before the Hero Faction, who had all gathered together from their original spots. Jeanne walked forward, smiling towards them as for the first time in a while, they stood as allies instead of enemies.

"Thank you, I don't know what could have happened if you didn't come when you did." Jeanne thanked them.

"Hey, you're still one of us no matter where you go, of course we've got your back." Mulan smirked.

It was only at that moment that Jeanne realized Leo was missing, after trying to stop him among their ranks with no luck.

"...Where's Leo?" She asked worriedly.

Cao Cao scowled at that, recalling Jingu's smug mug.

"Jingu took her, and knowing his Balance Breaker as well as we do, I think it's easy to see why. I just hope he can prevent things from going too out of control." Georg revealed.

Jeanne bit a nail at that, she had plenty of reason to worry considering the Annihilation was the most dangerous Longinus due to the spirit sealed within it, which is why the High-tier ones were said to be strong enough to end the world if they fell into the wrong hands.

"I hope he's alright, we'll still wanna rescue him ASAP." She remarked.

"Wanna know what I'm hoping to know right now? Who that brother you keep talking to us about is, Cao Cao's the only guy who got to see him." Morgiana replied.

Jeanne chuckled oddly at that strange timing for her to ask that.

"He's right here, his name's Kiba." Jeanne introduced, motioning to him as he waved.

A few members of the Hero Faction suddenly showed surprise at that moment, making Jeanne blink a bit at their sudden response.

"Wait, isn't that Isaiah?" A boy said.

"Not just him, I think that's Tosca over there!" A girl mentioned.

"Wait, if Isaiah's there and Jeanne says he's her brother, then... wouldn't that mean she's Erza?" Another girl realized.

The three all had their eyes widen at the mention of their previous names.

**「** **One Piece: Raizo is Safe** **」**

"...No way, it can't be?" Jeanne gasped.

At that moment, Cao Cao lowered his head before closing his eyes.

"Forgive me Jeanne, long ago I wanted to tell you this, but... I just didn't know how to tell you with how things were. Everyone, show them your faces." He replied.

Everyone wearing their hoods reached for them, slowly pulling them down. Yumi started the trio's reactions as she opened her eyes, unable to believe what she was seeing right before her very eyes right now.

"No way, it can't be..." Kiba gasped, tearing up a bit.

_"RUN AWAY!" A boy choked out._

"This is... is this real?" Jeanne cried, covering her mouth.

_"Hurry, save yourself!" A girl cried out as she held a man's leg, coughing up blood._

At that moment, the hoods fully came off, revealing the ones under them. At that moment, everyone who had been present to see the fragments of their soul within the crystal Kiba absorbed, gave looks of shock as the ones they saw before them... were Kiba, Jeanne, and Yumi's apparent deceased comrades!

Even Gabriel, who hadn't been there herself, was crying a bit at the sight as she recognized them from the reports.

"I... I... I..." Jeanne stammered, her tears starting to blind her.

At that moment, her eyes trailed over to the True Longinus, and she gasped as she realized something...

Even though he was dead, God still answered their prayer!

"Cao Cao, don't tell me... you were there that day. That you saved them all with your Truth Idea!?" She cried, her voice cracking a bit.

"I did, because..." He began.

A brief flash to a young Cao Cao was seen, with a holy spear stabbed into his parents' bodies.

"I couldn't bear to prevent what happened to my parents once again." Cao Cao revealed, looking at her with a smile.

Yumi smiled before hugging Kiba, both of them crying.

"Everyone, all these years we grieved for your, and... and... Thank God, that it was all for nothing! I've never been so glad, to have been so wrong!" Jeanne broke down crying in a mix of relief, joy, and to release years of guilt from his chest.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Despite a lot of people didn't know the full story enough to get it, everyone gave a happy cheer as the children involved in the Holy Project were all finally reunited, and the project's official death count was now registered at... a happy zero!

'Father, if you were here right now, I know you'd feel proud.' Gabriel smiled.

The happy reunion was quickly cut off as a familiar laugh was heard, well... one to Lavinia and the members of Sona's peerage that is. The sight of the Super-Gogmagogs and fake Scale Mails entered everyone's view as they were instantly teleported, and topping it all off was none other than Walburga!

"Walburga!" Lavinia shouted with anger.

"Oh, such a sappy story, too bad I'm about to ruin it all by killing you." Walburga laughed mockingly, forming a purple flame through her Sacred Gear's power.

Everyone got on guard, with the stronger of the many armies attacking them ready to act at any more.

"SLAUGHTER THEM ALL!" Walburga screamed with vigor.

Walburga's forces all lunged at the group, and right when it looked like the Alliance's luck had finally run out...

**「** **Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Counterattack - Last Minute** **」**

A familiar storm of otherworldly metallic spheres came out of nowhere, and smashed into the entire army, knocking them back to Walburga's surprise.

"That attack, it came from..." Esketanus realized.

"Could it be!?" Eterna gasped in shock.

A bunch of familiar black holes opened up, and the moment they did, a storm of the elements flew out before smashing into the scale mails, knocking them all to the ground like tossing out bags of trash. Following that, a bunch of clouds formed overhead, and the Super-Gogmagogs all looked up as shadowed silhouettes suddenly blasted them with electricity, making them malfunction.

"No, it can't be... there's no way you could have repelled them all!" Walburga stated in horror.

At that moment, everyone smiled happily as Kuisha appears from a portal she made, with Mio by her side. Despite the fact that both of them were battered and bruise, and panting up a storm, they were both giving bright smiles toward the others.

"We've returned everyone!" Kuisha shouted, flashing a thumb's up.

"Sorry it took us a while, but you don't need to worry any longer... because we've brought _all_ of the reinforcements!" Mio exclaimed.

At that moment, from all the black portals that Kuisha had made, or returning from attacking the Super-Gogmagogs... everyone saw, minus the Magicians who Mephisto would need to contact, and the Heroes who hadn't had everything fully figured out to be called upon, the greatest sight anyone had seen in two millennia.

The entire Alliance, including every faction's strongest fighters... were gathered together!

* * *

**Alright! Mio and Kuisha did it, and now things are turning around for the Alliance! While its missing the Heroes, and the Magicians due to circumstances they can't fully control due to the timing, the entire Alliance is now here to face off against the massive army that stands before them, and to be honest... had Hades reached them before they showed up, they'd have been screwed. You'll see why I say that soon enough.**

**Now, how's that for a surprise? After finally clearing things up, Jeanne got the biggest surprise of her life, alongside her brother, and Yumi... that all their comrades from the Holy Sword project are alive, having been rescued by Cao Cao due to the True Longinus' power long ago. I guess as long as even a piece of God still lives through that spear, miracles can still happen.**

**That one scene from his past though... just what happened to his parents?**

**For that whole part about Vasco's speech, while a bit of it is his canon talk to Cao Cao in Vol 20, the other half actually comes from something in Senran Kagura Estival Versus. To be specific, it's during some DLC where Yumi mentions that Asuka's group is like the sun (being the main heroines), while hers is more like the moon, which makes sense if you remember their "death to all evil shinobi" mindset in Shinovi Versus. I thought it fit well, so I added it in.**

**Also, gave a little bit of a spotlight to some of Issei's peerage this chapter, since they haven't had the proper chance to shine under him just yet. They'll get a better chance to shine as a whole time soon enough, because starting from next chapter. the Alliance can officially retaliate, giving everyone and their peerages a chance to shine. That is... if this war doesn't kill them first.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	67. Chapter 67

**Everyone, I have big news to share before we do anything else! Remember how I told you all a while back that I'd be making a prequel based on the events of SLASHDØG? Well, it is my pleasure to reveal... that story is finally up! *opens a party popper* I had been waiting until New Year's to finally post it, and the day has finally come, so I hope you'll all enjoy it in the same way you've all enjoyed LOHD.**

**OK, now for today's start notes. Last chapter, the entirety of the Alliance Forces was finally gathered thanks to Kuisha and Mio's efforts, and when you remember what the Trimurti was dealing with in Ch 65? *whistles* I think Walburga's reaction pretty much summed it up, because they did it multiple times in a row. Guess that shows the power of the younger generation, and so will what comes next.**

**Last chapter, everyone in the Alliance was a mess, but now they're about to reunite, and start organizing themselves. As a result, we're about to see the fights I promised at the beginning of the season, but most importantly... Hades' current status of running to the battlefield isn't gonna stay much longer, so get ready for the real pandemonium this arc is named for to begin! *plays the "DUN, DUN, DUN!" music from a stereo***

**So, let's get this chapter started!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking through a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Sacred Gear Transition Cycle **

**Whenever a Sacred Gear's owner dies, the next thing to happen is for the Sacred Gear to find a newly developing soul to bond with, and then return to circulation until it can bond to the heart of its new host. However, it isn't an instant process, nor is it just that cut in dry. There's various factors in the inheritance of a Sacred Gear, and the transfer among bodies.**

**As shown with the case of Gasper, the Sacred Gears can sometimes be very volatile when reborn in a new body. They could go out of control, and not necessarily with their own power, but the power of that particular newborn, or maybe something more that the Sacred Gear didn't have in a previous user. Not to mention they may do more harm than good, which is especially true for Sacred Gears like the Muramasa, or Catastrophe Core.**

**The biggest thing of note is that a Sacred Gear will stay with a dead host for an entire month, and only then will it finally release itself from its former body. While this part of the process is quite odd, it has been shown via Devils and Angels that unless through the Sephiroth Graal, reviving someone whose lost their Sacred Gear will fail because it's treated like missing a vital organ. Azazel has also theorized a Sacred Gear uses this time to choose a new host.**

**For Longinus, the rules aren't any different, but Grigori does tend to watch such users due to the potential risk of their powers going crazy, or because their powers may not be able to handle without training/while they're still human.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 3 – Art of Annihilation _ **

"Oh, such a sappy story, too bad I'm about to ruin it all by killing you." Walburga laughed mockingly, forming a purple flame through her Sacred Gear's power.

Everyone got on guard, with the stronger of the many armies attacking them ready to act at any more.

"SLAUGHTER THEM ALL!" Walburga screamed with vigor.

Walburga's forces all lunged at the group, and right when it looked like the Alliance's luck had finally run out...

**「** **Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Counterattack** **」**

A familiar storm of otherworldly metallic spheres came out of nowhere, and smashed into the entire army, knocking them back to Walburga's surprise.

"That attack, it came from..." Esketanus realized.

"Could it be!?" Eterna gasped in shock.

A bunch of familiar black holes opened up, and the moment they did, a storm of the elements flew out before smashing into the scale mails, knocking them all to the ground like tossing out bags of trash. Following that, a bunch of clouds formed overhead, and the Super-Gogmagogs all looked up as shadowed silhouettes suddenly blasted them with electricity, making them malfunction.

"No, it can't be... there's no way you could have repelled them all!" Walburga stated in horror.

At that moment, everyone smiled happily as Kuisha appears from a portal she made, with Mio by her side. Despite the fact that both of them were battered and bruise, and panting up a storm, they were both giving bright smiles toward the others.

"We've returned everyone!" Kuisha shouted, flashing a thumb's up.

"Sorry it took us a while, but you don't need to worry any longer... because we've brought _all_ of the reinforcements!" Mio exclaimed.

At that moment, from all the black portals that Kuisha had made, or returning from attacking the Super-Gogmagogs... everyone saw, minus the Magicians who Mephisto would need to contact, and the Heroes who hadn't had everything fully figured out to be called upon, the greatest sight anyone had seen in two millennia. The entire Alliance, including every faction's strongest fighters... were gathered together!

Gabriel smiled as she saw her fellow Seraph standing alongside their Brave Saints, while Azazel chuckled as the other Cadre were standing alongside them. Standing in front, Cassiel rubbed her nose with a finger.

"Sorry old hag, but you made the mistake of not considering that someone outside of the factions were attacking would throw a wrench into your plans." Cassiel mocked with a chuckle.

"I'm in my youthful 20's!" Walburga screamed angrily.

Cassiel put a hand over her eyes, squinted before shaking her head.

"Nope, you're definitely an old woman, why else would your hair be graying like it is?" Cassiel waved her hand in response.

Walburga gritted her teeth so hard, they threatened to shatter, while the vein on her head threatened to pop a blood vessel from the stress. She pointed at her, readying her Longinus' purple flames around her.

"That's it, I'm go make your corpse the ugliest one in existence!" Walburga screamed angrily.

Unleashing her flames over her army, the Scale Mails and the Super-Gogmagogs instantly got back up on their feet, the Incinerate Anthem's fire empowering them once again. In mere seconds, they stood ready to slaughter the entire Alliance. Mio whistled, revealing the peerage no one had seen before now, and then Kuisha rejoined Sairaorg's group as everyone in the Alliance themselves got into a battle position.

"Payback time!" Kuisha announced.

"Yeah, and I'll just kick that hag's ass again." Saji smirked, making Walburga's eye twitch in anger.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Just as Walburga intended to send her army forward...

"Reign your temper in, there's no way you'll win if you let them cloud your best judgment."

The former Hexennatch leader stopped in surprise, while all the Greek deities instantly glared as they recognized the voice. Even Hercules, and Perseus similarly gave an angry look at the owner of said voice.

At that moment, a familiar skeletal face stepped into view, revealing the one behind this entire attack. The ruler of Tartarus, and the only remaining member among the trio that the supernatural world always referred to as the [Worst Gods.]

Hades had arrived, bringing his entire Grim Reaper forces with him, who were revealed to be black cloaks that contained living purple energy, and piercing Gold eyes (likely explaining Bennia's hair and eye colors), all holding scythes of various sizes and shapes. Taking a look forward, Hades' glowing eyes stared daggers into his brothers, and Lilith, who all returned his look with hateful glares.

"Hades... you've done awful things before brother, but even I never expected you to fall this low. Did losing your original form teach you nothing!?" Zeus roared angrily, the sound of thunder rumbling above with every word he spoke.

Hades gave a simple "hmph" in response before responded.

"It is you who has learned nothing, the years have made you senile! These bats, crows, and reptiles... they all formed from God's error in one of his own, his very first no less! I've seen the truth in this world, and will purge the unneeded, because I see them as the mistakes they really are!" Hades stated with venom.

"You have no right to decide that!" Poseidon shouted.

"Have no right? Fools, I am the ruler of Tartarus, I'm the only one who has that right! If you hate it so much, then you must reap for the mistakes you have sown!" Hades roared with rage, his aura flaring out.

Everyone felt themselves nearly pushed down, the intense pressure of Indra's power mixed with his won was so overwhelming for everyone who was caught off-guard by it.

"Wait a minute, this power... it can't be!" Lilith gasped in horror.

"I'm afraid so Lilith, this is clearly Indra's power. I don't know how he did it, but somehow... he's gained all the power that was once Indra's!" Shiva grunted, barely holding his ground.

Hades rose his scepter, with no one aware what would happen the moment it struck the ground away.

"I'll let the entire world known what you have dragged them into, and you'll alone be to blame! This fight is no longer... just yours to be involved in!" He announced.

Slamming it on the ground, a sudden quake threw everyone off their feet, catching them all off guard. A bunch of lights suddenly shot out from somewhere as Jingu's laughter echoed across the landscape, some of which scattered across Hell, but many more... went past Hell's ceiling, followed by members of all the armies aiding the mad God's attack.

"That was..." Georg realized, sweating a bit.

"That was what? What did they just do?" Lilith demanded, a mix of a scary glare and a worried look on her face.

The Hero Faction's main mage flinched at that face, sweating a bit.

"Well, it's kind of-"

He never got the chance to speak as a giant orb of light suddenly appeared, shining brightly before it shattered apart, and revealed the shadowed silhouette of something that only the Hero Faction had any knowledge of.

The creature inside was revealed to be some kind of dinosaur/dragon-like creature with purple-green scales that sized at over 200 meters, and stood on two legs, which roared loudly as it took to the skies. Following it, the smaller lights burst in response, revealing black and white colored creatures that looked like a fusion between a wolf, and a lynx. They were only half the size of the first beast, but their numbers made them just as threatening.

"W-what are those things?" Asuka exclaimed in a panic.

"The big one is called a Jabberwocky, and the rest are all called Bandersnatch, they're... they're the monsters locked within Leo's Balance Breaker!" Jeanne revealed, shaking like a chihuahua as she saw them.

Amalya gulped as she saw the Bandersnatch moving their gaze towards the Alliance forces.

"Guys, how do you think this is gonna get worse? Because Hades' words pretty much sounded like it was a guarantee." Amalya asked.

No one just yet, but that question was being answered right this second.

* * *

Back in Kuoh Town, the familiar duo of Issei's two perverted friends, Matsuda and Motohama, were looking at his house from afar.

"This has gone on far enough! We've ignored it for too long, but a hot childhood friend, all these girls that are always around him, and then a limousine comes to house for something? Too many good things happen to this jerk!" Matsuda shouted, crying a bit.

"Yeah, we're finding out what kind of secrets he's hiding right now, and nothing's gonna stop us!" Motohama said in agreement.

As they tried to get over the fence to his house, the two kendo girls looked at them with disgust as they were walking about.

"All those two ever want is to have a girl get in their pants, I don't even know why Issei even hangs out with them." Katase remarked, glaring at them especially.

"A bunch of perverts, that's all they are... although, I do have to agree with them about the limo. Just what was that all about?" Murayama couldn't wrap her head around it.

"Maybe Vali's some kind of secret princess or something?" Katase guessed.

The two stood there for a moment, and then both of them laughed at how ridiculous that sounded, even though Katase was technically right about it to a degree.

"Yeah, like that could be true. Why would she be attending our school if that's the case?" Katase remarked.

Right at that moment, the two of them, and the perverted duo, both suddenly felt a slight shaking in the ground. It wasn't just them, the entire town began to feel it, and soon the tremor got even worse, only narrowly avoiding the threshold to be officially registered as a weak Earthquake.

"This is weird, this can't be an Earthquake, can it?" Aika wondered as she saw the shaking.

Fortunately, or rather unfortunately, the shaking stopped... after one of the light bursts that flew out of Hell appeared, coming straight out of the ground before landing. Before anyone knew it, a Bandersnatch came out of it, causing everyone to scream as it roared.

"Monster!"

"What is that thing!?"

"Run!"

As the people of the town began running, a large portion of them suddenly found themselves blocked off as the sight of Grim Reapers suddenly faded into view, brandishing their scythes out. Before anyone knew it, the forces of the Khaos Brigade, the Grim Reapers, the Super-Gogmagogs, and fake Scale Mails had begun swarming the town. Giving another roar, the Bandersnatch's shadow spread out, causing horse-sized copies of itself to form, joining in the chaos.

While this was all happening, a familiar mask from a certain person's Sacred Gear noticed, alerting her of it immediately.

* * *

Back within Hell, Reya suddenly gasped as her Scouting Persona transferred the information to her, making her hold her head in shock.

"Reya, what's wrong?" Sona asked.

"I left some of my Sacred Gears' masks in Kuoh just in case something happened while we were gone, and... one of them just noticed it's being attacked by the supernatural in broad daylight!" She revealed, shaking.

Everyone on the Alliance's side went wide at that, almost if someone broke a law set by life itself. Walburga showed some surprise, but was ultimately more interested by how bold Hades and Jingu had just been.

"You psychotic fool... what have you done!?" Lilith screamed.

Hades laughed darkly, his eyes glowing brighter in response.

"Did you not hear me? I said that I'd let the entire world be dragged into this, now Humanity will reap the harvest for the choices you've sown!" Hades retorted.

"That... psychopath!" Issei growled.

At that moment, all the of faction leaders had magic circles appear by their ears, and a storm of reports began blasting into their ears.

* * *

**~Near Asgard**

A Valkyrie that looked like an elderly version of Rossweisse, spinning a spear before stabbing into a small Bandersnatch.

Behind her, various other Valkyries were trying to deal with the invading forces that poured into Scandinavia, attacking helpless Humans as they rampaged across the town, destroying everything in their wake, no matter which world it was connected to.

"Lord Odin, we have an invasion on our hands, a bunch of Grim Reapers and unidentified creatures are attacking! Do you have any information on what might be happening?" Gondul questioned.

She fired off a few magic spells, with the fake scale mail armors shrugging them off before they charged forward.

* * *

**~Near Mount Olympus**

Artemis panted as she fired off a few arrows, piercing a few Grim Reapers as they fell to the ground.

"Dad, we're being swarmed! Please, send help-Ah!" She begged.

A mini-Bandersnatch pound her, locking her arms as it began drooling on her, melting through her clothes like acid as it did.

"I'm a Hunting Goddess, not a Hunted Goddess! Someone help me here!" Artemis screamed.

* * *

**~Near Mount Meru**

Prince Mahabali of the Asura gave a loud scream, smashing through some Super-Gogmagogs with his fists, panting heavily as he looked at the army of them still coming.

As a fake scale mail's claws locked with his hands, he grunted heavily.

"Lord Shiva, we... can't hold out much... much..." Mahabali was clearly at his limit, barely able to stand up.

He was suddenly pierced through by a sword, making his eyes widen as he turned to see that what hit him wasn't any of the forces in the armada of the Khaos Brigade's/Hades' forces, it was a Daeva loyal to the fallen Indra.

"Die!" The Daeva shouted, swinging the sword down once more.

* * *

**~Near Shinkai**

Izanami blasted out red/black energy spheres that ripped through most of the enemy forces, with Izanagi tosses spheres of light that bound just as many, slamming them together before they were flung off.

"We're managing to hold our ground, but we just don't have the forces to spread ourselves out right now." Izanagi explained, swinging a fist to vaporize a Grim Reaper that tried to sneak behind him.

"The Youkai are trying, but they just can't move fast enough, especially with the situation in Kyoto." Izanami added.

* * *

**~Kyoto**

Great Elder Tenguu spun around, sending a gale out to smash against a few Scale Mails, but soon wheezing from the strain.

"Too much... it's too much, please give us back up... we're begging you!" Great Elder Tenguu wheezed out.

He was slammed down by a Super-Gogmagog while he was open, raising up a hand as it transformed into a laser cannon. The old Tenguu grunted as he tried to break free, but it was in vain, and the charging beam was still pointing at him.

* * *

**~Egypt**

Anubis unleashed a stream of darkness against a few mini-Bandersnatch, making them burst apart as he took to the skies, being covered by ally magicians.

"There's just not enough of us! Not only are these Scale Mails at home in this desert, the Gogmagogs are adapting to the-" Anubis shouted.

The Egyptian deity's eyes widened as he was forced to dodge a surprise attack, but was soon caught off guard by a Grim Reaper, and screamed as it slashed right through him. While not leaving a mark, there was a strong internal pain flaring through him.

* * *

**~Romania**

The Celtic God known as Belenos was lying on the ground, raising his head weakly as he looked at the battlefield before him with blurry eyes, only able to make out the sight of someone or something walking to him.

"Please, I... I beg you, please save..." He struggled to speak at all.

At that moment, Belenos blacked out entirely, with the magic circle he was calling from dissolving away.

Right at that moment, the person nearing him prepared something, leaving the unconscious god completely defenseless to what they were about to do.

* * *

**~Italy**

Using a mere replica of Durandal, the Church Orphans saw Vasco mow down an entire force of the enemy army, then turn around to annihilate another group that tied ambushing him while his back was turned.

Looking around him, he motioned the kids to follow.

"If I was just fighting them, I would be fine, but I can't let these kids die. Please, just one single person, if only to get these kids safe." Vasco begged, looking at the burning town before him.

He swung his blade down again, cutting more forces as he motioned his hand towards come civilians to get near him.

"Come on, I'll keep you all safe the best I can!" He shouted.

* * *

The faces on the various faction leaders were horrible, and that made the fact everyone else could only briefly hear them even worse... they had no idea what they were being told, only that it had to be bad, and that it involved other parts of Humanity across the globe being attacked like in Kuoh Town.

"...Georg, your Dimension Lost mist? How fast could you use it transport people across the world?" Vishnu asked.

"Well, if you're hoping for instantly? I _can_ do that, but if I do, I'll have to empty my entire mana reserves for it, and then outright overtax it. I'd be rendered completely unable to fight, and it'd be days before you can expect any magic from me." Georg answered.

Vishnu bit his lower mouth a bit, Georg was a powerful magic user, and him being unable to use any magic would be a problem.

"And your Longinus?" Vishnu followed up.

"I'd be limited to keeping it active, so everyone could use it to get where we need them." Georg answered.

"Damn it!" Vishnu seethed.

Realizing the situation fully, there was no choice... Georg would have to stand down from fighting so everyone else could fight, and lower as many casualties as possible.

"Alright then, guess we'll have to put you out of the fight for the sake of the world." Vishnu realized.

Brahma looked at Lilith, and she took a deep breath, realizing what needed to be done for the sake of the world. She turned to all the Young Devils and their peerages.

"Everyone, I know I'm asking a lot from you, especially after the losses we've already faced, but... the world needs you right now. The scale of what's happening means there's no way we can erase what's happened from all of Humanity, so you're not just fighting to save Hell anymore... you're fighting to save both worlds, and show Humanity's that ours has the right to exist. You are the future of our people, and it's because you are the future, that this we need you to fight for it." Lilith's eyes were closed to show how tough of this choice was.

Opening her eyes, she looked at them all.

"So, I ask you all... will you fight now?" The golden question left Lilith's mouth right there and then.

Looking at each other, and at the members of the peerages, there was nothing...

**「** **Beyblade Metal Fury: All Bladers lend their Star Fragments** **」**

Then finally, someone's voice chose to speak up.

"I'm in." Niruili agreed.

Everyone looked at her in surprise, and in response to that.

"I'm in too!" Zephyrdor agreed.

"You can count on my strength." Seekvaira stated.

"Of course, this is our home." Eneely replied.

"I'm in as well." Sona agreed.

"How could I stand down in a time like this." Rias stated.

"Let's show Hades just how sorry he'll be for doing this!" Ineelana shouted, smashing her fists together.

"You've got my support." Esketanus agreed.

"Mhmm." Suzattin nodded.

"Riser will help as well." Riser said, running a hand through his hair.

"Mom, you should already know my answer." Vali smiled.

"I might be new at being a King, but I'm not backing down either." Issei agreed.

Lilith's eyes watered as every one of them stated at that very moment they would fight, making her sniffle as she rubbed her eyes.

"Thank you, all of you... so, let's all win this, and come back alive! This is how Hell's new beginning will happen, through your generation standing together!" Lilith exclaimed, her faith and resolve fully ignited.

Everyone gave similar looks, ready to fight for their future. Using the moment, Georg's body began overclocking his magic as he formed the Dimension Lost's mist, which began to distort itself for the sake of this purpose.

"I've altered the mist so rather than sending you all to where I need you to be, you'll go based on the request of the people using it. It'll also leave a return point where you warp, so you'll have no trouble getting back, and it'll vanish once you leave." Georg explained, his body radiating his overflow of magic.

"Alright everyone, this is it... and this is where I want everyone to go." Lilith spoke up.

"Riser, you and your brothers will go help everyone in Romania's land. Niruili, you and Suzattin will head towards Asgard. Ineelana, you and Esketanus will head to Kyoto. Seekvaira, take Eneely with you and help the areas by Olympus. Gebedon, I want you to take Zephyrdor to Shinkai's borders. Sairaorg, you'll and Amalya will go help Egypt." Lilith assigned everyone their places.

As she assigned various other places to the other forces, she looked at Cao Cao's team, followed by Dulio.

"Cao Cao, I think we'll leave your group to help the forces of Mount Meru, and that'll leave Dulio to help the fight near the Vatican and Italy. Everyone understand?" Lilith asked, finishing the assignments for where everyone would go.

Everyone nods.

"What about us?" Issei asked.

"Issei, I'll need you, Vali, Rias, and Sona to all stay here. You all have the abilities we'll need for the forces that are here in Hell." Lilith answered.

"Got it, we can handle that." Issei agreed, flashing a thumb's up.

Everyone got near the warp mist, and Walburga instantly tried to interfere before they could, holding out her hand.

"Oh, no you don't!" She shouted, blasting out her purple flames.

"Not so fast, creep!" Saji yelled.

Familiar tentacles struck the flames, taking them out before they could even near the others, making Walburga growl as she saw Saji wearing his Scale Mail.

"Damn it, I've got better things to deal with than this crap!" Walburga exclaimed, preparing to flee.

Suddenly, a few familiar spheres flew out, hitting her before she could react. Mio's wings spread to grab her, catching the magician off guard, the Demon Princess' grip too powerful for her to shrug off.

"You're not getting away!" Mio shouted.

The two crashed into the ground, and at that same moment, everyone touched the warp mist.

"I can do this, I know I can..." Niruili breathed.

"Asgard!" Niruili & Suzattin shouted.

They and their peerages turned into beams of light, firing off to that very location.

"Romania!" The Phenex brothers shouted.

"Kyoto!" Ineelana & Esketanus shouted.

"Olympus!" Eneely & Seekvaira shouted.

"Shinkai!" Zephyrdor & Esketanus shouted.

"Egypt!" Sairaorg & Amalya shouted.

The same happened to all of them, the number of light beams starting to light up all of Hell. The Hero Faction Elites, minus Georg and Jeanne, and Dulio were next.

"Mount Meru!" The Elites shouted.

"Italy!" Dulio shouted.

As the last groups all began to disappear from view, Lilith noticed something in Hell's sky.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

At the same time, Mio was trying to keep Walburga pinned to the ground, and soon turned as she saw the Slash/Dog team come near.

"Quick, throw up a barrier!" Mio shouted.

"Huh? Are you crazy, if we do that then you'll have to fight her-" Natsume replied worriedly.

"Do it! I have to do this, this is our only chance! I have to convince the Incinerate Anthem to abandon Walburga to take away the only Longinus they have left!" Mio ordered, the determination in her eyes flaring.

Lavinia's eyes widened at that, and the others looked at Tobio.

"Well? Do we let her do it?" Kouki asked.

"She might not be able to handle her alone... a Demon is in danger when facing the holy purple flames of the Incinerate Anthem." Sae mentioned.

Tobio looked at Mio again, and the fire in her eyes... he made his choice.

"Form the barrier, she wants us to believe in her, so let's give her a chance when everyone else is fighting just as hard." Tobio decided.

Hearing their leader's decision, they all did what he said, and formed a barrier around the two, right as Walburga finally got herself free of her grasp. Upon hitting the barrier, the evil magician leader showed surprise.

'Mio, please do it... please avenge her.' Lavinia begged to the Demon Princess.

"Come on, we need to find where Leonardo was taken, hopefully we can stop the invasion of his monsters by finding him." Tobio suggested.

The Slash/Dog teamed nodded before they all began searching. Back within the barrier, Mio grunted as she got back on her feet, looking at Walburga's backside once she did.

"No more running coward, you're gonna fight... and I'll rip that Longinus right out of your body!" Mio exclaimed loudly.

"Damn you... fine, if you wanna die that bad, I'll grant your request!" Walburga roared before unleashing a wave of purple flames.

* * *

**~Near Asgard**

The Norse God Heimdall fall over as a few Grim Reaper slashes cut through him, leaving him weak as he fell over. Various civilians looked in horror at the fallen deity, with more Grim Reapers gathering along the one who struck the last few blows.

"No, I... I can't hold on any longer." Heimdall breathed out, his eyes looking lifeless.

As the Reapers prepared to strike again...

"**Starlight Breaker!**"

"**Brilliant Flame!**"

The Grim Reapers on the left side were slammed with a dazzling light, while a blaze of searing flames crashed into the ones on the right side. The civilians soon saw lights flying across the sky, landing right in front of them, and revealing Suzattin, Niruili, and the members of their peerages. Realizing they were here to help them, said civilians gave happy looks, while the Belphegor heir noticed Heimdall on the ground.

"Oh no!"

"Hey, are you alright? Speak to me!" Suzattin carefully lifted the injured Norse deity's head.

Heimdall slowly moved his eyes towards Suzattin, making the Belphegor heir see the state they were in. Heimdall himself could barely make out the Devil holding him as he took heavy breaths.

"P-please, you must... protect them. I have done a-all that I can for... this w-world." The Norse Deity's breathing slowed with each word.

Eventually, right before his very eyes, Heimdall's arms slumped down, and a slight wisp came off his body. Niruili gasped in horror, tearing up as the sight of the wisp was similar to what Jingu had done.

Even though they hadn't dealt a final blow... the Grim Reapers had reaped his soul, and now he was gone forever.

"Crying over his demise? Sickening, he earned that fate for trying to give these people false hope!"

The two groups looked up, seeing the sight of a woman with pale blue skin, a very gothic looking outfit, and piercing cyan eyes. Along with her pale black hair, and the deathly aura that she gave off, it was clear who this woman was...

"Hel, the Norse Goddess of Death." Suzattin spat with hate.

"I recognize you two, both of you were involved with murdering my father. I should thank Hades for giving me the chance to start my vengeance to all of those involved. I'll destroy all the Asgardians care for, while also silencing your worthless lives as well!" Hel declared while glaring.

At that moment, Niruili walked by Suzattin, putting a hand on his shoulder. This got his attention as he looked towards the Beelzebub heiress.

"...Suzattin, take care of the Bandersnatch in this area. Me and my peerage will take her on." Niruili stated.

Suzattin's eyes widened.

"A-are you sure about that?" He asked in shock.

"I have to do this, back when I faced Sairaorg... I realized what my _true_ weakness was. That matched showed me there was something more. I have to show I've overcome it, and I'll do it through her." Niruili reasoned.

"Besides, I think you saw my new ability during the Ultimate-Class Promotion?"

The Belphegor heir's eyes widened at that moment, shocked at what she was implying it could do when faced with a God. Deciding to trust her, he nodded his head, standing up to look at the direction of said Bandersnatch.

"I'm leaving her in your hands, so don't let me down." Suzattin remarked, smiling a bit.

He ran off, with his peerage following him. Before he left view, the two looked at each other and both said one thing in unison.

"Promise you'll make it back alive!"

* * *

**~Near Mount Olympus**

The next lights dropped Seekvaira and Eneely's groups into the land of Greece, and the latter instantly saw a few Scale Mails preparing to fire their breath attacks on innocent people. There was no wasted time for her next action.

"**Cosmic Render!**"

The Scale Mails were instantly flung everywhere as shredded pieces of scrap, making everyone watch in surprise.

"Hey, all of you OK?" Eneely asked.

"Y-yeah, thank you..." Someone replied.

"Good, try to get out of here, we'll keep these things from killing you and everyone else." Eneely advised them with a smile.

They quickly took her advice, and she looked forward to see the War God Ares walking towards them. He was wearing full-body armor, but it was covered in various dents and stains, showing just how hard he had been fighting before they showed.

"You came to help, thank you..." Ares panted.

"Lord Ares, are you alright?" Seekvaira asked worriedly.

"I'm a God of War kid, this is the kind of thing you face when you represent the world of battle. Never mind me though, Artemis needs help, go to her while I go help Eros and the Titans fighting alongside him." Ares replied before pointing the Hunting Goddess' location.

The two tried to say something, but Super-Gogmagog suddenly blasted towards their location. Seeing this, Ares used his only good arm to toss them where he pointed out, and then screamed as the attack struck him.

"Lord Ares!" Eneely shouted.

"I SAID GO, GOD DAMN IT!" Ares screamed at the top of his lungs.

The two Devil heiress went silent, but quietly complied before running off. As many more of the adaptive Golems began surrounding him, Ares' helmet broke slightly, making his smile reveal itself as he chuckled.

"My fellow brothers and sisters, know I will likely die here, but... this is exactly the way of death that I can be proud of!" He shouted.

Ares charged right ahead, an aura exploding off him as he prepared his last stand.

* * *

**~Near Mount Meru**

Chaos wrought against the ordinary civilians of Asia as many Daeva, and the forces of Indra's army, all began attacking against the Asura, and the people of Shiva's army. All of while the rest of the Khaos Brigade/Hades' forces rampaged against the battlefield.

Mahabali violently coughed as he stumbled back, trying to shield some civilians as a Scale Mail grabbed his head, smashing his body against the ground.

"Lord Shiva, I... I'm sorry." He gasped out, expecting his end to come.

Right as the living armor prepared to deal the fatal blow, multiple lights struck the ground, and a shadow suddenly appeared in front of him. The Scale Mail struck it, only to roar as its own attack caused its own demise.

"That attack!" Mahabali gasped.

The Hero Faction Elites all jumped ahead of him, readying themselves as the Bandersnatch they were sent to face roared towards them.

"Time to take out the trash." Herc smirked.

* * *

**~Near Shinkai**

Izanami unleashed more of her dark orbs, sweating as she noticed more forces nearing the area they made as a safe house for the fleeing civilians.

"Dear, there's just too many! At this rate we won't be able to protect them all!" Izanami warned.

"Come on, there's gotta be someone on the way..." Izanagi begged for a miracle.

"How about seventeen!?"

The two turned as they saw a bunch of lights appear, followed by the sound of a heavy engine pump. Zooming through, the sight of Gebedon and Zephyrdor's peerage riding on Bowser's monster of a motorcycle came into view.

"Took you long enough!" Izanagi smiled.

"Don't worry, we'll make the wait worth it!" Bowser announced.

Shifting gears, he made a sharp turn as his cycle spun around. Blades came off the sides, followed by the sight of missiles launching out, either slicing or blasting the enemy army that was unlucky to be within their range.

After clearing through, the cycle stopped, and both peerages dismounted from Bowser's bike.

"Alright, let's show them how we rock!" Zephyrdor declared.

* * *

**~Kyoto**

Ineelana and Esketanus' groups soon appeared from their lights, and the former instantly reacted in response.

"Hey, how about all your jerk asses take a moment to _chill_!?"

Swinging her hands forward, two streams of crossed in a wavy motion, freezing all of the enemy forces, while keeping all the civilians and Youkai out of harem. Great Elder Tenguu noticed them, with the Super-Gogmagog that was prepared to fire at him finally losing his attention.

Esketanus nudged Eterna, who blushed a bit at the cue.

"O-Oh, OK!" Eterna replied.

Tapping the ground, the stone underneath said Gogmagog rose up, caging the beast before tightening itself. After sparking a bit, the Golem was rendered inoperable.

"Thank you, for your aid..." Great Elder Tenguu smiled weakly.

"Here, I'll heal you up, just relax." Eterna said softly, covering him with a bright glow.

* * *

**~Egypt**

Anubis shook as the Grim Reaper's wound still wrung throughout his body, though managing to somewhat shrug it since he was a God of Death. As he took a moment to recover, the same Grim Reaper crept closer, intending to finish him off for good.

"I will stand until the end for Egypt, do your worst!" Anubis shouted.

"Fine, I will!" The Grim Reaper declared.

As the Egyptian God readied himself for whatever fate may have brought... fate chose to favor him, and a certain group of lights landed to reveal Sairaorg and Amalya's peerages. The heir of Bael quickly threw his fist forward, smashing the Reaper's scythe, and then striking it so hard, the Reaper burst apart in a purge.

"Incredible..." Anubis breathed.

"Don't worry Lord Anubis, we've got your back." Amalya reassured.

"The aid is appreciated." Anubis smiled.

* * *

**~Romania**

Riser, Ruval, and the middle brother Reves, all landed in Romania with their respective peerages... although they soon wished they had been sent somewhere else at what they saw before them. Ruval was the first to find his voice after they saw it.

"T-this is... how did all of this happen so fast?" Ruval questioned.

"You're right, there's no way this could have happened so quickly by just the armies we've met. I have a bad feeling about this." Reves agreed.

Before any of them could think on it more, Riser suddenly felt something strike him from behind.

"Lord Riser!" Yubelluna exclaimed.

Holding his side, Riser turned to see a bunch of Grim Reapers flying at the group.

"You want a piece of Riser, come and get him!" Riser warned, his body setting ablaze.

* * *

**~Italy**

Vasco mowed down another group of enemies, with some of the other members of the Vatican's exorcists starting to group with him. A young boy with Angel wings panted before looking at him.

"The East of town is still without aid, can we send anyone there?" The boy asked.

"I'm afraid not Teodoro, we're already barely managing as we are." Vasco grunted, parrying an attack aimed at civilians before throwing it back.

As the exorcists looked to the East, thinking they were without aid...

"**Zenith Tempest! Balance Breaker!**"

In just a few seconds, the Exorcists covered their eyes as intense weather conditions suddenly appeared, razing through the enemy forces with the five elements of nature that could be controlled by the second strongest of the Longinus.

When it ended, the civilians were given an opening, while most of the enemy army on the East side was wiped out, leaving only a moderately injured Bandersnatch and some of its Mini-Bandersnatch intact. From the sky, the exorcists saw a beam of light that stopped in midair to reveal Dulio, all twelve of his wings now gold, and with four halos over his head instead of just one.

"Looks like our reinforcements have arrived." Vasco smiled, looking at him.

Dulio stared at the Bandersnatch, which growled as it formed more smaller copies of itself as the Joker of Heaven watched.

"**Horus, are you ready?**" Dulio asked with a smile, one of his eyes shining a silver color.

**«As always»** Horus replied.

* * *

The faction leaders soon all got alerts that they got the help that was sent over, slightly relieving them. Although Lugh was slightly concerned from his call.

"Alright, looks like things have turned around for us." Yasaka smiled.

"Now, time for us to take care of everything here, so let's take care of the rest." Lilith stated.

She looked at the four peerages that were still left.

"Rias, I'll need your group to stay with Georg, that way Yumi can keep a barrier around him. Sona, stay around the area where Walburga is, just in case Saji's flames are needed to deal her own. Issei and Vali? Both of you, take your groups to deal with the Jabberwocky, and everything near it." Lilith assigned them their duties.

"Be careful, I remember Leo telling me that his Jabberwocky is incredibly difficult to kill, but I never found out why. Prepare yourselves for anything." Jeanne warned the Heavenly Dragon users.

The two nodded in agreement.

"Don't worry, we'll be careful out there." Vali reassured.

Jeanne looked at Rias, who nodded.

"We can do this." Rias stated.

"All of us." Jeanne agreed.

"Come on, let's ruin everything this bastard of a God's trying to achieve!" Tomoe exclaimed, raising her Sacred Gear in the air.

With that, everyone prepared to scatter, but...

"I WILL NOT LET YOU!" Hades screamed.

Everyone was caught off guard as Hades suddenly neared them, prepared to attack while they were all caught off guard. However, before he could do anything, he was rudely interrupted by Mephisto, Odin, and both of his brothers.

**「** **Fairy Tail:Tenshi no Kunou** **」**

Everyone knocked to the ground a bit, looking in shock as the three elderly gods, and the one ancient Devil, all sent Hades far away from the remainder of the Alliance forces.

"Mephisto!" Lilith shouted.

"Go! We'll buy you time, please... get away! You know what we must do, see that it happens... promise me, Lilith!" Mephisto shouted.

At that moment... a familiar moment entered Lilith's mind, making her gasp as she was drawn back to when she looked at the sky earlier.

* * *

_With Lilith and Mephisto at his side, Satan looked towards the skies of Hell, getting their attention._

_"Honey, what are you doing?" Lilith asked worriedly._

_"I agree, you've been staring at the sky for ages already, why are you so drawn to them right now?" Mephisto agreed._

_Satan blinked, turning to them with an embarrassed chuckle._

_"Sorry for worrying you, I was just thinking." Satan replied._

_Lilith showed some curiosity upon hearing that._

_"About what?" She questioned._

_Satan looked towards the sky, reaching out to it._

_"About how as we are, Devils still haven't truly found the freedom I've intended for us. We still live in the Shadows of Hell... the sky above us just reminds me how it isn't the one we're not living in. The one I'm sure we're meant to live in." Satan answered._

_"One day, I'm sure that we'll finally reach it... that's why we must make sure our kind keeps going, that the people who are our future survive to see it, and then bring every one of us towards it with equal hands. That is what I truly believe, and the day we do it, we won't be hiding under this green sky anymore, because once again we'll be able to live under the real sun."_

_Lilith was confused by that, and it didn't make any sense to her. Mephisto on the other hand? He had a feeling what the Devil King was saying, and looked up at the sky himself._

* * *

As that memory finished replaying itself, her eyes teared up.

"Now go! All of you, guarantee the future no matter what it takes, that is... my final wish for you to grant!" Mephisto shouted as he struck Hades further away.

"Final... wish?" Asuka gasped in horror.

As Vali looked at Mephisto's expression, she started to shed a few tears before she turned.

"You heard him, go! We have to stop this war!" Vali shouted, the tears in her eyes flying as she ran off.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

At that moment, everyone showed surprise before the rest of the Alliance's forces ran off, while Rias gave a saddened look towards Mephisto as her group stayed with Georg. Finally having enough of them, Hades attacked all four Gods.

"This is it... isn't it?" Odin realized.

"We've entrusted it all to them, how selfish of us." Zeus agreed, closing his eyes.

Holding out his hand, all four of them were suddenly blasted into the air by a giant burst of shadowy Prana, leaving them immobile and defenseless.

"You have crossed a line you should never pass, and now... you will pay the ultimate price!" Hades declared.

**「** **Fairy Tail: Pride of the Guild** **」**

Hades appeared before Poseidon, and coating his hand in the same energy from moments prior... struck into his brother's chest. Poseidon suddenly burst apart like a Devil being purged, and his soul utterly annihilated. Moving his hand, Mephisto prepared his last message.

_"To everyone that can hear me, pass this Devil onto the Magicians under my care, and the Devils I've watched grow for the last few years..."_

Wasting no time, Hades soon appeared before his other brother, quickly giving the same fate to Zeus.

_"If you're hearing this, then I'm afraid I've passed on, having chosen my time to come in a battle I knew I would lose. A choice I made because I'm a mere relic of the past, from a time that should pass on, a darkness that the world does not need. To my fellow Magicians, I did not call you to this battle because too many of you have a future, one I couldn't just let you toss away if I could prevent it."_

Next up, Hades dealt the same fatal blow to Odin, and destroying him as well. His eyes locked onto his last target... Mephisto himself.

_"And to my fellow Devils... you may have been born in the darkness like most of us, but long ago... your Devil King told me that our future was one in the light. Under the real sun, not the false sky we see above. You live in a time that strives for peace, living together, rather than trying to destroy others. At first it was just the Supernatural, but now... the world is changing further, now we must live alongside Humanity."_

Hades began to near Mephisto, who moved his gaze as he prepared for his inevitable death.

_"The time I lived in needs to pass, you must make the future we wished for. Lilith, you must remain to guide them, guide them until the day someone takes over to guide them in your place. I won't be there to see it with you, but I can tell, that day isn't much further away... in fact, it'll be sooner than you expect it to. I am so glad, that I lived long enough to see this potential. For that reason alone..."_

Hades finally struck through him, but this time... Mephisto smiled at him as his soul suddenly lunged at him.

"W-what is this!?" Hades showed surprised at the sight.

"The future's wish to see those children succeed." Mephisto stated, blood trailing down his mouth.

The energies of Odin, Zeus, and Poseidon all briefly appeared, becoming chains that suddenly wrapped around Hades, locking him into the ground with all their might. Mephisto's body finally joined them, doing the very same as Hades felt himself completely immobilized.

_"...Thank you."_

Hades screamed in anger as he couldn't find the strength to break the chains.

Meanwhile from a distance, Lilith suddenly saw something form in her hands. Turning her head around, her eyes filled with tears, feeling the same loss she did when her husband and the other Great Devils all passed on.

"Goodbye... old friend." She whispered.

* * *

**Long ago, the Great War brought many losses... now, through what Hades has started, the entire world has been dragged into a war once again. However, this time it isn't just the supernatural, because he's let his hatred and racism drive him to drag all of Humanity into the entire conflict. This is no longer a war against Hell, but a Second Great War.**

**There are already casualties, with many Gods having fallen, including Odin, Zeus, and Poseidon. Now, even the Devils have lost Mephisto, whose been around almost as long as Lilith has. Even though Georg has sent everyone across the land to limit the damage, it's clear that this ending will be bittersweet for everyone. Although, it makes one wonder... why hasn't Humanity learned of the supernatural if the Great War swallowed the whole world?**

**Perhaps this is related to the battlefield that Vali and Ineelana fought on, and the tale tastes just as bittersweet, if not even more.**

**Well, this is the moment where the fights between everyone and the forces of the Khaos Brigade/Hades army will truly start. For who will start things off? It'll be none other than Niruili, whose peerage never got to properly shine in her battle, and Suzattin, who got eliminated before we got to see a full fight because his injuries in the battle with Loki forced him to drop out.**

**Know this for the remaining chapters up until this battle finally ends, _anyone_ can die. Gods, powerful figures, some of the younger generation that's fighting right now, and even some of my OCs. Just like how Humanity will know the supernatural, the people who die in this world are going to make sure that the world of this series will never be the same one the first chapter made it out to be.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**N/A**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	68. Chapter 68

**Alright everyone, time to begin the first of the many battles the Devil heirs and their allies are about to fight. Starting us off is the one I promised last chapter, the battle with Niruili's peerage against the daughter of Loki, the Norse Goddess Hel, followed up with Suzattin's peerage facing off the first of the many Bandersnatch currently rampaging across the world.**

**Oh yeah, before I say anymore, here's something at least two of my reviews wondered about, and therefore is something I feel should be brought up. You may have noticed I didn't send anyone to Kuoh in the previous chapter. I'll let you all know that Kuoh hasn't been forgotten, and it will get aid soon, it's just the people who will go aid it won't be there until we near the first half of the Pandemonium arc.**

**Niruili's got one of the tougher fights, and this is to make up for how easily Sairaorg defeated her during the Rating Game Tournament, and this was with a peerage with some powerful characters in it. Because of that, I planned for her peerage to fight a very powerful opponent once we got here, and I figured that a Goddess of Death like Hel was a good fit.**

**So, let's see these battles happen!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking through a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Supernatural Faction Rankings **

**The Supernatural World's beings aren't just marked by the strength of the individuals in it, but the supernatural factions within it. Overall, there are officially 10 supernatural factions the world falls under, and their strength is ranked as the following.**

**1\. Hindu Pantheon - The strongest faction, with many of its deities having cheat level abilities due to its deities shared access to Prana, and the many beings among the Daeva, Asura, and allied Humans that can wield it. The army built by Indra, and Shiva's army meant to counter it should things go safe, have also bolstered the faction's overall strength.**

**2\. Christian Pantheon - While initially divided until recently, the united strengths of the Angels, Fallen, Demons, and Devils, combined with the many Longinus wielders within their ranks, and the achievement of both God & Satan sealing away Trihexa, they've easily been recognized to be the second strongest faction.**

**3\. Shinto Pantheon - As a result of their Gods having vast influence due to what they represent, and having more than one main deity like the factions that are above it, as well as the Youkai having a sub-faction allied with them. Most of all, while many Gods gave them their blessing, the Shinto Gods were the originators of the Hero Clan.**

**4\. Greek Pantheon - Despite many of its Gods being older, they are quite numerous, including the few Titans sided with Olympus, and the few Primordial Gods still hanging around. Hades' control of the Grim Reapers, a race of Half-Gods, also give the faction enough of an edge to rank higher than...**

**5\. Norse Pantheon - The Gods tied to the legend of Ragnarok, which in the present has been considered to have already happened through the Great War. They also have a race of Half-Gods through the Valkyrie/Einherjar. Various other species, through the legend of Yggdrasil, are also allied with them, such as the Elves.**

**6\. Celtic Pantheon - Even though Lugh is powerful, the death of Balor and (supposedly) Crom Cruach have left the Celtic Faction on the weaker end of the factions who possess Gods. They keep a slight edge through the Werewolves and Vampires that live within the pantheon's borders, and are considered part of it.**

**7\. Egyptian Pantheon - They lack any notable warriors compared to the other their deities, and only have a few magicians to give them forces aside from their gods. Likewise, they're every faction ranked below them doesn't have any deities, which keeps them higher on the rankings.**

**8\. Youkai Realm - While they are considered a sub-faction under the Shinto Pantheon, they're big enough to also be ranked independently from them as well. Due to the legend of the original Kyuubi, Tamamo-no-Mae, and the Kyoto Leylines (which the Hero Faction believed had the strength to restore Trihexa's seal), they are the strongest among the factions that lack any deities.**

**9\. Hero Clan - They are quite numerous, and they exist through blessings of the Gods that created the powers embedded within their bloodlines. The only thing that truly keeps them from exceeding the Youkai faction in strength is the strength of the Kyuubi line, as shown through Yasaka's strength, and the fact they're spread throughout multiple villages.**

**10\. Magician's Guild - Because of the various groups that include Rogue Magicians, and not having blessings that give them unique skills like Heroes, they are the weakest among the supernatural factions. That being said, the gap between them and the Hero Clan isn't too big, so they're not completely overshadowed by the other nine factions either.**

**Due to the current onset of the Second Great War, these rankings are currently fluctuating due to the many losses, and new showcases of power within each faction.**

**At the moment, the Celtic Faction's been implied to have taken the biggest hit, as the Phenex brothers have seen something they've yet to give a proper chance to explain. Similarly, the Hindu Faction seems to also be taking a hit, as the army of Indra has sided with Hades, leading to infighting happening at the same time as the enemy forces are invading, forcing the Hindu pantheon to fight two armies.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 4 – Black Awakening _ **

Hades' eyes locked onto his last target... Mephisto himself. He began to near Mephisto, who moved his gaze as he prepared for his inevitable death, and then finally was struck down by the Ruler of Tartarus. However, to Hades' confusion... Mephisto smiled at him as his soul suddenly lunged at him.

"W-what is this!?" Hades showed surprised at the sight.

"The future's wish to see those children succeed." Mephisto stated, blood trailing down his mouth.

The energies of Odin, Zeus, and Poseidon all briefly appeared, becoming chains that suddenly wrapped around Hades, locking him into the ground with all their might. Mephisto's body finally joined them, doing the very same as Hades felt himself completely immobilized.

Hades screamed in anger as he couldn't find the strength to break the chains.

"Damn you!" He roared in anger.

Meanwhile from a distance, Lilith suddenly saw something form in her hands. Turning her head around, her eyes filled with tears, feeling the same sense of loss she did when her husband and the other Great Devils all passed on.

"Goodbye... old friend." She whispered.

As everyone kept rushing forward, Vali kept shedding tears as she realized what had happened.

"Odin, Zeus, Poseidon, and Mephisto... they knew they wouldn't be able to hold back Hades for long." Vali cried.

"They knew after Hades finished them, he'd just resume coming after us." Yumina replied with teary eyes.

"They sacrificed themselves, just to give us the time we needed to get away, and fight back his forces..." Issei said, his throat feeling tight.

"Damn it, that bastard... I can't believe he treats lives so callously, like he's some kind of omnipotent King!" Bennia sniffled, flying forward.

"How many... just how many people are gonna die today before this war finally ends?" Asuka asked, covering her face as she sobbed.

As they kept going forward, Rias group showed similar tears, especially Rias who had been especially close to Mephisto, seeing him like the grandfather she never had. Wiping her tears, she looked at a Bandersnatch nearing the spot where Yumi was protecting Georg, and many of the non-combatant civilians.

"We'll protect this land, up until the bitter end!" Rias said with resolve.

As a few more Bandersnatch began to gather with the one they saw first... a sudden series of attacks knock most of them to the side. Rias' peerage showed surprise, only for a familiar silver-haired beauty to land before them.

"Being unconscious for all that time wasn't very fun, let's start actually aiding in the fight from this moment on." Edelweiss declared.

"Edelweiss!" Rias cheered.

"Young Rias, we'll take care of the rest, so I hope you don't mind handling one of them." Edelweiss remarked.

"No worries, we're fighting for the world as well, so we've gotta be willing to pull our weight here." Rias smiled.

Nodding at that, she flew ahead, followed by the rest of Satan's peerage. Accompanying them were the other Great Devils, and the members of their peerages, with Lilith's own peerage following in hot pursuit.

"Alright, it's time to make up for what we couldn't do against Indra!" Alanira announced.

They each slammed into a Bandersnatch, striking all but a single one away from the vicinity of Rias' peerage. For the one that remained, they all readied themselves to fight.

* * *

Back in the area by Asgard, the Goddess known as Hel stood before Niruili's peerage before charging red energy in her hands.

"Prepare yourselves... for death!" Hel exclaimed.

** _ Battle: Niruili's Peerage VS Hel _ **

"Everyone, go!" Niruili announced.

Her peerage darted ahead, ready to pull all their strength to destroy the rampaging God. She swung her hand down, blasting out the red energy across the battlefield. Akame noticed some of it near her, and readied her sword to cut it... only for her to notice it starting to dissolve, and forcing her to roll to the side.

Taking a look at her Sacred Gear, she saw how part of it had been vaporized, and the area where the attack hit.

"Her attacks, they'll destroy us if they make direct contact." Akame stated, reforging her Sacred Gear.

"Then we'll just blast her from afar!" Natsu shouted with a smirk.

Assuming his true Demon Form, he charged fire in both his hands, and then slammed it forward.

"**Brilliant Flame!**"

"**Death Bomber!**"

Natsu's fireball clashed with small spheres of Hel's unique vaporization eventually sending the two attacks flying off, with the latter's heading towards some civilians!

"**Santen Kesshun!**"

Orihime appeared before them, forming an energy triangle that soon expanded to create a dome around the civilians.

"Thank you miss!" A young child said happily.

"Just leave it to use, we'll stop her from hurting anyone else." Orihime smiled.

"We'll leave defense to you Orihime, we'll hand the rest." Niruili ordered.

Motioning her gaze towards the Beelzebub heiress, the Norse Goddess of Death prepared a charge at the tip of her finger.

"**Annihilation Force!**"

A large beam fired off at her, and Niruili stopped in place, confusing the Goddess until she saw her devour her attack without any issue. After her Devouring Mimicry gobbled up all the energy, Niruili created her clan's magic circle.

"You aren't gonna win that easily!" Niruili giggled.

Niruili fired off magic like a machine gun, with Hel diving and shifting to deal with the attacks. Using this chance, Akame rushed forward, preparing to strike with her Sacred Gear.

"**Murasame!**"

"Like that would actually cut through a Goddess like-" Hel mocked.

She instantly screamed as her arm's skin was shredded apart, making her look at the raw red color coated across it as her magic began attacking it.

"This sword always cuts what has magic, something Gods are chalk full of." Akame warned, the light in her eyes gone to show how serious she was.

Akame bust forward, slashing at Hel a few more times before the Goddess teleported out of the way... only for Natsu to grab her by the throat, tightening his grip as she was locked in place.

"GET OFF!" She roared, holding a sphere near him.

He instantly folded his wings in front of him, letting them be destroyed since Demon wings could naturally regenerate.

"**Take this! Flame Lotus, Phoenix Sword!**"

Natsu dove at the ground, his body setting itself aflame to such a degree that it became like a flaming blade in shape, and stabbing Hell into the ground with enough strength that it slightly cracked. Jumping off, he rushed at her again, charging fire in both hands as claws, using his regenerated wings to dive fast.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Hel screamed.

Natsu and Akame both felt incredible pressure from her magic push her away, threatening to destroy them both... luckily, their King quickly got ahead of them, and devoured all of the power she released.

"You little bitch!" Hel raged, rushing at him.

"**Phantom Screamer!**"

Reina opened her mouth, unleashing a powerful scream from it, and making it slam into the Norse Goddess, and making her launch further away. She slid across the ground, where Tohka charged at her with her sword.

"Here goes... all my strength, all my power! I'll exceed who I am with one stroke!" Tohka announced.

"**Geoforce Sword... Terra Firma!**"

She swung down, her magical power managing to triple its length, and double its width, making a heavy ton of force smash onto Hel from behind as she held her hands up. From the sides, Lina and Fang rushed into view, readying all their power.

"This is the power of all of us, so take it all, Hel!" Niruili warned.

"**Ragna... Blade!**"

"**Giga Blow!**"

Lina swung a golden/black blade of magic, while Fang smashed the ground with two large gauntlets, sending a burst of energy straight towards her.

Hel screamed loudly as all of these attacks smashed into her, making her feel insulted as she, a Goddess, was being pummeled by these pathetic, weak, and mortal children. Ones that were all Devils no less... she instantly began roaring within her scream, sending more power out that started to blast them away, forcing Niruili to once again eat her magic.

"Not this time!" Hel shouted.

She grabbed Niruili, and slammed her down onto the ground. Her tumbling peerage got up, only to see Hel charge an energy sphere in an attempt to finish her from an attack at close-range. Glaring at Niruili, she readied to finish her off.

"Any last words?" Hel wondered with spite.

"**Final... Feast.**"

Hel gritted her teeth at that comment.

"You have the audacity to request a final-"

At that moment, Niruili's body starts to heat up with energy, burning Hel as she was suddenly launched far away, barely stumbling on her feet as she landed. The suddenly technique had caught her completely off guard! Looking a bit closer at the energy, she noticed a familiar look in it.

Across Niruili's body, her veins were shown, glowing with a strange red glow... the same glow as her own power.

"Are you trying to use my power? You fool, that'll simply kill you." Hel smirked smugly, thinking she'd end her own life instead of the other way around.

"Back then... back during my match with Sairaorg, I always thought my weakness was opponents who had no magic for me to devour. However, that's when I realized the truth, what made me weak is I depending on my ability to copy magic. My team suffered defeat because of that. As such, I realized I needed to find a new way, one that could let me devour both magic and or physical power, and instead of being a mimicry... I could find my own strength beyond my normal limitations." Niruili said softly.

She remembered the Ultimate-Class exams, where she first used this ability to succeed in promoting.

"And now, the time has come for me to show it, to prove it to the entire world! Because I am... Niruili Beelzebub!" She exclaimed loudly.

Within her body, the sight of the power within her veins exploded, empowering her entire form.

**「** **Dragonball Super: Ultra Instinct Awakened, Instrumental - Play & Loop** **」**

Hel suddenly looked in shock as Niruili's body began glowing with the aura of her power, and her eyes were glowing like magical power. She cracked her neck, looking at Hel with the newfound power she'd have for a while.

"Alright Hel, time for you... to fight your own strength for once!" Niruili announced.

She rushed forward, and Hel unleashed as much of her intense energy at once as she could. Unfortunately, this no longer worked on Niruili, with the aura of her own power protecting the heiress of Beelzebub from being destroyed, and only giving her some slight damage that she took just to deliver a punch that actually causes genuine damage to the Goddess.

"I-impossible..." Hell gasped, coughing out some blood.

"Niruili just punched a God, and it had an effect! That's awesome!" Natsu cheered.

"So, this is the new ability she was hiding from us all... such intense strength, just what did she bear to create this potential?" Akame wondered.

Everyone gets ready to help her, but Niruili holds a hand out for a moment.

"Give me a minute guys, I need to figure something out before I'll call in for your help." She stated.

Hearing that, they all stood down for the moment.

"Damn you, damn you stupid Devil!" Hel roared, her energy burning up.

"I'm gonna destroy everything! I will erase this entire world!" With a mighty shout, her aura exploded out, becoming like an energy wildfire.

She manipulated the energy, causing it to start blasting about everywhere with incredible force. The rest of Niruili's peerage panicked a bit, with Tohka ducking a shot.

"I think this is why she told us to wait! It isn't just us, but the civilians at risk!" Tohka realized.

"Come on... hold it, hold!" Orihime grunted.

Niruili ran through the sea of laser blasts, quickly gasp as she narrowly dodged one how dangerous they were, the blast burning her skin despite the power she siphoned through the Goddess' attacks.

"Die, you asinine existence!" Hel screamed sending small energy orbs, along with flares of power towards the Beelzebub heiress.

"Here goes, charge it all into one point... one blast." Niruili said to herself, charging a small sphere in front of her mouth.

Dodging across the landscape, and controlling where Hel was aiming, Niruili motioned to the others.

"That's our cue, get ready guys!" Natsu shouted.

Hel grabbed the remaining energy, screaming as her eyes became nothing but her sclera, and then slamming the energy down towards Niruili like two wings... only for the heiress to back flip, avoiding the attack before grabbing her arms.

"**Stockpile Feast!**" Niruili began firing off all the energy she had used at once.

Hel screamed as her own power began to eat right through her, but Niruili still didn't have enough energy. Realizing this, the rest of her peerage rushed out to take positions, leaving only Orihime out who was still forming barriers to protect the civilians.

"**Flame of the End!**"  
"**Phantom Screamer!**"  
"**Burning Strike!**"  
"**Geoforce Sword... Terra Firma!**"  
"**Ragna Blade... Burst!**"  
"**Fatal Blade!**"

Everyone's attack smashed into Hel, with Niruili dismounting from her grip on her arms, sliding back to join the other six as they blasted all their power. Despite her body burning from her own power, she screamed in rage, unleashing it as a wave, attempting to overwhelm them as she pushed against their attacks.

"Come on, hold it everyone! We have to... overwhelm her!" Niruili screamed, pouring every bit of strength she had.

As she watched, Orihime noticed something, and got a plan as she put herself in a barrier. Taking flight, she dashes towards Hel.

"Orihime?" Niruili said in surprise.

"I have an idea, just trust me!" Orihime stated.

With her barrier, she flew through the dangerous attack, barely holding it before getting up close, and slapping her hand on Hel's chest.

"What are you-Ah!" Hel screamed in agony, as a sigil formed on her.

Hel's power began to weaken, and her eyes shook as she noticed it. Landing in front of Niruili, she held her hand out.

"Now for the power of all eight of us combined!" Orihime shouted.

Forming a yellow energy ring around the seven attacks, she empowers them before the seven attacks converge, causing an eight-way burst of power to fire off together.

"No, this can't be!" Hel screamed in denial.

"Wrong, this is the power... of the Beelzebub Clan!" Niruili exclaimed.

Hel's energy finally broke apart, making her eyes widen as it did. The dispersed energy soon shot out, targeting the Grim Reapers, Scale Mails, Super-Gogmagogs, and more in her area of the battlefield.

With that final moment, the group's combined attack cuts right through her, piercing through her chest.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Hel shrieked before her body dissolved away.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Niruili collapsed to her knees, feeling the remains of Hel's power escape her body, and feeling the stress of exceeding her limit flare across her entire body. Despite that, all the surviving Valkyries, and the civilians looked in awe as she rose a hand up.

"We did it!"

** _ Winner: Niruili's Peerage! _ **

Some of the Grim Reapers that survived the attack all looked in fear, unable to believe that a Goddess had been killed by mere mortals in such a way.

"Lady Hel, they destroyed her... retreat!" A Reaper screamed.

They all tried to flee, only for one Valkyrie to fly right through them, destroying them all in an instant.

"Sorry, but no one runs out before paying their bills." Gondul stated.

* * *

On Suzattin's side, the Bandersnatch looked at him, growling heavily as their gazes met.

"So, is everyone ready for this? In a way, it'll be like the Rating Game we never got to have." Suzattin inquired.

"Of course, we're at your sword no matter what happens." Yuuki smiled.

"We've come this far together, so we'll succeed together." Nanoha agreed.

Saya nods, lightly bopping the Belphegor heir's forehead, making him blush lightly at the action.

"Full throttle, we got this." She smiled.

Feeling confident in himself, he looked up at the monster before them.

** _ Battle: Suzattin's Peerage VS the Bandersnatch Army _ **

He took a deep breath, and said the words that began the fight.

"Let's go." He said simply.

**「** **Sonic Colors: Nega Wisp Armor - Phase 2** **」**

At that moment, his peerage spread out as they readied themselves to deal with the army before them.

"Alright Mach Gunner, time for our Balance Breaker." Saya stated.

Something like Gundam armor equipped to Saya's body, and she quickly began dashing around, blasting the smaller Bandersnatch with various projectile weaponry that razed through them in seconds.

"Alright, come and get me!" Welf stated, holding up a sword in hand.

He swung it down, sending fiery bursts across the field, and while some of the Bandersnatch launched orb attacks at him...

"**Will-o-the-Wisp!**"

Their attacks suddenly reversed, making them all burn in an intense blaze of glory. As the few who survived got up, Leone dropped into view, currently in her beast mode.

"Alright you little shits, time for you to go back to the dog pound!" Leone stated, giving a scary glare as she smiled, her lion instincts making her especially hate the Bandersnatch for being half-wolf in appearance.

She rushed forward, smashing through them with heavy impacts, making them burst into light particles. However, one managed to sneak past her, biting off her arm! As the beast looked at her, Leone smirked a bit, growling as she actually managed to regrow her arm, surprising it.

"Nice try, but when you face me... an arm for an arm means a death for a fool's errand!"

She grabbed the mini-Bandersnatch, slamming its head into the ground to destroy it instantly, and making the nearby mini-Bandersnatch feel fearful of her.

With Gowther and Yuuki, the purple-haired Swordsman looked at her fellow teammate with a smile.

"Gowther, think you can slow them down a bit? I'd like to just some normal swordplay in until we deal with the big one." Yuuki requested.

"I'll do what I can." Gowther replied.

Tapping his hand.

"**Rewrite Light! Broadcast!**"

Some light hits one of the Bandersnatch, and then spreads to the rest of them, leaving the army disoriented.

"Alright, thank you Gowther!" Yuuki smiled.

She quickly ran through the army, swinging her sword around, almost looking like she was dancing as she giggled. Seeing one of the mini-Bandersnatch lunge at her, she back flipped onto another, and Gowther held up a hand, forming an energy whip that made it burst into light particles.

The true Bandersnatch unleashed a powerful energy breath from its maw, which Suzattin dodged by making springs on his feet. Bouncing into the air, Nanoha grabbed him.

"Nanoha, give me a toss, will you?" Suzattin requested.

"Sure thing, just make sure to give me a swing." Nanoha winked.

She spun around once, tossing Suzattin forward, followed by him making a lasso with his Will of Creation. Spinning around, Nanoha soon spun behind him, and she charged up her Sacred Gear to fire at the Bandersnatch.

"**Divine... Buster!**"

A beam fired from her Sacred Gear, blasting out forward, but not making it far enough. However, just when it seemed like it wouldn't make it, Nanoha gave a playful smirk.

"**Extension!**"

The beam doubled its length and power, smashing the Bandersnatch while it was caught off guard, while also burning through most of its army of mini-selves.

"Everyone, attack him all at once!" Suzattin shouted.

Everyone regrouped, preparing for a tag-team onslaught to finish the fight once and for all.

"Burst!" Saya shouted.

She fired off her Sacred Gear's full arsenal all at once.

"**Starlight Breaker!**"

"**Fire Moon!**"

"**Mother's Rosario!**"

"**Blackout.**"

"**Lion's Barrage!**"

Suzattin breathed, motioning his arms in a certain manner before sharpening his eyes.

"**Will of Creation - Jumbo Drill.**"

A large twisted drill, fitting for name of a Devil's weapon, formed above the Bandersnatch. The beast's eyes widen at the sight, with Suzattin appearing on top of it, before shouting as he pressed it down, making it spin.

Parts of it break off, stabbing into areas of the Bandersnatch that let it produce its miniature copies, making it panic as the drill near it. Energy heads made of lions smashed into it courtesy of Leone, followed by Gowther's attack tearing into its mind, nearly pushing it to the point of unconsciousness. Yuuki shouts as she deals her eleven-hit slash, and Welf smashes his sword to cause a fiery explosion.

From a distance, both Saya and Nanoha's massive beam storms rain across the Bandersnatch's body, making it roar it pain as it was pummeled by the massive amounts of energy. Then finally, the drill smashed into the Bandersnatch, drilling into its body before said drill broke.

"So, is it over?" Yuuki asked.

Everyone looked to see the Bandersnatch weakly get up, panting heavily as its body began to distort.

"Not yet, but I think that's a clear sign it's not gonna survive for much longer." Suzattin replied.

The Bandersnatch roared loudly, summoning the enemy forces nearby to its side. Suzattin saw this, and looked to his peerage, making a decision.

"Everyone, I'll finish this battle, take out the enemy forces for me." Suzattin ordered.

"Suzattin..." Leone replied.

Suzattin looked at them all nodding, telling them all he needed to do this. He still recalled the error in judgment that cost him and Esketanus their spots in the tournament. An enemy like this was all the familiar to that battle, and now he was going to make things right by being the one left standing.

"Alright, you heard him, let's kick these bastards' sorry asses!" Leone shouted.

"Right!" Everyone replied.

Suzattin and the Bandersnatch stared down one another, and the former began their battle by creating a bunch of shurikens, sending them flying. The Bandersnatch roared, clawing through them with just a single arm. IN return, Bandersnatch unleashed multiple energy breath shouts from its mouth.

"You won't stop me!" Suzattin shouted.

He dove around the attacks, spinning and somersaulting as he did, and getting a bit too close to the giant beast. The Bandersnatch swung its tailed as he neared him. Reacting to this, Suzattin held out his arms.

"**Will of Creation - Blades!**"

Suzattin formed swords, swinging against the tail, and causing a reaction from their clashing forces. Suzattin slid back a bit, and then the Bandersnatch roared its loudest yet as its energy breath became a large stream.

"You won't win, I am not failing when I need to succeed... I won't!"

Suzattin shot forward, and then to the Bandersnatch's surprise, Suzattin flipped a bit, using his swords to ride up the breath attack!

"THIS IS THE END!"

*ROAR*

Suzattin spin, holding out both blades as his body glowed.

"**Will of Creation - Impact!**"

Suzattin's body glowed, and his swords exploded, causing a burst of power as he shot through the Bandersnatch's body. The monster's eyes widen before it shrieked out, distorting heavily as beams of light shot out of its wounds.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The Belphegor heir landed with a roll across the ground, smiling as the Bandersnatch finally exploded.

"Game Over, this level's 100% complete." Suzattin joked with a smirk.

** _ Winner: Suzattin's Peerage! _ **

Suzattin's peerage all cheered as they saw their King win, and then... he fell over, falling asleep. They all face faulted at that, while Niruili's group came over, making the Beelzebub heiress groan at the site.

"Suzattin!" Niruili shouted.

**【** **Asgard Area - Defense Successful** **】**

* * *

Back in Hell, the sight of Mio's barrier came into view, leaving the two Heavenly Dragon users to turn to Sona.

"Alright, looks like this where we split up everyone, good luck!" Issei stated.

"Just make sure you don't screw things up." Saji joked with a smile.

"Same goes to you!" Issei chuckled.

The two clapped hands against each other, prompting Sona's group to stay around the barrier area. Opening her hand, Sona instantly blasted all the nearby enemy forces trying to break through, catching the attention of the rest.

"Damn it, we've got interlopers!" A Grim Reaper shouted.

"I'll handle this."

The forces all turned to see a giant sized High-Class Grim Reaper come into view, one that so huge, it was only dwarfed by the size of the Bandersnatch and beyond. However, for some strange reason, his scythe was more twisted and stained with blood, while his energy body had a lighter shade that was some kind of "beard", which the other Grim Reapers lacked.

"...Guys, does this Reaper give you a bad feeling?" Tomoe questioned.

"It does, because I've never seen this one before, and yet it seems familiar despite that." Bennia swear something about its appearance felt familiar.

"Who cars, let's defeat this thing!" Saji shouted.

Everyone readied themselves, and the Reaper's scythe began to glow, which was something Bennia noticed as odd, before swinging it at the ground. Everyone moved out of the way, but Saji saw it swing at him, and then smash into his armor.

"SAJI!" Everyone screamed.

"No, I'm OK!"

They all showed surprise as Saji held it back, and sparks flew off the armor. However, that was the issue, a Grim Reaper's scythe attacked the soul, and as such... it shouldn't even be striking his scale mail's armor in the first place! This scythe was a genuine blade that cut people like the agricultural version of the tool was meant to do.

"That scythe, it isn't... oh god, now I realize why he felt so familiar!" Bennia realized in horror.

"You... you're Cronus, aren't you!?" Bennia demanded.

Everyone's eyes widened at that.

"As in the Greek Titan Cronus!?" Ruruko exclaimed.

The Grim Reaper, who had now been revealed to have once been the Titan that led to Zeus and his siblings starting the conflict known as the Titanomachy, growled towards Bennia for the revelation.

"I shall destroy everything, and restore the Titan's to their rightful place in this world! You will die for getting in my way!" Cronus screamed angrily.

** _ Battle: Sona's Peerage VS Grim Reaper-Cronus _ **

"We're not the ones that're gonna die here!" Bennia exclaimed.

Rugal nodded at that, howling as he took his Werewolf form at that moment, followed by the others summoning their Sacred Gears.

"Careful everyone, Grim Reapers are Half-Gods, so Cronus may still be as powerful as he used to be physically." Bennia warned.

"Bennia, by chance do you know if there's anything that would have weakened him?" Tsubaki inquired.

"Well, being only Half-God means his body likely won't handle the same force it used to, and his age has gotta be getting the better of him like most of the Old Generation Gods from BC times." The Grim Reaper hybrid answered.

Saji blinked at that, wondering what Bennia meant by an "Old Generation" of Gods.

'Old Generation... I think I need to ask about that once we defeat this guy.' Saji thought, mentally reminding himself to do that later.

Cronus growled at the mention of that, readying his scythe as Saji broke away.

"You want your answers for that? It's simple! That's mere proof that people like us are the ones who must reclaim the power to rule to world!" Cronus roared angrily, possibly showing some insanity.

The former Titan rushed ahead, slashing his scythe to send energy waves across the battlefield. Tsubasa formed her Sacred Gear, and started spinning it.

"**Aegis Barrier!**"

The spinning created a larger barrier, blocking some of the attacks before she locked her shield to it.

"Tsubaki, heads up!" Tsubasa alerted.

Using her Sacred Gear like a yo-yo as she usually did, she locked it around the attack, and spun to send it flying towards her teammate. Seeing it come at her, she formed a familiar mirror.

"**Mirror Alice!**"

The mirror shattered as the attack struck it, but instantly slammed Cronus with twice the power, which sent him skidding across the ground.

"Rugal, Momo, Ruruko! Do it now!" Sona ordered.

"Right/Right! " They all agreed, Rugal's reply being flatter.

Rugal rushed on all fours, while Ruruko rushed Momo behind Cronus' skidding path. Tossing Momo ahead, the Sitri Bishop formed her Sacred Gear's bracelets.

"**Applause Wall!**"

The wall forms, causing Cronus to smash into it, while Ruruko managed to run across it using her Sacred Gear's incredible speed.

"Alright, send them flying Rugal! **Sonic Rush!**"

"**Magic Bind.**"

Ruruko began moving so fast, afterimages of her appeared, and she dashed, turned, and kicked around Cronus. The former Titan shouted in pain as Ruruko attacked him so fast, he felt like a whole swarm of giant wasps were stinging him. Rugal quickly unleashed what looked like chains made of magic, and Ruruko soon grabbed them, using her speed to wrap them around Cronus' body, soon dismounting as she held all the tips.

"And... pull!" Ruruko signaled.

Using his incredible strength, Rugal pulled back, causing the backlash of Ruruko's speed, and his own strength stopping the speed's force, to rips against Cronus' body. He screamed as the chains broke off, leaving magical cuts across his entire body.

"Well played." Rugal praised.

Thank you." Ruruko giggled.

Cronus roared before slamming Momo's wall, making her scream as her Sacred Gear shattered. Turning towards her, the defenseless Bishop weakly got up, panicking as Cronus prepared to strike her, and she had no time to reform her Sacred Gear.

"Get away from my friend!"

Bennia flew by, slashing against Cronus' eye, making him shout as it shook from Bennia's scythe. It didn't blind him, but even a Grim Reaper's slash would replicate the pain of gouging an eye out, giving Bennia the chance to fly Momo out of the way.

"Thanks, that was close." Momo sighed in relief.

"Anytime." Bennia smiled.

Cronus quickly regained his senses, and thrust his scythe forward, unleashing a beam at the two. Bennia's eyes widened as she realized she wouldn't be able to dodge it in time, making her hold Momo close as they prepared for what might be their last moments. The others all gave horrified expressions, but for Tomoe?

"No... Bennia, Momo..." She breathed.

"I have to stop this!"

Holding up Muramasa's sheath, she drew the sword out, screaming like she did the first time she drew it, and instantly vanishing after she did. The two Sitri pieces suddenly felt Tomoe speed fast enough to grab them, throw them out of the way, and then slash the attack down with her sword.

"WHAT!?" Cronus shouted in surprise.

"Time for you to know the power of this cursed Sacred Gear, as I used it to destroy you!" Tomoe shouted, rushing forward.

"Tomoe, don't do it! Sheath it!" Sona begged.

Tomoe roared, slashing against the former Titan, who only looked at her with his eyes replicating a dangerous smirk. Reaching his hand out, he grabbed her hand for a brief moment, and his eyes glowed dangerously.

"You, why are you letting this master control you... you are the one that deserves to be in control!" Cronus stated, preaching to the Sacred Gear's power.

"You shut up, I'm the one that-" Tomoe shouted.

Suddenly, she felt her eyes widen, with the markings across her body spreading out.

"W-what are you doing? Muramasa, stop it!" Tomoe begged.

Cronus laughed before the markings fully swallowed her body, and Tomoe stopped moving briefly. Once she did... she turned to her group, with her eyes glowing darkly.

"No, I rule you." A dark voice stated in place of Tomoe's.

Sona's eyes shook at that, while she wasn't sure how it happened... Cronus managed to tempt the dark power within Muramasa, and now the sword had taken control of her precious Knight.

"No, Tomoe... this is why I didn't want you unsheathing it here." Sona said sadly.

"Come on, we're gotta snap her out of-" Bennia declared.

**"{SAJI!}"**

Before any of them could fully react, with the exception of Saji due to Vritra's warning, the Muramasa-possessed Tomoe rushed past them all. All of them began screaming as they felt the force of her dark slash, leaving Saji to stare in horror.

"Everyone..." He breathed.

"You're next!" Muramasa warned, charging at Saji as well.

Saji didn't even get a chance to react as the blade cut through his stomach, going right through his armor. Muramasa looked at Saji, giving a cruel smirk as he did.

"You're done." Muramasa said darkly.

**「** **Chivalry of a Failed Knight: Worst One** **」**

"...No, far from it!" Saji grunted, grabbing the blade.

Muramasa was surprised by this! Saji had just been stabbed through the stomach, he shouldn't be moving... in fact, he shouldn't be alive right now since Muramasa of all blades had made the wound.

**{Saji, this is...}** Vritra gasped, seeing a well of power flow.

Saji forced the blade out, and as he did, his body somehow began regenerating itself from the cursed blade's wound. Muramasa kept looking at Saji in shock.

** _This power, what... what is it!?_ **

"You don't... get to control my friend, and you'll never have that right! Since she was born, you were trying to kill her, and Sona's efforts were what saved her. Now, you're still forcing her to suffer, but... that's it! I will not let you hurt her, not anymore!" Saji roared loudly.

A certain light began to shine in Saji's body, and the markings on Tomoe slowly retreated, making her gasp as she regained control.

"S-Saji?" Tomoe said in confusion.

"My power is cursed, but I use it for justice, and Vritra is a partner I trust! Your cursed power, one that uses others... IS NOT ALLOWED IN THIS WORLD!"

Saji's armor began to shift, taking a more dragon shape as it began resembling Vritra's original form more, and then... his chest plate actually opened, revealing a purple gem underneath. Everyone quickly pieced together what this was.

"That's..." Sona breathed.

"Just like Issei and Vali, that means it's-" Tsubaki's eyes shook at the sight.

** _NO! THIS CAN'T BE, I WAS SUPPOSED TO SWALLOW YOU IN DESPAIR! STOP THIS!_ **

Saji screamed as the light of Longinus shined through him, and smashed a hole in the darkness bound to Tomoe's soul. Through that hole, a bright light began devouring the shadows of her Sacred Gear.

"I AM SAJI GENSHIROU, I AM A PAWN OF SONA SITRI! I HOLD THE POWER OF VRITRA, THE POWER OF... THE 15TH LONGINUS! IF THE CURSED POWERS OF WORLD ARE DESPAIR... I AM THEIR HOPE!"

** _NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_ **

**"{Longinus... SMASHER!}**

Saji fired off his attack, cutting through the remains of Muramasa's cursed power, while also striking Cronus behind him, leaving a glowing spot on Cronus where the damage was left, and destroying his scythe.

"N-no, this isn't possible!" Cronus screamed.

He fell to the ground, and Tomoe gasped as she suddenly felt the cursed power fade off her, but what truly surprised her? Her Sacred Gear's appearance.

It was now a gilded silver sword with an ivory-white color on the edge, and had gold markings across it. The handle had now changed to a blue color, showing the cursed blade had found a new light. It was no longer the [Cursed Killer Murasame], it was...

The [Gilded Slayer Masamune!]

"My Sacred Gear, I... I still feel the power it once had, but it doesn't feel evil anymore!" Tomoe gasped, tearing up a bit.

"This is my role, starting with you Tomoe... I will remove the Cursed Sacred Gears of their darkness, so no one else like you, or Murasaki will ever suffer from them!" Saji stated, looking at her, his smile radiated through his helmet.

Tomoe's eyes watered, and she smiled back.

"Come on Saji, let's take this guy down!" Tomoe announced.

"With pleasure!" Saji agreed.

** _ Battle Update: Saji & Tomoe VS Grim Reaper-Cronus _ **

Cronus's voice shook, and then screamed with insanity as he blasted all his power at them.

"Damn it all, I refuse to die!" Cronus roared.

Both of them rushed through the field, dodging his attacks as the rest of their team watched.

"Saji... Tomoe... you can do it, I know you can." Sona said, showing her belief in them.

Cronus roared and clapped his hands, blasting off a rain of energy spheres towards them. Tomoe's body blasted off an aura, and she reacted faster than ever, cutting down every sphere, and then zooming up the former Titan's body.

The slash mark left from her attack slowly began eating the energy across his lower body, making him slowly dissolve away.

"If I die, I'm taking you wish me!" Cronus screamed, using all his remaining power to blast a full bod beam towards the two.

"Too bad, you'll still die alone!" Saji shouted.

He covered himself in black flames, devouring Cronus' attack without needing his armor's former tentacles, and made the former Titan scream in horror as Saji dove at him.

"IMPOSSIBLE!"

Saji smashed right through him, leaving black flames across his entire body.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Cronus' body spasmed a bit, and then he exploded in a black fiery blaze.

**"{You mess with an Evil Dragon...}"** Vritra started.

"...And you learn the brutality they can achieve." Saji finished, smirking as he dispelled his armor.

** _ Winner: Sona's Peerage! _ **

Within the barrier, Walburga sensed Cronus' death, showing shock.

"Impossible, they killed Cronus?" Walburga said in disbelief.

"I'd pay attention if I were you!" Mio shouted.

The rogue magician put up a defense spell against Mio's power, and the Demon Princess rushed at her.

"This is it!" Mio shouted.

* * *

**That makes 15! Saji has finally evolved his Sacred Gear into a Longinus, something that Edelweiss mentioned he was close to achieving when he fought Kunou, and boy did Cronus get the bad end of the stick. Not only that, but the Great Devils, Diehauser, and Satan's peerage have all finally recovered, and they're all ready to join the fight, with the Great Devil's peerages joining them alongside Lilith's.**

**Also, Niruili just showed us how you slay a god with style. That new Final Feast trick of hers, she likely went through worse than Hell to create that trick, and it paid off spectacularly, while Suzattin finally got the chance to shine in the manner he never did in the tournament. It might only be for this brief moment, but the Alliance is gaining the upper hand in this war as the villains' side has lost two powerful fighters.**

**Now, as this chapter's last scene has pretty much revealed... the next fight in this war is gonna be between Mio and Walburga. So, what'll happen between the Demon Princess, and the leader of the rogue Magicians? Not to mention, even if Mio wins, can she do what she claimed and finally steal the Incinerate Anthem? We better cheer her on, because successfully taking it will be a vital victory in this war.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**【** **Gilded Slayer Masamune** **】**   
**The true form of the Cursed Killer Muramasa after being purified of its evil taint. It has the same powers it had before, but the cursed darkness has now been replaced by holy light like that of a Holy Sword.**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	69. Chapter 69

**Before we start this chapter, I feel I should explain how Cronus was beaten the way he was. First of all, like Bennia mentioned in the previous chapter, he was demoted from a god into a Half-God by becoming a Grim Reaper, so that cut down his strength quite a bit. However, the biggest factor was Saji's Sacred Gear becoming a Longinus, which gave him the potential to slay gods.**

**Oh, speaking of which, in regards to any more Sacred Gears becoming a Longinus? I haven't made a decision on it just yet, but if I decided to have Gasper's do the same once Balor's soul wakes up, that will be the last time. Having anymore Sacred Gears evolve to that level will get way too chaotic for me to handle, and no other Sacred Gears seem like they have Longinus potential.**

**Anyways, with both of that said, time to begin the start notes of this chapter. Mio's about to take on Walburga, and hopefully claim the Incinerate Anthem from her, or... she could fail, and possibly die in the process. I did say anyone could die, so there's no guarantee I'm gonna spare Mio, especially if one remembers Walburga's role in canon.**

**The only definite is that like most of the recent chapters of this season, there's gonna be at least one person dying, so the question is who will this chapter claim? Guess you'll all find out soon enough, but the first fight that will show us any potential candidates will be the fight between our Demon Princess and the leader of the rogue magicians.**

**Since we're on the topic of Mio, here's something I need to say about the wings of the Demon race in my story. Fairly recently, I learned that she actually does have wings, and they actually match how I described Demon wings. Because of that, I've decided this is what they'll look like from now on, with only color being a difference between them. If anyone needs to know what they look like, Shinmai's 10th volume has a colored illustration with them.**

**Now, the last thing before this chapter begins... this chapter is one that's gonna reveal something huge, something that'll connect the remnants of this chapter to the first bit of the sequel. It's pretty huge, and you'll see it brought up fairly early, although I'll wait until the end notes before I say anymore. Just know this much, it's importance is something you'll need to remember for all the rest of the season, and for a bit of JOHD.**

**So, with all of that said... time to start this chapter! *hits a gong* Let the battles begin!**

**P.S.: To the guest reviewer who asked about the crossover, it happens between Chapter 42 and 43. Since you don't wanna read another story, I don't mind giving you a quick summary.**

**It's about Vali's peerage, Ravel, and Yumina all being sent to another world and meeting with the cast of my Date A Re:Live story, who had the same happen to them. Together, the heroes of both worlds they stop a threat that would destroy all worlds, gaining new abilities I showed in Season 5 of the story.**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking through a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Old & New Generation of Gods **

**An odd term that applies to deities among all factions. Certain Gods are much older in appearance than others, which are defined as Gods of the Old Generation, while others seem to stay young looking, being defined as Gods of the New Generation. While the exact reasoning for the term isn't fully understood, there are theories the latter have, and the former know... yet refuse to share, or just don't want to share.**

**Originally, Gods would get weaker over time due to their age, eventually "passing their prime" in a sense, and as such are known as the Old Generation. There are a few Gods of this generation, such as Loki, that who managed to defy this, but this was considered a taboo, and have since all been killed. The Gods defined under this are those who existed before the Great War.**

**Those among the New Generation are like the Dragons, who stay at their prime upon reaching it. All of them were Gods born after the Great War, and most of the Gods currently alive seem to be part of this, which is equally confusing as the fact that Lucifer and Leviathan have been implied to have met in a city you'd see in modern times. As such, many are questioning if for the supernatural, if an eternity really means many years... or is literal.**

**Could the answers to this relate to the apparent prophecy linked to the Heavenly Dragons, and/or possibly Trihexa?**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 5 – The Purple Fury _ **

Sona's peerage saw as Saji dealt the final blow to Cronus, with him and Tomoe looking at each other, and giving a congratulatory high-five to one another in response. Vritra chuckled in response as well, feeling the same sense of pride as they were.

"Incredible... Saji's a Longinus wielder now, while Tomoe's Sacred Gear is no longer cursed with an evil power. To top it all off, they defeated the leader of the Titans." Rugal said in quiet awe.

"That's Saji for you!" Ruruko exclaimed, blushing a bit.

"Not just him, Tomoe did well herself." Bennia smiled.

Sona's peerage eventually regained their strength, and got back to their feet before walking over to their two standing comrades.

"Congrats you two." Momo praised.

"Heh, no biggy, we just did things like in training." Saji replied, rubbing his head a bit.

"Saji, you always say that after a battle." Tomoe chuckled.

Bennia snickers upon hearing that, and then after a moment, Saji looks at her. This caught her attention, making her stop her snickers.

"What?" Bennia asked.

"During the fight, you mentioned something about an Old Generation of Gods, and how that fact related to Cronus being weakened enough to beat. Ever since you said it, I haven't been able to get it off my mind." Saji mentioned.

"Huh? Are you telling me you've never heard that term before?" Bennia questioned to everyone.

Everyone shook their heads, or gave a motion that was the same as saying they didn't know. Bennia scratched her head, wondering how to explain this, and soon took a deep breath.

"Alright, I guess I'll need to explain it then." Bennia realized.

"The term [Old Generation] is what we call Gods from the time before the Great War, which is basically what Humans refer to as the BC timeline of their calendar. You might think that it just means these Gods simply existed before the War began, but there's actually a bit more to it. Namely, it's the fact that most gods we know of are youthful in appearance, while a few are quite old looking." Bennia explained.

"Now that I think about it, she's right. Only gods like Zeus and Odin genuinely see old, kinda like the spell that most Devils use to look younger than they really are." Tsubasa mentioned, tapping her chin a bit.

Bennia nodded, continuing her explanation.

"I don't doubt some may have had their youth restored via past Sephiroth Graal users who achieved their Balance Breakers, or maybe broke some kinda of taboo... I mean, Loki seemed too young based on things I've heard, but that's beside the point. The point I'm making is that while all Gods seemed to have locked their aging, only those in the [New Generation] seem to have done it at their prime, like the Dragons do."

Sona suddenly blinked at that, her mind wandering as she had a certain thought.

"Bennia, it sounds like you feel something's odd about that, am I right?" Rugal questioned.

"I do, especially after the final match of the tournament. The battlefield from the finals, the one that was stated to be the city that Vali and Ineelana's ancestors met in... something else has to be going on. How else could a modern city exist when history implies otherwise?" Bennia questioned.

That was... actually an interesting question, and everyone wasn't sure what to say.

Everyone that wasn't Sona that is.

"Actually Bennia, what you said made me realize something bigger that I only thought of due to this war." Sona remarked.

"Oh? What is it Sona?" Bennia wondered.

"The entire world is under attack, what started as a war on Hell has now become a Second Great War of sorts. However, if the entire world was caught in the original Great War, then why... why is that unlike this time, Humanity never discovered of the Supernatural?" Sona dropped her semi-revelation without hesitation.

Everyone's eyes instantly widened upon hearing that, especially Bennia who felt like she just had the obvious pointed out after having missed it all this time.

She was right, it had been made clear the scale of people who've learned of the supernatural via this war was too big for memory erasing to work anymore, which means that it shouldn't have worked in the previous Great War. Taking what Bennia had just said about the stadium, the Sitri peerage realized something...

'The Great War is hiding something, but what?' Bennia thought.

Hades heard them from nearby, going strangely silent upon hearing that, knowing exactly what Bennia was thinking... something that even he wouldn't reveal for the same reason the other Gods kept it silent.

* * *

Within the barrier, Walburga sensed Cronus' death, showing shock.

"Impossible, they killed Cronus?" Walburga said in disbelief.

"I'd pay attention if I were you!" Mio shouted.

The rogue magician put up a defense spell against Mio's power, and the Demon Princess rushed at her.

"This is it!" Mio shouted.

"For you it is!" Walburga raged.

Mio gasped as she was hit at point black range by the Incinerate Anthem's flames, screaming as they burned her. Walburga laughed at the sight, fairly sure that she had purged the Demon before her, and dispelled her flames to see her remains.

"So, ow do you enjoy being nothing but nothingness-What!?"

Walburga couldn't believe her eyes, despite Mio being a steaming mess, and clearly having taken some damage... she was still alive!

"That's impossible, how could you have survived my flames!?" Walburga demanded.

"You're a magician, right? I think you should know how." Mio smirked mockingly, getting on her feet.

She widened her eyes, realizing what Mio just implied.

"No way, you know spells to protect yourself from holy effects destroying you!?" Walburga couldn't believe a Demon knew such a trick.

"Magic's always been my forte, so I made it an early requirement to learn counters against holy elements. Even the Incinerate Anthem has limits, and my spells are enough to limit me to severe burns, but not holy purges." Mio answered, pointing at the rogue magician.

Walburga tightened her fists, completely enraged.

"Wow, didn't know the old hag could turn such a shade of red." Cassiel remarked.

Walburga's eye twitched at that comment, while Mio turned to see a surprise had slipped through the barrier to come help her. It was none other than her mother, father, and the three members of her peerage, which included Maria, and two other girls with black, and white hair.

"W-what the... how'd you all get in here?"

"I may have helped slip us through." The white-haired girl giggled.

"...Of course you did, Shiina." Mio sighed, smiling slightly at her Queen.

Looking at her sole pawn, she brought up her next question.

"And Akari, I'm guessing you-" Mio started.

"-Told your parents? Yeah, I did... after Maria mentioned I should." The black-haired girl chuckled nervously as Mio looked at her.

Maria whistled at that, making the Demon Princess face palm a bit.

"Honestly Mio, I think you should have known by know this isn't the kind of fight we'd make you face alone. So, let's show this hag what we can do." Cassiel declared.

"I'm not an old lady!" Walburga screamed.

"...She's an old lady." Shiina stated.

"Definitely old." Akari agreed.

"I bet she's in her 50s." Maria mentioned.

Walburga had a vein form on her head at that, and she quickly prepared purple fire around her.

** _ Battle: Mio's Peerage, Cassiel, and Wilbert VS Walburga _ **

"That's it, every single one of you is gonna be slaughtered like puny little bugs!" Walburga screamed.

"**Incinerate Antiphona Calvario!**"

At that moment, the sight a large, fiery purple cross spewed out of Walburga's body. It floated out slightly, and once it did, the cross began to flail around with all of its power.

All six fighters spread out to avoid the attacks.

**「** **Testament of a New Sister Devil: Kareinaru Taiketsu** **」**

"Alright, if that's the way you wanna play, then I'll give you the pitch!" Cassiel smirked, unfolding her pale blue wings.

She swung her hand, forming her signature metallic spheres towards the cross. They were struck, but Cassiel simply snapped her fingers, and the shads burst out, becoming a chain of sorts to bind the cross down.

"What!?" Walburga gasped in shock.

"Hey hag!" Maria shouted.

Walburga growled at that, turning towards her.

"I am not a-"

She realized too late that was a dumb idea, her eyes widening as Maria smashed her fist into her jaw line, sending her flying into the barrier wall with incredible force.

"Good job Maria, Ms. Cassiel! I'll take it from here!" Shiina smiled, zooming forward with her white wings flapping out.

"Hey, don't forget me!" Akari shouted, spreading her black wings out.

Walburga growled, soon burning out more purple fire, and then shouting as she threw it down like a wave over the two.

"Go, Akari!" Mio shouted.

Akari nodded, and soon shifted her body until it became like energy, flying right through the flames without risk. Walburga was caught off guard, and got kicked in the face.

The flames shattered, giving Shiina a chance to fly through.

"Alright, time for my attack! **Fractal Extreme!**"

Shiina's body split into seven, with their colors being the usual six mentioned to make a rainbow, and white. They rushed forward, and Walburga noticed it.

"Nice try, burn them Incinerate Anthem!"

The cross breaks free, catching Cassiel by surprise as it lunged its flames at Shiina. But the white-haired Demon giggles as her colored selves attracted each other, using their places to dodge every attack by the cross.

"Sorry, but that's not gonna work on me!" All seven copies of Shiina exclaimed, sticking their tongues out.

"...My god, that's annoying." Walburga groaned, starting to lose focus.

"Oh good, you're distracted!" They all said from behind her.

Walburga's eyes widen as she narrowly got away through a teleporting spell, moving herself to the other side of the barrier. She growled angrily, and soon saw Wilbert unleash his powerful gravity towards her, locking her movements as she tried to stay in the air.

From behind her, she noticed Mio unleashing the same power as her father. Unlike his, she blasted it out like a beam, using it to attack her instead of immobilizing her.

"The consequences of being a coward, you don't have the means to win when you can't run." Wilbert stated.

"Did you just say I'm weak, I'll show you..."

At that moment, a powerful

"JUST HOW POWERFUL I REALLY AM!" Walburga screamed.

Her Sacred Gear burned within her body, bursting out as it burned all the nearby magic, surprising Mio and her father before they were pushed back. Cassiel was forced to dig her heels into the ground, while Mio's peerage all found themselves knocked down to the ground.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Mio struggled to move her head up, with Walburga's eyes going white as she cackled confidently.

"Cowardice doesn't mean weakness for me! I simple can't be bothered to sacrifice myself for something stupid, so I'm smarter than you all! Now, before I destroy you all, I'll kill the precious person you're all linked to!" Walburga exclaimed loudly.

"I believe that would be... that little red bitch right here!" Throwing her hand, she cast a spell over Mio.

The Demon Princess saw her defense spells shatter, making her gasp as she realized she was now defenseless against the Incinerate Anthem's flames. Just one strike from them, and that was it... she would be purged.

"Die knowing you threw your life away for nothing!" Walburga shouted.

Her purple flames gathered around her hand, charging themselves as the cross dissolved away, empowering the attack she was about to fire.

"**Violet Crucifixion!**"

She unleashed a mass of flames that spread into a cross-shape, and then spun into an "X" position, with Mio unable to move from the force of her aura flaring.

"MIIIIIIOOOOO!"

At that moment, Wilbert, who somehow managed to force his body to move... took the attack in Mio's place. Mio's peerage gasped at the sight, while the Demon Princess herself only gave a blank look of horror.

Cassiel's face froze up.

"WILBERT! NO!" Cassiel screamed in horror.

"FATHER!" Mio screamed loudly.

The attack soon ended, and in the end... nothing of Wilbert was left, he had been completely purged.

"Oh, guess he was first. Then I'll have to settle for making you second." Walburga stated without a care.

Mio's voice shook for a bit, and soon tears flooded out of her eyes.

"You weren't... supposed to be part of this fight, I'm the one... that challenged her like I did. The only one who should have gambled their life because of that... should have been me. Why father, why did you... sacrifice yourself for me, why?" Mio's grief and guilt overwhelmed her as her voice kept shaking.

"Please come back, Father!"

At that moment, Cassiel covered her eyes as the reality of her husband's death hit her.

"Yap, yap. You can complain about challenging your superiors all you want, that won't change the fact he died because you're all weak compared to me." Walburga said cruelly, holding up her hands to attack again.

At that moment, Mio stopped crying as something in her snapped.

"...Shut up."

Walburga raised an eye at that.

"I'm sorry, what was that-"

"I said for you... to SHUT UP!" Mio screamed.

At that moment, Mio's gravity aura flared out, smashing against Walburga's before shattering it, and surprising the rogue magician.

"H-how is this possible? There's no way you could have this much power!" Walburga screamed in denial.

Cassiel uncovered her face, noticing something.

"That power, it's..." Cassiel stated in shock.

* * *

_Cassiel was seen in a hospital bed, holding the newly born Mio in her arms. Wilbert was beside her as she cried happy tears._

_"She's hear Wilbert, our little girl." Cassiel sniffled._

_"You did well, and I know all of the Shadow Realm would tell you the same." Wilbert smiled._

_The newborn Mio began sucking her thumb, opening her eyes as she looked around._

_"So, what did you name her?" Wilbert asked._

_"I saw a word from the human world that means Demon known as "Maou", so I decided to name her... Mio." Cassiel revealed._

_"Mio... yes, it's a fine name for the Princess of the Demons." Wilbert approved._

_As if the approve, Mio's free hand swung around, and she giggled slightly, closing her eyes for a brief moment._

_"She likes it too!" Cassiel giggled._

_After a moment, the Demon Queen gave a worried look towards her child, getting Wilbert's attention._

_"Dear, what's the matter?" He asked._

_"She... she just looks so fragile. Will she really be able to become the one to lead our kind's future one day?" Cassiel replied with concern._

_"Oh dear, it seems you've hit the worried mom stage." Wilbert chuckled._

_"Hey, I'm being serious here! I... OK, maybe some of it is that stage." Cassiel admitted with an embarrassed blush._

_At that moment, Wilbert put a hand to Mio's chest, making a magic circle appear briefly before it vanished._

_"Eh? Honey, what was that?" Cassiel questioned._

_"Let's just call it... a good luck charm, if she ever needs it."_

* * *

"Wilbert... you gave her a way to inherit your power, didn't you?" Cassiel realized.

Mio looked up at the rogue Magician.

**「** **Dragonball Super: Universe 2 and 6's Final Stands** **」**

Walburga looked back, sneering a bit as she did.

"This is it Walburga, I said I'd take your Longinus away, and this time I mean it. Time for your karma to pay what it owes you!" Mio shouted.

"**Gravital Wave!**"

Mio shouted as her gravity magic blasted out, smashing forward in a focused form with exponentially more power than it had before. Walburga coughed as she felt the pressure, and then retaliated with her flames... however, this time she noticed her flames were unable to push through.

"No way, it can't be... how did she get so strong in an instant?" Walburga's eyes shook in horror.

"It can't be her rage, it can't!" Walburga screamed in denial.

As Mio blasted out more power, Walburga was pushed further away, with Mio focusing it all via her one hand.

"You won't stop me, this is a fool's errand!" Walburga exclaimed.

"I'm not trying to stop you... this is what I'm trying to do!" Mio answered, holding her other hand as she made a focused sphere of magic.

Throwing her hand out, a focused rope of her gravity magic shot forward, with her Smash Spheres slamming into Walburga to disorient her long enough for said magical rope to do one thing... go through her chest, and latch onto a certain object.

"Wait a minute, you can't be!" Walburga gasped in realization.

Mio screamed before pulling one hand forward, and pushing the other away.

Walburga screamed as she felt Mio slowly use the two contradicting forces of gravity to slowly remove a cross surrounded by purple fire out of her body. Because of the Longinus' nature, the act of trying to remove Incinerate Anthem wasn't killing the rogue magician, but she still refused to let it be taken.

"No, I won't... let you... take it!" Walburga grunted, grabbing it, getting a strong grip on the flames.

"Mother, do it now!" Mio signaled.

Walburga showed confusion at that, only to see Cassiel form a giant-sized smash sphere.

"This is for my husband, and everyone other innocent you've stomped out without mercy." Cassiel said angrily, aiming it at her right arm.

"**Smash... ORB!**"

The large sphere fired off, and soon slammed onto Walburga's arm, breaking it upon impact. The rogue wizard screamed as her arm let go, and Mio tugged one last time.

With that one might pull, the Longinus left Walburga, before glowing as it decided on its new host, and flew into Mio.

"The power... I can feel it, it's amazing!" Mio gasped.

With one mighty scream, she sent all of its strength into her gravity magic's aura, and blasted Walburga with it all! The rogue Magician screamed as it seared through her entire form.

'I've have been... then I have no choice, I'll leave this last bit of strength to you... Rizevim!' She grunted before holding an arm out.

Her left hand was shown with one last bit of Incinerate Anthem's purple fire, transporting it somewhere via a magic circle that used all her strength to bypass the barrier. Once it had, Walburga screamed in agony, being burned into nothing.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The barrier itself broke as the target within it disappeared, leaving Mio and her peerage, plus her mother to look at the lands of Hell one more. Smiling a bit, the Demon Princess fell over, having hit her limit.

** _ Winner: Mio's Peerage and Cassiel! _ **

Smiling a bit, Cassiel walked over to her daughter, hugging her unconscious form class as she cried.

"You did it Mio, you... you avenged your father. Thank you." She cried, sobbing over the one loss this battle brought them.

* * *

Sieg roared as he drew all six of the Cursed Swords, cutting through most of Indra's army, using the special powers of the sword to annihilate them in a burst of power.

"Come on, break through! We've gotta break through!" Sieg shouted.

Menes and Mulan unleashed their Sacred Gear's dancing flames, and shots of light respectively, mowing down through the enemy forces as Morgiana jumped through an opening, and unleashed her chains to bind everyone in a chain maze.

"Connla!" Morgiana signaled.

"Right." He replied.

Connla rose his shadows from the ground, and they began reflecting every attack they could back at the enemy army.

Soon enough, only the Bandersnatch was left, roaring loudly as it called to its smaller copies, and dove towards Cao Cao. Seeing the large beast coming near it, he readied the True Longinus, and aimed the legendary spear towards the monster's forehead.

"You've left yourself in a fatal position, that makes this game over." Cao Cao declared.

"**Spear of Destiny!**"

He threw the strongest Longinus forward, and it released a maelstrom of holy energy around it as it flew, smashing through the smaller Bandersnatch before it struck the real one in the head. The monster screamed heavily as its body began to spiral, finally exploding as the Sacred Gear shot right through it.

As the True Longinus turned to him, he pained heavily. Turning to see the last of the army beaten by Marsilio trapping them in illusion, giving the chance for Perseus to petrify them all, and leaving Herc to deal his finishing attack.

"**Olympus Smash!**"

Herc swung his arm down, unleashing his Balance Breaker's power across the remnant of the enemy forces, and making their petrified forms explode!

"Ha! Let that be how we show Jingu the consequence of betraying us!" Herc smirked.

"Quick, some of the injured are close to death, we need to help them." Marsilio reminded everyone.

"Right, where are they?" Cao Cao inquired.

Eventually, everyone gathered around where Morgiana had created her chains, seeing her looking sadly at the forms of Prince Mahabali, along with the Hindu Gods known as Yama, Hanuman, Ganesha, and Varuna. Turning her heads to her teammates, she shed some tears, shaking her heads as she silently told them it there was nothing left they could do.

"No... you can't die, please don't!" Mulan begged.

"W-we're sorry, but we can't hold on. The Reapers... hit us one too many times, especially me because... of what I am." Yama struggled to breathe, looking at them all.

Cao Cao went silent, this event reminded him too much of his past that he couldn't find his voice.

* * *

_A child-aged Cao Cao looked in horror as his father fell to the ground, not moving an inch before a blast of light incinerated his lifeless body. His mother, who had a spear of light lodged in her back, looked at him before her body was completely erased by the light._

_"I'm sorry, that we... couldn't... protect you." She apologized, fading away after her final word._

_Cao Cao screamed as both his parents were taken from him, and the one who stood before him gave an annoyed look at the volume of his agony. However, what was more shocking was the one who did the deed..._

_It was an Angel._

_"God damn brat... you don't know when to shut up, but you will once I take the power of the Sacred Gear you hold!" The Angel shouted._

_The Angel rushed at him, leaving the eventual Hero Faction leader completely helpless as he came closer._

_"You call yourself from Heaven?"_

_The Angel suddenly stopped, looking around confused._

_"Huh, who said that?" The Angel demanded._

_"You don't need to know, because you won't be around long enough to find out."_

_The Angel was confused, but he quickly got his answer as a huge holy wave struck him, causing him to scream as the energy destroyed his body. Cao Cao looked in shock, and soon saw his savior was none other than Vasco Strada._

_"Poor child, to think an Angel did all of this." Vasco said solemnly._

_"T-that was an... Angel? But, I thought Angels were good?" Cao Cao replied in confusion._

_Vasco picked the young child up, carrying him as he headed for the nearest church._

_"No species is only inherently good, or inherently evil. A cruel lesson you had to learn at such an age, but at the same time, you must not judge an entire race for the actions or words of one member." Vasco answered._

_"Don't fall onto the same darkness that took your parents away, become a light for the sake of others."_

_Cao Cao looked at Vasco, paying close attention to those words._

_"A... light, for others?" He repeated._

* * *

Seeing these Gods lose their lives in a meaningless battle caused by those who couldn't see the horror of their actions... it struck a familiar, yet painful chord in his heart.

"Please, tell my people... to not get angered on my behalf. I wanted this hate to die with Indra's demise. So, please, don't let this cycle continue." Mahabali begged, looking at the Hero Faction Elites.

"...Yeah, we promise." Sieg replied, looking away as tears breached his eyes.

Mahabali gives one last smile at that.

"Ganesha is... pleased, to have fought by your side." Ganesha smiled.

"This is the end, so I'll stand proud until the last breath." Hanuman said with no regrets.

"All of you, please make sure the world doesn't fall to the wrong path." Varuna spoke his last words.

With that, all of the Gods and the Asura Prince finally closed their eyes for good, the wisps of their souls vanishing as they passed away.

"No..." Mulan cried, sobbing as she saw it.

Cao Cao made a praying motion to them, while the others all gave their own reaction of sadness in return.

**【** **Hindu Area - Defense Successful** **】**

* * *

Everyone continued their trip towards the Jabberwocky, dealing with the minor threats that went towards them while Hades was still trapped in place.

"We're getting closer, not much longer." Lilith remarked.

"And this is as far as you're gonna get!"

Everyone's eyes widened as a familiar dinosaur made of ice dropped into view, and none other than Jingu rode on top of it.

"Damn it, not you!" Ravel growled angrily.

Jingu laughed in response, looking at the group with a dangerous smirk on her face.

"Oh, it's more than just me. Let's just say I found something special while I was gone... something Lilith probably should have kept on hand until after the tournament." Jingu stated, revealing a few vials with what seemed to be blood in them.

Lilith gasped at that, instantly recognizing it.

"No, how did you manage to get those!?" Lilith shouted.

"Lilith, are those..." Michael questioned worriedly.

"Just as you think Michael, these are the vials containing the last samples of blood from each of your fallen Great Devils. I already gave the other three to some of our allies, while I kept these three for myself." Jingu confirmed.

A few people turned to Lilith for answers.

"In the Great War, Satan and the others all lent their blood to weaker Devils, which they used to undergo a transformation called the [Chaos Break], empowering them to incredible levels. However, there was a cost... I think Ravel should know what that cost is."

"Wait, if you're talking to me, then... are you saying it does something like negate phoenix tears from working on the user?" Ravel asked with a nervous look.

"Exactly, even a Phenex Devil's regenerative ability would be disabled if they used it. We only used it when our forces were too spread out, and we needed stronger fighters than what we had for a certain area." Lilith answered.

"When the Great War ended, only six vials were left, and I kept them in case a day we needed them as a last resort... I never thought anyone could steal them, if I had..."

Lilith knew she should have just disposed them, but her feelings betrayed her... while she had her chains to remember her husband, they were all that remained of the Leviathan, Mammon, Asmodeus, Belphegor, Beelzebub, and-

"So, let's see what it's like to feel the power of this Chaos Break you just mentioned!" Jingu declared.

Laughing as she summoned her sub-species Balance Breaker, Jingu only partially fused with it before injecting herself with the first vial. Suddenly, her voice began to distort as she gave heavy laughter, and her Sacred Gear's unique form, as well as her body... began to mutate.

"Oh god..." Azazel breathed.

Jingu's clothes partially shredded, making it look like she had gone lunatic appearance-wise, with her skin going pale. Her hair branched out, going wild as it became as icy as her Sacred Gear's normal coloration outside its sub-species, while her eyes became the same color for her iris and pupils. The Freezing Archaeopteryx's icy skeleton took a beefier appearance, going from a thin raptor appearance, to something more like a bulky tyrannosaurus, but with spikes across its back.

With the transformation complete, Jingu roared alongside her Sacred Gear.

"I can see just why this power was such a trump card for you! Throwing this away would be like wasting a miracle cure!" Jingu's distorted voice spoke, her Sacred Gear also projecting it.

"Now, time to slaughter you all where you stand!" She announced, laughing madly.

Jingu blasted out a freezing tsunami towards the group.

"Damn you, if that's you want it, then-" Issei tried to say.

"TAKE THIS!"

Uriel unleashed a burst of holy fire, before he, Michael, and Raphael all struck her. Quickly following came Azazel, Sahariel, Armaros, and Tamiel. Then from the Demon Lords, it was Camael, Haniel, and Moroni who joined them.

"Brother..." Gabriel said worriedly.

"Go! We'll deal with this witch, just make it to the Jabberwocky, or we'll never win this war!" Azazel shouted.

Vali looked at Azazel before taking a deep breath, nodding her head.

"He's right, that thing's gotta be the alpha beast by what Jeanne warned us about... we have to stop it!" Vali shouted.

"Don't worry, we'll come back for you!" Issei shouted.

With that, the remaining forces continued their rush towards the strongest of the Annihilation Maker's beasts. Jingu growled as she prepared to face them, charging an icy blast.

"Not so fast!" Jingu screamed.

"Yes, so fast!" Raphael shouted.

Throwing a few hand motions, a barrier made of cross like symbols formed, trapping Jingu with all the leaders who intended to face her.

** _ Battle: Multiple Alliance Leaders VS Jingu _ **

Growling at the, Jingu's aura glowed with a deathly energy.

"You bastards... I hope you realize this is the same as forfeiting your lives." Jingu warned.

"We're not dying today, and you'll see firsthand with your own demise!" Moroni shouted.

**「** **Sonic the Hedgehog: Crisis City** **」**

The three Great Seraphs all flew forward, with Jingu unleashing a huge icy beam at them. They all dodged it, and then Raphael followed up by zooming forward, smashing his fists with holy power imbued within, making Jingu scream as part of her Sacred Gear's icy body shattered.

"I knew it, her nerves are linked with the Sacred Gear!" Raphael alerted.

Uriel charged more of his holy fire, with Michael standing beside him as he formed a large sphere of holy power that resembled a tiny sun. The two both thrust their hands down, smashing it against Jingu's body with full force.

Azazel soon flew behind her, taking out special sword he created, and then chuckling with a smirk as she slashed it.

"**Blazer Shining Aura Darkness Blade!**"

Everyone, included Jingu, went silent at the name. Unfortunately, Jingu quickly learned the power behind the weirdly named weapon, as it slashed right into her with an explosive force.

"Gah! Damn it, you bastard!" Jingu roared, unleashing a blizzard around her.

"Armaros!" Azazel shouted.

The cadre smirked at his cue, holding his hands out.

"Taste my Anti-Magic Field!" Armaros shouted.

A strange field of power passed through Jingu, negating her power to her surprise.

"Now with that out of the way... **Lunatic Smash!**" Sahariel shouted, unleashing a lunar powered attack.

"You're finished!" Tamiel exclaimed.

Jingu felt her icy skeleton's left half shatter, making her shriek as pain flared across her left side.

Seeing how close she was to the barrier walls, the three Demon Lords put their hands on top of one another. Each of their magical energies began to synchronize for one massive strike.

"Together now... **Demonic Devastation!**"

A giant beam blasted out, spreading into three before they swirled.

"Oh boy, take cover!" Azazel shouted.

The others all moved away just in time, causing Jingu alone to be smashed by the beams as she crashed into the holy barrier, making the two forces clash against her body.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As the adoptive daughter of Hades fell onto her skeleton's knees, she panted heavily, with all the leaders looking at her, all with another round of attacks ready.

"You've lost, just give up and we won't have to kill you." Michael warned.

"...Kill me? Oh dear, you honestly think it's that simple, especially when you don't see the obvious right before your naive faces!" Jingu smirked as she glared at them, revealing the second of the three vials.

Everyone gasped at that.

"You wouldn't, there's no way you'll handle it again, and even if you do the effects will become permanent! Don't be a fool!" Azazel shouted.

Jingu laughed madly, taking Azazel's claim as fear.

"WE'LL SEE WHO THE REAL FOOL IS!" Jingu stated victoriously.

She injected herself again, and she gave a mighty scream as she felt more power flow into her.

Her icy skeleton's tail shot up, breaking into two, and forming into two new arms underneath the original two. Said skeleton's body increased in size, and Jingu's hair extended, with strands on the side taking a horn-like shape, with the rest of her skin turning into a deathly gray color. Finally, her sclera turned completely black in color.

"What has she done..." Haniel breathed in horror

"I... I don't know." Camael admitted, shaking with fear.

With a mighty scream, Jingu completely overpowered the anti-magic field, causing a giant icy storm of fire to burst out of her body. The holy barrier shattered before everyone in side felt the power smash through them... before cutting through their souls.

'No... forgive us, we've... we've failed.' Azazel thought, his eyes slowly closing.

** _ Winner: Jingu! _ **

Once the icy inferno ended, the only thing that remained was Jingu, as all the leaders who fought her... lay dead within icy tombs her attack made.

"Don't worry, it won't be much longer before your friends join you... I promise." Jingu smirked darkly.

* * *

**Things just got worse again... while Mio succeeded in taking the Incinerate Anthem, and killing Walburga (at least apparently going by her last thoughts), her father had to sacrifice himself to save her, leaving her and Cassiel heartbroken. Worse, Jingu found the blood needed to achieve a Chaos Break, and she's already used it twice. Now, only Gabriel is left among the Seraphs, while the cadre and Demon Lords have had their numbers halved.**

**For the Demon Lords, while I haven't shown them very much in the story, they'll be important during the flashbacks to how Satan and Lilith met, so it'll be a while before you learn more about them, mainly since it has to do with why Cassiel was the one who became the Queen of the Demon race.**

**As you can see, I've started bringing something big into attention, something that won't fully be revealed until early in JOHD's events, a deeper secret in the Great War defined by the two generations of Gods. This was an idea I formed back around Season 4, since I learned something from reading Vol 21 that made me realize something... why didn't Humanity learn of the supernatural in the Great War?**

**Ishibumi may never go over this, possibly having glossed over it (even if just accidentally), so I just kept thinking about it, especially since the Great War implied God died during it, and Jesus therefore would have likely died after him. Eventually... I felt an idea come, a big one that effected the entire story, and was likely the moment where my decision to make it a trilogy fully settled.**

**Due to the nature of how this chapter's revealing the hints, I'll say I'm not trying to surprise you. This is more like trying to figure out what the namesake in One Piece is, being something important, and hints slowly implying what it'll be until the story finally exposes it. What makes this especially the case? Without giving too much away... the reveal is what will officially jump start the events of JOHD when the story reveals it.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**【** **Chaos Break** **】**   
**A transformation caused by empowering weaker devils with the blood of the original Great Devils, at the cost of making Phoenix Tears unable to heal them until the foreign blood merges with their own. It isn't limited to Devils, and multiple uses can be stacked, but with dangerous, and possibly permanent, consequences...**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	70. Chapter 70

**Last chapter really dropped a few bombs, with Mio claiming the last Longinus under the villain's possession, many of the major Angels, Fallen, and Demons being killed by Jingu after using a second Chaos Break, and most of all... now people are starting to realize Humanity should have discovered about the supernatural in the first Great War, meaning there's some secret about it that only some of the oldest beings like Hades about.**

**And most of all, despite what he's doing, even Hades isn't trying to reveal anything about... just what happened that even he's staying silent? The only clue is the very battlefield that Vali and Ineelana fought on during the tournament's last battle. *chuckles* Although, I will say surprised less people were surprised about that, and more over the deaths Jingu caused. To anyone whose wondering, her she'll be getting the fate she deserves, so karma will strike.**

**Now, for the ones fighting in today's chapter? Well... there's only one I'll reveal here, and this group is one you've probably been waiting to see, because this group is none other than the Slash/Dogs! I know a few of you have been excited over reading "Story of the Slashing Dog", so this is a chance to see their strength compared to then. Although I will warn you there's a minor spoiler in this chapter, or two if you haven't read the first two chapters.**

**Oh, I forgot to mention this last chapter, but while everyone is getting a fair share of screen time with their fights, only the characters who I feel haven't gotten a proper spotlight (minus our two main characters and their peerages), or have at least one of their members getting a level-up, will be getting full fights. If I gave a full fight to everyone, that would delay things too long.**

**With that said, time to begin this chapter!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking through a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Second Great War **

**An event that was started from a chain of events following the end of the Rating Game Tournament's Championship Match, which followed the exposing of the Elder Devils' crimes, and summoning the Hindu God of War, Sakra Indra. He tried to kill the hosts of the Heavenly Dragons for feeling they threatened his so-called "claim" to the name of Heaven, but was killed after they awakened their full strength.**

**However, this was part of Hades plans, having seen Indra's death upon his joking promise to have Hades inherit his power should he perish. Using this, the Greek God of the Dead quickly began preparations to attack Hell, which he executed the moment Indra's power became his own. At first, his attack was just a simple war against Hell, which his adoptive daughter Jingu, and the entire Khaos Brigade chose to aid him with.**

**The horrifying moment that evolved the conflict into a Second Great War came when Hades had Jingu use the captured Leo's Balance Breaker, summoning some of his Jabberwocky, and a majority of the united enemy army into the Human world, guaranteeing the exposure of the supernatural to Humanity, and forcing the Alliance to spread out their forces to protect everyone.**

**Just like the original Great War, the death count has been staggering, with many of the higher-ranking beings within the Christian Pantheon having been killed in the conflict. What makes this second war different than the first is every supernatural faction is under fire, and have had casualties from the fighting, with all of it happening in a single day that will most likely be the sole time frame of this war, based on Hades' current actions.**

**Regardless of how this war ends, it's clear to everyone that nothing will ever be the same for either of the two worlds.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 6 – Howl of the Wolves _ **

In some unknown location beyond any understanding, or words that could properly describe anything, other than there was something existing there... something was apparently keeping an eye on the battle between good and evil across all of Earth.

_"Look at that, everyone's fighting for their future, I never expected they'd summon so much strength. Though, that's exactly what I hoped, they refuse to give up, and that's the power they'll make their future with."_

**"How foolish, nothing they can do will save them now, it only delays the inevitable."**

_"I think you're underestimating them, you should feel the energy they're sharing too, don't you?"_

**"And what of it? Even if they try to fight back, even if they band together, their power will just be swallowed by despair and disappear."**

**"Their victory will never exist, so there's no way they can win... their chances are zero!"**

_"So, is that what you think? Well, then I'll only say this..."_

_"You'll see firsthand when they band together, that they will make a one hundred from that zero!"_

The darker voice's unseen expression glares a bit.

**"Your faith is sickening, you should just face reality by now."**

_"Just as you refuse to believe they can succeed, I refuse to believe they'll fail. We'll let this battle give us the answer, and then we'll see if you can keep saying that."_

* * *

Back with the slowly deteriorating Dimensional Gap, the sight of the two captive Dragon Gods, and the one who captured them, showed very little change to the events. Their captor was even laughing at their suffering to pass the time.

"This is quite entertaining, seeing the strongest forces of this world as nothing but powerless twigs!" Their captor laughed.

"You damn bastard! If it weren't for these chains holding us, I'd murder you right here and now!" Great Red roared with anger.

The hooded figure revealed one of his eyes, pulling it down before sticking his tongue out. The True Red Dragon God Emperor exploded with an enraged roar towards him, and then Ophis suddenly had her eyes widened, followed by... a smile!

Both her bother and the hooded figure showed surprise at that.

"The hell? Why are you smiling right now!?" Their captor demanded angrily, not liking the sight of her smile.

Ophis gave a light chuckle at that.

"Simple, I can feel it." Ophis answered.

"Feel it? What are you talking about, feel what exactly?" Great Red questioned.

"Really brother? You honestly didn't notice it? Well, I guess you've continued trying to rampage your way free of these bindings, so maybe it hasn't come to you just yet." Ophis chuckled, looking at him.

She closed her eyes, revealing what she had sensed to him.

"Ddraig and Albion, the flux of their power... it has changed, and fairly recently. There's no doubt in my mind... they've ended the cycle for good."

Great Red was still lost for a few moments, but then his eyes widened in surprise.

"You mean, they've ended the curse between them? Issei and Vali were actually able to end their eternal conflict!?" Great Red couldn't believe what he hard.

The hooded figure raised an eye at that, but shrugged it off... something he didn't know was a bad thing.

"I think we both know what this means brother, the time that God and Lucifer spoke of is finally nearing." Ophis smiled, looking at the hooded figure.

"Not once before now did I ever believe them, I guess... I just didn't have the same faith as you." Great Red sighed, before smirking a bit.

"What the crap are you talking about? You're about to die soon, and you're treating it like a party? Also, his name is Satan, not Lucifer." The hooded figure said annoyed, having less fun now that they were calm and smiling.

Ophis snickered at that, further confusing him.

"I'm not so sure of that, so I'd curse the fact you tried to act now instead of before such a day." Ophis warned the mysterious captor.

* * *

Jingu laughed madly, taking Azazel's claim as fear.

"WE'LL SEE WHO THE REAL FOOL IS!" Jingu stated victoriously.

She injected herself again, and she gave a mighty scream as she felt more power flow into her.

Her icy skeleton's tail shot up, breaking into two, and forming into two new arms underneath the original two. Said skeleton's body increased in size, and Jingu's hair extended, with strands on the side taking a horn-like shape, with the rest of her skin turning into a deathly gray color. Finally, her sclera turned completely black in color.

"What has she done..." Haniel breathed in horror

"I... I don't know." Camael admitted, shaking with fear.

With a mighty scream, Jingu completely overpowered the anti-magic field, causing a giant icy storm of fire to burst out of her body. The holy barrier shattered before everyone in side felt the power smash through them... before cutting through their souls.

'No... forgive us, we've... we've failed.' Azazel thought, his eyes slowly closing.

Once the icy inferno ended, the only thing that remained was Jingu, as all the leaders who fought her... lay dead within icy tombs her attack made.

From a distance, everyone noticed Jingu's attack as it silenced the lives of all ten leaders who stayed behind.

"That attack, that was..." Amaterasu realized.

"No way, it can't be... Jingu couldn't have won, could she? Are they all... " Penemue thought in horror.

Issei gritted his teeth, soon looking at Vali's eyes teared up.

"Azazel..." She whispered before shedding a few tears.

Everyone went silent at that, but that was quickly interrupted as Lugh suddenly got a report from the Phenex brothers, and showed shock.

"What!? Damn it, this is..." Lugh growled.

"Sorry everyone, but I've gotta head back home immediately, Ravel's brothers are all in trouble." Lugh apologized, a worried look on his face.

"No..." Ravel gasped in fear.

Lugh quickly flew off, taking the long route out of concern of Jingu possibly killing him enroute.

"...We don't have any choice, we have to keep going." Shemhazai stated.

Once again, they continued their journey towards the Jabberwocky, having to push aside their grieving until the war was finally over.

* * *

The Slash/Dog Team rushed through the landscape of hell, being led by Jin as he tried to sniff out Leonardo's scent. After a bit, the black wolf barked towards the others.

"Looks like Jin picked up on his scent, let's go." Tobio realized.

They all quickly followed the Longinus to where his nose led them, and eventually... they saw the young Leonardo's body attached to some kind of weird blob like substance that was binding him to part of a mountain area.

"Alright, we found him." Sae smiled in relief.

"This feels too easy though, I don't see any kind of guards around here. This might be a trap." Kouki mentioned.

Tobio looked at Jin, who sniffed around, shaking his head.

"Jin doesn't smell anyone hiding, so there's no people here. Lavinia?" Tobio answered, looking at the Absolute Demise wielder.

"I can't sense any magic that could be used as a trap either, maybe they were just hoping we'd take too long to find him?" Lavinia revealed, throwing out a theory.

Kouki still didn't feel convinced.

"Come on Kouki, it isn't like we're in an anime full of cliché's, it might actually be that easy." Natsume remarked.

He sighed in defeat, shrugging his arms.

Tobio went closer to the material binding Leo, feeling it was safest for him to do so as the only Longinus user among them... only for the material to suddenly start shaking as it swallowed Leo's body inside of it.

"I knew it!" Kouki screamed in annoyance.

The strange blobby mass soon transformed into creature resembling a black and red-colored diamond with a disfigured shape, six black wire like arms possessing four purple blades on each, which seemed to act as the beasts' fingers. Finally, a long clump of spikes took the shape of a tail under the beast, possessing tattered reddish-brown wings, full of holes that rendered them useless for flying.

"What the heck is this this!?" Sae exclaimed in shock.

"I'm not sure, but I get the feeling it's one of a kind." Natsume remarked.

The beast had part of the diamond's tip extend, shifting itself to reveal a something like a rotted eyeball with a purple sclera, and a yellow glowing pupil.

"...YoMi, YoMi, YoMi... YoMi!"

Kouki recognized the word it was repeating, and suddenly gasped.

"Yomi... wait, that's the place Izanami was trapped in after dying once, wasn't she? The weird death realm that was somehow a living thing?" Kouki questioned in response.

"That's right. I thought Izanagi destroyed it after rescuing her, but I guess it managed to survive." Lavinia answered, looking at it worriedly.

At that moment, the monster suddenly brought out two vials of the Great Devil's blood, quickly injecting itself with both. The creature roared, soon growing into a more humanoid shape, and gaining an actual mouth in the process.

"YoMi... YOMI!"

The beast gave a mighty shout, showing signs of intelligence for the first time.

"Yes... I feel it, the power and the clarity! How great to finally comprehend my own mind, that girl said these would make me stronger, but I never knew it would make me self-aware!" Yomi shouted in dangerous excitement.

The beast's one eye lowered itself towards the Slash/Dog team.

"So, you're the first ones I get to kill... how exciting!" Yomi cackled.

"Just to ask, you're the same Yomi that captured Izanami once, am I right?" Kouki questioned.

Yomi chuckled at that, deciding to humor the group.

"Ah, I recall that. Poor Izanagi lost his wife to that one fiery child she birthed, and when he begged to see her in Heaven, he found out she wasn't there. It was such a delicious tragedy, trapping the woman, and negating her death just to have her suffer inside my body! Then he tried to actually rescue her, and seeing his heartbreak as he failed, having to either stay eternally trapped, or leave her behind! It was paradise for me!"

"However, to my unbridled rage... that woman had to gall to lend him some power that she siphoned from me to become a Goddess of Death! Worse, it let him create three more children between them, and then they all invaded me, and ripped me to shreds, treating me like a parasite to purge! True, I technically was one, but how rude of him to try destroying me like that! However, he only got my body, and a certain Greek God was kind enough to find me, promising me the revenge I'll finally get today!"

The group all looked at crazed monster as it laughed at them, showing its insane mindset.

"Sorry, but we're not letting that happen! We're taking the boy you're holding captive back, and ending both you, and Hades' made ambitions!"

** _ Battle: The Slash/Dogs VS Evolved-Yomi _ **

"Oh, are you now? Then I'll be happy to oblige sending you all to depths of Tartarus!" Yomi announced, giving a sinister look of excitement.

The monster unleashed a deathly smog, likely poisonous in nature towards the group. They all dodged it, with Jin rushing towards Tobio, who nodded as he did the same.

"Slash/Dogs, battle formation!" Tobio announced.

**「** **Megadimension Neptunia VII: Absolute** **」**

"Let's go!" They all announced.

Jin soon collided with Tobio, making his body envelop in shadow as he prepared a certain chant.

**"_I sing for the slaying of a thousand humans. I praise the murder of ten thousand cycles of ill omens. My name has been spread throughout the nether abyss, it will become that of the false god of the polar night and midnight sun! Thou, shalt become my demon blade of darkness that annihilates everything, to become something false, the creator of the paranormal!_"**

**"_Evolved Balance Breaker - Perfectus Tenebrae Lykaon Fortis Densus Laelaps!_"**

Tobio soon took the form he summoned during the Peace Conference, quickly materializing the many black hounds that were with him. From his hand, a stronger version of Jin's usual sword appeared, emitting a dark aura.

"**Absolute Demise!**"

From underneath Lavinia, a magic circle formed underneath her, with the Longinus' form slowly rising from underneath. It took the appearance of a three-meter tall doll made of ice, looking like a woman in a dress, with four slender arms. Its face lacked a nose or a mouth, and it has six eyes on the left side of its face, while the right side of its face was studded with something resembling the thorns of a rose.

"**Razing Hundun!**"

"**Gouging Qiongqi!**"

Their fiendish looking critters jumped into the air, transforming into a monstrous four-winged bird, and a scaly winged wildcat with a beast like jawline respectively. Both flew towards their hosts, with their clothes morphing to match traits of their body. Natsume's left hand gained a crossbow attachment to it which radiated a strong light, while Kouki grabbed a twisted spear with electricity cackling through it.

"Come to me, and lend me your strength! **Lyncis Auluraon!**" Sae announced.

A white lynx counterpart of the Canis Lykaon, which was an Artificial Sacred Gear she was given by Grigori, materialized by her side. She drew the sword from its forehead, and it soon equipped to her in a similar manner it had to Tobio, but with a result more like Natsume and Kouki's.

"Oh? Quite the unique questions you have, I can't wait to wreck them apart!" Yomi declared.

Yomi lunged at them, throwing his arms out like whips.

"I don't think so!" Kouki shouted.

"**Discharging Howl!**"

Kouki stabbed at Yomi's arms, piercing the ground as a powerful electrical discharge blasted the area in front of where he struck, and smashing Yomi across the ground.

"What the, this power is... I see! To think I'd be facing three of the Four Fiends here!" Yomi got up, looking excited.

Yomi quickly inhaled, causing his body to swell, surprising everyone at what he was about to do.

"Choke on this!" Yomi shouted.

He released an entire wave of his deathly smog, which was coming to fast to avoid it. However, Sae rushed towards it, confusing the beast.

'Is she suicidal or-' Yomi thought.

"**Banishing Shift!**"

Sae slashed the smog with her blade, which shredded the attack to pieces at its source. Yomi was surprised at the familiar energy she used.

"That was Susanoo's energy, impossible!"

"**Solaris Flash!**"

Yomi was quickly caught off guard as Natsume unleashed a large arrow from her crossbow, which shifted into a small sphere, and then smashed into him like a grenade. A huge light radiated from the collision, but flaring out like a wildfire.

Tobio's dogs all rushed out of the shadows it made, with Tobio himself following suit. Yomi gasped as he saw them, and then screamed as they all cut right through his arms. He screeched in pain as his appendages all began to flail around, trying in vain to reach his body, and reattach themselves to his joints.

"Now, **Zero-Force Demise!**"

A row of icicles rushed towards Yomi like a charging bull, hitting him hard before the Absolute Demise's body jumped into the air, smashing its fist into the creature's chest. Yomi gave a silent gasp as it shattered right through, leaving Sae to jump up across the icy doll's body.

"Tobio, now!" Sae shouted.

"Right!"

The two both had had their Sacred Gears generate star patterns on their swords' blades.

"**Celestial Blade!**"

They cut Yomi right down the sides, forming an "X" shape across his body for a brief moment before a powerful burst shot off.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Yomi's body shook, feeling it slightly start to crack as it did, and then gazed at the Slash/Dog team with malice. It roared as a shadowy aura began pouring out of its wounds.

"It isn't gonna recover, is it?" Natsume questioned.

"No, I think this is energy is from the Annihilation Maker, he must be forcing its power of Leo using his body." Lavinia answered.

Shadows stretched out of Yomi, creating an assortment of creatures you'd only see around something dying, or that looked undead. They all began generating power as Yomi's amalgamation of a body looked at them.

Fine then, if this is how things are gonna be, then I'll end this via kamikaze! I shall not let you have victory here!" Yomi screeched with rage.

At that moment, the power Yomi was generating focused near a hole in his chest.

"Everyone, get ready!" Tobio warned.

**「** **Megadimension Neptunia VII: Will Be Venus** **」**

All of their Sacred Gears' beasts separate from their hosts, and as Yomi unleashed his final attack, they all released an energy blast in return. Yomi's black beam smashed against the red, yellow, purple, white, and blue beams they fired to counter it. Despite not using the attacks themselves, all five of them felt their Sacred Gears' strain across their bodies.

"It's... too much, can't hold it!" Sae strained out.

"We have to... if we don't, who knows what this monster will do!" Tobio grunted.

Yomi laughed realizing he was overpowering them, and roared even louder, pouring more power into his beam. The others felt themselves being pushed back as the living realm of death began to push them to the brink.

"It's over!" Yomi declared.

A fierce roar, mixed with a distorted echo and a Dolphin sound was soon heard. Everyone turned upon hearing it, seeing a blue-green snake-like wyvern with ringed horns curving in a manner similar to an Ox's, only backwards, and a small cyan-colored mane on the back of its neck, travelling down to the tip of its tail like fins before becoming a fluff of fur at the end.

"Wait a second, is that..." Tobio gasped in surprise.

"The final of the Four Fiends!? No way, when did you sneak that here!?" Yomi exclaimed in surprise.

The wyvern like beast opened its mouth, screaming out a sonic blast that briefly disoriented Yomi. As he stumbled, the last of the Four Fiends unleashed its own green beam to aid the other five. Once Yomi regained his bearings, his beam was now the overpowered.

"This can't be!" Yomi roared in fear.

All six beams broke his, soon cutting across parts of his body. Diving forward, the last Four Fiends holder, being covered in a cloak to hide their identity, smashed through Yomi's body, grabbing Leo before sliding past the collapsing death realm's body.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Yomi's body soon began to gray, cracking as the effects of two Chaos Breaks made it dissolve.

"So, this is how I finally fade away? This is... just so unfair!" Yomi complained before turning to dust, which soon vanished.

** _ Winner: The Slash/Dogs! _ **

The enigmatic Sacred Gear wielder placed Leo's unconscious form on the ground, and prepared to leave.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Tobio called out.

Hearing Tobio's voice, the mysterious ally stopped for a brief moment, turning to look at his face.

"You were the one who helped Penemue back during the Utsusemi Incident, we never got to meet you." Tobio stated.

"Yeah, she told us you didn't get involved to avoid their plans from succeeding if they had caught us all, why didn't you join us after that?" Natsume added.

The figure turned their head, and spoke, revealing a female's voice under it.

"Sorry, but the time for our paths to cross has yet to come. Just wait for a bit longer." She explained to them.

At that moment, she launched herself into the air, landing on the wyvern creature.

"Let's go, Scales." She requested.

She flew away, with her beast vanishing by a ripple.

"...The Final Four Fiends holder, just who is she?" Tobio wondered aloud.

* * *

Back in Kuoh Town, everyone was trying to get away from the chaos of the attacking creatures. Ironically, due to the Hyoudou Household's nature, the beasts were wandering a bit aimlessly, so no one had actually died just yet... though that wouldn't last forever.

"We're all gonna die!" Katase cried.

"H-hey, don't say that, someone will help... someone will..." Murayama said shakily, hoping it would become true if she kept saying it.

Eventually, a fake Scale mail crawled nearby, seeing the two as they gave scared expressions.

"If you throw down, do it with me."

The scale mail turned, seeing the Four Fiends nicknamed as Scales fly down, only to have its horns smash through its armored skin. The scale mail broke into pieces, leaving the two kendo girls in awe at what happened, followed by the hooded wielder looking at them.

"No one's gonna die here, not if we have anything to say about it." She declared.

At that moment, Millarca flew down in the form of a bat before changing back, followed by Tadami and Ouryuu making an appearance.

"Let's protect our home!" Tadami announced.

* * *

Back in Kyoto, one of the Bandersnatch roared in pain as the members of Ineelana's peerage raze it with all their attacks.

"Take... THIS!" Ineelana shouted.

A huge cyclone of ice rushed at the Bandersnatch freezing its entire form before it shattered, destroying the beast within the shards. Panting a bit, Ineelana wiped her forehead, looking at their finished work.

"Alright everyone, we took out our Bandersnatch, now we just need to wait for Esketanus and his team to finish up." Ineelana remarked.

"I'll go see how the injured are doing." Ophelia offered.

"Sure thing Ophelia, we gotta make sure we lose as little people as possible, if none at all." Ineelana agreed.

Ophelia nodded at that, heading over.

At that moment, Ineelana collapsed onto her feet, getting the concern of her peerage.

"Ineelana!?" Murasaki panicked.

"Don't worry, it isn't serious, I just haven't fully recovered from the Finals. That skeletal bastard, he and Indra knew just when to attack." Ineelana reassured, panting a bit.

"Just take this moment, I swear we'll end this war soon, and then you'll get to sleep in as much as you want until you heal up." Stella promised her.

The Leviathan heiress chuckled at that.

"How about we just go to Hawaii for a vacation?" She suggested.

Ophelia screamed at that moment, making everyone look towards where she was as she ran into view.

"Someone say they know where Eterna is! think we're about to lose some of the Gods, and Grand Elder Tenguu... he suddenly took a turn for the worse!" Ophelia screamed worriedly.

That got everyone's attention, prompting them all to rush over to the spot the Youkai had set up as a medical ward.

Heading over, the sight of many Youkai looking at Great Elder Tenguu's wheezing form was seen, all of them looking sad... especially his fellow Tenguu. Among the Gods themselves, it was the trio of Raijin, Suijin, and Fuujin that were on their apparent deathbeds.

"How bad is it?" Ineelana asked a Youkai.

"Well, in the case of our God trio over there, it seems like a group of Grim Reapers slashed them too many times. Their souls are just too damaged under the curse of their scythes. I don't think there's anything more we can do." A Kitsune revealed with teary eyes.

"What about Grand Elder Tenguu?" Stella questioned.

"I think... he's just too old, he didn't need to be hit by a Grim Reaper, so the damage of just being pinned down like he was when you arrived was too much for your friend to heal." A Tenguu explained before closing their eyes.

Ineelana's peerage went silent, there was nothing that could be done for them. However, at that moment, Nainen suddenly appeared before the group.

"W-what the? Lady Nainen?" The same Tenguu gasped.

"Quick, where is he!? I have to at least say goodbye!" Nainen cried, grabbing his shoulders.

The Youkai showed surprise, unable to fully take in that the elder princess of Kyoto had been able to sense her old mentor's coming demise.

"...He's right over there, speak with him now before you lose your chance."

Nainen sniffled as she rushed over to do just that.

**「** **Metal Gear Solid 4: Enclosure** **」**

Opening his weakened eyes, Grand Elder Tenguu looked towards Nainen as she took his hands.

"Nainen, is... that you?" Grand Elder Tenguu inquired.

"Yes, I'm here, just save your strength."

He gripped her hands more, making her tear up in response.

"Nainen, I've lived for many years, more than I should have... I saw the Great War, and what it did. Most of all, I know the truth that it hides, and I feel that one day that truth will reach the world. In the end, I'm glad I saw so many wonderful... children like you grow like blooming flowers. That's why... I beg of you, keep on leaving, so you... can help do the same..."

At that moment, Grand Elder Tenguu's eyes closed, and the heart monitor linked to him and the other three Gods all went flat.

Nainen's eyes shook heavily, soon screaming out to the sky.

"HADES, YOU SICK BASTARD! YOU DESERVE MORE THAN DEATH! YOU SHOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN BORN!" Nainen roared in anger.

She rushed into the battlefield, going after the remaining enemies.

"Nainen, don't!" Ineelana shouted.

The Kyuubi Princess screamed as she blazed her Fox Fire through all of the enemy forces, let her fury take control as she took them all down. Eventually, she saw Esketanus' group, passing by them as they were heading towards the second Bandersnatch.

"Wait... Nainen? But, why is she here?" Eterna questioned.

"Forget that, look where she's going!" Esketanus warned, pointing to the monster they were heading towards.

The Bandersnatch noticed her rushing by, and Nainen instantly reacted by blasting all her Fox Fire and Senjutsu at once, razing the area it stood as she unleashed everything she had at the monster.

Breathing heavily, she prepared another wave... only for the Mini-Bandersnatch to all lunge at her, sinking their fangs into her. She creamed in agony as the teeth and claws started doing things so horrible... Esketanus was forced to cover Eterna's eyes in ears. The scene was bad enough that even the stronger willed members of his peerage were forced to look away, Chelsea nearly vomiting.

"Stop this..." Esketanus begged.

Despite all of this, Nainen was still going, and eventually... Esketanus couldn't bear to see the state she was in.

"NAINEN, STOP IT!" He roared.

He forced out his Draining Robber, with his peerage knocking any mini-Bandersnatch away as he forced Nainen to lose all her strength. After collapsing to the ground, he looked at Eterna, his other hand still covering her eyes.

"Eterna... whatever you do, promise to keep your eyes closed until I say otherwise."

"O-OK..." Eterna promised, feeling she was being blinded from something awful.

Esketanus brought her over to Nainen, and placed her hands over her body, prompting the Innovate Clear wielder to heal the injured Kyuubi's body. Eventually...

"OK, you can look now." He remarked.

Eterna opened her eyes, gasping at what she saw... Nainen's clothes were in tatters, and there was damage she couldn't entirely heal.

"Chelsea, how bad would you rate it?" Esketanus inquired.

"I... I really hate to be honest about this, but there's a chance she could still die. Even if she doesn't, there's likely gonna be permanent damage." She admitted, trying to avoid a direct gaze at the Kyuubi Princess.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Everyone nearby gave silent gasps, while Nainen weakly looked up.

"Let me... back up, I have to-" She said weakly.

Eterna smacked her across the face, surprising everyone at the act.

Looking at Nainen, she sniffled.

**「** **Metal Gear Solid 4: Atonement - 3:30 to 3:45** **」**

"You still have your mom and your sister!" Eterna cried.

"Huh?" Nainen said, tearing up.

The Innovate Clear wielder sniffled, rubbing her eyes.

"Family... you still have that, and they're waiting for you! Live for them, that's... that's what he told you to do! Don't sacrifice your life, because if you die, part of them will die too! Live for their sakes!" She begged.

Esketanus instantly remembered how he met Eterna... her family was in a disaster zone, and she begged Esketanus to save them no matter what cost she had to pay. That's how she ended up becoming his Queen.

She couldn't bear the thought that Nainen's family could lose her in the same manner.

"They need you..." Eterna sniffled.

Nainen started crying, and nodded.

"OK..." She promised.

Esketanus looked at a nearby Youkai, picking Nainen up before holding her out to him.

"Get her immediate medical attention, do whatever it takes to save her." The Mammon heir begged.

"I will." The Youkai promised, rushing off with her.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Turning around to face the Bandersnatch, he looks at his peerage, who all nodded in agreement.

"Everyone, we got this open path due to Nainen, let's make sure her efforts weren't wasted. That's the least we owe her." Esketanus stated.

They all nodded, before he looked at his girlfriend.

"Oh, and Eterna?"

"What is it?" Eterna questioned.

He smiled at her.

"Thank you for speaking up when you did, if she lives through this, then it'll be because of you." Esketanus stated.

She blushed at that, rubbing her arm bashfully.

"W-well... I was only able to do it, because of you Esky." Eterna replied.

"Uh... guys, flirt after the battle?" Erya remarked.

The two both blushed at that, soon collecting themselves as the Bandersnatch growled at them.

** _ Battle: Esketanus' Peerage VS the Bandersnatch Army _ **

With that, all of them rushed ahead.

"Take this!" Erya shouted.

Fire blasted out of her hand, hitting the Bandersnatch slightly, but only enough to annoy it.

"No way!" She exclaimed.

"Taste the darkness!" Kurumi screamed, sliding in front of her.

From her twin guns, she blasted out a dark stream, smashing the Bandersnatch... with the same result.

"No, how can this be!?" Kurumi gasped.

"Are we too weak to defeat it?" Chelsea mentioned in horror.

Eterna stopped moving at that, her eyes being showed.

"No, we're not too weak, don't ever say that." She stated.

That got the entire peerage's attention.

"We all fought together in the tournament, against Eneely, who comes from one of the highest ranked pillars. Esketanus gave it his all when he was against Loki. We won together, he survived against a God. We're not..."

Eterna's body glowed with an iridescent light, making Esketanus gasp.

"That light." He quickly realized what it was.

"We... are not weak!" Eterna screamed.

**「** **Pokémon XY&Z: Opening Theme - Instrumental** **」**

Eterna's aura flashed out across the area.

"**Balance Breaker - Life Foundation of the World's Innovation!**"

The entire area around them became a lush jungle, but the normal green plants had a rainbow gradient spread across them. Eventually, the entire peerage rose from some tree roots, feeling themselves empowered, while the Mini-Bandersnatch army was instantly dispelled.

"You... you achieved your Balance Breaker!" Esketanus cheered.

"H-huh, I did?" Eterna only just realized she had achieved it.

"I think this could be a game changer!" Sylvia smiled, looking at the Mammon Queen with a cheery face.

"Eterna's right, we're nowhere near finished... time to prove it!" Erya agreed.

The battle had truly begun.

"O-OK, here we go!" Eterna placed her hands on the roots.

They instantly took a metallic sheen, and thrust themselves forward to smash the Bandersnatch across the forest area.

"Shizuku!" Esketanus ordered.

"Right."

She jumped forward, and the Bandersnatch slashed through her... only for her to become vapor, and then reattach as water, which spun before slashing across the beast. It suddenly felt its body freeze up, ice covering some of its limbs.

"**Chaos... STREAM!**"

Kurumi aimed her guns out, firing twin beams of darkness that spiraled each other, slamming into the wolf/lynx monster.

"Zest!" Erya shouted.

"I've got your back." Zest replied.

Erya slapped the ground, creating a smokescreen before charging at the monster, and slamming a fireball to the eyes. While it was blinded, Zest jumped overhead, forming a pair of stone fists.

The first one struck it in the chin, and then the second slammed down on the top of its skull.

"Claudia, you have an opening!" Esketanus alerted.

Giggling at the heads up, she readied her Sacred Gear. Jumping forward, the Bandersnatch's claws and tails swung at her, only for her Sacred Gear's power to let her read each movement, and slash it across the other eye, blinding it.

As it prepared to swing its tail again...

"Gotcha." Chelsea smirked.

Needles flew at it, with Eterna's eyes glowing as they grew ten times their original size. Upon striking the Bandersnatch's body, it began slumping in its movement.

"Time to sing us a song of victory." Sylvia announced.

Taking a deep breath, she unleashed her voice, followed by Eterna moving some vines out, which had a refractive affect, bouncing her sounds around to slam into the beast's sides. Even after all of that, it got back up, roaring loudly.

"Just how sturdy is this monster!?" Erya shouted in annoyance.

"We need something more..." Kurumi thought aloud.

"Then we have no choice everyone, we gotta try my new ability, even though it hasn't been tested!" Esketanus announced.

Everyone gasped as they looked at him.

"If I don't do this, then the sacrifices everyone's made could be wasted because this thing will still be alive... I have to do this!" He exclaimed.

"He's right, so... let's win, together!" Eterna agreed.

Realizing her cue, Kurumi instantly formed her shadowy clones, and began rushing around, grabbing the real one as she flapped her Devil wings to fly at her fastest speed.

"Here we go everyone, together!" Eterna announced.

The Bandersnatch kept rampaging around, hitting Kurumi's clones as it sensed them. One by one, Esketanus' peerage held out some of their magic power, which he siphoned using his Draining Robber hand.

After passing everyone except his Queen, he took some of Kurumi's, and then she tossed him at Eterna for the last bit. He purposely overloaded himself, before sharpening his eyes.

"Go beyond, make this unique arm truly one with me!" Esketanus screamed as he bore the pain.

"**Chimeric Hand!**"

Reeling his clan ability's signature energy hand in, it overlaid his right arm... and then all the power he took burst out, making his arm a fusing of all the powers he siphoned recently! Everyone smiled as it worked.

"The proof of our team, it's amazing." Claudia smiled.

Looking at Eterna, she smiled back at him.

"Ready to end this?" He inquired.

"Yeah." She replied.

She motioned the root they were standing on, and soon smashed it into the Bandersnatch.

"FEEL THE POWER OF MY ENTIRE TEAM AT ONCE, YOU BASTARD!"

He punched forward, making the clawed amalgamation of power rush through the beast, and then... slash it right down the middle!

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Esketanus fell to the ground tiredly, looking at the beast as it stayed still.

After a few more seconds, the entire beast swelled before exploding, making the Mammon heir cover his eyes. At that moment, it was official!

** _ Winner: Esketanus' Peerage! _ **

"We won!" He cheered.

"Esky!" Eterna shouted happily, diving at him.

He caught his girlfriend before spinning her around in victory, and then surprising her with a kiss.

"Sometimes, the one thing you need to win? A strong push." Kurumi smiled.

**【** **Kyoto Area - Defense Successful** **】**

* * *

Back within Romania, the entire area was in complete ruins, and Lugh was panting heavily as he stood before his defeated opponent.

"Damn it, this can't..." Lugh said, his vision turning red.

Looking around, the Celtic Pantheon had been all but decimated. The Phenex Brothers laid on the ground near him, barely clinging to life. Lugh only knew where Riser's peerage was, having them retreat with Morrigan after their Queen was killed.

Unfortunately, he only realized after her death that forcing the brothers to call him back had been a trap, one that left him in his current state.

"I... I'm sorry everyone, that I... failed you." Lugh breathed out, his eyes closing for good.

* * *

**Oh boy... looks like one pantheon isn't walking out of this in good condition, and it's because the Celtic Pantheon includes Romania... which just happens to be where the Vampires live. *breathes* Yep, this is how I'm gonna eventually set up the Vampire arc, since the best way for the Vampires to have a civil war is if their faction has heavy losses. How this will happen is what I'll keep hidden for now.**

**We've also finally gotten another update on the situations of Ophis and Great Red, and looks like the former's starting to gain some faith in how things will end for them, while also revealing they know of the prophecy as well. Quite the oddity when you consider they're considered the God versions of Ddraig and Albion. *chuckles* Though the real mystery is who were those two in the first scene?**

**Most of you had probably been wondering how Izanami's story was different from the moment I showed her, since if I had been following actual myth, she should have still been stuck inside Yomi, no longer married to Izanagi. The legend felt weird to me since it implied you could just walk in or out, almost like it wasn't a realm of death, but the stomach of a large creature. As a result, I made Yomi a creature that led to the Shinto Trio's birth.**

**And poor Nainen, she's in horrible conditions, bad enough that despite I haven't showed her status yet... she is not out of the words. Let what happened to her be a reminded about what I said could happen to anyone, because you just saw one of my own characters be put into a stated where they may not survive, and even if she does... well, you heard Chelsea say it herself.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**【** **Yomi** **】**   
**A sentient realm of death that formerly existed in Shinto myth, but was purged by Izanagi and the Shinto Trio after he rescued Izanami from its clutches. Later on, its consciousness was found by Hades, and given life to aid him in his plans.**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	71. Chapter 71

**We're starting to near the end of the first half of Season 6, I'd say either 2-3 more chapters depending on how much happens here and next chapter, and I think you'll be able to tell the scene that marks the divide when it finally shows. Either way, the Pandemonium, and this season as a whole, are nowhere close to being over yet. *giggles* I might just surpass S5 in overall length at this rate.**

**For too long, the fight against the Jabberwocky, which is easily the most dangerous enemy if we ignore Jingu, Shalba, and Hades for the moment, since they're not ready to be defeated just yet. We've only got a few other groups who need to finish things up on their ends, not to mention Egypt's status in the war hasn't been seen since Anubis saw Sairaorg and Amalya's groups show up to help him.**

**The chapter title has pretty much given it away already, so I'll just say that today's main focus battle is Issei's peerage against an enemy you won't see until the battle actually starts, and there's a little surprise with Asuka that I've been saving for this moment. Also, while they won't be as in focus until DOHD, this chapter's end notes will reveal Amalya's peerage, and fully introduce Zephyrdor's, as theirs are the only two I haven't revealed.**

**Get ready, this chapter's a fire, so time to let it burn! *lights up a torch* Alright, here we go!**

**P.S.: To anyone who needs a reminder, Seekvaira's peerage is listed at the end of Ch 27, and Eneely's at the end of Ch 32**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking through a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** The Slash/Dog Team **

**A five-team group allied with Grigori that formed 5 years before Issei and Vali's reunion, with the latter being involved with the incident of their formation, the one who named the group, and their unofficial sixth member. Their members, and their respective call signs within the team, are Tobio Ikuse - the "Wolf", Sae Toujou - the "Lynx", Natsume Minagawa - the "Hawk", Kouki Samejima - the "Shark", and Lavinia Reni - the "Rabbit"**

**Everything began for them during the dreaded [Utsusemi Incident] that caused all but 7 the Sophomores of their entire school, Ryoukuu High, Sae included, to disappear on the school trip on the last month of their school year. Two months later, while the survivors were taking Summer classes after the chaos to prepare for their Junior Year, and among them were Tobio, Kouki, and Natsume.**

**However, one night... Tobio saw Sae calling to help and ran into a classmate, who had been bonded to a creature that was some kind of organic equivalent to an artificial Sacred Gear, which Natsume learned were called [the Utsusemi.] They were hunting seven of the survivors down for their Sacred Gears, looking for a set possessing the [Four Fiends], which the three in question all possessed.**

**The fourth user wasn't a Ryoukuu High Student, keeping her out of the mess, while the others, and a quickly rescued Sae, joined Lavinia, Vali, and Penemue to stop the organization's plans from destroying the Five Principal Clans. After the events were over, the Slash/Dog team became an official group under both Penemue and Azazel's command.**

**When not doing any supernatural jobs, they all work as part of the Black Dog BAR.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 7 – The Crimson Crisis _ **

Anubis unleashed a shadowy burst against the fake Super-Gogmagogs still charging at the Egyptian forces. In the skies, Serket and Thoth were taking care of the flying scale mail forces, and they were starting to lag as well.

"Damn, getting tired... all forces regroup, we gotta switch out!" Anubis shouted.

"He's right, let's go Serket." Thoth agreed.

Serket nodded silently, and they both prepared to fly down... only for a group of Grim Reapers to sneak from behind the aerial forces while their backs were turned!

"Behind you!" Anubis warned.

The both turned, but it was too late... the Reapers slashed them both in an instant, and their overwhelming numbers caused both to scream in pain before they dissolved away from instant soul destruction.

"BASTARDS!" Horus roared.

"No, don't do it!" Aten warned, flying after him.

The Grim Reapers quickly rushed again, and blinded by his rage... Horus was struck down as well, his eyes widening in horror. Aten also got struck, but not enough to be killed on the spot, and instantly returned fire with a bright flash.

Catching the injured Horus, Aten looked at him weakly.

"I'm... sorry, forgive... me."

Horus dissolved the same way, and Aten cried before he began to violently cough.

"Lord Aten!" Anubis screamed.

Aten lowered himself, looking at Anubis.

"Get Ra, and hurry back here... HURRY!" Aten ordered.

Anubis shook, looking at how much trouble was around them, and the fact he didn't see Ra anywhere.

"H-how will I find him fast enough?" Anubis asked himself.

"Allow me!"

Anubis turned to see Sairaorg walk into view, getting his peerage's attention.

"Sairaorg?" Kuisha blinked.

"Kirin, your Sacred Gear's power should let you adapt around the Grim Reaper's power, so clear them out for me. Regulus and I will take care of the rest with... _that_ trump card." Sairaorg declared.

The wielder of Bahamut's eyes widened at that.

"Sairaorg, you've never used it before, are you sure this is the best time to test it out?" Kirin warned.

"It's a risk worth taking, and for everyone that we've lost, one I must take." Sairaorg answered.

Kirin went silent, and then nodded in agreement. She flew into the air in an instant, grabbing the Reapers attention, and making them all charge at her.

"**BALANCE BREAKER!**"

A bright light flashed as their scythes all hit, but they couldn't cut through Kirin's soul. She flashed her eyes at the group, making her aura alone freezing them with fear, leaving them wide open to her brutal counterattack, roaring as she did.

"Regulus, are you ready?" Sairaorg asked.

Regulus went silent before turning into his axe form, and landing in Sairaorg's hands.

**«Let's show them the indomitable will of the King»** Regulus declared.

After equipping his Balance Breaker, the armor began to glow, signaling the Bael heir was about to take things a step even further. A step... equivalent to the Heavenly Dragons' destroyed Juggernaut Drives!

**「** **Fairy Fencer F: All Our Might Tonight** **」**

"Sairaorg..." Kuisha breathed, praying for his success.

"This body, this soul! Even if it falls into an endless ravine... my Lord and I will exhaust them to rise up the endless royal road! Raze, triumph, play, and shine as the body of a Demonic Beast! Lodged on top of my fist, is the glorious imperial authority! Now dance, bloom, and roar like the mighty lion!" Sairaorg and Regulus loudly chanted together.

A purple aura overlaid with the golden armor.

"Climb Over... **BREAKDOWN THE BEAST!**"

Sairaorg screamed loudly, causing a bright flash that blinded both ally and enemy alike, temporarily pausing the war as it occurred.

From the brief bit that Kirin could witness, Sairaorg's armor began changing color from purple and gold, and he is enveloped by an immensely dense, purple Touki. The armor began shifting, covering more of him to appear like a muscular humanoid lion, matching the Juggernaut Drive's resemblance to an actual Dragon.

Once it succeeded, the heir of Bael roared loudly, creating a powerful wave of energy!

"HOLY SHIT!" Kirin shouted.

**"=He actually did it! I can't believe it, the power is... I don't know what else to say="** Bahamut was speechless.

Sairaorg looked at the army before him, and then rushed at it, smashing through the Super-Gogmagogs and fake Scale Mails in an instant. Even the Bandersnatch in the area was roaring as his fists slammed him, making it burst in an instant, taking all its miniature copies with it.

"Just one strike!?" Anubis gasped, unable to believe the young Devil's pure physical might.

"Anubis, you gotta find Ra!" Kirin reminded.

The Egyptian Death God's eyes widened, and started doing just that.

As he ran through the battlefield, now cleared up a bit due to Sairaorg's transformation, he heard painful groaning as he saw Ra in critical condition.

"Ra!" Anubis shouted.

"A-Anubis, help me..." Ra coughed, barely able to move.

"I'm coming, but we need to hurry, Aten's not gonna last, and he told me to find you." Anubis replied.

Ra's eyes widened, and then lowered, as if he knew what was coming.

"...Ra?" Anubis questioned.

"Never mind for now, just hurry and get me there before he's gone." Ra answered.

* * *

Rias crossed her hands like an X, and then released her Power of Destruction against all the Bandersnatch's army, leaving it by itself as the rest of her peerage positioned themselves. As it tried to lunge at them, Gasper's eyes shifted, freezing it in place.

"I've got it!" Gasper shouted.

"Now!" Rias ordered.

At that moment, everyone prepared their attacks, starting with Akeno.

"Now bring out... **Thunder!**"

"**Cross Crisis!**"

"Taste my **Sword Burst!**"

An electrical discharge spikes the area around the gigantic beast, followed by a cross of holy energy hitting it, and then Kiba's blades skewering it from underneath. This locked it in place for the others, right as Gasper slumped down.

"That's it, I can't hold it any longer." Gasper panted in exhaustion.

"Here, I've got you Gaspy." Valerie said, healing him.

Using the moment, Yumi began charging her bow, while Jeanne's magic gathered flower petals around her.

"Please, everyone whose fallen... lend me your strength!" Yumi begged.

"Alright Yumi, together now!" Jeanne shouted.

They unleashed their attacks, causing a rain of sharp flower petals, and arrows of light to smash down against the Bandersnatch.

"Bad doggy." Shirone remarked.

She used her Senjutsu for a final punch, making the Bandersnatch roar in pain before it burst apart.

** _ Winner: Rias' Peerage! _ **

Shirone landed by the ground, breathing out in relief that they ended the battle.

"Impressive." Georg remarked, still holding the warp mist out.

Meanwhile, the members of Satan and Lilith's peerages, alongside the Great Devil and their own peerages, began facing off against a whole group of Bandersnatch and their miniature copies. With one shot of his Ruin the Extinct attack, Sirzechs managed to annihilate one of them in an instant.

Following that, Serafall instantly froze another, while riding on a giant creature that looked to be a fusion of an elephant, hippopotamus, rhinoceros, and buffalo.

"Smash through that mockery, Behemoth!" Serafall exclaimed.

"With pleasure!" Behemoth agreed, followed by a roar.

It instantly hopped, suddenly disappearing as it reappeared behind the frozen monster, with the land behind it having instantly been torn apart like a demolished building. The Bandersnatch's destruction happening too fast to even be seen.

"Go, Falak." Ajuka ordered.

"Do it, Kuyutha!" Falbium shouted.

A humongous fiery serpent, and a gargantuan blue bull, unleashed their strongest attacks, instantly destroying their respective Bandersnatch on the spot.

Finally, the last of the Bandersnatch met their ends as the remaining Great Devils, and Diehauser, all unleashed everything they had, alongside their peerages, to wipe them all out. The stragglers were instantly cut down by Ziz, who screeched as its wings cut through them all, and Acnologia, who blasted them to smithereens.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"That's the last of them, at least of those that are in Hell." Diehauser remarked.

At that moment, everyone who had warped across the world, minus the Phenex Brothers who were still in an ambiguous situation, all came back through Georg's warp point. Rias' peerage and the Great Devils noticed them, with the latter heading over in response to it.

"You're all back, how are things?" Jeanne asked.

"Well... I'd like to speak well, but despite the fighting's stopped everywhere we went, the damage is still staggering. I'm pretty sure we all saw some major figures, and even some Gods die... am I right?" Amalya admitted, turning to face the others.

Their silent responses and facial expressions upon seeing her face said everything.

At that moment, Alanira finally noticed that a certain blonde trio wasn't with them, making her a little worried.

"Hey, why aren't my younger brothers here? Are they OK?" She asked worriedly.

"Lugh heard some danger and came back, but we haven't heard anything saying they're dead. I think the Celtic Pantheon's area was just caught more off-guard." Georg answered.

"Oh man... please be OK, all of you." Alanira worriedly told herself.

At that moment, Sona and her peerage came into view, making Serafall gasp happily before jumping at her younger sister.

"SONA!" She exclaimed.

"Right now, really?" Sona breathed in terror.

The Sitri heiress was knocked to the ground, making everyone wince a bit.

"...You know, we really should have seen that coming." Saji admitted.

"Agreed." Everyone nodded.

"So, we gonna wait here for the war to end, or are we gonna help out the others with that big prick of a Dragon wannabe?" Zephyrdor remarked in his usual manner.

Eneely sighed at that comment, but knew he was right.

"He's right, we've gotta help the others." Eneely agreed, crossing her arms.

"Oh, you're not going... ANYWHERE!"

Everyone's eyes widened as they saw the sight of the mutated Jingu stomping towards them, the reactions varying from shock, to terror induced nausea.

"Is that... Jingu!?" Jeanne questioned with a twitching eye.

"Surprised!?" Jingu cackled.

"But aside my little makeover, I won't give you a literal chance in Hell to get over there! I'll kill you all, just like I killed that stupid Michael and Azazel!" Jingu exclaimed viciously.

Hearing the deaths of those two made many gasp, with Jingu using their brief distraction to prepare another icy inferno.

"Now, time to-" Jingu cackled victoriously.

"**Singularity!**"

Jingu suddenly felt herself being pushed down, feeling gravity too intense for her to handle. Everyone turned to see Mio creating it, with Cassiel holding her, and her peerage by her side.

"Hold me down all you want, I'll break free when you get too far away! That'll be when I kill you before you have the chance!" Jingu shouted.

"Maybe with this magic, but how about this one?" Mio panted, holding her other hand up.

Everyone gasped as the Incinerate Anthem's flames shot out of the Demon Princess' hands, even Jingu lost her voice entirely, realizing what it meant.

'She actually killed her!?' Hades thought, seeing it from afar.

He tried to break free again, but the chains still bound him... well, except for one that finally snapped, but he didn't notice that fact.

"Come on everyone, we need to get going before she finds a way out!" Cassiel shouted.

Everyone nodded, but before they even moved...

"I won't allow it!" Hades roared.

He opened his mouth, creating a smog just like the one Yomi could use, making Tobio gasp as it began covering miles of the area between them and the others.

"Don't get near that, its deadly!" Tobio warned.

Everyone panicked, instantly stopping as it slowly crept closer, and Hades laughed as he was sure he trapped them.

"Sae, couldn't you use Banishing Shift like you did before?" Natsume asked.

"Not with this much, I'd use up all my magic before I cleared it all, much less create a path through it." Sae shook her head.

"Even if I merged mine with hers, it wouldn't be enough." Basara added.

Rias looked at the Yumi of her peerage.

"What about your barriers?" Rias asked.

"That poison would eat away at my magic, I don't think we could get through unless we had some kind of transportation." Yumi stated, lowering her head.

At that moment, Bowser laughed a bit, making everyone look at the Glasya-Labolas Queen.

"That's easy, I just need all the lightning you can give me!" Bowser smirked.

Everyone looked at him in surprise.

"Just do it, trust me." Zephyrdor smirked.

Looking among their ranks, Tamara sighed before charging some lightning out.

"Come on, what have we got to lose? Either a gamble for death, or we die by default." Tamara stated.

'Tamara, that's not how you motivate people...' Ineelana sighed.

At that moment, everyone who had some form of lightning magic readied themselves. At that moment, Zephyrdor, Dulio, Akeno, Tamara, Fate, Laxus, Alivian, Erza, and Imu unleashed all the lightning they had at Bowser's bike after he summoned it, making it heavily rev itself before transforming into a giant behemoth of a truck!

Jingu and Hades went speechless at the motorcycle based Sacred Gear's ability, while everyone else just gasped.

"The more lightning this hot rod eats, the large I can temporarily make it, and this is a motherload that can fit us all!" Bowser laughed with pride.

"Should this fit your fancy little archer?" He inquired.

The Pawn of Gremory could only weakly nod her head, unable to say anything in response to the giant truck.

**「** **Dragonball Super: Desperate Assault** **」**

Everyone soon got on, and Bowser instantly began driving towards the deathly smog, with Yumi taking the front as she prepared to deploy her barrier. Taking a deep breath, she focused forward.

"Amalya, I won't be able to see, so guide me with your power!" Bowser shouted.

She nodded, taking a deep breath.

"**Akashic Calculative - Timer and Map.**"

"**Adamant Will!**"

Right as Yumi's barrier formed around the truck, it breached into the smog, causing everyone to scream as the truck shook a little.

"Yumi, your barrier will last for two minutes, so be careful. As for you Bowser, go left and then keep going straight until my next alert." Amalya stated.

Bowser accelerated fast, knowing he had no time to waste.

* * *

With everyone on the opposite side of the smog area, the group had continued running towards the Jabberwocky, and as they did... Yumina suddenly got an off feeling.

"Hey guys, do you feel something strange just showed up?" Yumina questioned.

"Uh... actually, I think I do, but what could-" Vali answered,

She instantly screamed, pointing at the cloud of smog behind them, making everyone look as they saw it envelop the area behind them.

"That's where everyone else is!" Issei exclaimed in horror.

As everyone panicked, Asuka and Basara both noticed something, with the later pointing it out.

"Wait, I think I see something coming!"

Everyone looked, and while still deep within the smog, the sight of Bowser's truck getting close was catching their attention.

"10... 9... 8..." Amalya sweated, seeing the number count down.

"Damn it, gotta use the dangerous gear here!" Bowser grunted.

Pulling a lever, the power of Bowser's truck flared out, causing the structure to shake heavily as it pushed itself beyond its limitations.

"3... 2... and 1~!" Amalya shouted with a prolonged scream.

The barrier began to fall, but... a last burst of speed shot them through, and as the truck spun out of control, changing back into a motorcycle... everyone was shown to have made it through the smog alive!

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"Holy Virgin Mary..." Gabriel gasped.

"They made it through... they really made it." Lilith smiled, tearing up a bit.

Coughing a bit, Bowser swung some smoke away from his bike.

"Take that, you skeletal bastard!" Bowser laughed, soon falling on his back as his adrenaline faded away.

Coughing a bit, Rias looked up to see her father help her up.

"You alright?" He asked.

"Yeah, just a little jet lag and some bruises." Rias replied.

At that moment, the Slash/Dog team noticed the Jabberwocky was still present, shocking them.

"No way, but we rescued Leo... how is the Jabberwocky still here?" Kouki growled angrily.

"I get the feeling Jingu and Shalba are responsible, considering what the two were talking about when this all began..." Jeanne replied worriedly.

"Do you think we're so foolish to leave you a way to dispel them all in a moment's notice?"

Everyone looked to see Shalba finally reappear, having been absent from the war for a while, though his remaining bug minions weren't with him, leaving the group cautious.

"Damn it Shalba, you did something to the monsters his Balance Breaker made, like a one-use brainwashing!" Lilith growled.

"It seems you're not foolish for a fake Devil Queen, we had Yomi be a mere distraction. You are indeed correct, if anything's commanding these monsters, it would be us, and yet now only the Jabberwocky remains... so now, it seems I must finish you directly." Shalba replied.

Everyone readied themselves, and that's when Shalba moved his hand a certain way, making the Jabberwocky roar as it suddenly made miniature clones of itself like the Bandersnatch did. They were the same size, but in exchange for not being larger than their counterparts, they were created twice as fast.

"Damn, if only Leo was awake to tell us more." Herc growled.

"We don't need to falter, we've finally regrouped, so we can all-" Jeanne replied.

Suddenly, most of the group felt themselves being pushed away by a weak magic blast. As they all landed, a familiar scream reached the ears of the Gremory siblings, and they turned to see something horrible.

A large Grim Reaper standing behind Zeoticus, a slash mark across his stomach as its scythe just cut through him... he had blasted everyone away so only he was struck!

"FATHER!" Rias screamed.

"No..." Sirzechs' breathed quietly.

"Rias, Sirzechs... please, tell your... mother, that I..." Zeoticus struggled to say.

He immediately dissolved away, making the Gremory heiress' voice shake as she screamed in denial, with Sirzechs' face threatening to explode with sadness and rage at any moment.

"Well, what a pathetic father you were." Pluto mocked as he rose his scythe back up.

Everyone couldn't believe what had happened.

"Rias..." Sona whispered sadly.

"No way, not Zeoticus." Akeno cried, shocked at the sight.

Vali's hands shook, turning towards Shalba in anger, seeing the many Grim Reapers, fake scale mails, and Super-Gogmagogs that appeared. Even his insect army quickly appeared via magic circles.

"You're a sick bastard, any victory you have will be a fake one because you're not doing it with Devils, you hypocrite!" Vali shouted angrily.

Shalba scoffed at that, not caring at what she said, although that only angered Rias even more.

"YOU BASTARD, HOW DARE YOU!" Rias screamed.

She unleashed her Power of Destruction, only for a mini-Jabberwocky to take it. The upper half of the beast vanished as it full... only for it to instantly regenerate, and take regain flight once more! That made everyone gasp.

"It... regenerated!? My god, so that's what makes this thing hard to kill?" Jeanne shuddered at the sight.

At that moment, Leo suddenly blinked, finally regaining consciousness.

"Uh... it feels like, fog is lifting from my head." Leo groaned.

"Leo, you're awake!" Morgiana said happily.

"Quick, tell us what you know about the Jabberwocky!" Sieg demanded in a panic.

Leo raised an eyebrow, only for him to see said beast above him.

"What the... when did I use my Balance Breaker!?" Leo exclaimed, a bit more emotive than before.

His fellow Elites all showed surprise at that.

"What?" Leo blinked.

"...I'm worried about how long Jingu may have done something to you, or if you're aware she's a traitor." Jeanne admitted worriedly.

Leo was about to ask, but she waved a hand.

"Jingu later, the Jabberwocky now." Jeanne stated.

Leo sweated, but nodded at that.

"The Jabberwocky has the same powers as the Bandersnatch, but the biggest difference? It regenerates faster than anything in the world, with the minions being above average themselves. Unless you deal enough damage fast enough, or one-shot its entire body... you can't destroy it." Leo explained.

"What!?" Everyone shouted in horror.

As they learned that, the forces neared them, forcing Asuka to swing the Kusanagi, forming a cyclone to shield them for the moment.

"Then it's best that we deal with the army, while Issei and Vali go after the main Jabberwocky, their breaths should be just what we need to beat it." Irina reasoned.

"That's right, if they can slay Gods, then the beast of a God slayer should be just as fair game!" Kunou replied happily.

Looking at the two, both the Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou looked at each other before they nodded, quickly equipping their scale mails.

"Everyone, we'll take that thing down, and then smash Hades to pieces!" Issei declared.

"Hold out just a bit longer!" Vali promised.

Everyone nodded, and soon they rushed out, making their auras push everyone away, while they charged at the Jabberwocky. The force of their attack knocking it high into the sky, leaving the three of them to battle it out.

"Get ready your monster, this is the power..." Issei began.

"...Of the Heavenly Dragons!" Vali finished.

* * *

After Issei and Vali's action, the enemy army was disoriented, and Asuka dispelled the wind at that instant.

"Everyone, force them all apart!" Lilith shouted.

At that moment, everyone charged out, instantly scattering the enemy by pushing them apart, and locking them into fighting specific opponents before they could force anything like cruel choices to control their movements. One notable conflict being Bennia against her own father.

"Damn it! They reacted too fast for us!" Pluto grunted.

"You shouldn't underestimate us!"

Pluto soon saw who his opponents were, the entirety of Issei's peerage, each of them with a readied expression on their faces.

** _ Battle: Issei's Peerage VS Pluto _ **

The Ultimate-Class Reaper's eyes gave an angered look as he readied his scythe.

"Fine, if you want to die so bad, I shall grant you the demise you seek!" Pluto announced.

"You're the one that's not walking out of this alive!" Irina retorted.

The Grim Reaper gave her a scowl, and as he did... he suddenly noticed Asuka, before suddenly laughing as he saw her. The blue-haired Queen suddenly got worried as he did.

"W-why are you laughing? Why are you looking at me?" Asuka demanded, shaking with a face full of fear.

Pluto soon stopped laughing, his eyes giving a sick look of satisfaction.

"Oh, nothing much, it's just that before Shalba forced me back here, I was in some kind of mountain village. I think it was part of this weird collective you call the Hero Clan?" Pluto stated, making Asuka start to sweat in fear.

"Ah yes, while I was there, there was this man and woman who you resemble. They tried to stop me from hurting anyone, so when they got in my way, well..." Pluto kept going, seeing her expression with delight.

Asuka panicked, and instantly tried making a magic circle to talk with either of her parents...

No one answered.

"That's right, I killed them both! No souls to bring back now! Despite I only got to kill so few before I got called back, seeing your face as it is right now, it was worth it!" The Ultimate-Class Reaper mocked, laughing horribly.

The rest of Issei's peerage was horrified at what they just heard as his Queen's eyes began to tear up.

"Mom... dad... no, you were going to... see your sister again mom, and... dad would have got to... meet Uncle Ayumu." She spoke with a shaken voice.

"That's right, cry... cry and like me see your-"

Pluto's eyes suddenly widened as Asuka instantly swung the Kusanagi, making a blade of wind slash across his abdomen. Even the rest of Issei's peerage was surprised how she reacted that quickly.

"What the hell!? Why are you not paralyzed in by your despair! No one should recover that fast!" Pluto demanded angrily, holding his side.

"You're wrong, I didn't recover."

Everyone noticed Asuka's eyes were still shedding her tears, but her face didn't match her actions.

"But, what I do know is you were hoping that breaking me down would leave me wide open, something I'm not stupid enough to fall for! I'll make sure you're the one broken to pieces before I let that happen!" Asuka screamed with rage.

'She figured me out in just seconds!' He realized.

Asuka took a deep breath, and her fellow peerage members gave a curious look as she reached into her pocket, quickly pulling something out.

The object in question were blue fingerless workout gloves, which she briefly looked at.

"Alright, time to see if the power you've lent me was worth it..." Asuka said quietly, pulling the left glove on normally.

As she snapped the right one on with her teeth, she held it up, which briefly glowed with light blue magic circle, possessing a crest that Rossweisse recognized.

"That symbol!" Rossweisse gasped in surprise.

"Tiamat's crest? What's going on here, how do you have..." Pluto questioned.

Pluto soon gasped, realizing it.

"No way, the Chaos Karma Dragon actually made a contract with some weak girl!?" Pluto growled in disbelief.

Everyone gasped at that.

"A... contract?" Asia repeated in confusion.

**«It's similar to the situation with me, but where I use all my power like a self-powered engine in this device, Asuka is simply a conduit drawing power from Tiamat with her permission. Those gloves must have been the activation key»**

Asuka closed her eyes as she readied her sword, the crest shifting to her body before absorbing it, and channeling the same light blue magic through her sword.

* * *

_Asuka stood before Tiamat, showing a surprised expression. She had just granted Tiamat's request to show a bit of what she could do, and now she was in shock over what the strongest Dragon King had just offered her._

_"I-I'm sorry, what did you just say." Asuka stuttered a little._

_"Wow, really caught you off guard there, didn't I? I said I'd like to form a contract with you." Tiamat chuckled before repeating herself._

_"But, don't you already have one with Issei?" She questioned._

_"That's a [Familiar] contract, this is a different kind." Tiamat replied._

_Asuka blinked a bit, prompting the Dragoness to elaborate on it._

_"You see, when I decided I'd be a potential familiar for a Devil to pick up, the proof of obtaining me as such meant I'd offer them to use some of my power. It's kinda like what Azazel and Fafnir did, but with only a portion of my power. However, that was where the problem of me being Issei's familiar comes in... two different Dragons' powers aren't something a human body could handle." Tiamat explained._

_"OK, but how does that relate... to..." Asuka only needed a moment to recall Tiamat's early words._

_"Wait, because I'm gonna be in Issei's peerage?" Asuka inquired._

_Tiamat nodded her head at that._

_"That's right, when I learned of your name, it just seemed like a sign. Issei's name means read, and he's the Sekiryuutei, so why not give someone in his group with a name meaning blue my own power?" Tiamat remarked._

_"After all, while I'm not Blue Dragon Emperor, I am still blue myself." Tiamat chuckled a bit._

_Asuka gave a forced laugh at that small joke._

_"So, what do you think? I just need an item to bless my power with, and the moment you put them on, you'll keep a bit of my power for good. Choice is yours kid." Tiamat offered once more._

_Asuka thought about it for a little longer, and then..._

_"Alright, I'll do it."_

_"Glad to hear, but before that, do know there is one condition for this you'll need to fulfill." Tiamat replied._

_"What kind of condition?" Asuka asked._

_Tiamat sighed, knowing this was the part she wouldn't like if she still went through it._

_"Dragons don't exactly lend power for free, there's a price. In the case of Fafnir, he only let Azazel seal him into that little trinket of his because he got him a very rare treasure, and that's due to how Fafnir became a Dragon via his own greed. In my case, as I'm the Chaos Karma Dragon... you only get my power if you give up one of your own abilities. Basically, it's a give and take." Tiamat admitted._

_Asuka's eyes widened, and Tiamat looked at her._

_"So, are you willing to give something up, or is that too big a price?" Tiamat asked._

_"Hmm... OK, I'll give up my Banishing Shift. With how I fight, I don't really use it that much, is that doable?" Asuka inquired._

_Tiamat nodded her head._

_"As long as it's some form of power, physical or not, it works under my contract rulings." Tiamat agreed, holding her hand out to make the promise._

_Asuka smiled, shaking her hand in response._

* * *

Asuka took a deep breath, and then opened her eyes.

**「** **Metal Gear Rising: It Has to Be This Way - Instrumental** **」**

"Everyone, let's show this Grim Reaper he made the biggest mistake of his life!" Asuka exclaimed.

Hearing their Queen speak, they all smiled and nodded.

"No one can walk over life like it's just nothing, not even a Reaper!" Irina shouted.

"This is payback time!" Yuuma replied.

Swinging down the Kusanagi, an even stronger wind blew out, pushing Pluto back.

"This is nothing!" Pluto roared.

He readied his scythe as he rushed forward, only for Yuuma to appear in front of him.

"How did you-" Pluto was surprised by her speed.

"Take this!"

Yuuma formed a light sword, with Pluto swinging down, looking like he'd strike first... only to scream as Yuuma formed a light spear. The Grim Reaper coughed as it was piercing right through him, and Yuuma screamed before slashing the sword across.

"Yuuma, switch out!" Rossweisse altered.

Hearing the Valkyrie's warning, she quickly back flipped out of the way, right as Rossweisse crossed her arms. Pluto's eyes widened as a dozen beams fired out, smashing him back with their force. It didn't take long before he just pushed it away, showing his strength as an Ultimate-Class Reaper.

"How weak you all are!"

Asia's eyes widened as Pluto appeared before her, making everyone's eyes widen as it seemed like he'd strike her before they could stop it.

**«Absolute Monarch»**

His scythe only hit a shroud of light, pushing him away.

"Fafnir... thank you." Asia smiled.

**«He will not pierce my shrouding light. I shall protect this peerage with all my might, I owe that much to Azazel for the sacrifice he made»**

Pluto growled with anger, gripping his scythe.

"The Red Dragon Emperor, a blessing from the Chaos Karma Dragon, and now power from the Golden Dragon Monarch? You filthy Dragons are like cockroaches in this group!" Pluto shouted, unleashing a wave of dark power.

**«Asia, use my power, you must use me yourself to call my strength»**

Asia looked nervous, but nodded as she held the Downfall Dragon Spear out, enveloping her body as a counter wave slammed against his. Pluto's eyes widened in shock, and that's when Asia her outfit had become gold and white, with some traces of armor across it.

"W-what is this?" Asia questioned.

"I don't know, that never happened with Azazel, and that's when he activated the Balance Breaker." Yuuma questioned, just as unsure.

**«I see, so this is what Azazel was Ddraig noticed within you. It seems the line of the Dragon Tamers managed to keep their last child alive»**

"D-did you just say, Dragon Tamer?" Rossweisse gasped.

Pluto's eyes widen, suddenly getting into a more defensive stance, something that Asuka didn't waste. Raising her legendary sword into the air, wind gathered wind around it as the magical energy she gained from Tiamat empowered it.

Readying her attack, her pupils briefly flashed a very light blue.

"Chaos Tempest!"

The energy shot off, taking the form of a dragon's head before splitting apart into sharp gales of wind, and cutting through Pluto as he crashed into the trees of a nearby forest. She tried to spot him to verify his defeat, and while she did.

"What's this about a line of Dragon Tamers?" Ravel questioned.

**«In a fight like this, I don't have the time, but I can definitely say this much... Asia, your birth parents left you at the church, so they could save you»**

Asia wasn't sure how to react, it was partially happy, partially sad, and the bit about keeping her safe implied something that kinda scared her. Although most of all, she was curious to what being a Dragon Tamer meant.

That thought was quickly interrupted as Pluto slashed the trees down, finally getting out of the forest.

"Damn it... damn you all to Tartarus!" Pluto screamed.

As the Grim Reaper charged at them once again, Ravel sighed a little, prompting her to put her hand up.

"**Phoenix Dragon Mode!**"

Her hair burned itself crimson, and she threw out an intense flame at Pluto.

"Not gonna fall for that again!" Pluto shouted, spinning to cut through the fire.

"You know, you're pretty easy to fake out." Irina remarked.

Pluto's eyes widened as Irina reappeared using Excalibur Transparency, followed by using her clones to slash at him.

"And you're pretty irritating, the whole lot of you!" Pluto growled.

Pluto roared loudly before swinging down, and stabbing the land itself, breaking it apart as the team of six moved themselves out of the way.

Landing on the ground, they all stared down Pluto again.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"You'll never defeat me, just give up!" Pluto stated.

"We'll never give up!" Asuka exclaimed.

Both sides rushed each other again, the battle freezing in place as they did.

* * *

Bennia panted as she held up her scythe against her father's, who showed her no mercy.

"To think my daughter would betray her own kind, her own home, and most of all... betray her own father!" Orcus shouted, swinging down his scythe.

"Says you, damn hypocrite!" Bennia shouted back.

Parrying his next strike, she felt herself forced down, grunting a bit.

"You never treated me like a daughter, and to you, mother was just a convenience! Someone you could kill and throw away! I never got a chance to meet her, and... and..." Bennia growled, her anger building.

Bennia screamed before knocking Orcus back, surprising him.

"And that's why I've always hated you! I became a Devil because I'd rather be a Devil than be share the species of a monster like you!" Bennia screamed.

Bennia swung her scythe forward, gutting right into Orcus' stomach.

Panting heavily, the Half-Grim Reaper lowered her head with teary eyes, swinging her scythe across his body more. Orcus' body shook as he suddenly couldn't move, but not because something was preventing him from moving...

'The irony, in the end... perhaps I did care, if I was that willing to mate with a human.' Orcus thought, his eyes slowly closing.

With one last slash, Orcus' scythe dropped to the ground.

"Bennia, maybe... maybe things had been different, if I lived without Hades' influence." Orcus apologized.

He slowly evaporated away, with his scythe shattered as if to symbolize his demise. As she stood there, Bennia's hands shook, her own scythe hitting the ground as she began crying.

"And maybe, I... I could have been willing, to say I love you, just one time." Bennia sniffled.

Rugal walked by, making Bennia turn to him.

"...It hurts, doesn't it?" Rugal stated, closing his eyes.

"Rugal, I... I..."

At that moment, Bennia collapsed, hugging onto her legs as she let her true tears flow out. While the war was tragic, the worst event that lived within it...

Was the one family it tore apart.

* * *

**Poor Bennia... I heard that Vol 24 explained Orcus' personality more, and that he seems to actually be more of a living father, but I had already planned for this father and daughter's story to be a much different way. That last scene was kinda to reference that part of Orcus did love his daughter, but... this reflects what I've seen in Chivalry of a Failed Knight.**

**Even if a parent loves their kid, someone too conditioned to a doctrine will show it in a way that's the opposite, or they just can't do it because of how they'll be viewed. This isn't just parents, siblings, other family... Bennia got this treatment because of Hades, had any other God of Death been ruling Tartarus, maybe her family story wouldn't have ended on the tragic note it had here.**

**Speaking of parents... you finally saw me do it, one of my OCs was actually killed in this war. It wasn't on screen, but Pluto killed both of Asuka's parents, and what really makes that sting even worse? She invited them to watch the games, but neither of them was able to make it, and if they had come... Pluto might not have ever encountered them like he had.**

**Seems even the Hero Clan and Magicians aren't gonna lack casualties by the end of this.**

**As for the reveal of Asuka's contract with Tiamat, I... pretty much had Tiamat define the reasoning on that. *chuckles* I had intended to show it earlier, but I felt that I should wait for when Issei's peerage had to fight. As you've noticed by now, aside from Irina, Yuuma, and Rossweisse; most of his peerage has some kind of affinity for a Dragons, so that might just end up as the theme for his peerage. *giggles***

**Well, I didn't show how the fight with Pluto ended, but that's because it won't be over for a while, or rather... the result isn't going to be shown until a different battle ends. It'll make sense when it comes up, so for now, just know the fight hasn't ended just yet. This might even be the case with the next fight, depending on who Vali's peerage will be facing.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** =Amalya's Peerage= **

**King - Amalya Astaroth  
Queen - Ellen Mira  
Bishops - Sara Bloodlily (x2, Mutated Piece)  
Knights - Yukikaze (x2)  
Rooks - Tifa Lockhart, Sieglinde Jeremiah  
Pawns - Kirito (x2), Laxus Dreyar (x6)**

* * *

** =Zephyrdor's Peerage= **

**King - Zephyrdor Glasya-Labolas  
Queen - Bowser  
Bishops - Zancrow (x2)  
Knights - Junkrat, Roadhog  
Rooks - Spike, Rex  
Pawns - Kuraudo Kurashiki (x8)**

* * *

** -Crossover Peerage Member origins series- **

**Date A Live - Ellen Mira Mathers (This story's version lacks "Mathers" in her name)**

**Chivalry of a Failed Knight - Sara Bloodlily, Kuraudo Kurashiki**

**Dog Days - Yukikaze**

**Final Fantasy VII - Tifa Lockhart**

**Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Sieglinde Jeremiah**

**Sword Art Online - Kirito**

**Fairy Tail - Laxus Dreyar, Zancrow**

**Overwatch - Junkrat, Roadhog**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**【** **Dragon Tamers** **】**   
**A special line of people who can tame Dragons, one that Asia has unknowingly been a part of. Their current status is unknown, but based on word of Fafnir, it's implied they've been... wiped out.**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	72. Chapter 72

**Before we begin this chapter, I need to let everyone know there's a scene I initially forgot to put in last chapter. When Tiamat made her offer to Asuka, she was also supposed to tell her that it would have a price like the one Asia had to pay Fafnir in canon. In Tiamat's case, her title means to give some of her power to someone, they have to sacrifice some of their own power in some form.**

**For Asuka, that was her Banishing Shift ability. I felt that having both the Banishing Shift and Tiamat's power would make her too powerful, especially when there are two other characters who can use the same ability, but lack everything else she has. I did add the scene back in before I made this chapter, so this heads up is mainly for everyone who read last chapter before I fixed it.**

**Well, now with that said, time for today's start notes. First thing to say, this chapter's where the first half of the Pandemonium arc is about to meet its end, and boy will you see why I say that. We've got the battle with Vali's peerage against an opponent I can't reveal here in the start notes, and we'll _finally_ be having our twin dragons face off against the mighty Jabberwocky in battle!**

**The most important things to say from here? We've gotten fair enough where I can say that aside from a few whose status is still up in the air, and those who've perished off-screen, we've pretty much cleared every on-screen death I've had set up, so now it's ending the war that'll be the main focus. The second, I'll only say this much until we reach the end notes... we're about to return to Kuoh Town!**

**And now, time to start this chapter!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking through a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Grim Reapers **

**One of the many supernatural races, and one of the few known as Half-Gods. The Grim Reapers are associated to the Greek Pantheon, being the denizens of Tartarus, the land of the dead for those with evil/wicked hearts. They are currently lead by Hades, who has unfortunately had heavy indoctrinated them into sharing a similar view point as him, with only a few like Bennia finding him insane.**

**In terms of power, a Low-Class Reaper is said to be as powerful as the average Middle-Class Devil, but how much stronger they are in higher ranks compared to others isn't as obvious, aside from even an Ultimate-Class Reaper shouldn't try fighting one of the Great Devils if they're by themselves. However, what makes them dangerous is the ability only they have among their entire species... soul striking.**

**As souls are what require a dead being to be revived, Grim Reapers are able to guarantee someone can't be revived by even the Sephiroth Graal's power, with their scythes even possessing a curse that makes them able to kill someone they've attacked the soul of if they can't recover from a non-fatal blow after dealing enough damage. Luckily, the Grim Reapers only follow the orders of who leads Tartarus, with only some doing their own things.**

**Like all Half-Gods, they're not immune to being reincarnated like true Gods, though it often requires many pieces to do so.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 8 – The Ivory Insurrection _ **

Pluto's eyes widened as Irina reappeared using Excalibur Transparency, followed by using her clones to slash at him.

"And you're pretty irritating, the whole lot of you!" Pluto growled.

Pluto roared loudly before swinging down, and stabbing the land itself, breaking it apart as the team of six moved themselves out of the way.

Landing on the ground, they all stared down Pluto again.

"You'll never defeat me, just give up!" Pluto stated.

"We'll never give up!" Asuka exclaimed.

Both sides rushed each other again, the battle freezing in place as they did.

Meanwhile, in another area of the battlefield, the sight of Yumina teleporting with Shalba in hand, forcing him to tumble as she let him go, was seen. He soon stumbled across the ground, growling as he got up to see Vali's peerage standing before him.

** _ Battle: Vali's Peerage and Yumina VS Shalba Beelzebub _ **

The remaining traitor among the Great Devil bloodlines sneered at the group, getting back on his feet.

"So, you actually have the sheer arrogance to face me?" Shalba mocked, brushing off his shoulder.

"That's big talk from the last of his traitorous kind, not to mention one whose replacement proved herself by slaying a God!" Yumina scowled, giving him a menacing look.

Shalba ignored the comment, soon reaching for something.

"Don't lump me in with the others. Katerea was in over her head, Creuserey underestimated too many people, Gavauren acted like an entitled brat, and Zentiika never did more than she felt she had needed to do." Shalba retorted.

"I'm not that foolish, and that's why I actually studied how to use this." Shalba revealed the last of the vials, namely the one for Beelzebub.

"That vial... you can't be serious, you're gonna risk the Chaos Break against us?" Kuroka remarked.

Shalba smirked at that, the brief moment of a smile was enough to throw the entire peerage off, as he normally didn't crack a smile.

"You're fools, those who use the Chaos Break don't share the blood of those who they empowered their own blood with. I on the other hand am the direct descendant of Beelzebub, so if to use the blood of my ancestor in my veins..." Shalba stated.

Yumina's eyes widened the instant she heard that, because of how scarily it made sense... if the Chaos Break was a risky move on a Devil using the blood of a Great Devil, then what would happen to someone who already had some of their blood flowing within them?

At that moment, Yumina instantly rushed ahead, teleporting in an attempt to stop him. The vial neared Shalba's arm, preparing to inject into his bloodstream

"I won't let you!"

"You're too late."

Shalba injected the last vial empty through the syringe, and a huge burst of energy shout out of his body. Yumina screamed in pain as she was knocked away, while the others were all knocked onto their backs or rear ends.

"Damn it... I was too slow." Yumina grunted, getting up.

Shalba's body was now glowing heavily from the power, and unlike with Jingu or Yumi, who both heavily mutated from using their vials, he was relatively the same. That was the proof of his theory right before them.

As someone with Beelzebub's blood, he got all of the Chaos Break's boons, but none of its banes.

"Kuroka, can you confirm it... that he's got none of the issues Jingu's body does from using one of those vials?" Yumina inquired.

"Let's see..." Kuroka replied, squinting her eyes.

After taking a moment, she sighed at the differences she felt between their chi flow.

"Unfortunately, he doesn't have them. This bastard's made himself stronger without any work or consequences." She grunted.

Shalba raised out his hand.

"Now, time for you maggots to die." He announced.

Yumina instantly grabbed the whole team, teleporting away from a beam, and then letting go as they all ran.

"Don't stay still for a second!" Yumina warned.

"Well, looks like we'll need to really pull out all the stops for this battle." Bikou exclaimed.

Whistling a bit, five powerful insects among Shalba's army appeared before them. The bugs they were based off of being a Rhinoceros Beetle, a Flea, a Locust, a Firefly, and a Snail. Looking at them, everyone readied themselves.

"I normally don't like bothering with bugs, but I guess we don't really have the option to say no this time." Kunou remarked.

"Come on everyone, let's show this jerk that we're not letting him ruin this world!" Le Fay exclaimed.

The insects all flew forward, with each member of the team dealing with a bug, the exception being Yumina, who was now locked in battle against Shalba.

** _ Sub-Battle 1: Bikou VS Mutant-Kabuto _ **

Bikou flew on the flying nimbus, the Mutant-Kabuto charging at him like an actual Rhino with its horn, which fired at him like a laser beam when too far. Bikou simply dodged it, even dancing his hips slightly to shake the Nimbus out of the way.

"Take this, you bastard buggy!" Bikou shouted.

He swung the Ryu Jingu Bang down, which the Mutant-Kabuto chose countered with its horn, slamming it against the replica of the mighty staff.

Bikou strained himself as he kept pushing down on his staff, his opponent doing the same with all its strength. The area around them began to push down, with their overwhelming force refusing to let the other's defeat them. Eventually, as it began to slip, the Mutant-Kabuto made a loud clicking nose as its body began to expand muscles from its limbs, pushing them all towards the horn, which grew more spikes in response as it gained more strength.

"Shit!" Bikou grunted, starting to lose.

As the descendant of Sun Wukong began being pushed to the brink, he grunted as a certain memory flashed through his head.

* * *

_Within part of Russia, the sight of Vali, Bikou, Penemue and Baraqiel were seen sitting in a snowy field, standing by a fire as Penemue poured them all a bowl of hot soup._

_"Looks good." Vali smiled, taking a bite and the savoring the taste._

_"Vali, are you sure you're not too cold with just that?" Baraqiel inquired._

_While the two cadre were wearing heavy jackets, and Bikou had a thick coat to cover where his armor wasn't regulating his body heat, Vali was only wearing a light jacket, ear muffs, and long pant._

_"Yeah, I'm fine. I don't feel that cold at all." Vali confirmed._

**"(It's most likely due to my influence, many of my past wielders were resistant to cold temperatures or ice magic because I'm one myself. Unfortunately, that same luck doesn't apply to my poison, so don't risk that.)"**

_Vali gave a forced laugh at the poison mention, wondering if she would have been better off being unaware of that detail._

_As that was happening, she noticed Bikou not touching his soup._

_"Bikou, what's wrong?" She asked._

_"...Are you sure about this, me being here?"" Bikou suddenly said._

_"Huh?"_

_Bikou looked at her, making Vali blink a bit._

_"You could find someone a lot better than me, so why did you convince the old man to let me leave to find my own path? What would make you choose me of all people as someone you'd trust in your future peerage?" Bikou begged, not understanding what made her choose to help him._

_Vali stared before suddenly laughing, making Bikou stare at her._

_"W-why are you laughing?" Bikou asked worriedly._

_"Oh dear, you really don't get it, do you?" Penemue giggled, turning her head away._

_"Get what?" Bikou asked in a confused manner._

_"Because the reason is simple, Bikou."_

_Vali turned to face him, her eyes showing a somewhat saddened look, catching Bikou off guard._

_"Because, more than anyone... I know what it's like to have the potential to go far, but feel like you're completely worthless." Vali answered._

* * *

Bikou grunted, and soon shouted, pushing the Mutant-Kabuto back to its complete shock.

**「** **Fairy Tail: Strike Back** **」**

"You were right, Vali!" Bikou shouted.

"**Golden Ancestry!**"

Reeling his staff back, it and the Flying Nimbus fused with him, and his legs dashed forward as cloud wisp lead him to the creepy crawler. It gave another loud click as it jumped forward, firing a beam with a ramming attack following it.

"Is that all you have!?" Bikou shouted.

Bikou grabs the blast, surprising the bug before screaming loudly, and firing out the Ryu Jingu Bang from his palm, smashing the attack back as it slammed into the mutated insect's head, sending it off course. Rushing forward at the chance, the descendant of Sun Wukong smashed his fist into the bug's head, splintering its powerful horn.

With his golden aura blasting out more, it exploded forward like a solar flare, making the insect click in pain as it was incinerated into nothing.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Bikou panted a bit, smirking at this victory.

* * *

Kuroka jumped out of the way of the Mutant-Flea's powerful jumps, sighing in annoyance.

** _ Sub-Battle 2: Kuroka VS Mutant-Flea _ **

"Of course I got the flea, they just love cats, don't they?" Kuroka remarked with annoyance, realizing the cruel irony.

It made her wonder if some kind of higher power made it target her.

The Mutant-Flea jumped at her again, with Kuroka unleashing some hinotama at it. Seeing them coming, the Flea shifted its legs, bouncing around a bit to dodge, and then smash into the Black Nekoshou from behind. She tumbled across the ground slightly, before landing on her feet to growl at the disgusting insect.

"If you think this is enough to take me out, then you'll be sorely mistaken..." Kuroka stated, recalling a certain memory.

* * *

_Kuroka panted as she continued decimating an entire pursuit force after her, starting to hit her limits. She was ranked as an SS-Class stray, so the numbers and strength of those being sent after her was continuously getting more dangerous for each one she stopped._

_If she got any higher before getting outside of Hell's borders, she might not make it._

_"Quick, she's gone this way!" A Devil shouted._

_Her eyes widened, gritting her teeth as she was caught again._

_'I can't take much more of this, but I can't die here, I... need to get back to her.' Kuroka thought in worry._

_'Shirone...' The sight of her little sister flashed through her head._

_Right as Devils prepared to swarm her again, something fell from the sky, and they all froze in place. Even Kuroka showed surprise as she locked her gaze to see Vali for the first time._

_"By order of Lilith herself, you are to stand down." Vali stated._

_"What the hell? Who are you?" A Devil demanded._

_"I wouldn't take that tone with me, I'm here on the Great Devil's request, so you will stand down. I'm here because there's evidence that Stray Devil Kuroka is not the stray we've labeled her as." Vali warned._

_Everyone felt the same kind of calm anger from her that Lilith was known for making, and stood down as fear washed over them._

_"W-what is..." Kuroka stuttered in shock._

_"Just play along, right now I'm making a gamble here, but on my honor as a Lucifer, I will try to save you." Vali whispered._

* * *

Kuroka began moving her finger, making familiar Youjutsu symbols.

"I was nearly thrust into the road of darkness to save my sister, and now the rest of the world is under that same risk. It's time I give it what you gave me... a new chance in the light, but destroying the evil before me." Kuroka declared, a fierce look on her face.

**「** **Ousama Game - The Animation: Feed the Fire** **」**

Kuroka activates her Kuro Mode at that moment, and the flea bounces at her in a moment, opening its mouth to unleash a flurry of energy blasts at her. She slaps the ground at that moment, her form enhancing the Youjutsu as it made a large forest field, and disappearing from view. The Mutant-Flea slides to a stop, trying to find her as a sudden mist began wash over it...

Except that wasn't a mist, it was some kind of energy that paralyzed its movements.

"My magic mist is wicked effective against Devils, and unfortunately that's what part of your mutated composition happens to be. My old master really should have considered how well I'd know his work if he was helping Shalba's efforts for this day." Kuroka mocked, holding part of her kimono sleeve to her face.

The Mutant-Flea shook a bit as it turned, attempting to launch itself despite its paralyzed nature, although it only managed to force its movements a little bit.

"Alright, if you wanna fight, then prepare to meet a flea collar that fights back." Kuroka warned.

The Mutant-Flea unleashed more energy fire, with Kuroka dodging as it did.

Seeing her move around faster than it could react, it forced itself to jump high, preparing energy in its mouth as it prepared to land, using it as a bomb to attack the whole area. Unfortunately, it made one small calculation...

Kuroka wasn't afraid to appear where it would land, leaving it wide open.

"This is how you kick ass, sage art style."

She threw her arm up with a Senjutsu infused fist, smashing right through the bug abomination's insides. In just a few seconds, its own attack flew up while inside it, exploding as it, and the Senjutsu of Kuroka's attack, made it explode.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Kuroka smirked, blowing her fingernails for emphasis.

* * *

Le Fay readied herself as the Mutant-Locust slowly circled, clicking threateningly as it tried to confuse her.

** _ Sub-Battle 3: Le Fay VS Mutant-Locust _ **

The Pendragon Magician swallowed a bit.

'This Locust doesn't eat meat, right?' Le Fay thought.

The Locust's drool slips out of its mouth, which instantly made Le Fay sweat nervously as that answered her question for her.

'It does!' She panicked.

"OK, better attack first then." Le fay thrust her wand forward, creating a pair of magic circles.

As she did, she started thinking to the past.

* * *

_Le Fay was walking through the halls of her home, and soon walked past its library, making her notice Vali inside of it, reading some books about magic._

_"Hmm... so, certain elements have a better affinity for certain people than others, but that doesn't mean they can't be used." Vali mumbled as she read to herself._

_"That's right, even a Devil could cast a light spell, provided it's not holy light."_

_Vali screamed in surprise, throwing the book up before catching it, seeing Le Fay behind her, who looked a bit frightened from the reaction._

_"I'm so sorry about that, I didn't mean to freak you out!" Le Fay apologized._

_The heiress of Lucifer chuckled, rubbing the back of her head._

_"Elaine told me the library's useless empty at this hour, so I didn't think anyone would be coming inside." Vali admitted._

_"So, you're studying magic? I'm kinda surprised since you came here for some more physical training." Le Fay inquired._

_"Well, it's kinda a bit of both. I need to have some physical skill in case I can't use magic, but I'll admit it, I'm more of a wizard-type person." Vali explained._

_"Ah, I see. It's like how I know some basic skills in swordsmanship, so I know how to defend and parry against weapons." Le Fay realized._

_Vali nodded at that._

_"Yeah, I think Elaine said she was that taught you, is that correct?" Vali asked._

_Le Fay's eyes widen, followed by a sad look._

_"Huh?" Vali blinked at that response._

_"Vali, I don't think you should try getting too close to us, you'll just be dragged into our problems." Le Fay said, turning away._

_At that moment, Vali stood up._

_"OK then, drag me in, because I'm already in those issues if I'm your friend."_

_Le Fay's eyes widened at that, with Vali smiling at her._

* * *

Le Fay breathed, shedding a single tear.

'And you helped us fix that problem, even though you didn't need to... Elaine and my brother are happy again because of you.' Le Fay thought happily.

"Now, I'll help protect your homeland, Vali!" Le Fay declared.

**「** **Naruto Shippuden: Closer** **」**

She finished the magic circles, prompting the Mutant-Locust to rush at her.

**"Call: I summon my loyal hunting dogs, howl from the moon, I signal thee... Hell Wolf Pack!"**

**"Create: I summon from the deep earth, create my loyal guard, I name thee... Goliath!"**

As a familiar armored being of rocks appeared, so did various wolves with ruffled black fur, marked with red streaks, and silver patches of fur in some spots. The main wolf being slightly bigger, and a gold patch within the silver patch on its forehead.

The Mutant-Locust instantly stopped in place, buzzing a bit before its wings distorted the vision around it, trying to hide itself from Le Fay's summons.

"Goliath, stand by until I give the order. Wolf pack, you know what to do." Le Fay ordered.

The lead wolf nodded, and they all held their stands, sniffing out the Locust's position. Eventually, it prepared to chomp Le Fay from behind, making the wolves all bark in response, turning towards her.

"Behind me, Goliath!" Le Fay warned.

The Golem instantly slammed its hands on the ground behind her, hitting the Mutant-Locust in an instant. The abnormal insect twitched as it felt its wings unable to move, destroying its only ability to hide.

"We work together, something you don't understand." Le Fay declared.

"**Blaze Bomb.**"

She cast the spell quietly, burning the Locust into ashes.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Taking a deep breath, Le Fay sighed in relief.

* * *

Kunou stood before the Mutant-Firefly, which blinked with an actual flame before it.

** _ Sub-Battle 4: Kunou VS Mutant-Firefly _ **

Kunou stretched out her arms and legs, shaking them a little.

"Alright little buggy, I've only got one thing to say to you..." Kunou stated as she stared it down

**「** **Attack on Titan: Guren no Yumiya** **」**

"Let's see whose flames are hotter."

Kunou unleashed her fox fire at the Mutant-Firefly, which danced around the attacks, soon holdings its abdomen out to blast flashes of fire towards her. Kunou rolled out of the way, jumping up to grab the monster's antennae.

The chimeric insect began trying to shake her off, and Kunou struggled to hang on before she made it near the ground, tumbling a bit.

"**Fox Dragon Mode!**"

Kunou's appearance gains a white tint, and she unleashes flaming Dragons to smash into the Firefly, quickly surrounding it in flames too hot for it to handle.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Kunou cheered as she jumped up, pumping a fist into the air.

"Victory!"

* * *

Arthur stared down the Mutant-Snail before him, and took a deep breath as he drew Caliburn from its sheath.

** _ Sub-Battle 5: Arthur VS Mutant-Snail _ **

Once it spotted the sword, the armored mutant suddenly curled inside its shell, spinning towards him like a wheel with incredible speed.

"Somehow, I had a feeling it could do that." Arthur remarked.

He held up his sword, but was surprised by the force as the beast pushed him back, such a level of strength he only remembered facing once before.

* * *

_Arthur fell to the ground, his father standing before him with Caliburn in hand, while he held Excalibur Ruler, a condition of the duel they were fighting._

_In order to gain the right of being able to live with Elaine without her life being at risk, Vali gave him the offer of joining her peerage, but for that to happen? He needed to prove such an act didn't make Caliburn turn against him, in other words... he had to defeat his father in combat._

_"Arthur, no..." Elaine gasped in fear._

_"Big brother!" Le Fay cried out._

_Arthur's father closed his eyes, turning away as he was sure he had won._

_"That's it, the fight's ended, now take that maid to be punished." He ordered._

_Elaine's eyes widened, whimpering as the guards prepared themselves, only for Vali to cast her Primal Abyss near them in warning._

_"What!? How dare you-" A guard exclaimed._

_"Look closer, Arthur's not finished, act now and you'll cost your king the victory." Vali remarked._

_Everyone was about to call her a fool, but... sure enough, Arthur was about to get back on his feet! His father turned, somewhat surprised, but not enough to care._

_'Come on Arthur, you love her, right?' Vali's voice questioned in his mind._

_'If you do, then don't do this for me, do this... for her! If you join my peerage, I can take her away from Camelot, and she'll be safe. You'll have the right to be with her, to love her, and to marry her.' Her voice continued echoing._

_'Do it... FOR HER!'_

_Arthur got back on his feet, looking at his father without hesitation or fear._

_"Fine, then I guess I must-"_

_Before his father could finish, Caliburn suddenly shook, hurting his hands as it flew into Arthur's. His father and the entire crowd showed shock... Caliburn found someone unworthy alright, but it was not Arthur._

_'I knew it, there's no way Caliburn wouldn't stay with one whose feelings are true and sure.' Vali smiled._

_"What happened?" Le Fay questioned._

_"A sword is not meant to kill, it's meant to protect people where a shield cannot. Your father seems to have forgotten that." Vali remarked._

_Elaine teared up, realizing what this meant._

_As Arthur's father stared at what he saw, he walked off._

_"...You have won, so do what you want, I won't touch her." Arthur's father said quietly._

* * *

Arthur grunted, drawing more holy power into the sword before slashing down, and pushing the Mutant-Snail across the field. It curled out of its shell, regaining its footing.

**「** **Sword Art Online: Innocence** **」**

"I won't allow my efforts to end here, because she's still waiting for me... I can't die here!" Arthur exclaimed.

The Mutant-Snail began spinning again, charging across the field even faster than before.

Holding his sword out, he slashed forward.

"**Gawain's Reach!**"

The sword hit from the side, sending the beast spinning of control across its side.

"Now, time to break open that shell you hide under."

"**Lancelot's Shield!**"

His body covered itself in a diamond shell, and he rushed forward, swinging down to smash through the shell, leaving the creature inside exposed. It screeched in horror.

"And that's checkmate." He declared.

He swung down, cutting the creature in two as a large glowing slash burned across it.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

It soon exploded, leaving Arthur to breath in relief.

Alongside him, the other members of Vali's peerage soon turned to see how Yumina was dealing with Shalba, before rushing over to aid her.

* * *

Yumina tumbled a bit as she was knocked back by Shalba's latest attack, and slid across the ground before regaining her footing. He rushed at again, making her teleport away.

**「** **Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - The Movie 2nd: A.C.S. Drive** **」**

She reappeared upside down, unleashing a burst of shadow magic towards him.

Reacting to it, he simply grabbed it, and then crushed it to pieces. After doing this, he swung his hand down, unleashing another wave of magic that Yumina was forced to teleport away from.

"Give it up, you can't beat me." Shalba stated.

Yumina panted, getting up on her feet.

"I REFUSE!"

Yumina's body began teleporting in a single spot, with her intangibility doing something.

"My friends are fighting alongside me, even if I'm not in this peerage yet... I'm still fighting for my team's victory!" Yumina stated with determination.

"I won't stop fighting, and I'll use every ounce of my power I have!" She began to scream as she generated more power.

Shalba's eyes widened as her body's glow got stronger.

"What is she..." He had no idea of what the Lucifuge heiress was attempting to do.

Yumina started to feel her power fade, making her one leg slump to the ground. Despite this, she struggled to keep her gaze on Shalba, and to not fall to the ground.

"I... I have to..." She grunted.

"We've got your back, Yumina!"

She suddenly felt some magic flow into her, turning to see the others lending their magic to her through one of Le Fay's spells.

"Everyone..." Yumina breathed.

"Go for it!" Kunou cheered.

"We're behind you." Le Fay smiled.

"Don't lose." Kuroka stated.

"Our power is yours." Arthur replied.

"Yeah, so use it all you need!" Bikou agreed, flashing a thumb's up.

Feeling all the power, Yumina teared up before her body flashed brightly, and she announced the new technique she had been working on for a while.

"**Phantasmical... Phaser!**"

She burst forward at incredible speed, smashing into Shalba as he put up a shield, only for it to slowly be pushed away.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"What is this!?" Shalba demanded.

"Vali! Issei! Kunou! Le Fay! Arthur! Bikou! Kuroka! This is my resolve... this is my strength!" Yumina screamed with all the power she had.

She continued to push forward, but at that moment... Shalba held up a hand, suddenly disappearing to Yumina's shock. The sudden act made her dispel her attack, trying to figure out where he went.

'I have a bad feeling about this...' She sweated heavily at the thought of what might happen next.

* * *

Back up in the sky, the sight of Issei and Vali's fight with the Jabberwocky could be seen.

Vali was seen a good distance from the beast, taking the long-ranged position of their battlefield as she swung her arms around, forming three dozen magic circles in the air. With a mighty shot, she fired them off.

"**Ivory Burst!**"

The Jabberwocky was struck by the beams, prompting Issei to instantly charge with his fist coated in red magic.

"**Crimson Domination Fist!**"

Issei smashed his fist into the beast, making a huge explosion smash a chunk off its body.

Unfortunately, they quickly saw firsthand just how well the monster could regenerate, as it only took a few seconds for its body to start repairing the damage it had taken, followed by a roar once it fully recovered.

"Damn, that thing really can heal itself that fast." Issei remarked.

"Well, that just proves we'll need to go although, I'm worried how our breaths could end up as friendly fire." Vali replied worriedly.

Their respective Sacred Gears lit up at that.

**"[Don't worry, since the Sacred Gears can respond to your desires, you have something we didn't through these powers, control.]"** Ddraig stated.

"Wait, you mean like... we only target what we want to burn or rot away?" Issei inquired.

**"(If that's what you wish for, then it can be so, because otherwise it would be too dangerous to ever use them against anything other than Trihexa. That being said, you should still use them sparingly, as even we would eventually need to recharge before we could use them again.)"** Albion answered, explaining some added details.

The two looked at each other, and Vali nodded.

"Alright, let's do it." Vali decided.

"Let's go!" Issei agreed.

They both rushed around the Jabberwocky, which blasted at them with a large green breath.

"Alright, here we go!" Issei announced.

Both breathed in, ready to blast out their ultimate abilities.

* * *

Back on the ground, Gebedon suddenly stopped for a moment, sensing something via his Invader Sight that made him look around in a panic.

"Gebedon, is something wrong?" Lilith asked.

"Yeah, I've never seen you look so pale." Homura agreed.

He panted a bit, looking at them.

"Lilith, I just saw something awful via my clan ability. While I can't tell where he is, there's someone here that should still be in Cocytus, it's... Samael!" He revealed.

The Devil Queen's eyes widened in horror.

"No... Hades, you actually managed to unseal him? He was supposed to be so deep in Cocytus that only Leviathan could have freed him!" She stated in pure terror.

"Uh, a little heads up?" Homura asked worriedly.

"Homura, the one known as Samael... it's the serpent that made Adam and Eve gain sin by tempting them to eat the Fruits of Life and Knowledge. It was such an awful act, that God cursed the being with the hate and anger that nearly poisoned his mind with evil. This made him a hybrid of a Dragon, and a Fallen Angel. However, the worst thing about it was that Samael's poison was transformed, enough that it has a title all Dragons fear." Lilith breathed as she spoke that title.

"The Dragon Eater."

Homura's eyes widened, suddenly realizing what that meant.

"God, no... did he bring that thing out just to kill our children!?" Homura held her head at the horrible thought.

However, she then remembered something that made Lilith's fear seem unfounded.

"B-but wait, I thought that Valerie helped them make Dragon Slayers useless on them?" She questioned.

"She did, but that's the problem... Samael's poison isn't a Dragon slayer, because it's just as deadly on snakes and evil. That means they can't defend against it! If it kills them, it would be the same as a Grim Reaper murdering them!" Lilith answered in a panic.

At that moment, the white-haired Hero of the Akane clan nearly shut down from the revelation.

Turning to Gebedon, he grabbed his shoulders.

"Find out where Samael is, and fast! Then get someone to warn our children! I'm not losing my son here!" Homura screamed, shaking him.

Gebedon nodded his head, trying to spot where Samael was hiding before it's too late.

* * *

At that moment, Issei and Vali unleashed their ultimate breath attacks.

"**Blazing Inferno of Scorching Flames!**"

"**Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom!**"

The powerful flames and acidic mist struck the Jabberwocky, making it roar as it was definitely enveloped in the attacks, but it still regenerated too fast to be destroyed by them!

"It's surviving our attacks!?" Issei exclaimed in disbelief.

**"[Wait, something's going on...]"** Ddraig noticed.

He felt the Jabberwocky's energy, and that's when he sensed it. Even though it was able to heal, because it was a Sacred Gear construct, there was one fatal weakness... it's regeneration had a breaking point!

**"[Alright, good news you two! It can't regenerate forever because it comes from a Sacred Gear! Just keep going, and eventually it'll stop being able to heal itself!]"** Ddraig alerted.

"OK then, full power!" Vali agreed.

**「** **Fairy Tail: The Last Magic** **」**

The two had their auras flare up.

**[BOOST!] x1000**

**(DIVIDE!) x1000**

The Jabberwocky felt its power siphoned away by Vali, while Issei keeps increasing his power. Both of them scream loudly as they start flying up, pushing the Jabberwocky up as they do so. Seeing its body move, the beast's eyes widened.

Meanwhile, back on the ground, everyone was looking at the sight above them, surprising everyone.

"Whoa..." Asuka breathed.

"It's like a shooting star." Yumina remarked.

As Lilith saw it, she gasped at the sight, as if she was suddenly seeing the answer to something important finally reveal itself.

* * *

_Lilith was with Satan as he looked at the sky, with his wife finally having to ask about his constant staring._

_"OK, I need to ask, why do you always have this thing about the future related to the sky? Can you please explain it?" She said with a pouting look, feeling ignored._

_"Uh... OK, just let me see your smile again, please?" Satan chuckled, waving his hands._

_Lilith tapped her fingers on her arm, making him realize it wouldn't be until he told her that she'd smile, making him chuckle nervously._

_"...For the strongest Devil, it still surprises me how you're the one person that I can't beat in any form." Satan sighed, finally giving in._

_"The sky above is false for a reason that you might not think, it's just how I had to create it with how things are right now. A wall that must divide us. However, one day I know something will be able to shatter that wall, and the day that happens..." Satan explained._

_"The day that happens... what?" Lilith questioned._

_Satan smiled as he answered her questioned, his mouth moving to speak the words._

* * *

They kept pushing the Jabberwocky up with all their force, and at that moment... the beast suddenly smashed into something.

It was at that moment, the sky suddenly cracked!

"What the heck!?" Ineelana exclaimed.

"The sky is cracking!" Most Devils screamed at the same time.

The Jabberwocky was pushed forward, making more cracks appear, and then finally... it shattered, revealing the blue sky of Earth, with the sun shining through!

"That's... the sun!" Diehauser gasped in shock.

Because of the Devils living in the darkness, while not completely dark, Hell's sky didn't have its own sun. Everyone in Hell, especially its own people, all saw the fake sky of Hell fade away, as if to symbolize how the divide between the human and supernatural worlds was no more.

_"That day that happens, I can finally feel I kept his promise I took, and reclaim my former name."_

"Lucifer..." Lilith gasped, tearing up as she saw it.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The Jabberwocky continued to be shot up into the sky by their attack, and where they went would be another surprise.

* * *

As the forces in Kuoh Town were finally quelled, luckily with no deaths to speak off, a suddenly rumble went off as everyone saw something burst out of the area of Kuoh Town that was nothing but abandoned buildings.

"What now!?" Matsuda and Motohama cried, thinking more trouble had come.

From that part of town, the sight of the Jabberwocky came into everyone's view, with those already aware of the supernatural gasping.

"The Jabberwocky? No way, why's it here?" Tadami shouted in shock.

"I think we have our answer flying under it!" Ouryuu pointed out.

Everyone looked to see the flames and mist of the two Heavenly Dragons as they pushed through, still attacking the Jabberwocky.

"Huh? Who are those two?" Katase questioned.

"Wait, something about them feels familiar..." Murayama realized.

Finally, the two coughed as they used up their breaths entirely, forcing them to recharge. While the Jabberwocky did regenerate, it was now very slow, showing it had used up the last of its healing ability. The monster was even panted as it floated in midair.

"Aw man, too tired, need to..." Issei grunted.

"Yeah, can't fight... like this now, release!" Vali agreed.

The two both dispelled their scale mails, shocking most of the people upon seeing them.

"ISSEI!?" The perverted exclaimed.  
"VALI!?" The kendo duo exclaimed.

Hearing those voices, the two suddenly had their eyes go white, and turned to see they were in... Kuoh Town!

"H-how did we get here?" Issei questioned.

"This is gonna be awkward later..." Vali gave a forced laugh.

At that moment, the Jabberwocky roared loudly, charging up a powerful beam that it aimed at the town, catching the duo's attention.

"Oh no, at this rate the town's gonna be wiped out!" Vali shouted.

Issei tried to think of something.

"We need to beat it now, but how? We're at our limits." Issei wondered.

_"[I believe it's time...]"_ Belzard stated.

_"(...That we lend the future the strength of the past.)"_ Elsha winked.

Both noticed their strongest predecessors' spirits appear besides them, with both taking their hands in theirs.

_"[(We shall end this war, together.)]"_

* * *

Back in Hell, Gebedon finally noticed where Samael was, and his eyes widened in horror.

"Oh my god, no..." Gebedon gasped.

"What, did you find-" Homura asked.

"I did, we need our fastest people to hurry, while I'm still not exist, he's right where Issei and Vali are right now... Kuoh Town!"

Everyone gasped at that, while Yumina and Ravel finally learned of Samael, realizing what he was present for.

"Wait, the Dragon Eater's nearby, and you didn't tell us!?" Yumina screamed in anger.

"I couldn't find you, and Homura said to find him fast! I didn't have the time, if you wanna help, get to Kuoh Town right now!" Gebedon warned.

At that moment, Yumina looked at Irina, and grabbed her wrist.

"Quick, we need my clan ability and your Excalibur Rapidly power to get there as fast as possible!" She exclaimed.

"R-right!" Irina replied.

The two peerages gathered together, along with Lilith, Homura, and Ayumu.

"Please, let us make it..." Lilith begged.

They all vanished as the two powers merged, sending them towards Kuoh Town.

* * *

At that moment, Issei and Vali saw the rest of their past possessors appear beside them.

"Everyone..." Issei and Vali said in unison.

They all nodded, and soon a red and white sphere appeared in their respective hands.

**「** **Naruto Shippuden: Douten/Heaven Shaking Event** **」**

The spheres grew larger as everyone lend their power to it, even Ddraig and Albion with the little power they could spare to the two. As they did, the spheres started to grow huge, surprising them both. However, that wasn't the biggest surprise, as something came to them alongside the power that was imbued into the two spheres.

It was memories.

The sight of Ddraig and Albion's first battle, their sealing into their respective Longinus, the first hosts to use them, the formation of the curse of their endless conflict, the things that Belzard and Elsha faced, and then finally... their first meeting.

"This is..." Vali gasped.

"Vali, just how much... have our powers endured to reach this point?" Issei questioned.

The two looked at each other, and the answer became clear.

"This is our story, isn't it?" Issei realized with a smile.

"Yeah, the Legend of the Heavenly Dragons, and we're the ones that will change it." Vali agreed, smiling back.

At that moment, they close their hands to temporarily shrink both spheres, and then both rush forward. At that moment, the Jabberwocky fired at them, and everyone watched with a worried expression, while also hoping for a miracle.

"This is our power!" They both scream, swinging their arms forward.

"**_HEAVENLY STRIKE!_**"

The red and white spheres smash each side of the Jabberwocky, and the two Dragons' powers clashed with each other, causing a huge reaction that swallowed the Jabberwocky inside. The ultimate beast of the Annihilation Maker roared as it was consumed by the attack.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Everyone gave expressions of relief and happiness, seeing the beast was beaten.

"We did it!" Issei cheered.

"Yeah!" Vali smiled in response.

However, that victory was short lived as something flew out of the Jabberwocky before it was destroyed, grabbing the two in a grip neither could break. It was a creature that had the body of a Human, but with blindfolded eyes that were crying tears of blood, fangs for its teeth, the wings of a Fallen Angel, and its legs were replaced by a serpent-like Dragon tail.

It was the creature that Gebedon had warned everyone off... the dreaded Dragon Eater, Samael!

"What!?" Issei exclaimed.

"LOOK OUT!" Vali screamed.

However, it was too late, neither could move as Samael's mouth opened up. At that moment, the others finally arrived... right as Samael blasted all its venom on the two! Everyone stared in horror as the Dragon Eater's fatal poison blasted them, making a certain few lose their voices.

Soon, the three crashed to the ground, and Samael still blasting them with venom as they did.

"NO!"

Lilith and Homura unleash their Domineering Will and Primal Abyss at the monster, making it give a quiet screech before it vanished from view.

**「** **One Piece: Luffy's Sorrow** **」**

As the dust cleared, everyone ran over to the two, and the horror came before everyone's eyes... the two were drenched in venom, and their eyes were looking lifeless. Signs of blood leaking from their mouths were also noticed.

"No... it can't be." Asia gasped in horror.

"Quick, heal them Asia!" Le Fay exclaimed.

**«It won't work, this is a poison that exists through a curse born from God's emotions... I'm sorry, but we can't save them»** Fafnir apologized, his voice shaking.

At that moment, everyone stared in horror, while the twin Dragons' respective parents held them close.

"W-who's there?" Issei breathed weakly.

"It's me Issei, I'm right here, so is your father." Homura answered, crying a bit.

Issei weakly turned, unable to see them.

"Please, just save your strength, I beg of you." Homura cried.

Issei cried as he smiled, his eyes starting to close.

"Mom, I'm... so sorry, but I think... I won't be able to keep my... promise." Vali gasped for air, feeling herself slipping away from life.

Lilith shook her head.

"Don't talk like that, it'll be fine, you haven't broken you promise yet!" Lilith cried.

As this happened, their Sacred Gears both lit up one last time.

**"[Issei... you were the... best partner I have had.]"** Ddraig began to whimper, tears filling his eyes.

**"(Vali, forgive me... for not being able to... stop this.)"** Albion was soon doing the same, his voice shaking.

At that moment, Issei and Vali took each other's hands, and then... their eyes closed, with each of their Sacred Gear's suddenly having their forms crack, showing them in a broken state.

There was no way to deny it any longer, Issei and Vali... were both dead.

"Issei?" Homura gasped out, with Ayumu covering his face as he collapsed on his legs.

"Issei!"

"ISSEI!"

Lilith's hair shadowed her eyes, and tears flew down.

"You gave me your word! We promised to restore Hell... we promised to restore it, together! Why is everyone I care for taken away from me!?" Lilith cried.

"Come back to me, Vali..." She begged.

* * *

Back in Hell, Amalya was keeping tabs on what happened with Gebedon's aid... and then both suddenly began crying.

"W-what happened you two, tell us they're OK!" Ineelana demanded, her face shaking.

"We... we can't!" Gebedon screamed.

He covered his face, sobbing loudly as fell to the ground. At that moment, everyone in Hell realized the only thing that could have happened, each of them giving their own reactions.

"No, it... it can't be." Rias gasped.

"Issei, and Vali... are dead?" Sona said in horror.

As this happened, Ineelana punched herself, soon crying as she covered the left side of her face. Niruili soon hugged her, crying into her chest.

It didn't take long for their friends to follow suit, while from a distance...

"Oh, so they're gone now?" Jingu smirked.

"It seems that Samael did his job, now we just need to finish things off once we free ourselves from these bindings." Hades smirked alongside her.

Shalba appeared besides them.

"I believe you need my aid in this matter?" He inquired.

* * *

Asuka slumped to her legs, tears flowing out as Yuuma and Asia hugged each other, slumping to the ground. Rossweisse only gave a distance stare, as while she didn't have the same bond with Issei as the others yet, she felt she had failed him as a member of his peerage. While for Ravel, she fell forward, and soon cried into the ground. Irina was, well... she just stood there as if her body shut down.

For Vali's peerage, Kunou instantly began crying in Kuroka's chest, who turned away as she shed tears, feeling to guilty to look at her fallen friend. Le Fay lowered her head, sniffling as Arthur put a hand on his shoulder, his voice trembling as he removed his glasses. Bikou stumbled to a nearby building, screaming as he punched it over and over, spouting curses without end. Finally, Yumina's hands shook, and she covered her face, lowering her body as she couldn't even project her voice.

While that happened, Pluto appeared behind everyone.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Upon seeing the two Heavenly Dragons' hosts were now dead, he gave mocking laugh towards their grieving friends and family. Behind him, most of the forces from Hell were behind him, making the citizens panic as the other supernatural forces began evacuating them.

"Aw, well would you look at that? You're Kings are dead! How tragic, I think now it's time for us to end this war once and for-" Pluto exclaimed with a confident look.

Finally snapping out of his stupor, Irina screamed as she swung the True Excalibur through the Ultimate-Class Reaper. Before he even realized it, he and the rest of the enemy army's forces saw one of their greatest Grim Reapers right down the middle!

**「** **Sekirei - Pure Engagement: Change the World** **」**

"W-what... the... hell?" Pluto gasped.

He instantly exploded apart, terrifying the entire enemy army as where Pluto had made Irina's group struggle, this time... she alone destroyed him with just a single strike! Standing on her feet, she raised her sword to her friends, making an announcement everyone in Hell heard.

"**Everyone! We will not lose, so don't lose faith, because if we fail here... there will never be a chance to grieve, or give the fallen the burials they deserve! For the sake of everyone alive and that's dead... we must fight back, and win!**" She screamed with determination, despite the tears she was shedding.

Everyone screamed in response, agreeing with her.

In just one moment, the entire Alliance's forces flew out of the hole leading to Kuoh. At that moment, everyone in the enemy army, with the exceptions of Hades, Jingu, and Shalba (who were all still in Hell), saw themselves surrounded.

"You said you wanted a war, didn't you? Well then... don't complain to us if that war kills you, because we're not letting any of you out of this conflict alive!" Lilith announced.

With that, she announced the final stage of the Second Great War.

* * *

**Well... I really don't have much to say about the last moments of this chapter, but I think most people knew this moment was coming because of the last part of Season 5's first scene. That was when I showed the Boosted Gear, and the Divine Dividing in a broken state. As for Pluto, well... now you know why I didn't have him killed last chapter, it was to have Irina do finish him off here.**

**Anyways, that's the first half of the Pandemonium arc. The rest of it will be a last major battle within Kuoh Town, finally ending the threats of the main villain trio still in Hell's walls, and most of all... Issei and Vali's mini-journey to be revived as they end up helping a familiar duo before the Dimensional Gap fully collapses, and destroys the two Dragon Deities trapped within.**

**Now we know what the false sky of Hell was, it was a wall between it and the Human world. There's no easy way to describe how that works, so... *shrugs* I guess every reader think of it their own way? I mean, Heaven's made of clouds, so you could sink through the ground if you tried to, or at least get in by flying through the bottom. Then again, supernatural lands that aren't on Earth's surface usually don't make sense.**

**The biggest reveal this chapter gave? Well, it's probably the smallest thing among it, one that I'm pretty sure you've already figured out by seeing it... yet I still won't say anymore to until the next story, since it's not gonna be important until then. Either way, we all saw the King of all Devils say something very interesting to his wife, something that no other Devil seems to know about.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	73. Chapter 73

**And here we are, the second half of the Pandemonium arc has finally begun. Everyone has to continue the fight while both Issei and Vali are currently nothing but souls, neither of them truly aware they're dead just yet, while unknowingly being guided to a certain duo. However, right now the Alliance has yet to notice that Shalba, Hades, and Jingu are not among the enemy army... yet.**

**This half of the arc is the one that I've really been excited to get to, because I'm about to pull something that I don't most of you will see coming, and it's one that I don't think has been used in any DxD fanfic just yet... at least among the ones I've read. Then again, it might be when I'm still fairly sure I'm the first to split Raynare's normal and Yuuma halves in two. *shrugs* Though, I guess that's not too important here.**

**Now, you might be wondering how Issei and Vali are gonna get to the Dimensional Gap when in canon, it was Ophis that brought them there, while that option is available to them because she's literally in a bind. Well... you'll find out, just like it won't be much longer until we see who the mysterious captor of our Dragon Deities just happens to be.**

**So, without any more delay, let the second half of the Pandemonium arc... begin!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking through a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Samael, the Dragon Eater **

**The most dangerous enemy to all Dragons, and the former worst prisoner of Cocytus, being such a horrible being, the original Leviathan put him in an area of the icy prison that only she was apparently able to open, and therefore was eternally locked upon her demise in the First Great War. He is part Fallen Angel, part Dragon, and all dangerous.**

**Samael was originally the serpent that existed within the Garden of Eden, during the time of Adam and Lilith. It was watching when the latter refused Adam for the reasons of wanting to have a choice, and seeing how God reacted to this, he began getting dangerous ideas when he created Eve from his rib cage. As such, he tempted the two to eat the Fruits of Knowledge and Life, despite God's warnings.**

**Unfortunately, the serpent would learn just how far God's power could punish others after he found he was the one who lead them to eating the fruit. At that moment, God felt anger, hate, and many more dark emotions that would taint him if left unchecked, and cursed them all onto Samael. As a result, the once wise serpent became a near-mindless beast.**

**Some Angels believe God changed after this, which lead to Lucifer finally calling him out, and transform into his dark opposite. As if to prove it, the venom flowing within Samael's veins was meant to destroy evil, but was most fatal to snakes and Dragons, both being creatures that Samael's form resembled in his previous form. Eventually, the beast became too dangerous, and God agreed to have it sealed in Cocytus.**

**Eventually, Hades would somehow free him, and his venom was used to kill Issei and Vali. However, this is where he met his end, as the enraged Homura and Lilith struck him with their signature abilities, either destroying him, or sending him to the Primal Abyss' void. Regardless, the damage was done too late to be stopped, fulfilling Hades' purpose for him.**

**The Dragon Eater's mere existence acts as a reminder for Heaven that God too had flaws, and they must treat all their decisions carefully.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 9 – Illusions of Nothingness _ **

"Aw, well would you look at that? You're Kings are dead! How tragic, I think now it's time for us to end this war once and for-" Pluto exclaimed with a confident look.

Finally snapping out of his stupor, Irina screamed as she swung the True Excalibur through the Ultimate-Class Reaper. Before he even realized it, he and the rest of the enemy army's forces saw one of their greatest Grim Reapers right down the middle!

**「** **Sekirei - Pure Engagement: Change the World** **」**

"W-what... the... hell?" Pluto gasped.

He instantly exploded apart, terrifying the entire enemy army as where Pluto had made Irina's group struggle, this time... she alone destroyed him with just a single strike! Standing on her feet, she raised her sword to her friends, making an announcement everyone in Hell heard.

"**Everyone! We will not lose, so don't lose faith, because if we fail here... there will never be a chance to grieve, or give the fallen the burials they deserve! For the sake of everyone alive and that's dead... we must fight back, and win!**" She screamed with determination, despite the tears she was shedding.

Everyone screamed in response, agreeing with her.

In just one moment, the entire Alliance's forces flew out of the hole leading to Kuoh. At that moment, everyone in the enemy army, with the exceptions of Hades, Jingu, and Shalba (who were all still in Hell), saw themselves surrounded.

"You said you wanted a war, didn't you? Well then... don't complain to us if that war kills you, because we're not letting any of you out of this conflict alive!" Lilith announced.

With that, she announced the final stage of the Second Great War, with the Alliance's forces charging forward.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As that happened, the fallen twin Dragons' bodies were picked up by their peerages, and they followed the evacuees, wanting to preserve their respective Kings' fallen forms. They were two that they had to make sure got their proper burials.

"Issei, I'll protect everyone in your place... Evil Piece or not." Asuka swore, sniffling as she held back her tears for now.

As they reached the others, they noticed a pair of familiar duos looking at them, alongside Aika. Needless to say... they probably got hit the hardest, as Matsuda and Motohama genuinely saw Issei as a friend, with a similar dynamic having formed with Katase and Murayama when Vali had transferred in. While this wasn't the same case with Aika, who had always teased the two, she now felt she took it too far, and would never get to apologize.

"They're... really gone, aren't they?" Aika stated sadly.

"There's never been any who sacrificed more, and fought more for both worlds than them, we can't let them be forgotten. That's why, we'll keep them safe, even if they're not with us anymore." Yumina said with teary eyes.

As they all continued, neither of them were aware of two beings hiding in the shadows, readying themselves to strike.

* * *

After having been something similar to being unconscious for who knows how long, Issei's eyes started to open up, with his vision briefly blurred due to his lack of vision during his last moments. After blinking a few times, he saw himself flying past the sky, which turned into something else, surprising him a bit, especially as he felt nothing from the speed he was apparently flying... backwards!?

"What the!?" Issei exclaimed.

_"[Dang it, was hoping... you two wouldn't wake up... until we got far enough!]"_ Belzard grunted.

At that moment, Issei saw Belzard with the rest of the past Boosted Gear wielders, who were all the ones flying. Looking to the side, he noticed Vali in a similar position... and only then did they start realizing what was going on as one of Issei's past possessors screamed.

With his eyes widening, he saw Samael's poison was still trying to finish off, and one of the past possessors from the bottom released their grip. That possessor burst apart like a purged Devil almost immediately after letting go, which was enough to make Issei to realize what had happened.

"I'm... dead?" Issei realized.

_"[You and Vali both, can't believe that bastard hid the Dragon Eater inside of the Jabberwocky. It had the perfect chance to strike you while your guards were dropped.]"_ Belzard answered, looking sad and angry.

"W-wait, where are we going? Why are you taking us there, and... why are you guys disappearing?" Vali all asked at once.

_"(Last question? That poison's trying to make your soul go bye-bye, and I think you've seen enough Reaper deaths to know how that'll end up. As for the others, we're not sure why except something's telling us to bring you there, and the place in question...)"_ Elsha answered.

_"(It's the Dimensional Gap.)"_

Both Heavenly Dragon wielders gasp at that answer, soon questioning why? Just what would make their past possessors try to bring them to the domain of the currently missing Dragon Gods. However, it was hard to think as they kept hearing their predecessors lose their souls for their sakes, soon only leaving four left for the each of them.

_"[This is the end... never thought this is how we'd go out like this.]"_ Belzard sighed, resigning to his fate.

"No, stop it! Don't do this!" Issei begged.

Belzard and Elsha closed their eyes as they started breaching into the Dimensional Gap, knowing they would be the next up before they would keep Samael's venom at bay. However, once only two of each past possessor was left...

"**S**o**r**r**y**, b**u**t **y**o**u** s**h**o**u**l**d**n**'**t **h**a**v**e **t**o **p**a**y** f**o**r **w**h**a**t **w**a**s** o**u**r **s**i**n**s, **n**o**t** y**o**u**r**s**.**.**.**"

Both Belzard and Elsha suddenly feel something surprising, and look to see the possessors before them sever their astral limb for the former, and astral leg for the latter. Both fly the opposite way, forcing Samael's poison out of reach as they leave the gap.

_"(What? Why did you do that!?)"_ Elsha demanded, tearing up.

Both of them vanish from view, screaming as they were both swallowed by the poison, leaving the strongest former possessors as the only spirits tied to the two Longinus.

_"[We were the first to try to stop this stupid conflict, they let us live... because they felt we didn't deserve to sacrifice ourselves for a fight we never tried to continue.]"_ Belzard realized, tearing up.

_"(You idiots... thank you.)"_ Elsha broke down crying, looking away.

At that moment, they breached through to the main area, making the four all gasped as they saw the current state of things.

How the Dimensional Gap was about to be destroyed.

"Uh... anyone now thinking this might have been a bad idea?" Vali shook heavily before taking a deep gulp.

* * *

Deep out in a field area, the citizens of Kuoh were all gathered, and those who were students of Kuoh Academy were all seen crying over the sight of Issei and Vali's bodies lying across the ground. Not only were they fellow students, but some of their friends were among the crowd, and most of all... they all saw the two had saved them at the ultimate price.

"Why this this have to happen? They were so young!" A female student cried.

"They were doing this on a regular basis... we owed them more than we ever knew, and now we'll never be able to repay them." A male student sniffled.

Asuka looked at her cousin as she rubbed his lifeless body's head.

"He was... that kind of guy, wasn't he?" Asuka sniffled.

Although it felt rude, some of the people looked at the former peerages of the two, not recognizing Kunou, Rossweisse, Ravel, Asuka, or Yumina among them.

"Uh... not sure if it's a good time, but who are you all?" Someone asked to the five in question.

Asuka looked at them first, standing up.

"I'm Asuka Aoyama, Issei is... or rather was, my older cousin. Just met him recently, and my parents were going to do the same, but... this stupid war took them away like it took him." Asuka answered, tearing up as she finally took a chance to grieve over it.

Irina sniffles as she rubbed her back, and Yumina went next.

"Yumina Lucifuge, and as my name implies... I'm connected to Vali like I would be for a Lucifer, because that's who she truly was." Yumina answered.

"Her real name, was Valiana _Lucifer_, the descendant of the very same Devil." Yumina revealed.

That surprised quite a few people.

"A devil... her?" Murayama said in disbelief.

"Not just here, the ORC? The MHC? Even the Student Councils, all Devils, or those reincarnated into them. That's the truth of the world that exists with this one, but was separate before today, and will never be again... if Hades doesn't kill us all first." Yumina confirmed, looking away.

Everyone wasn't sure what to say, but then...

"I'd give us those corpses if I were you."

Everyone showed surprise as they saw two figures walk into view, wearing robes that hid their appearances. There was only one thing that told them apart, a symbol on their robes, with one's being styled after a Knight, and the other a Bishop.

"Damn it, more of Hades' goons!?" Ravel yelled in annoyance.

"Don't insult us, we have no relation to Hades, the bastard can die for all we care. We only want the bodies of these two, so we can stop the Prophecy!" The Knight figure shouted in response.

That comment surprised some of the two former peerages.

'Prophecy, what are they talking about?' Irina wondered, although it seemed familiar to her in some way.

Yuuma answered by blasting her Fell Lightning attack at them.

"Not a chance in Hell, or anywhere else!" Yuuma shouted angrily.

"Fine then, I guess we've gotta do this..."

The Knight figure held up a hand, causing a magnetic distortion in the air, and screwing with Yuuma's attack. He pointed forward, sending it back at her, along with some rocks.

"Magnetism powers, look out!" Le Fay warned.

She put up a shield as the civilians screamed, and realizing how annoying things would be, the Knight figure taps the ground. All of a sudden, both former peerages felt the ground rise up, and then be spread out into a large flat field for each.

"Huh? What the..." Asuka blinked.

"Unfortunately, civilians would be too as much of a problem for us right now, and we would find it insulting to only beat you through such a handicap. So, let this be our way of promising you we shall avoid involving them." The Bishop figure giggled, revealing a woman's voice.

All of Issei's peerage felt their skin crawl at that giggle.

"We all felt that, right?" Rossweisse asked.

They all nodded, making her sigh in relief before she, and the rest of the former Akane peerage readied themselves to battle the mysterious figure.

On the opposite field, the others did the same as the Knight figure's hands glowed.

"Now, let us dance, shall we?" The knight Figure announced, striking a pose while gathering debris around him.

* * *

Meanwhile, back within Hell, Shalba raised a hand. A special mutant insect that walked on two legs formed, the ultimate among the mutated insects created for him, and instantly aimed its gaze at Jingu. Raising its arm back, it punched forward, smashing the flames around it while sending Jingu into the air, making her land outside of the fire.

"Really, barbaric much? Stupid bastard..." Jingu sneered.

"Shut up, I'm only helping you because I know what Hades would do to me otherwise." Shalba replied, his eyes closed as he intentionally looked away to mock her.

The daughter of Hades glared at him, while walking over to grab the remaining strings.

"Hmm... well, I'm sorry to do this to your remains Uncle Zeus, Uncle Poseidon... oh wait, no I'm not! Let the last of you die with that Nordic geezer!"

Jingu rips the remaining three strings, allowing Hades to break free of his bindings.

"Such an annoyance, but now it's time to continue where I left off." Hades declared.

"Thanatos! Nemesis!"

At that moment, two portals appear behind him, revealing two abnormal Grim Reapers with cloaks that had red and blue markings respectively. Their eyes, and the edges of their scythes, also had this color scheme, showing they were not like any other Reapers.

"Ooh! So, I get to see the strongest of all Grim Reapers, and your own personal guards, in person! How blessed I am to see this!" Jingu said with a deranged smile.

The two both kneel towards Hades.

"What is your order, Lord Hades?" Thanatos inquired.

"Ask us, and we shall do it." Nemesis replied.

Hades looked up, his voice giving an ominous tone as he laughed towards the position of Kuoh Town.

* * *

Within the Dimensional Gap, the destabilization of its entire structure was beginning to reach its peak, and it wouldn't last much longer.

"How does it feel, knowing your home is beyond salvation because of your own power being used to destroy it, while you'll be left for dead and killed for the same reasons? Such a travesty, isn't it?" The captor laughed.

"Laugh all you want, you will fail, now that I've seen it I know." Ophis retorted.

He laughed at that.

"Oh really? Based on what?" Their captor mocked.

Ophis laughed at that, with Great Red smirking, something that threw their captor off.

"W-why are you laughing?" Their captor asked in surprised.

"Simple, because of a Prophecy that you don't seem to know squat about, and one that God and Lucifer themselves brought into existence long ago. You can try, but I've lived long enough to know my faith is just, someone immature as you would never get it." Ophis chuckled, looking at him with a mocking expression.

The captor growled, and prepared to say something, but at that moment...

"WAAAAAAH!"

His eyes widened, and he turned... to see the quartet of Issei, Vali, Belzard, and Elsha slam into him! The Dragon Deities' eyes went blank from the sight, with Great Red's twitching as their captor suddenly wobbled before falling over.

"Uh... hey brother, is that what people usually refer to as an anti-climactic defeat?" Ophis questioned.

"No, I'm sure he'll get up in a few minutes... well, give or take." Great Red replied with an odd look.

Groaning a bit, Issei got up, soon seeing the two.

"Wait... Great Red, Ophis? You've been here all this time, but you were... I thought... I am very confused now!" Issei held his head as his mind overloaded.

If Great Red could move, he'd likely use his claw or tail to face palm.

"Best explanation we have, we've been trapped here for a while, and we woke up in these bindings. We're just as lost as you young Sekiryuutei." Ophis explained.

Issei sighed in relief, finally making his mind calm down.

"Although, I think you have your own strange tale to share... to be only a Spirit, and only with a single past possessor for the each of you? Just what happened." Ophis inquired.

"We... were killed by Samael, the other past possessors got us here by sacrificing themselves to keep Samael's venom from destroying our souls entirely." Vali answered, looking down.

The two Dragons' eyes widened at that, suddenly realizing just what that meant.

"I don't even get why we're here, this place... what's happening to the Dimensional Gap? It looks like it's about to keel over, and die." Issei questioned.

"That's because it is... these bindings we're held in? We not only can't use our powers, but they're also using the source behind them to tear the Dimensional Gap apart, while we're still inside of it." Great Red answered, sighing as he reminded himself of how bad things had gotten.

The twin Dragons gasped at that, needing to take a moment to process what was just said.

Did they really say the Dimensional Gap, which was known for defying the normal law of physics, was being destroyed? Was that the reason it looked so... unstable when they were getting close?

"We brought here, so this could be our burial site!?" Issei screamed in a panic.

"What were our Sacred Gears thinking!?" Vali screamed as well.

A loud throat clearing was heard.

**"[No, if you were just brought here to die, then it would have no benefit. It would be like trying to make a rock more valuable by painting it gold.]"** Ddraig stated.

**"(Agreed, I believe it's the fact we're where laws don't normally apply, that we can break a rule that our world refuses to bend.)"** Albion replied.

The two looked at their Dragon's voices in surprise.

"Ddraig! oh, thank god, you're still here." Issei sighed in relief.

**"[Sorry kid, but being trapped within a Sacred Gear means that I ain't gonna be dying if my host does... no offense, it's just how the deal works.]"** Ddraig replied.

And with that, Issei's smile turned into a scowl.

**"[...What!? It wasn't my choice! If that was the case, I'd still be in my body!]"** Ddraig shouted angrily.

"Uh... Ddraig, you and Albion were saying something?" Vali reminded them.

Stopping their bickering, Ddraig cleared his throat.

**"[Right, my apologies.]"**

**"(Right now, we are in the Dimensional Gap, where the rules you live by don't apply. There's no time, or space here, almost nothing can live in here. However... for that same reason, while just bringing back a life because you want to live can't be done, it's how one could be brought back that can be done. Basically, while we're in here, the Sephiroth Graal isn't the only way to revive the dead.)"**

The two showed surprise.

"Wait, so the reason our predecessors felt the need to come here was... can it really be?" Issei wondered aloud.

"OK, then how do we do it?" Vali inquired.

That was the part that suddenly made the Dragons, and their respective last predecessor, go quiet upon hearing the Hakuryuukou's question.

**"[(To give back your life, I will pay with my own.)]"**

And with those eleven simple words, the two hosts had everything around them come to a stop.

* * *

Everyone in Vali's peerage slid back as they were pushed by the magnetic force that was emitted, the Knight figure looking bored at where the battle was going.

** _ Battle: Vali's Peerage VS Unknown Male Fighter _ **

"Really? Is this everything you have? I expected more, this just feels too easy, and I have no intent to risk handicapping myself when I have a mission to complete." The knight figured sighed, shaking his head.

"Did he just call us weak!?" Kunou shouted.

The Knight figure pinched the bridge of his nose, and soon generated more power in his hands.

"Fine, how about I just end this now?" The Knight figure declared.

He suddenly moved at the speed of a Knight, suddenly getting everyone's attention as he left view... almost as if he could match Irina when she used Excalibur Rapidly's power. In mere moments, Bikou was quickly punched across the field, and before he could react, rocks were slammed onto him, locking all his movements.

"T-that speed, it's..." Le Fay gasped.

"Shit, that symbol on his uniform is literal... he's a Knight, and not one fighting with us!" Yumina realized.

"And I'm only the best among the weaker trio of my peerage. We're just six strong, but any of my allies could crush you, just as I'm about to do." The Knight figure declared.

He vanished again, and Kuroka tried to activate her Kuro Mode, but he gave her no chance.

"**Nerve Disruptor.**"

Kuroka's eyes widened as she coughed, feeling her entire chi network get scrambled before she fell down. As Le Fay tried to react, he held out a hand, causing focused threads of magnetic energy to hit the pressure points on her left wrist.

"W-what..." Le Fay gasped before passing out.

"Be lucky those are the only pressure points I know of, or I'd have used that to kill you on the spot." The knight figure warned in a mocking tone.

Arthur reacted at that, but when he did...

"Word of advice..." He warned.

He held out a hand, raising Arthur up by Caliburn, surprising him as he found his hands stuck to the handle.

"How did you-" Arthur gasped.

"Don't approach someone with magnetism powers when you're holding something made of a conductive metal."

He slammed Arthur down, and he crashed into Yumina before she could react, the impact of Arthur's body creating an explosion from Caliburn's power reacting like it had been swung. Seeing her friends across the ground, Kunou began shaking, with the Knight Figure looking at her.

** _ Winner: Unknown Male Fighter? _ **

Kunou stepped back, not sure what to do.

'If I run, he'll take Vali's body, but if I fight... Nainen, mama... help me!' Kunou thought, tearing up.

"I'd stay there, I won't have to hurt or kill you if you do." He warned her, passing by.

She nearly passed out as he walked near Vali.

* * *

With the Bishop figure, she giggled as made a similar licking motion to the one Akeno did, although hers was so much more seductive, it made the Gremory Queen's look just like she was just playfully sticking it out.

"...OK, totally not creepy." Yuuma said sarcastically, a trickle of sweat on her cheek.

** _ Battle: Issei's Peerage VS Unknown Female Fighter _ **

"Aw, is that getting you all bothered? Well, then you're not very fortunate." The Bishop figure giggled with a dark tone.

Something like a pink steam began being emitted from her body.

"What is this?" Asia wondered aloud.

**«Hmm... not sure, but it doesn't seem to be a poison, or lethal in any manner»**

Ravel smelled it a bit, and it had an oddly sweet scent.

"It smells really nice, kinda like a mixture of fruity flavor, and soothing lavender." Ravel mentioned as she sniffed it.

At that moment, Asuka's eyes widen as she covers her face.

"Shit!" Asuka warned.

"What?" Irina asked.

"Some creatures can induce inciting aromas like this trick prey, or confuse predators. She's using it to catch us off guard in some manner!" Asuka explained.

Everyone panicked, realizing they had all already gotten a whiff of it.

"Oh, you're much too late to escape me." She giggled.

Asuka suddenly felt the shrouded female's breasts against her back, the size of them rivaling Vali's back when she just reunited Issei. Sensing her embarrassment, the female Hero soon yelped as her own pair was grabbed, with the Bishop figure smiling in amusement as she did.

"Ooh, a respectable 101 cm, you've grown well." The Bishop figure said with a cat-like smile.

"Get off!" Asuka shouted, preparing to attack her.

"Ah, trying to get me from my blind spot, impressive." She suddenly stated.

Asuka's eyes widened as she suddenly missed her, making her blink in shock at the fact her words implied she knew her movements before she even made them.

"T-there's no way, she can't see the future." Asuka laughed nervously.

"Ooh... I smell the fear; your pheromones are pouring it out like a firehouse." The Bishop figure's voice giggled from somewhere.

At that moment, she suddenly appeared in multiple places, surprising Asuka. That's when she heard the others all yelp, and she turned to see them being groped in the same manner as she was, making her face go really red.

"Hmm... you're kinda small, only 78 cm." The one by Asia said disappointingly.

"Oh, impressive for someone your age, a nice 85 cm." The one with Ravel smirked.

"Wow, you're growing slow if you're just at 87 cm." The one behind Irina yawned.

"Ooh, a nice 96 cm, definitely a good grower even if you're the oldest among this group." The one near Rossweisse giggled.

"Wowzah, a solid 97 cm for a Fallen Angel of your age is no joke." The one leaning on Yuuma praised.

At that point, Asuka's blush got so red, she screamed before raising her sword, and slamming it down to make a huge cyclone. The rest of the peerage all fell to their knees, holding their chests as Asuka panted from her attack, turning as she noticed the real deal land into view.

"You're a sick freak, you know that!?" Asuka shouted.

"Aw, I'm hurt you would call your own mother that."

Asuka's eyes widened, seeing Mizuki where the Bishop figure should be, surprising the others.

"M-mom?" Asuka said while shaking, unable to move.

Mizuki got closer, making it seem like she'd try to calm Asuka down... until she gave a dark glare, and coated her hand in a magical aura. Asuka barely regained her focus, but still felt her left hand get slashed, making her scream. At that moment, her mother was replaced with the Bishop Figure.

"What's going on? She made this aroma, seemed to know Asuka's moves before she made it, and then mentioned pheromones. Now she can make herself look like others? Just what the heck is she?" Ravel questioned.

"My dear, this is what my true powers are, the very same ones that defined what Humans would best refer to as... a Succubus." The Bishop figure smirked, now sounding like the menacing threat she really was.

"What? There's no such thing as them, they're myths!" Ravel retorted.

"And you're right, at least... in the context they're a species, because they're not. You could define something like a Devil, Demon, or a Fallen angel as such, but no matter how sexy they are, none can use the powers to define themselves with the term that my blood carries. Don't try to deny I fit, what else could react to such physical wants and desires like what I've used here." The Bishop figure countered in return.

It was hard to accept, but Asuka realized she was right. There's no way she could have known what her mother looked like, the one before them perfectly fit the definition of Succubus, and the powers that applied to it... only hers seemed to be much worse.

"Hmm, actually... I think I feel like tormenting you a bit." She gave a dark look, vanishing from view again.

"Everyone, stay on guard! She could pull-" Irina warned.

"W-why... why did you let me die?"

Everyone suddenly froze at that voice, turning to see the sight of a Issei as he looked right before his death, but multiples of him.

Even though everyone knew it was fake... it was too real, the proof of how deeply rooted the Bishop figure's powers had locked into their senses. The fake Issei's groaned and moaned, while others kept repeating the same line over and over.

"W-why... why did you let me die?" Issei asked, reaching out for them.

"N-no, this isn't real, stop it!" Yuuma begged, covering her eyes.

"It wasn't our fault... I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Irina apologized, begging for forgiveness.

**«Everyone, snap out of it! This is just an illusion, you need to wake up! You have to-»** Fafnir shouted.

The Bishop figure's voice laughed within his wavelength.

"Don't bother Golden Dragon Monarch, they can't hear you, they're only hearing what I want them to hear. Only seeing what I want them to see. Now, I'll make them feel..." She said to him mockingly, completely unseen.

"PAIN!"

At that moment, she suddenly began rushing through the aroma, making them all feel cuts appear on them whenever the false Issei's tried to reach out for them.

"Stop, make it stop! We wanted to save you, don't be angry with us, please!" Irina exclaimed.

The so-called Succubus laughed as she kept toying with them through her aroma, looking towards Issei's unguarded corpse.

** _ Winner: Unknown Female Fighter? _ **

"Now, let's take care of you before something gets in the way." She stated, walking towards him.

It seemed like nothing would stop either of them now.

* * *

Issei and Vali's eyes stared at the past possessors, all while their respective Dragon partner's words rung through their hands. They would... give up their lives, to restore theirs? Normally, you'd expect people would be jumping at that kind of generosity, but for these two?

"Absolutely not! If that's the cost, then just keep us dead for all I care!" Issei shouted angrily.

This surprised the quartet, while Vali only closed her eyes, using it to silently show she agreed with Issei on this matter.

**"[What... damn it, are you insane!? You just died, and only just recently proposing to your girlfriend no less, why would you deny this!?]"** Ddraig roared angrily.

**"(Vali, be reasonable here, more people need you. We have no bodies of our own anymore, this is a necessarily sacrifice, and an appropriate cost to protect this world.)"** Albion said sternly.

"Call me insane all you want, I still won't do it! And if you still try, then I'll just end my life again, so then you'll just have wasted your efforts! Even if I wanna live, I refuse to do it like this!" Issei roared.

"Sorry Albion, but I still refuse. No matter how you justify it, this is not necessary, so don't act like it is." Vali retorted.

Belzard and Elsha both looked at the two, unsure of what to do.

_"[U-u-uh...]"_ Belzard stuttered in a panic.

_"(Guys, let's just calm down, and then-)"_ Elsha tried to interject.

Suddenly, a huge burst of red energy represented Ddraig's rage, while a wavy flow of white energy reflecting Albion's more controlled anger.

**"[Oh, so you're saying it's alright to let all the people you care for live without you? That you can just break their hearts by denying a chance to return to them? That your father, your mother, and your own cousin are just like trash you throw away when it's no longer useful!?]"** Ddraig screamed as his anger just kept increasing.

**"(Vali, stop being unreasonable here. You know how traumatized Lilith was when she lost Satan, and she didn't begin to heal until she knew about you, not to mention let her be your mother. Staying here means breaking her heart again, and this time it may be too much damage for her to heal from. She'll have nothing again, is that what you want?)"** Albion stated firmly, his voice clearly showing he was mad.

"My god, you are such an idiot! Do you not get it!?" Issei screamed with fury.

"You keep telling us that our friends and family are suffering, and why we need to return to them, but that's making you blind to the one thing you're missing." Vali glared, showing clear irritation.

Belzard and Elsha suddenly got it, but the Dragons did not.

**"[And just what is that!?]"**   
**"(And what would that be?)"**

"You're our friends too! We won't sacrifice a friend for our benefit, or we're no different from those bastards we've fought up until now!" They both exclaimed.

Both Dragons' eyes widened from within their own dimensions... they had been so insistent on pointing out their friends and family, they had forgotten that both of them were one of those very friends they've made throughout their time.

**"[...Damn, we're old farts if we ignored that, aren't we?]"** Ddraig groaned, feeling ashamed and stupid.

**"(Either that, or we're just that thick headed...)"** Albion sighed.

"Well thank your hosts for making you stop, because not only would it have failed, you would have doomed them any chance of reviving." Great Red stated.

Everyone looked at him with worry, and confusion.

"You recall how Sacred Gears work, right? Since their original forms were destroyed when they were sealed, your bodies are technically their bodies as well, so if they sacrificed themselves to revive you... it would be no different from suicide because you can't sacrifice yourself to revive yourself. For your predecessors over there, same general principle, but more like culling a vital organ." Ophis explained.

"And since we're unable to use our powers, not to mention you didn't hear us while you were arguing... you'd have been screwed if you went through with it." Great Red added.

Everyone's eyes widened at that, while Issei and Vali went pale at the thought that comment just gave them.

"Vali, I have never been so happy to hear that not doing something was a good thing." Issei whispered.

"You and me both." Vali whispered back, nodding a bit.

The grounds of Ddraig soon sounded off, getting everyone's attention.

**"[Well, that's just great... we're back to square one. That being we're apparently here just to die since we can't revive you two!]"** Ddraig shouted angrily.

"Oh... yeah, there's that." Vali realized, making a face like she was wincing.

"Actually, I don't think you and Albion were wrong, at least when it came to the result." Ophis disagreed.

Everyone looked at them, while Great Red's eyes widen as they shifted towards his sister, with Ophis looked back at him with a serious look.

"Don't look at me like you didn't think this was coming, the place we've been fighting for is going to be destroyed, and at this point there's no way to stop it because of the damage that's been done. Not only that, but they made it here despite they outright died, after they finally ended the curse that kept going between their Sacred Gears for 2000 years. It's time we do our duty, otherwise this world won't have a future." She stared him down intensely.

"Damn it... I guess that's it then, our role in the Prophecy has finally come." Great Red finally consented, knowing this was their role.

Everyone showed surprise at that, although the two Heavenly Dragons seemed to feel something familiar from the words they spoke.

**"[(Prophecy?)]"**

The two Dragon Gods both look at their hosts.

"So, it seems you two truly have forgotten, as have most of our kind... we may be the only ones who remember. Very well, then we shall remind you of it." Ophis turned her head towards Vali.

"Touch my forehead, and Issei? Do the same with Great Red."

The two blinked, and soon they both got closer, placing their hands on each Dragon's forehead. The moment they each did this, a powerful force caused their eyes to widen, and they began seeing themselves in some kind of strange area with a ground of dim light, but a sky of glowing darkness.

"W-what is this?" Issei questioned.

"It seems we're somewhere quite special, look behind you."

The two turned, and they saw their Dragons with their bodies.

"Y-you have your bodies!?" Vali gasped.

"No, the forms you see us in right now seem to be mere constructs created by old memories." Albion explained.

"I wonder what we're about to see." Ddraig wondered aloud.

At that moment, the ground shook as they saw the sight of various Dragons gather around them. Among those included Tannin, Tu-Long, Fafnir, Tiamat, Vritra, Bahamut, and many more that couldn't be recognized. Finally, the sight of Great Red and Ophis landed beside the two Heavenly Dragon wielders.

"Issei Akane, and Valiana Lucifer... it is time for you to learn of the Prophecy you two are tied to."

* * *

**There you have it, we're finally going to have the ultimate question of the story answered... what the prophecy just happens to be, and it already looks like there's a heavy ground behind it with all these Dragons we're seeing in an apparent memory. As for the past possessors who fought to get Issei and Vali to the Dimensional Gap safely... we salute you.**

**Oh, and the captor of our Dragon Deities is indeed knocked out like Great Red mentioned, I had to do that, or he'd just keep interrupting everything. Not to worry, the moment he wakes up... we enter the danger zone. Only reason he's knocked out was because he was caught off guard, and as you can tell... can be hit by astral beings, which will make more sense later on.**

**And we've just met the first of the many new villains who'll be prominent in the next arc, each with dangerous abilities. The first is a master of magnetism, being able to manipulate electrical fields, metal, and disrupt the chi that beings like most Youkai rely on. The other has powers like that of a Succubus, but with the mannerisms better fitting the demons they technically are, best shown by the psychological damage she's inflicting doing to Issei's peerage.**

**The only thing I can tell you about these two is that they're Devils, as in they were already Devils before they were made the Bishop and Knight of an unknown Devil's peerage, and it's their abilities that hint which clan they come from. I will admit that the Knight's power is the harder one to figure out, since the Bishop's is easier to round down with that whole Succubus mention.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**【** **Succubus** **】** **  
An apparent being creature that acts on sexual desires. Most often, they're considered to be a form of Devil, Fallen Angel, or Demo, but in truth they're none of them, and there is no actual species by such a name. However, the Devil who fought Issei's peerage showed all the abilities associated to one, implying that Succubus is better suited as a term fitting to the abilities she possesses.**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	74. Chapter 74

**This is it everyone... after a long time waiting, you're about to learn the truth behind the Prophecy that's been thrown around since Season 5, and just how God and Lucifer are tied to it. Not only that, you'll see the Dragons' heavy connection to it, despite that all but Great Red and Ophis have lost their memories of this time. However, the true gem among this, it's what ties Issei and Vali to it.**

**Many big things are gonna happen this chapter, including with our heroes' peerages, the beginning of the fight with the currently unknown captor as he's finally revealed to you all, and most of all... a big thing related to Issei that I can't even hint here without giving it away. Basically, this entire chapter is a mix of big reveals, huge changes, and some major power ups.**

**Ultimately, I would best describe this chapter as the very thing that gives this story its name, because we're finally going to see the _literal_ "Legend" tied to Issei, Vali, and everyone that's connected to them. Everything that's happened in the chapters before this, and those in Story of the Slashing Dog... it all comes together right here, so I have only one thing to say...**

**It's time to let this legend show itself to the world, so let the chapter begin!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking, or Vali calling out certain attacks

_"()"_ \- Elsha Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking, or Issei calling out certain attacks

_"[]"_ \- Belzard Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \+ Character Name - A character speaking through a recording made via non-electronic means

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Dragon Contracts **

**A trait that all Dragons share is the ability to make a contract with someone, paying them a deal for a price. The two notable examples are Fafnir, who formed a deal with Azazel to become sealed in the Downfall Dragon Spear at the price of a rare treasure, and Tiamat, who gave Asuka the ability to use some of her power by permanently sacrificing her ability to use the Banishing Shift.**

**There are various levels to a contract, best shown by how Fafnir's lets the user of the spear channel all his power, where Tiamat only granted a certain, yet still notable amount of her power to Asuka. What makes contracts different among all Dragons is that each one makes them in a different manner, which depends on the nature of the Dragon, their powers, even their titles to a degree.**

**For Dragons that are sealed within Sacred Gears, it's implied that they can't make contracts, as even Ddraig and Albion's access to a temporary use of their Balance Breakers was temporary, and relied more on having the user make part of their body into that of a Dragon's. Even more, it's believed they could only achieve it because of how powerful they are.**

**Due to the nature of the contracts, they can be broken under certain factors. While Asuka's is considered a case of a permanent contract because she gave up part of herself, Fafnir's is a case of one that is not, as it could have been nullified upon Azazel doing something serious, or upon his death. However, among such contracts, there are others that can be transferred to a new possessor, as was the case with Fafnir's contract being passed onto Asia.**

**Like the Dragons, these contracts are powerful, but the heavy price makes them a rarity among the supernatural world.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 10 – Dreams of Infinity _ **

The two Dragon Gods both look at their hosts.

"So, it seems you two truly have forgotten, as have most of our kind... we may be the only ones who remember. Very well, then we shall remind you of it." Ophis turned her head towards Vali.

"Touch my forehead, and Issei? Do the same with Great Red."

The two blinked, and soon they both got closer, placing their hands on each Dragon's forehead. The moment they each did this, a powerful force caused their eyes to widen, and they began seeing themselves in some kind of strange area with a ground of dim light, but a sky of glowing darkness.

"W-what is this?" Issei questioned.

"It seems we're somewhere quite special, look behind you."

The two turned, and they saw their Dragons with their bodies.

"Y-you have your bodies!?" Vali gasped.

"No, the forms you see us in right now seem to be mere constructs created by old memories." Albion explained.

"I wonder what we're about to see." Ddraig wondered aloud.

At that moment, the ground shook as they saw the sight of various Dragons gather around them. Among those included Tannin, Tu-Long, Fafnir, Tiamat, Vritra, Bahamut, and many more that couldn't be recognized. Finally, the sight of Great Red and Ophis landed beside the two Heavenly Dragon wielders.

"Issei Hyoudou, and Valiana Lucifer... it is time for you to learn of the Prophecy you two are tied to."

As this occurred, some of the Dragons among the crowd began suddenly realizing where they were, with Tiamat being the first to notice the duo.

"Issei? Vali? B-but how, we all saw you..." Tiamat gasped in shock.

"No, I don't think this is what you believe it is Tiamat, it just seems their souls were not annihilated..." Fafnir replied.

Looking at them, the Golden Dragon Monarch continued his response.

"Tell me, where are your souls right now? If I know, I could get Valerie to revive you both." Fafnir inquired.

"Yeah, not gonna work... we're in the Dimensional Gap." Issei answered.

Fafnir flinched at that, making the old Dragon groan, all while Vritra began laughing at him. Yu-Long quickly joined in, prompting Tannin to smack both of the hands.

"I expect that from Fafnir, but that was just shameful, Vritra." Tannin remarked with a glare.

"Yeesh, I'm not allowed to laugh at an awkward result?" Vritra grumbled.

Clearing his throat, Bahamut got everyone's attention, and every Dragon's focus soon turned to face him.

"I believe we all had our mind summoned here for a reason, and the only ones who could do this would have to be our might behemoths over there." Bahamut stated, his eyes aiming towards a specific duo.

Everyone soon had their eyes meeting Great Red and Ophis, with the both of them closing their eyes.

"Before this all begins, I must ask... does anyone remember what we were all here for long ago? What God and Lucifer told us long ago?" Great Red questioned.

At that moment, the Dragons all seemed confused.

"What is he talking about?" Vritra asked.

"I don't remember such a thing, do you?" Bahamut questioned.

"Actually, don't you find it weird used Satan's last name?" Yu-Long inquired.

Ophis gave a loud screech, which quickly silenced them all.

"It seems that it is true, none of you remember. I guess it can't be helped, perhaps to mortal Dragons like you, more than 2000 eventually makes the oldest memories you have fade away if not vital to you." Ophis sighed, despite expecting this result.

"Well, now that you're are here, it is time... we must reveal the prophecy, the legend of those tied to the Heavenly Dragons, and to the both of them. You shall relive that memory from within my mind." Great Red stated immediately after.

Vali looked at him confused.

"But wait, Great Red, I thought you and Ophis had your powers negated?" Vali questioned.

"And you're right Vali, but since we are within my mind, the flow I use can somewhat bend around that. After all, Humans claim there's no limit to one's imagination, or am I wrong?" He answered, chuckling with a toothy grin.

Vali blinked a bit before giggling at that, answering him with a simple nod.

Taking a deep breath, Great Red began focusing his mind, prompting Ophis to turn at the hosts of the Heavenly Dragons.

"Issei, Vali. Before we begin, know that through seeing Great Red's memory, we here shall be acting out the events through this connection, so you must communicate with Great Red through your minds if you have any questions to ask, for we will act as if you were not present." Ophis warned them.

"Alright." Issei replied.

"Understood." Vali responded.

At that moment, the entire field flashed, showing a certain memory from long ago.

* * *

The Alliance forces were seen fighting against the last bits of the union between the Khaos Brigade, and Hades' forces. With a mighty swing, Sun Wukong strikes down a majority of their forces, all while multiple Grim Reaper blades were stuck in his back.

After unleashing one last burst, the last of the enemy forces were purged, and he fell onto his stomach.

"That's... all I offer... here." Sun Wukong breathed off, the damage to him clear.

"Shit, he's taken a lot of damage, someone get him treatment ASAP!" Roygun shouted out.

As the Alliance prepared to get him aid... a rumble was heard.

"Damn it, what now?" Shiva grunted.

Suddenly, a pair of flashes go off, with one red and the other blue. The sources instantly revealed themselves as none other than Thanatos, and Nemesis, who instantly charged out with their scythes. Brahma and Vishnu both used magic barriers to defend against them, being the targets of their attacks.

"There's still Grim Reapers that haven't retreated or been killed? Damn it..." Brahma grunted.

"Which two are these, something seems different about them!" Vishnu questioned, straining to hold his barrier.

Artemis sweated a bit, knowing just who they were.

"The elites of Hades' forces, and his personal Gods... Thanatos and Nemesis. These two are so powerful, he's given his own blessings, so they're likely even more powerful because of a Prana boost." Artemis answered, realizing they had become stronger.

Shiva unleashed two streams of destruction, smashing into the duo as they're pushed back, but not destroyed.

"It seems the Trimurti is worthy of the praise they're given." Thanatos admitted.

"And yet even Indra's actions terrified them, such praise isn't enough for the empowering we have gained." Nemesis scoffed.

The entire Alliance readied itself, only for a powerful icy inferno to explode out of the hole the twin Dragons had pushed the Jabberwocky out of, showing Jingu creating it... with both Shalba, his mighty insect monster, and Hades by her side to ride them up to the surface.

"Damn it, and I thought we had finally managed to finally get rid of the tenacious bastards! This is a loud of..." Mulan's curse was unable to be understood by most, as she slipped into speaking Chinese while saying it.

Jingu gave a cruel smirk, jumping down alongside the others.

"Heh! Well, if it isn't the old team, I've been wanting to murder you all more than anyone, and now we'll get the chance to do it as we wipe out the rest of you here!" Jingu cackled loudly.

"Oh yeah, based on what?" Sieg retorted.

Jingu gave a smug smile, revealing the final vial of Great Devil blood, making Sieg pale.

"I need to keep my big mouth shut..." Sieg whispered to himself.

Jingu injected herself with the final vial, and this time her body heavily pulsed, and she made gagging noises, followed by the motion of her apparently choking.

However, it quickly ended as her body melted into her Sacred Gear a bit more, with the icy skeleton growing out a long neck, its arms splitting from four to eight, and its tail lengthening to grow another pair of legs, with said tail gaining side spikes and a tail. The skeleton body's eyes soon blinked to reveal split into three, giving her six eyes in total, while her lower jaw split in half, and finally... wings sprouted across parts of her body, including the hair shaping itself into horns.

Needless to say, by this point... almost no part of Jingu or her Sacred Gear seemed to resemble her anymore, it was like she had turned herself into an alien.

"Oh god, that's nasty..." Gasper shook at the sight.

"I think I'm gonna be sick." Shirone held a hand over it, looking a bit green.

A slimy sound was heard as the eyes readjusted themselves, looking at the alliance.

"Ooh, I like the look of this! How beautiful am I!?" Jingu asked, her voice no longer sounding female in the slightest.

Leo's cheeks swelled, barfing in his mouth at that remark.

"And with that, Jingu's managed to actually become more insane than my failure of an artificial brother... that Freed bastard was a sicko." Sieg groaned in disgust.

Shalba sighed, flying before his insect monstrosity.

"How far you've fallen for just pure power, I'll just have to show you real strength in such a form." Shalba stated in disappointment.

Shalba sunk into the mutant-big behemoth's skin, and it soon gained more muscle, with Shalba's face replacing it as it grew his hair out. Needless to say, it wasn't much prettier, but at least _he_ was still sane.

"This doesn't look good." Cassiel remarked with worry.

"I think it just got worse." Connla pointed out.

Everyone saw Hades in some kind of egg shaped barrier, with Thanatos and Nemesis' auras powering into it.

"Something tells me these two are just the prelude, we gotta stop Hades before he transforms!" Lilith warned loudly.

* * *

Issei and Vali soon found themselves in some kind of garden area, surprising them a bit.

_"Whoa, this is..."_ Vali couldn't find the words.

_"Not what you expected?"_ Issei guessed with his own line of thought.

_"Yeah, that would be it."_ Vali agreed.

Considering what they were supposed to be seeing, which was related to the massive gathering of Dragons, and apparently something connected with God and Satan, who Vali started noticing kept calling being called Lucifer for some reason.

_'Am I just looking too much into it? They had to have been around when God was, so maybe they just refused to use his new name?'_ Vali thought, deciding to wave it off for now.

Soon enough, the duo walked around enough to notice God's presence, who neither had ever seen a good reference for. Surprisingly, rather than something like blonde hair, his shaggy hair was brown with a heavy red-colored tint to it, while his eyes were a fierce golden amber. He wore a golden robe with red accents across it, holding a wooden staff in his hand.

Currently, he was looking at the horizon, waiting for the one he was set to meet.

"Wow, just as dull and boring as always you bastard."

God's eyes raised slightly, turning to notice a man with dark silver hair, and blazing red eyes. He wore a black leather jacket with several white tears in it, and gray jean shorts that were all torn up everywhere, with the right sleeve being slightly smaller. He had a scar across his right cheek, and a bone-colored necklace with a skull charm, which almost looked like pieces of an actual skeleton due to their coloring.

The first Angel, and the one who became the dark mirror to God, none other than Lucifer himself. Although at the current time, he was better known as Satan Lucifer, for reasons no one aside from Lilith and the Great Devils knew.

"Lucifer, so you actually came, I was thinking our stances would just be too divided for it to happen." God greeted, though he didn't smile.

"Cut the crap old geezer, you know very well how this isn't just about us anymore." Satan sneered.

God sighed, nodding.

"And yet, it seems we haven't had the rest of our guests arrive... perhaps even they refuse to see the urgency of our world's situation, of that monster's true power." God said sadly, noticing no one else arriving.

Satan was unfortunately in agreement, noticing not a single being was flying near them.

"I guess that's it, if they have the gall to claim their freedom is watching the world burn, then I guess that's all our world will be. Can't force them to try stopping the end of the world when they're sure that it can only be an end."

The heiress of Lucifer lost her voice for a moment.

_"I heard that my father tended to be crass when he was around God, but I didn't know it was that bad..."_ Vali stated, a sweat drop of embarrassment trickling down her cheek.

_'Hmm... is it just me, or is there something familiar about these two?'_ Issei thought.

At that moment, Satan's eye sharped, tossing a sphere of darkness out. A sudden claw hit it, revealing a large black and purple Dragon growling at him, with Satan not looking afraid at the clearly strong being. This was Vritra, back when he was still unhinged.

"Oh, are you trying to stand up to me, Satan? I should make it clear where we both stand again, because I'm 5 ranks higher than you in this world!" Vritra hissed with a heavy warning.

A sudden tail slammed his head, making him screech as the elderly form of Bahamut flew into view, resembling his appearance prior to Kirin's Longinus transformation.

"You said that you wouldn't start a fight! Now behave, or I'll have to give you a real whipping!" Bahamut warned.

"Y-yes sir..." Vritra stood down, knowing Bahamut was too strong for him.

One by one, many other Dragons flew down into view, surrounding the area they were in with their presence. In the middle of them all, God and Satan stood.

"Well, guess the Dragon's pride refuses to let the world be destroyed." Satan smirked.

"All of you, for coming during this time of crisis... thank you." God bowed as he thanked them all.

It was a sight most of the Dragons didn't expect, so they couldn't find their words...

Except for Ddraig.

"Heh, for the being that's claimed to the only ones me and my rival can defeat to bow to us, truly the world must be ending." Ddraig snickered.

"Shut up Ddraig!" Tiamat roared angrily.

The Red Dragon Emperor felt his eventual mate slap his face, making him rub it.

"Ow!"

Albion looked like he wanted to snicker, but he had to keep the stoic look he had upheld for ages, and held it at bay... that, and he didn't want Tiamat slapping his face either.

"Hmm? Wait, weren't the two Gods among your kind supposed to show? Where are they?" God questioned.

They all went silent, looking away as Satan face palmed.

"Again!? Damn, and this is why we couldn't have just freaking wrecked that stupid Trihexa beast to nothing." He sneered angrily.

"Who said we weren't present?"

At that moment, the two hosts of the Heavenly Dragons saw a small warp showing manifestations of the two Dragon Deities' heads.

"Forgive me, my brother was being his usual lazy self." Ophis apologized.

"Was not." Great disagreed.

"Was too-" Ophis retorted.

"Will you two please not do this right now!?" Fafnir shouted.

God gave an odd look while Satan just shook his head with his right hand resting on it. After Fafnir got the moment to a semblance of something calm, God began to explain the situation that had befallen them all.

Unfortunately for the two, the tale seemed to just skip, showing scenes of God's mouth speaking, and a few reactions to all but the two Dragon Deities.

_'Hey Great Red, how come things are all choppy here?'_ Issei questioned.

_'Sorry Issei, but I'm afraid that under something I promised more than just God and Lucifer, I can't let either of you hear this... at least, not at this point. When the time for you to learn this comes, you will, but I'm afraid for now... this is all you can see.'_ Great Red explained, apologizing.

That surprised the two a little.

_"We can't know what God's telling them? Just what kind of a secret is being hidden here?"_ Vali wondered aloud.

Eventually, God reached the end of this tale, with all but the two Dragon Gods shocked.

"As you can see, this monster is dangerous enough that it exceeds even Ddraig and Albion, and by all means... only Great Red and Ophis should have the strength to end this battle. Though if we truly all know them as we do, I don't think this talk will convince them to take care of it." God finished.

"Why should we care? The Dimensional Gap is where we live, the only concern we'll have is for the loser, and I already know the end result." Ophis replied, proving his words.

Their fellow Dragons all sighed, still unable to believe the strongest of their kind could have no care towards anything aside their home.

"Actually, about that... have you wondered why I specifically called only you Dragons here? Not to mention my own technical enemy?" God inquired.

"Now that you mention it... yeah, that is weird. Why did you?" Bahamut questioned.

"Come on, it can't be that important!" Yu-Long waved off.

Tannin's tail slapped his head, making the young Dragon whimper as he rubbed it.

"Let the man talk instead of waving him off, you are still too young and naive." Tannin warned, glaring at the eventual Dragon King.

Yu-Long gulped, instantly shutting up to listen.

"Simple, during one battle we had, we... we saw something, it was a specific group of visions to the future. Piecing it together, we ended up seeing it was a Prophecy towards a future, one that seems to be linked heavily to that of Trihexa's threat, and even more... Ddraig and Albion have a major role in stopping it." God explained.

"Stopping it? You just stated that we are too weak to accomplish that, how could we do it?" Albion questioned.

"It wasn't you per say, but two people wielding your powers via Sacred Gears, one of many that defy my system's limits to obtain the power that could defy the Gods, and even slay them. Though that was just the tip of the ice burg, there's even more. I also saw a huge explosion of color, which then shattered like prismatic glass. I only know one thing that can fit that, and it's why I know eventually, Great Red and Ophis will to care, because... I think that was a sign the Dimensional Gap will one day be destroyed."

Hearing God state that, the two Dragon Gods show surprise, with every other Dragon almost unable to believe it.

"As I said, I feel we saw the future, and a way to possible guide the future towards one where it can exist. This is what that Prophecy will be, and with how things are, we must accept the path of things we can't change." God continued as he kept his eyes closed.

"I'm not sure how it will go, but for now... the only way to stop Trihexa's threat is to seal the monster away, somewhere it will be nearly impossible to find."

As he took a moment to pause, the Dragons all looked at him.

"I still don't see it, why would you need to refer this to all of us, you could easily just keep him away until you find the permanent solution to ending his threat... so why not?" Tiamat inquired.

God kept his eyes closed, lowering his head to shadow his eyes with them.

"Because, another thing I saw in these visions... was that me and Lucifer will not live much longer. I'm afraid that either the effort to seal him, or maybe even the cost to create the seal, will end with us dying. This is a task we will not be able to end." God revealed.

"What!?" Vritra roared in disbelief.

Every Dragon instantly went silent as they heard it, as did Issei and Vali.

God had announced... his demise was pre-ordained?

* * *

As the moment within the minds of the Dragon Gods was ongoing, their captor finally regained consciousness, holding his hand.

"What the living Hell? What just happened!?" He groaned angrily, holding his head.

Getting back on his feet, he felt something was off, blinking as he turned around to see the source of it.

* * *

As the Knight figure began nearing Vali's corpse, the rest of her peerage began getting back up, with Kunou noticing this.

"Guys, he's about to take Vali!" Kunou screamed out.

'Damn it, they're already awake!?" He growled.

He rushed forward in his attempt to reach Vali's body as the others all looked at him.

* * *

Asuka panicked as she kept feeling the sight of the dying Issei's illusions wracking their mind, and as she did... she suddenly remembered something her mom taught her for a situation like the one the entire peerage was caught in.

"Wait, she's a Succubus, and our senses are... that's right, if you're in such a hypnotic state, force your senses to focus!" Asuka realized.

"Everyone, forgive me, this is gonna hurt... a lot!" Asuka apologized in advance.

Charging the Kusanagi, she thrust it into her right hand, screaming as it created a powerful gale to blast away the aroma. The others felt similar wounds formed by her winds, but they all shook their heads as they finally realized what was real.

'Damn it, they knew that downside, and had a way against the aroma? Gotta grab him, and now!' The Bishop figure grunted.

She dashed at him, with Asuka noticing how close she was to Issei.

* * *

As the shock passed, Bahamut was the first to speak again.

"You're... going to die, and there's no way to stop it?" Bahamut asked, trying to make sure he heard it right.

**「** **Metal Gear Solid 4: Father and Son** **」**

"It will happen, that much I am sure of..." God confirmed.

He sighed, breathing deeply.

"This may be for the best, Lucifer told me so many times, I was doing wrong... while he was still an Angel. I never listened, and splintered my own pantheon into four, only two of which have their own Gods. In a way, perhaps the world is being punished for my mistakes, and Trihexa is the punishment."

Satan suddenly showed surprise at hearing that, looking away as if he couldn't believe it.

His creator, the one known as God... was admitting he was right, and accepting his end as atonement to save the world. The other Dragons listened in silent shock.

"God, I ask you this... why are we the sole witnesses to this? Why us, the Dragons?" Fafnir inquired.

"This is another part of my vision. To all of you Dragons, your faction is always the hunted for its strength, but in this future, I see... you have a future, sharing the same world as everyone, but no longer as threats, but as allies, and friends." God revealed, surprising them.

"I won't ask you to aid me, but your kind deserves to live just as much as all life does. That's why I've realized the cage I've been in, and while maybe his way isn't the one we need, I finally think I get what this freedom is. That's why I see this path as needed, this world only needs one guiding light... no, the future must choose what it wants to be, without anyone guiding it. The freedom of that future, is for all to live as one."

Hearing that, Lucifer went silent, lowering his head as he grabbed his hand, thinking about his wife.

'...Lilith, forgive me for what comes next.' He thought as he did his best to not let any tears reveal themselves to the Dragons, or God.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As this happened, all of the Dragons looked around at one another, realizing what decision needed to be made.

Without saying a word, they all agreed.

"I don't fully get it, but it seems like if we do this, we'll give something greater to the world, including our own kin. If that's the case, then I shall resign myself to a Sacred Gear." Albion decided.

"What the hell, I will too." Ddraig agreed.

Tiamat gasped at that, but he looked at her immediately after, giving him a reassuring look.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure I leave something behind, just let him or her know what kind of man his father was." Ddraig promised.

"I... I understand, then I'll promise myself to support whoever has your power in the future, should I meet them." Tiamat agreed sadly, hurting despite realizing this was something the world needed to do for their future.

Bahamut nodded, looking at God.

"I'm fairly old now, so maybe a new perspective will help, I shall let myself be imbued within a Sacred Gear as well." Bahamut decided.

Vritra looked at God, and sighed.

"Alright, maybe I'll do it to... maybe, so don't be an ass over it should I decline!" Vritra stated.

One by one, the Dragons all agreed in their own ways.

"Well... I still think your claim on the Gap's destruction is a load of crud, but I'll maybe believe it should enough proof show." Great Red somewhat agreed.

"I shall keep watch, if I start seeing the signs of change, then I'll put my faith in this, regardless of the gap's ultimate fate." Ophis decided, making Great Red give her an annoyed look.

God was surprised, but soon smiled as he smiled.

"Thank you, all of you."

"Now, every one of you, I don't know what the future will hold for us. For that reason, let us make a pact now... put your hands out, and state your names as your promise." God requested, holding his up.

The two hosts looked as the Dragons slowly began doing the same.

_"Vali, do you feel like an answer's about to hit us in the face soon?"_ Issei questioned.

_"Yeah, and... I'm getting kinda nervous."_ Vali replied, taking his hand in hers.

Tiamat goes first.

"My name is Tiamat, the Chaos Karma Dragon."

"Fafnir, the Golden Dragon Monarch."

"Ddraig, the Red Dragon of Domination."

"Albion, the White Dragon of Supremacy."

"Vritra, the Evil Prison Dragon."

"I am Bahamut."

"Meteor Blaze Tannin is my title."

"Call me Yu-Long!"

"Great Red, the Dragon of Dreams."

"Ouroboros Dragon, Ophis."

Each Dragon after continued this pattern, and soon enough... the memory reverted back to the golden area, showing all the Dragons as they remembered.

"This was... no way." Tiamat gasped.

"So, that was the... our battle in the Great War, we did it on purpose to hopefully show them a path to unity." Ddraig realized.

"Is that it? Is that truly all we've forgotten, or is there more?" Albion questioned.

**「** **Attack on Titan: Coordinate - Later Half** **」**

As a light shone, they got that answer, and went silent as the two hosts suddenly showed surprise at what was happening.

"Uh... guys, what's going on?" Vali asked.

"Yeah, I'm starting to feel a little scared." Issei agreed, gulping a bit.

Suddenly, they saw what everyone went silent over, it was... a silhouette of both God and Satan appeared, one that was meant to say something for this moment.

"The message you never fully revealed... God, Satan, just what did you hide from us?" Ophis questioned.

Both of the silhouettes were facing away from the two, and then they began speaking in unison.

**"Listen well, as the Prophecy has shown us, our time will soon come to an end. So, I want you to know this. Even though me you knew of will disappear, I will reincarnate one day, and continue living in this world... as a mortal among Humanity."**

This suddenly got the Dragons' attention, wondering what they meant.

**"One day, that reincarnation will be drawn into the greater powers of the world, and unlike before, we will find out who we're meant to be. I know you'll figure this out... by the time I meet God/Lucifer once again."**

They began turning, a bright light surrounding God, and a luminescent shadow shrouding Satan, as they began changing their forms. As they saw this, both Issei and Vali looked at the sight weird, wondering what was happening.

**"A boy who holds the light that hides courage..."** God stated.

**"A girl who bears the darkness that hides hope..."** Satan stated.

The two showed shock as the light and shadow disappear, with Vali's eyes shedding tears as they saw who their reincarnations just happened to be.

**"...That is who we are!"**

The two were still shocked as they heard the change in their voices, and saw the forms God and Satan take were... none other than their own! They were the reincarnations they spoke of!

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"N-no way..." Issei breathed.

"This is... I don't..." Vali stuttered.

All of the Dragons couldn't believe what they were seeing, the ones that had inherited God and Satan's will were none other than the very hosts the former spoke of! It even made sense to a certain degree.

Issei was an Akane, a bloodline tied to the Hero Clan, meaning that Amaterasu was technically his ancestor from the blood she shared with the first Akane. While in the case of Vali, she held Satan's blood in her veins, but was also part Human.

However, most of all... their pasts echoed the two deities more than anyone realized it.

* * *

_A young Issei was seen trying to get close to others, wanting to play... only for the two children and one adult to walk away from him. The sight of them were all replaced with Cassiel, Azazel, and Lucifer all walking their own separate paths, and Issei himself had God take his spot._

_Vali was seen being forced to hurt a man and woman, with her hand shaking as she did. That brief imagery had the one she hurt change into Cassiel and Azazel, with the still Angel Lucifer panting heavily before he turned, showing the sights of the other Great Devils before Lilith came into view. Replacing them was Kunou, Le Fay, Arthur, Bikou, Kuroka, and finally... Issei, as Vali reappeared where Lucifer had been._

* * *

As the two felt those thoughts sink in, they stared at one another.

"They said, we'd find who we are... right? Do you think we managed to do that?" Issei questioned.

Vali held a hand to her heart, and then... smiled as she cried a bit.

"We did, regardless of who were before, this is who we are now... and I know that I love you, Issei." Vali declared, her smile not fading a bit.

"I agree, because I fell in love with you, ignoring whatever lives were our pasts." Issei agreed, sniffling a bit.

The two hugged each other.

**「** **Naruto Shippuden: The Sage's Final Words** **」**

At that moment, both Belzard and Elsha appear before them, smiling as well.

_"[I think we know now, just why we were left here... this is the last thing we must give to you.]"_ Belzard realized.

_"(Yes, and in return, we finally get the peace we've been waiting for.)"_ Elsha agreed.

The two looked at their predecessors, only to feel them tap their foreheads as their knowledge of the Boosted Gear/Divine Dividing flowed into their minds, and then... both of them faded away into stardust, finally getting to pass on.

"Belzard..." Issei breathed.

"Elsha..." Vali sniffled.

_"[(Live, for each other, and for the ones you care for. We are finally... free.)]"_ Both said, their stardust making a heart shape before vanishing.

At that moment, Great Red and Ophis lowered their heads towards the two.

"This is what we must do, Issei... hold out your hand to my claw." Great Red stated, holding it out like a fist.

"The same with me, Vali." Ophis requested.

Although things were already crazy enough, the two did just that, which caused their respective colors to outline them with a soft radiance.

"Huh? What are you..." Vali looked at herself in surprise.

"We are going to bring you back to life in the only way we can survive as well, we shall give up our bodies to you, and seal ourselves within your Sacred Gears." Ophis revealed.

The two gasped at that declaration, with some of the Dragons showing shock.

"What?" Issei gasped.

"As we are now, we're trapped in bindings, and your mere ghosts that can't aid us. If you've really been the ones God said we'd be waiting for, then it is a sacrifice we are willing to make, since you'll also be saving us. Consider it our way of finally repaying our debt to him." Great Red explained.

Ddraig and Albion looked at the scene, with both smiling a bit.

'There's no doubt about it, the legend we're a part of, truly is one they're written.' Albion thought.

"Everyone, don't you all agree... they _will_ lead us to a new future!?" Ddraig shouted, yet already knowing the answer.

The Dragons all roar in response, confirming their beliefs were the same.

* * *

The captor finally noticed the ghost of the two, and his eyes widened.

"What the hell!? No matter, regardless of how you got here, I know how you'll be leaving... with your deaths!" The captor roared.

At that moment, a sudden flash goes off, surprising him as he shielded his eyes.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Without any warning, bot Dragon God's disappeared as they transformed into energy, and the two ghosts before them soon absorbed all that energy. In just mere moment, the ghosts suddenly became solid, and landed on the ground. While their Sacred Gears were still broken, both Issei and Vali...

Had been brought back from the dead!

* * *

At that moment, it looked like Vali's body would be taken by the unknown Devil.

**「** **Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Counterattack** **」**

"VAAAAAAALIIIIIII!" Yumina screamed.

Right before the Knight figure could grab her, her body glowed a bright white, surprising him as she suddenly disappeared!

"No... I'm too late? How can that be!?" He gasped in shock.

"H-hey... guys, I feel a little funny." Kunou got sick all of a sudden.

Suddenly, she rose into the air, and Yumina noticed everyone but herself doing the same thing. In a moment, their Devil Wings all popped out before dissolving away, and their Evil Pieces all ejecting before they instantly disappeared like her body.

"W-what the..." Le Fay felt herself, and realized something.

"I'm... Human again?" Le Fay realized, feeling her body was like it had been prior to becoming Vali's Bishop.

The Knight figure gasped, trying to activate his powers again.

"No, not this time!" Kuroka exclaimed.

Before he could even react, the space-time area that he was standing around suddenly warped, sending him flying back.

"Damn it... this was a failure, to hell with stay here!" He grunted.

Forming a magic circle with a crest Yumina didn't recognize, he instantly disappeared from view.

* * *

Right as the apparent Succubus was about to grab Issei's body, taking it to who knows were...

"ISSEEEEEEEIIIIIII!" Asuka screamed.

Just like with Vali, his body glowed a bright red before quickly disappearing, making the Bishop Figure gasp in horror.

"He... he couldn't have, but how!?" She shivered.

"U-uh... guys, do you feel something strange?" Irina felt the same odd feeling as Vali's peerage had.

The others all were enveloped in light as their Evil Pieces expelled, Asuka noticing her Devil wings disappearing as emphasis, noticing only Ravel seemed to have nothing happen to her. Before she knew what else occurred, she saw the Kusanagi begin to transform in her hands.

"My sword!" She gasped.

Asuka's Kusanagi soon changed shape, becoming a dark blue, and light-blue sword form in her hands. It wasn't just her, as Irina saw the True Excalibur take the form of a thinner golden blade with a shape you would normally see on a broadsword. **(A/N: Think the Aegis Sword, Mythra's version for Asuka, and True Form version for Irina)**

Yuuma blinked before she tried making her Devil Wings appear, but found she couldn't.

"No way, am I..." Yuuma realized.

The Bishop Figure growled angrily, stomping the ground a bit.

"You ruined it all, then I'll just have to take you all out as compensation!" She screamed, holding out her hand.

The same aroma tried to spray itself again, but Asuka wouldn't have it this time, and swung her sword down, creating a wave of blue energy that smashed it away. The Bishop Figure soon felt the wave hit her, making her scream as she stumbled back.

"You know what, forget it! I'd rather run from you cheaters than deal with this!" The Bishop Figure soon jumped backwards.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

A magic circle formed underneath her, and she fell right in, with Ravel unsure of which clan's crest had appeared inside of it. Breathing a bit, Asuka asked the question on everyone's mind as she noticed her Queen Piece vanish like Issei.

"Could it be possible, is... Issei alive!?" Asuka gasped.

* * *

Back in the Dimensional Gap, the captor had his eyes covered to avoid being blinded, and when he uncovered them... he was horrified by the sight. Standing before him, the sight of both Issei and Vali with their bodies restored.

"W-what? No, that can't be... it can't be!" The captor gasped in horror.

Their restored bodies looked generally the same as before, though a few differences could be noticed. Vali was slightly curvier, her breasts had grown slightly, and she now had the few inches that made Issei taller than her, making them equal in height. Aside from that, she didn't really change in appearance.

Issei on the other hand had a more noticeable difference. While still clearly male in appearance, he had a bit more of a feminine charm on his face like that of Vali's, and his hair had grown out slightly, gaining a red-tint that made it like Asuka's hair, which wasn't blue yet had a tint that made it seem that way. His figure was leaner, yet still muscular, and his eyes were now fully red.

"Uh... Great Red, why do I feel this isn't a coincidence?" Issei asked, looking at himself closer.

**"[[In my defense, you didn't tell me you had a female form you could use, so my restoration of your body may have accidentally absorbed a bit. At least my gender being the same as yours kept you a guy.]]"** Great Red answered, emphasizing the last part.

**'((I don't think that's a proper excuse...))'** Ophis sighed.

Vali gave a forced laugh, a drop of sweat on her left cheek. Meanwhile with the captor... he started to huff and puff, as if reliving a traumatic moment, filling him with nothing but complete rage.

"You two! How dare you, how dare you show your faces before me again!" He screamed, showing signs of insanity.

At that moment, both of them recognized the voice.

"Wait a minute, the only one I know who sounds like that is... that's impossible, you can't be alive!" Issei knew he wasn't one to talk right now, but the person he was thinking off died long ago.

"But it is, take a good look!"

The captor removed the cover hiding his body, and the two Dragons gasped as they saw he was none other than... the Norse God of Mischief, Loki! For some reason neither of them understood, he had somehow survived being slammed by Issei's charged Mjolnir strike, but...

Well, considering his teeth were known by their red color before he revealed himself, the various red and black coloration across his body really marked how shattered he really was. Either he survived the attack, but became this after his prior body was destroyed, or Hades had a hand in the entire thing. Either way, this wasn't the same Loki the two had fought long ago.

"I can't believe you survived that, but now I get how you didn't give a damn about what happened to you in order to kill Great Red and Ophis. The one who wanted to start Ragnarok wouldn't care about bringing an end to himself." Vali realized.

"And now, I'll have my revenge!" Loki roared.

He held out his hands, making energy cackle across the still deteriorating realm. As that happened, the Dragon Gods had only one thing to say...

**"[[Go! You are the Sekiryuutei, the Crimson Red Dragon of Dreams!]]"** Great Red roared.

**"((And you're the Hakuryuukou, the Ivory White Dragon of the Infinite!))**" Ophis shouted.

Issei looked at Vali, smiling at her while he placed the Queen Piece Vali gave him in his hands.

"Up until now, I've been following you from behind, but as of now... let this be a sign that we're finally equal. I no longer have to walk behind you as your Queen, but stand beside you as a King." Issei stated happily.

"So, we're finally on the same stage, I'm glad to hear you say that. Then let's make that grand debut one to remember!" Vali replied happily, gripping the Queen close.

Issei agreed, nodding as swung Ascalon into view, revealing it had become a thick red blade. **(A/N: Think Pyra's version of the Aegis Sword)**

"Yeah, let's do this!"

They both rush forward, with Loki unleashing his attack towards the now revived Sekiryuutei, and Hakuryuukou.

And thus, the final battle of the Dimensional Gap began.

* * *

**There you have it! The prophecy, along with the Dragon race's connection to it, has finally been revealed. That the ones with the power to save a future threatened with by Trihexa are none other than the reincarnations of God, and Satan... who've been Issei and Vali from the very beginning! This is the true Legend of the Heavenly Dragons, and now we know their roles as the Dragon of Light, and the Dragon of Darkness!**

**And now, Issei and Vali have finally come back to life, thanks to Great Red and Ophis willingly sealing themselves in their Sacred Gears, giving up their physical bodies to restore their own. I've seen many stories only have the two grant Issei their power, so actually having them sealed in Sacred Gears? That's something that I think I may have been the first to do, as the closest I've seen is Tiamat joining Ddraig in the Boosted Gear.**

**Looks like their peerages are feeling the echo as well, because the power of these two has caused a change in their Evil Pieces, one that made those who were turned into Devils regain their original forms as non-Devils. However, the biggest symbolism here... it's the fact that Issei is no longer the Queen of Vali's peerage, because Issei best defined it himself.**

**As of this moment, both Issei and Vali... have officially become the protagonists of this series!**

**Now, they only have one last road block to deal with before escaping from the Dimensional Gap, returning to their friends, and then reuniting with the peerages they need to need to reform due to their Evil Pieces resetting upon their revival... defeating the somehow still living Loki, once and for all, so that the threat of the "Worst Gods" dies with Hades!**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	75. Chapter 75

**Woo! Last chapter really dropped a few... hundred bombs on you all. *giggles* Still, glad to see the reaction after I put out the chapter went so well, both about our heroes' past lives, and the fact that Great Red/Ophis have become the second beings sealed within the Boosted Gear/Divine Dividing. Makes me excited to know the "Legend" for Legend of the Heavenly Dragons was a good one ^^**

**Now, in terms of how the latter will affect them? They'll start getting some new abilities as time passes, but when it comes to the power of Dreams and Infinity, there's only going to be one ability they'll get from that, otherwise I'm worried they'll be too strong for anyone to defeat. As such, most of them will probably be more dragon related, although there's a bit they'll get in response to learning whose wills they've inherited.**

**For now, we have the battle with Loki to deal with, something I'll admit was a last-minute change. The character I originally had in mind was replaced with Loki because a new idea made me give them a different role, and I figured that with the other Worst Gods being dealt with through Indra and Hades, why not have Loki return so the entire trio is finished off around the same time in such a grand battle?**

**Also, there's something about Heroes that I couldn't say before now because I figured it would make God and Satan's positions in the Prophecy more obvious, but is now no longer an issue due to last chapter. Like the Valkyries and Grim Reapers, the Heroes of the Hero Clan are also a species of Half-Gods, in a similar manner the Valkyries being special Humans.**

**Last chapter, there's a line where I mentioned the blessing for Heroes comes in the form of sharing blood, which technically makes Amaterasu the ancestor of Issei, and is how the Half-God status applies to them. This is my way of making them different from Demigods, since Amaterasu would only be like a surrogate mother to the Akane bloodline's ancestor, rather than a biological one in the manner Zeus was to the original Heracles.**

**So, with all of that said, let's see how Issei and Vali's reborn selves do in their Round 2 against Loki!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking

**"(())"** \- Ophis Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking

**"[[]]"** \- Great Red Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** The "True" Prophecy: File 01 **

**An event seen long ago by God and Satan during one of their conflicts, presumably during the events of the Great War. Although there are still some gaps of details left unanswered, these are implied to be related less towards hiding parts of the Prophecy, and more towards the secrets hiding the truth about the unsolved questions of the Great War, and why Humanity didn't learn of the supernatural during it.**

**During this conflict, both deities saw multiple visions tied together in a network of future events, one of which would be their unavoidable deaths from sealing Trihexa away. As the monster rampaged across the battlefield, it seemed likely it would destroy the world, and there was no manner of stopping it in the present. However, what God saw within these visions showed that while not guaranteed, there was a way for the future to achieve this.**

**Seeing that the Dragons, whose faction had yet to be splintered, were heavily involved within these visions, he asked for every possible Dragon that he could to gather for a meeting. Eventually, he and Lucifer met with a majority of them (the Evil Dragons' attendance beyond Vritra being known), where even Great Red and Ophis indirectly attended.**

**They all listened to his story, and while initially skeptic, hearing that their king's current nature of being scorned, hunted, and etc. could end in such a future that he saw, they chose to put their faith in his words, even though all but the two Dragon Gods would forget this day until it began coming to fruition after 2000 years passed, causing them to all remember.**

**With them in agreement, the first stage began through some of the Dragons willingly sealing themselves away, while Ddraig and Albion purposely drew their fight into the battlefield of the Great War, forcing them to work together to set up what would lead to the Alliance's formation in the future. Once that was done, they sealed away Trihexa, an event Shiva would witness, meeting their ends.**

**It wouldn't be until another two millennia that the next stage would begin, when a boy possessing the blood of God's children, and a girl carrying the blood of the Lucifer bloodline, were born. Their names being Issei Akane, and Valiana Lucifer, but what neither of them knew at the time... they were also the reincarnations of God and Satan's wills, now freed from the restrictions of being deities.**

**For reasons unknown, Rizevim Livan Lucifer would discover this prophecy's existence, and that it seemed to somehow ruin the plans he had set for the future. Because of this, he razed the village that Issei was born in, while tormenting his granddaughter in an eventually failed attempt to control her. Unknown to him, this only served to create the events that would cause the two to meet.**

**Can these two truly save the future from Trihexa? No one knows, because all that's certain is they have the potential to do it.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 11 – Closing the Heavenly Gap _ **

"And now, I'll have my revenge!" Loki roared.

The Norse God of Mischief held out his hands, making energy cackle across the still deteriorating realm. As that happened, the Dragon Gods had only one thing to say...

**_"[Go! You are the Sekiryuutei, the Crimson Red Dragon of Dreams!]"_** Great Red roared.

**_"(And you're the Hakuryuukou, the Ivory White Dragon of the Infinite!)_**" Ophis shouted.

Issei looked at Vali, smiling at her while he placed the Queen Piece Vali gave him in his hands.

"Up until now, I've been following you from behind, but as of now... let this be a sign that we're finally equal. I no longer have to walk behind you as your Queen, but stand beside you as a King." Issei stated happily.

"So, we're finally on the same stage, I'm glad to hear you say that. Then let's make that grand debut one to remember!" Vali replied happily, gripping the Queen close.

Issei agreed, nodding as swung the newly evolved Ascalon into view.

"Yeah, let's do this!" Issei declared.

** _ Battle: Vali Lucifer and Issei Akane VS Loki _ **

They both rush forward, with Loki unleashing his attack towards the revived duo, who quickly dodged out of the way. Readying his sword, Issei prepared to swing down at him.

"Alright, time to Boost!" Issei shouted.

**"[Right!]"**

Issei swung down, waiting to hear the call ring out... yet nothing happened, surprising him as he hit Loki without enough power to damage him.

"Huh? Ddraig, what happened?" Issei questioned in surprise.

Ddraig wasn't sure, but them he realized the problem... the Boosted Gear was still in a broken state, meaning he couldn't channel any of his power to Issei!

**"[Shit! Issei, the Boosted Gear's still broken! I can't help you until it can be repaired!]"** Ddraig growled, cursing himself for forgetting about it.

"What!?" Issei shouted loudly.

Loki cackled loudly, charging more energy, and thrusting it at the completely defenseless Issei.

"Prepare to die again!" Loki cackled in victory.

"Issei!" Vali screamed in horror.

**"((Don't worry, he'll be fine.))"** Ophis reassured her.

The God of Mischief slammed the attack into Issei full force, expecting a hole to blow through... yet nothing by the recoil from the impact blew around him. Everyone gasped as Issei wasn't injured at all.

"What!?" Loki screamed in disbelief.

Taking a chance, Issei jumped away, landing near Vali.

"Whoa... how'd that do so little to me?" Issei questioned.

**"[[You can thank me for that, the cocky bastard's not gonna do anything to you if he expects he can hold that back to kill you as you are now.]]"** Great Red smirked, making sure his words rubbed into Loki's face.

Surely enough, he succeeded in pissing the insane deity, who gave a heavy scowl of rage.

"Wait, as in we're got tougher defenses now?" Issei questioned.

"**[[Got that right, probably still not that good compared to most Dragons, but I'd say it'll be fairly hard to hurt you unless you were trying to a High-Class Dragon.]]**" Great Red answered.

"Whoa, still weaker than Tiamat's defenses, but that's better than our Scale Mails." Issei realized.

"But also, enough for Loki to damage us if he gets serious, and he's obvious aware of that now." Vali remarked, sweating as she looked at Loki.

Loki roared as he rushed at them, transforming his arms into Hati and Skoll's heads, surprising the two.

"I'll murder you with all I have! ALL OF IT!" Loki raged.

Vali threw up a wall of ice, giving the two the chance they needed to avoid the attack. As he smashed through the ice, the two slid near part of the Dimensional Gap, noticing it slowly start to shatter.

**"((If we don't hurry, the Dimensional Gap will be destroyed, and take us with it.))"** Ophis realized.

**"[What can we do? Our Sacred Gears are still broken, so Issei and Vali can't fight at their best.]"** Ddraig questioned.

**"[[The two of us might be able to fix them, but you'll need to buy us some time.]]"** Great Red replied.

"I think we can do that, so let's do this." Issei smiled, readying Ascalon.

Loki's hair stretched out, becoming Midgardsormr as it neared the two, prompting Issei's eyes to signal his Domineering Will's activation. The beast froze for a second, and using that one moment, he swung down the fabled Dragon Slayer, killing the last remnants of the beast as Loki screamed in agony.

"How dare you!" Loki roared, lunging at the two.

"Although, I think that cost us the easy part of the fight..." Issei chuckled nervously.

"Probably." Vali agreed, doing the same.

* * *

Back in Kuoh Town, the sight of the silent Shalba, and the cackling Jingu, were staring down the entirety of the Alliance's forces.

"So, are you all ready to admit to your destruction? Or, are you just going to continue defying us until we finally end your worthless lives!?" Jingu exclaimed with a mocking tone.

"Don't even sound like they have hope, because there is none." Shalba stated.

The two unleashed a wave of power, with everyone shouting as they tried to hold down against the overwhelming force, the said power being the one that was being used to destroy souls. Gasping as he felt it, Diehauser put up a hand.

"Now, time for an instant annihilation!" Jingu roared.

The two of them, joined Thanatos and Nemesis, unleashed a wave of power that intended to eliminate the entire Alliance in one shot! However, Diehauser instantly interfered.

"**Worthless!**"

The four of them, and Hades, along with Bennia herself, felt something react in them. As it did, the wave harmlessly passed through everyone, showing Diehauser had completely silenced the power to destroy souls for the time being.

"What!? That's impossible, there's no way it could have failed!" Jingu screamed in denial.

"It didn't fail, you must have made your aura too strong, and that stupid champion from the Belial clan used it to negate his powers. You're the one to blame for making him learn enough about it for it to work." Shalba replied as he blamed her.

"Oh, hell no, you're not pinning this on me mister show of Devil's strength! This fault is yours!" Jingu retorted.

While they were busy arguing, the entire alliance sighed, with Diehauser landing on his stomach as he used up all his magic to pull off what he did.

"Thank you Diehauser, you saved us." Sirzechs panted, smiling a bit.

"I used all my power, so it should last another two hours, let's just hope that it's enough of a difference." Diehauser replied, hoping it mattered in the end.

Finally, after being unable to take their arguments anymore, the two strongest Grim Reapers slammed their scythes' back ends against their faces. As they screamed over the stinging pain, both of them gave them powerful glares as a warning sign.

"Behave, or else." Their voices sent chills across their bodies.

The two both growl, turning to face the Alliance again, who readied themselves for battle... only for most of them to weakly fall to the ground.

"No good, we're nearing our limit..." Ayumu coughed out.

"I don't think it was just that, the attack must have still weakened our souls, even if it didn't harm them..." Edelweiss grunted, unable to get back on her feet.

"Possibly, although it seems... age-specific." Tsukuyomi pointed out.

As the Japanese Moon Goddess revealed, the ones who hadn't collapsed to their knees had been the younger generation of fighters. Seeing this, Jingu laughed at how funny things ended up, giving her usual cruel smirk.

"Aw, it seems the babies are all that's left now, should we get the pacifiers?" Jingu mocked.

Upon hearing that, Ineelana's body began shaking.

"Ooh, you gonna cry little baby?" Jingu mocked, pointing at her.

"Put them up..." Ineelana whispered.

Jingu, not realizing the words she spoke, made a mocking gesture that she had to speak up.

"I said, put them up, you cowardly bastard! If you're that strong, then why are you throwing words instead of punches!?" Ineelana exclaimed loudly.

Jingu's eyes widened at that comment.

"What... did you just... call me? Are you saying I'm a weakling?" Jingu questioned, completely furious.

"The weak one is you, that is why you're on your knees! Now, die as proof of it!" Jingu roared.

Unleashing a powerful cyclone of ice at her, making everyone panic as it smashed into her, all while she laughed at the result.

"See that? You're finally dead, I've proven my power!" Jingu laughed loudly.

"...You call this power? It's pathetic!"

Jingu's eyes widened as her cyclone turned purple, and Ineelana's signature ice pierced into her icy skeleton, knocking her down. Even Shalba showed surprise at this, seeing Ineelana only slightly scuffed up from the action.

"Impossible!" Thanatos exclaimed.

"Did she do that because she knew her powers would counter it?" Nemesis questioned.

As the Leviathan heiress panted a bit, she gave a fierce look at the two, making them briefly freeze for that one small moment.

"If you think that we've lost heart just because you took Issei and Vali from us... then you don't know what it even means to be strong!" Ineelana screamed angrily.

The both went silent at that, unable to speak a word in response.

**「** **Beyblade Metal Fury: A Light of Hope** **」**

"I remember... remember back when I first met Vali, an even that would eventually make me realize I was my own worst enemy to why I felt I was always gonna be second to anyone I met." Ineelana began, closing her eyes.

"I saw her, training in ways that I didn't think anyone would push themselves through, and when she called me friend after she returned here to Kuoh Town... while it took time, I finally realized my own self-worth." Image of seeing Vali training, and the very hug she recalled during the tournament finals, flashed through her hand.

Opening her eyes, she kept the frown on her face.

"Back then I'd never admit it, but now? I'm proud to state she made me who I am now, a strong, and confident Devil heiress of the Leviathan bloodline!" Ineelana's frown changed into a smile, pointing at herself.

As everyone kept listening, with those on the villain's side showing annoyance, Rias stepped up next.

"It wasn't just Vali." Rias suddenly stated, making everyone look at her.

"I remember that first day I met Issei, at first he didn't seem like much, and that was because I felt we were the same. Limit by the standings in our life, regardless of our powers, and things as simple as pride. However, then I saw his determination in the Rating Game, and when the Peace conference happened, he was willing to push everything aside just to protect everyone."

"The moment I saw that, I finally realized the real reason I couldn't grow past what I was... I didn't let myself, I kept focusing on what I was. I may have been proud of my name, but I could never remove my pride, something that Vali didn't have despite being a Lucifer. Finally, it pushed me enough that I realized to become stronger, to be a better Devil, I had to accept help from others, leading to me asking my brother and Grayfia to train me." Rias explained.

Sirzechs showed brief surprise, having not heard the reason behind it.

"They may not be here, but that doesn't mean we've lost their strength... their Spirit lives in through the efforts they showed me, and everyone here!" Rias exclaimed, showing a determined look.

"Yeah, we agree!"

Rias looked to see Gebedon standing on his feet.

"That guy was determined, for his girl, and his morals!" Zephyrdor declared.

"We were all inspired the moment she stated her dream, because she was braver than us all, despite her struggles in life!" Sairaorg smirked.

"And then when she won the Finals, she became the one all Young Devils aspired to be like! She did that through all her strength, there was nothing artificial, especially since she fought while the Elders had her weak, and did all they could to make her lose!" Eneely pumped her fists up.

"Even if I was defeated early, I saw enough to respect Vali, and Issei." Seekvaira praised.

"He wasn't someone you could just mock." Dulio agreed.

"I remember seeing how much Asia was smiling after his efforts at the Vatican, and how easily he accepted his real parents back into his life.

"She was a symbol to us, how even those who have nothing can obtain their dreams through their efforts, because her dream was one that gave us all the chance we wouldn't all get as things were." Sona stated.

"That's right, you viewed them as pillars that we needed to support ourselves, thinking that killing them would break us all. You couldn't be more wrong... they were the center of a foundation we've all become!" Amalya stated.

Every one of the young generation stood together, all with their expressions showing they were not afraid to stand against them.

"We carry on their wills!" They all exclaimed with strong faith.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Jingu's body shook, her teeth gritting as she failed to understand, no... because she couldn't why they were not faltering!

'W-what's going on? They shouldn't be like this, they should be shattered, lost all their faith!' Jingu growled.

"These brats... they're like cockroaches, so we should make sure there's nothing left of them!" Shalba stated, finally getting irritated by the Devils opposing him.

They instantly take on the attack again, with the entire younger generation preparing themselves.

This time... it was their turn to protect everyone, just like their fallen friends would.

* * *

Asuka lead Issei's peerage as they headed back to Kuoh Town, knowing that the members of the eventual new Student Council were there to keep the citizens safe from harm.

"Come on, we've gotta hurry to let everyone know, Issei's body disappearing like that... I'm sure of it, he has to be alive!" Asuka panted, refusing to slow down in the slightest.

"Fafnir, what do you think?" Asia questioned, wanting to believe it.

The Golden Dragon Monarch did not answer her question, as while he had heard what Great Red and Ophis had implied... the memory link had vanished. He couldn't confirm or deny if they had revived, he wanted to believe it worked, but he didn't want to give false hope until he knew the truth.

"Hey, you guys!"

Issei's peerage turned to see Vali's peerage running closer, heading in the same general direction as them.

"Huh? Wait a second, if you guys are running this way, then... did Vali's body disappear as well?" Yuuma questioned.

"I knew it, so it was her _and_ Issei after all!" Kunou cheered.

"Not just that, none of us are Devils anymore, aside from me that is. Something's happened, and their Evil Pieces are linked to it." Yumina remarked.

"The same with us, except Irina and Asuka's swords changed as well!" Ravel stated.

"While my sword didn't change shape, it seems to have suddenly gained an influx of power, which may be the equivalent." Arthur mentioned.

At that moment, both peerages went silent... the parallels going on between the two groups were just so similar, it couldn't be a coincidence. If either peerage knew just what was happening with the Dimension Gap, they'd understand everything.

"Well either way, if that hope exists, we need to let the others know! If the other side learns Samael failed, that could be our turning point in this war!" Asuka stated.

"I agree, let's hurry!" Yumina replied.

* * *

Back within the Dimensional Gap, Loki's mad attempts to attack the two Dragon Emperors left him hollering in rage, constantly failing over and over in an attempt to strike them with any attack he could use. Meanwhile, Issei and Vali were relying on hit and run tactics, as they were without their full strength until their new partners fixed their Sacred Gears.

"You bastards, get over here and accept your deaths!" Loki roared, throwing his hands out.

His form started to become rotten sludge, roaring as his skin turned a dark gray color, catching the attention of the two Longinus wielders.

"Uh... that's not natural, is it?" Issei questioned his girlfriend.

"No, but I can't tell why..." Vali answered, her eyes shaking with worry.

**"(I think we know how he may have survived now, it was that fused form in combination with Trihexa's power, the only problem? His body can't the strain being placed on it...)"** Albion realized.

Both of them looked at Vali's right hand.

**"(The power itself may have not been a problem, but then he merged with Fenrir, the mutt's pups, and Midgardsormr. Since a few of them were dead, all that power was merged with instability between multiple creatures, and both something living and dead. I wouldn't say it's wrong to state that Loki's body survived because it was a perversion of life, but now it's starting to fall apart, or mutate into something... something even I don't know of.)"** Albion explained.

"And with that... this sight has become an instant red flag." Issei groaned, paling a bit.

**「** **Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress: KABANERIOFTHEIRONFORTRESS** **」**

Loki roared more, his chest suddenly forming the skeleton of Fenrir's head, followed by Skoll and Hati becoming his hands up to his elbows, while a melted Midgardsormr's tail began to wiggle where his hair tip was. Eventually, Hades' body started becoming sludge with the rest, and his voice became something almost alien in nature... that's when it started, and the sludge pulsated.

The two watched in horror as they saw the former body of Loki transform into some kind of monster, with Hades symbol appearing on it!

"Hades!?" Issei gasped.

"Oh man, I'm guessing this has to do with the dead parts of Loki's fused form!" Vali gagged out.

The sludge suddenly began turning into the form of something humanoid, but with six lanky limbs that all ended with hands, and a glowing spot that held Loki's signature color. On the "head" of the entire thing, the sight of five eyes in three different colors appeared, three of which were the same color to likely mark the wolves that made the beast's body.

"Is that a chimera, something like a zombie, or all of the above?" Issei questioned nervously.

**"[I think I'll go with none of the above, because that doesn't feel like it could be either of those!]"** Ddraig shuddered at the sight of it.

The mutated Loki shrieked before it began charging at them, and the two noticed how close the Dimensional Gap's deterioration really was to their current spot. With how Loki was charging at them right now... it didn't look too good.

**"[[Thanks for waiting!]]"** Great Red announced loudly.

"Huh!? Wait, you're ready now?" Issei asked.

**"[[Did better than that, now that there's two Dragons in here, we can't call these Longinus Mid-Tier anymore, not even High-Tier. Now, call it out! Call out the Sacred Gear's evolution!]]"** Great Red announced.

**"((Hurry before he gives it some stupid name himself, please.))"** Ophis sighed in response.

Looking at each other, Issei and Vali nodded, dispelling their Sacred Gears before raising their left/right hand respectively, making a green and blue glow appear on them.

"**Boosted Gear... Evolve!**" Issei exclaimed.  
"**Divine Dividing... Evolve!**" Vali exclaimed.

A bright light formed on the back of each hand, suddenly bursting out to push the mutated Loki back as the light scared his monstrous form.

With Issei, he saw the Boosted Gear assume its original default appearance, but the glowing markings that stayed with a golden coloration to reflect Great Red's eye color, with the small red gem being a golden-yellow. The gold prongs were also doubled, and slightly spread out like wings.

Vali's was similar, but the differences came from how the design's sharper edges were smoothed out for her, while the golden was replaced by black, with the smaller gem being purple, not to mention the white color with a blue gem. The prongs didn't change, but a bit blue energy slightly extended out, like that of the DD's original wing form.

"It looks like when I first used it, but it's so different... like its small size reflects its power." Issei breathed in awe.

"I'm not sure why I've got a gauntlet now, but this feels incredible." Vali gave a similar reaction.

**"((You can actually shift it into a wing form, or something else depending your preference/situation, I formed it there out of convenience. Either way, these are your newly evolved Longinus... the Boosted Dreamer, and the Infinite Dividing.))"** Ophis explained.

Issei shook his arm a bit, and noticed he was just as used to it as before, like the new form was adapted to feel just like its former one.

"Boosted Dreamer... pretty obvious name, but I like it! Now, time to see how this works!" Issei smiled with excitement.

**"[Yeah, here goes the test drive!]"** Ddraig agreed.

**[BOOST!]**

Issei felt an incredible surge, with a familiar red aura charging around him.

"Here goes!"

Rushing forward, the Sekiryuutei prepared Ascalon again, blasting out his Domineering Will to hold the monster down, though it surprised him a bit as he was trying to use his Blazing Soul when he used it.

'My Blazing Soul isn't working, was my revival responsible for it?' He thought.

Loki's mutant form instantly rushed at him, faster than Issei expected it to happen, leaving Vali to nearly scream as she expected the attack to actually harm him this time. As he saw it near him, Issei felt scared as he wished he could evade it, yet knew he couldn't.

**[[DREAM!]]**

"Dream?" Issei repeated upon hearing the call.

At that moment, Issei felt himself able to react enough that he could move his body around each attack successfully, surprising even Vali. Issei quickie noticed it wasn't as if the word slowed around him, he was just able to process it as fast as everything.

'How am I... this should be impossible, right?' Issei thought.

**[[Not with me, my power makes the illusions of reality become real through what you dream and wish for. You just did that when you wanted a way to evade these attacks]]** Great Red explained.

Issei's eyes widened as he kept dodging, readying for an attack.

'So, does that mean I could do anything you could?' Issei questioned.

**[[Fraid not, it's been limited by me being sealed in here. It can only apply to your body, or something you're touching, to a certain level. Also, this trick can't help when there's something you're not aware of, like being hypnotized by something.]]** Great Red explained.

'Can't win them all I guess.' Issei chuckled at the thought.

Focusing his vision, he shifted right before Loki, and swung Caliburn right through him. The mutated deity shrieked in pain, being cut across the middle, which poured out some sludge to make his head disappear... which is when Issei noticed his body light move.

**"[That must be like a core, it's reacting to the damage and moving to a safer spot.]"** Ddraig suggested.

"Yeah, that seems fitting." Issei agreed.

"I've got your back, Issei!" Vali exclaimed, preparing to fly towards him.

Before her wings even popped out, the mutant Loki's body stretched out to grab her, making her scream as her boyfriend noticed it.

"Vali!" Issei screamed out.

Loki shrieked before his arms began siphoning power from her, making Issei sweat as he didn't know how to act.

**((Infinity!))**

Right as Vali felt she was being drained, she felt her aura flare up, causing her to notice her stamina and magic weren't dropping.

"Ophis, what's going on?" Vali questioned.

**"((You've got my power over infinity stamina and magic, though know your body won't be used to it, so you've gotta train it to handle prolonged amounts of using either. Either way, as long as no one hits you with an anti-magic effect, you'll be able to cast all the high-powered spells you want.))"** Ophis explained.

Vali's mouth opened with amazement, and soon smirked as she held out a hand.

"Albion, let's test it out, shall we?" Vali requested.

**"(Indeed, I'm interested as well.)"** Albion agreed.

**(DIVIDE!)**

The mutated Loki's arms instantly released her, feeling incredibly heavy as his power was sapped away from him. Shaking a bit, the monstrous deity shrieked loudly, causing the Dimensional Gap to shatter an entire level of its form, surprising his opponents.

"Crap! If we take much longer, we're not gonna make it out of here!" Vali realized.

"We need to somehow beat him and start escaping at the same time, because I'm starting to think he's blocking the way out!" Issei replied in agreement.

**「** **Insert Song Paused** **」**

Their Sacred Gears flash, as if giving them an answer from a trio of images in their mind.

"A new attack for us both?" Issei stated in surprise.

"Ones that are strong alone, but powerful together?" Vali looked at Issei in response.

Noticing the closing collapse of the Dimensional Gap's realm behind them, they realized that the timing couldn't have been a coincidence. Taking each other's hand, they started to rush forward, with Loki's body shrieking as it charged at them.

"Here we go!" They both shouted.

A red aura formed around Issei, and a white one around Vali, making them look like comets from a distance.

"**Dreamer Red!**"

"**Infinite White!**"

Taking each other's Sacred Gear equipped hand, their two auras merged together, causing the two auras to swirl together, becoming like a like shaped drill. It slammed right into Loki, hitting his mutated form hard as the Dimensional Gap kept closing in, but upon reaching a certain point... they shattered through what seemed to be a gate back to Earth.

With only moments to spare, they both shot right through it, just in time to escape the Dimensional Gap collapsing on itself, finally meeting its end as it was destroyed.

* * *

Back on Earth, as both the Dragon hosts' wielders continued their return to Kuoh Town... they felt a huge ripple pass through the sky, making them suddenly stop from the force.

"Whoa! Hey guys, anyone know what that is!?" Irina questioned loudly.

"I don't know, but... it feels like it's echoing from outside our world!" Kuroka grunted.

At that moment, a crack formed in the sky, which made them see a burst of energy hitting the mutated Loki's body, and surprising them a bit.

"Holy freaking crap! Just... just what is that thing!" Rossweisse exclaimed, slipping into a country-like tone of voice at the first three words.

Everyone looked at her, making her blush in surprise as she realized what happened.

"Uh... you didn't hear anything just now?" Rossweisse remarked, hoping everyone would just ignore her accent slip-up.

* * *

Back in Kuoh Town, the younger fighters of the Alliance's side were all looking tired as they faced off with Shalba, Jingu, and the two strongest Grim Reapers. At the moment, things looked like they were leaning more towards the former group losing.

"Heh! Talking tough, but in the end, you're the ones on the ground!" Jingu laughed at them.

"Now, let's make sure these maggots die already." Shalba remarked.

As they prepared to do that, the dimensional ripple reached Hades' senses, making his eyes shoot open, followed by a loud scream that made his side's fighters all suddenly freeze up at the Greek God's outburst.

"L-lord Hades?" Thanatos had never heard him scream like that.

Hades panted a bit, realizing the energies he felt.

"Lord Hades, what's the matter?" Nemesis questioned, wondering what freaked him out so much.

"L-Loki's not in the Dimensional Gap, and this energy... it can't be!" Hades realized in horror, not even aware he was both wrong and right.

* * *

As they continued smashing against Loki's body, Issei uses his power to focus on where to find Loki's core. Soon, the body shreds open, revealing what looked to be Loki's head and upper half of his torso, only with glowing eyes.

Upon seeing them, Loki's core shrieks threateningly at them.

**「** **Insert Song Resume** **」**

"Vali, now!" Issei shouted.

"Right!" Vali replied.

Making their rotation accelerate, they force Loki's body to turn, and smash into the core! Loki's shrieks died down before his body glowed from the entrance to his core. Both peerages looked at it in shock, noticing something as the attacks died down. Swelling up as he was about to die, Loki's body finally burst apart in a purge, ending his threat for good, and then...

Everyone saw Issei and Vali being flung out from what Loki's inner body moments before, making them all gasp.

"ISSEI!"  
"VALI!"

Both their peerages cheered as their Kings were proven alive, with Fafnir sighing in relief, followed by a laugh of joy.

**«Nice job you two»** Fafnir smirked, thanking the two Dragon Deities.

Issei soon lowered to the ground, catching himself as he slid across it, then held his arms out towards the sky as Vali began descending.

"I've gotcha!" Issei shouted.

She soon landed in his arms, and he slightly spun her before putting her down, the two smiling afterward. They had won, and now they were both back home.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"You're alive... I knew it, you're still here!"

The two only then noticed their peerages looking from a short distance, surprised at their unexpected presence, but happy about it.

"I don't believe it!" Issei smiled.

"Everyone!" Vali smiled.

The two peerages reunited with their King's, with hugs, glomps, and happy tears flying around everywhere as they did. It didn't matter none of them had their Evil Pieces right now, because right now... two heroes thought to have perished had defied the odds, and they had returned.

"H-how is this possible, how did you survive?" Le Fay sniffled, looking at Vali.

"Actually, we didn't survive, we really did die." Vali explained, surprising everyone as they heard it.

"Good news? We had some friends give is another life." Issei chuckled.

The two held up their newly evolved Sacred Gears, confusing both groups as they noticed they didn't look like they used to.

**"[[Hey there, glad to join the party.]]"** Great Red greeted.

**"((I believe most of you met me back when you fought Kokabiel?))"** Ophis reminded the group.

"Wait a minute, is that... Great Red, and Ophis!?" Yuuma screamed as her mind overloaded.

Issei chuckled a bit, then nodded.

"Yeah, that thing we just killed was actually Loki, who survived somehow. He had been using the two to try destroying the Dimensional Gap since we learned they went missing, and since they were helpless, they gave us a win-win." He explained.

"Of course, so that's why everyone but Yumina and I aren't Devils anymore, Issei was connected to both peerages, so the power made a miracle." Ravel realized.

Vali giggled at that, looking at her friends.

"We found out a little something else, but I think like adding you guys all back into our peerages, we should finish this fight with Hades." Vali teased them.

"I'll give this hint to Asia, and Irina for now... God's not as dead as you think he is." Issei winked.

The two both showed surprise at that, but after looking at Issei a bit more, Irina's eyes widened for a brief moment, as if she managed to pick on slightly on the hint. However, she didn't have time to ask as Asuka spoke up.

"Hades is in Kuoh Town right now. He, Jingu, Shalba, and who knows what's left of his army are fighting everyone. As for the citizens, they're all being watched over by most of the new Student Council members." She explained.

The two nodded at that.

"Alright, take my hand, we're taking a shortcut over." Issei smirked.

"Hang on tight!" Vali announced.

Everyone did, and at that moment, both Dragon God's magic circles overlaid underneath the group. In that moment, they teleported away from the area.

* * *

As everyone was still shocked from Hades' outburst, Jingu suddenly started laughing.

"No offense pops, but I think you're being delusional. Yah, Loki was in there, but you had set the Dimensional Gap to be destroyed. Don't you think power could leak out from those two arrogant siblings?" Jingu questioned, not feeling worried.

'Wait, what was just destroyed!?' Ajuka thought in surprise.

Hades went silent, looking at Jingu, unsure if she was right and he was being paranoid, or if his worries were actually true.

"Forget that, let's just finish these brats off now." Shalba stated.

Jingu sighed, shrugging as they both prepared a final attack, making everyone panic as it looked like nothing could save them, but then... a suddenly blast of fire and ice smashed into the two, making them both suddenly get flung into the barrier Hades was in.

It was that moment Hades realized his worries were just as he thought, while everyone turned as smoke was present where the attacks came from. They saw a familiar pair of peerages run out into view, smiling a bit.

"Everyone, we've got some good news!" Yumina exclaimed.

**「** **My Hero Academia: Plus Ultra** **」**

As she said that, a familiar duo began walking through the smoke, and everyone focused at the sight. It was then a familiar pair of voices were heard, changing everything as everyone present went silent.

"I'm sure things went crazy after Samael did what he did, even if his moment here was ultimately a brief one." Many voices began tearing up at the familiar male voice.

"We've been told what's happened, so no need to explain everything. Just know this, no matter how frightened you were, or how much you struggled, you don't have to worry any longer." The female voice that spoke had the same reaction, while the few villains left were trying to deny it.

At that moment, both of them swung their arms, dispelling the smoke as they revealed themselves.

"Because... we're back!" Issei and Vali exclaimed.

The entire alliance screamed in joy at the sight of their heroes, including Kuoh Town's citizens who were getting a live stream through one of Tadami's talismans.

"I don't believe it, they're alive!" Serafall exclaimed as happy tears flew from her eyes.

Jingu's face contorted with anger, steam seething from her teeth.

"That's... that's impossible, Samael's poison should have destroyed their souls!" Shalba's voice shook with fear for the first time in his whole life.

"Great Red, and Ophis... they're the ones I sensed, not them. Does that mean they actually rescued those two!?" Hades wondered aloud as his bones rattled, unaware the truth was much bigger than that.

Finally, Jingu snapped before giving a violent, tantrum like scream.

"This is a lie... this is a lie, this is a lie, this is a lie! You bastards were dead, so how dare you insult us all by living!" Jingu roared, at a level of rage that even furious wasn't an accurate term for.

Seeing the final threats before them, Issei and Vali walked towards them.

"I'll take Shalba, considering that Jingu likely killed Azazel, you should be the one to avenge him." Issei suggested.

"Sure thing, I wanted to fight her anyways." Vali agreed.

As they began to pass by their friends, Issei put a hand on Ineelana's shoulder, making her look at them.

"You did good, leave the last round to us." Issei smiled.

The two summoned their Sacred Gears, getting closer to the last five of Hades army. At that moment, everyone watching knew this was it.

Both of them were about to end this war.

* * *

**This is it, Issei and Vali have dealt with Loki, escaped the Dimensional Gap before it went through a Big Crunch, and now everyone knows they're back! However, on the downside, the Dimensional Gap has been destroyed... something that seems to be a bad thing if someone was trying to destroy it alongside our Dragon Deities, and I think we know who stands to gain something from that.**

**And you've gotten the first view on what's likely gonna be the only ability based on the concepts that birthed Great Red and Ophis, as like I said above, I'd risk pushing the two into being way too powerful if I gave them anymore abilities. Balancing the ones I showed here took a lot of aid to make sure they were safe, and it was mostly due to the enemies they'll face.**

**For example, remember the two Devils trying to capture our heroes' dead bodies? The girl is a bigger risk to Issei, as like Great Red said, being caught off guard is the greatest weakness due to how awareness is an important factor. While for Vali? If you remember how he locked up Kuroka's chi network, I think you can tell that he could cut off Vali's ability to cast magic, or her movements... endless magic and stamina ain't gonna work if that happens.**

**Something a few of you likely noticed back in this chapter's Concept Talk is the line saying: "blood of God's children", which... sounds exactly like you might be thinking. I'll elaborate more on that later, as right now, revealing that would be a spoiler that's not gonna show up until Issei makes a small trip to Heaven, since the Angels will wanna see if the Seventh Heaven does anything when he gets near it.**

**Now, I should give a Longinus update considering what just happened to our heroes' Sacred Gears. To explain, they're now in a class above the High-Tier, since each of them now have the strongest beings in the world sealed inside of it, which I think justifies them being on that level. I mean... in canon, Ophis shrugged off being stabbed by the True Longinus, so if that didn't qualify a Sacred Gear she powered to exceed High-Tier, I don't know what would.**

**Oh, guess while I'm on that subject, both Saji's Cursed Malebolge, and Kirin's Tyrant Impact, are Mid-Tier Longinus, so you can consider them the replacements for the spots Issei and Vali's Sacred Gears used to have. If I end up making Gasper's Forbidden Balor View become a Longinus... probably a Mid-Tier, but maybe a Low-Tier, not sure where to rank its strength just yet.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**【** **Boosted Dreamer** **】**   
**The evolved form of the Boosted Gear after Great Red seals himself within it to revive Issei, and one of the two Ultimate-Tier Longinus. It has the same abilities it did in its original form, with some of them now even stronger, while also have some new abilities that come from Great Red.**

**【** **Infinite Dividing** **】**   
**The evolved form of the Divine Dividing after Ophis seals herself within it to revive Vali, and one of the two Ultimate-Tier Longinus. It has the same abilities it did in its original form, with some of them now even stronger, while also have some new abilities that come from Ophis.**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	76. Chapter 76

**Time to bring out the last battles of this war to their conclusion, and finally end the Second Great War's threat once and for all! As last chapter's final scene stated, we've got Issei facing off against Shalba, who was indirectly the one that killed him and Vali through the Jabberwocky, even though Hades was the reason Samael was inside that thing's mouth; where for Vali, she's taking on Jingu, since she needs to avenge her Uncle Azazel.**

**As for our two final Grim Reapers and Hades, I think you can tell whatever the Death God's got planned, he needs those two. You've seen how their energy had an influence on his little barrier already, and I think if you all remember the opening scene, there's one thing that has yet to fully show up... a strange beast that wasn't the Jabberwocky. I won't say everything here, but let's just say Hades still has a trump card for when it's his turn to fight them.**

**However, our two Dragons also have a trump card, and it's one they don't even know about just yet. The only clue I'm giving is this power is the very thing that has the prophecy state they even have the potential to stop Trihexa, even if it's one that's still too unrefined to fight the monster with right now, so I hope I've at least spiced up the anticipation for it, since if things go well, you should see it in this chapter or the next.**

**Now, as this chapter's title says... let's fly!**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking

**"(())"** \- Ophis Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking

**"[[]]"** \- Great Red Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Boosted Dreamer **

**The evolved form of Issei's Boosted Gear after being broken upon his death, and then repaired by Great Red after sealing himself within the Sacred Gear. Now with the powers of both Red Dragon Emperors, it has gone from a Mid-Tier Longinus, to one of the only two Sacred Gears that exceed the True Longinus as Ultimate-Tier Longinus.**

**The Boosted Dreamer has all of its original form's abilities through Ddraig, being the [Boost] with its interlocked abilities, [Penetrate], and the [Blazing Inferno of Scorching Flames], although the first two have been enhanced by Great Red's influence. Among these, Issei now has the [Blast] ability, which at the cost of being unable to boost his power for a while, has him instantly boosted enough to match a certain opponent without wasting time in powering up by normal means.**

**For his Penetrate ability, it can now target more than physical defenses, now even being able to attack mental, emotional, or even abstract defenses... although Issei admits he's not entirely how this works just yet, so he has little experience in the newer forms of it. He can now also use Transfer to grant it to one of his allies, giving them the physical form of it, though it doesn't work on Asuka because her Brave Striker already works the same way.**

**What truly gives the Longinus its new level of power is his [[Dream]] ability, granted from Great Red's power. By taking Great Red's power to make the illusions of one's dreams into a reality, as long as Issei wishes for something that's part of/extends from his body, or relates to something he's touching, he can make it adapt to fit his vision. There are limits to this, with Great Red warning Issei that his awareness is a weakness to this power.**

**As the new strength of the Sekiryuutei with the True Red Dragon God Emperor's power, Issei will use it well in the coming battles.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 12 – The Heavenly Dragons Fly _ **

Seeing the final threats before them, Issei and Vali walked towards them.

"I'll take Shalba, considering that Jingu likely killed Azazel, you should be the one to avenge him." Issei suggested.

"Sure thing, I wanted to fight her anyways." Vali agreed.

As they began to pass by their friends, Issei put a hand on Ineelana's shoulder, making her look at them.

"You did good, leave the last round to us." Issei smiled.

The two summoned their Sacred Gears, getting closer to the last five of Hades army. Shalba clicked his teeth at the insult shown before them both.

"Please, you think the two of you alone can defeat us just because you beat the Jabberwocky, then I'm afraid you're sorely mistaken!" Shalba announced.

Shalba thrust his first forward, while Issei simply whispered something, standing in front of Vali. The traitorous Beelzebub's fist managed to smash into Issei... however, that's when everyone saw Issei holding the strike back with just his hand, and no signs of any damage were on his body.

He had tanked the entire attack, without it affecting him in the slightest!

"What!?" Jingu screamed in shock.

"He just took that hit, no way!" Esketanus gasped.

"D-damn?" Suzattin replied oddly.

Issei looked at Shalba, who was shaking a bit from the sight.

"Vali, how about we show them our new strength? Without even using our Scale Mails?" Issei offered.

"Sure thing, we'll let them know they had no chance from the start." Vali agreed.

At that moment, they both rushed forward, pushing the two across opposing sides of the town as they formed their respective battlefields. All of the guys focused towards where Issei went, while the woman focused towards Vali's direction.

* * *

Feeling the push of Issei's strength, Shalba eventually shook himself free, leaving the Sekiryuutei to skid across the ground as he stared down the traitorous Beelzebub.

** _ Battle: Issei Akane VS Shalba Beelzebub _ **

Cracking his neck a bit, the host of the Red Dragons looked at the Shalba in his bug armor, who glared towards him with spiteful eyes. Taking a few steps forward, Issei did nothing, and said nothing... just let him get closer.

"I can't believe you would insult us like this, for a simple reincarnated Devil to defy Samael, and return from the grave... I shall purge you to cleanse the insult you've stained all our efforts with!" Shalba stated.

"Sounds like you have a plan, but I'm afraid it already failed for one reason..." Issei replied.

"And just what would that be, our filthy reincarnate-"

Shalba was instantly shut up as Issei let all of her energy out, making everyone sense what kind of beings that comprised it. That was the moment everyone realized it...

"You're... why is there no Devil's essence in you anymore!?" Shalba demanded.

Issei chuckled at that, smirking at him.

"Simple, because I'm not a Devil anymore, I'm just... a Hero with the power of Dragons!" Issei exclaimed loudly.

Everyone gasped at that.

"He's... not a Devil? Is he taunting Shalba?" Zephyrdor questioned.

"No, I see it... whatever happened to Issei and Vali, it seems it removed his Devil said, but not his Evil Piece connection." Gebedon verified the truth, surprising all the guys.

"Issei, just what kind of miracle did you create?" Gebedon wondered aloud.

As Issei's power flowed out, he suddenly felt something within him that he hadn't noticed before, a bright light.

'Great Red, what is this? Am I feeling another change from your body?' Issei questioned the Dragon Deity.

**[[It's a bit of yes, and no. When you weren't able to use that one trick of yours, I decided to check around till you needed me again, and found out it didn't work because you don't need that Force Crystallization anymore. Your body's already been put in that state from me reviving you, though in the process, it seems something else replaced that power, or evolved it into a new form... perhaps the Prophecy's involved?]]** Great Red explained.

At that moment, Issei gasped as he realized what it was, recalling the bit of information Belzard passed down from him, and those last moments in the memory. Smiling, he got an idea as he looked at Shalba.

** _You can do it, wield the Light of Courage_ **

Shalba noticed his smile, which started creeping him out.

"Here this now so-called leader of the Khaos Brigade, aside from my finishing blow, I'll destroy you without using any form of offense except my fists!" Issei remarked.

"What!?" Shalba shouted in disbelief.

"WHAT!?" Everyone repeated.

As he heard that, Shalba began to feel anger at how Issei was mocking him.

"How dare you insult me, let's see how you act, when you can't tell what's truly going on around you anymore!" Shalba screamed.

'Saying that was your first mistake.' Issei thought.

**[[DREAM!]]**

Shalba opened his wings, making them vibrate so fast it seemed like they were trembling, hitting Issei with something.

"Oh no, he's using a hypnotic effect on him!" Gebedon gasped.

"Issei, wake up! What you're seeing isn't real!" Zephyrdor warned.

"Don't bother, the illusion he's in is incredibly hypnotic, he can't even hear your voices anymore." Shalba smirked as he stared at the immobile Issei.

Shalba started rushing at Issei, whose left eye had a faint glow.

It was at that moment Issei noticed the discrepancies between reality and the illusion his other eye could still see. While Shalba was moving behind him to deal a fatal blow from where he least expected it in his left eye's view, his right eye was seeing his fellow Kuoh Academy students rushing towards him.

"He wouldn't attack his own allies, and now it will be what kills him once and for all!" Shalba smirked as his arm contorted into a pointed shape.

"No!" Esketanus screamed.

"Whose gonna die here?" Issei questioned, smiling as he turned around.

At that moment, everyone saw Issei move out of Shalba's path, reappear on his back, and then... rip both his wings off! The leader of the Khaos Brigade screamed as the link to the bug armor made him feel the agony, while Issei's left eye stopped glowing, the illusion having faded away.

"No way, I hypnotized you, there's no way you could have known I was there, even if you realized it was fake!" Shalba exclaimed, unable to accept what he did.

"You shouldn't be such an idiot then." Issei retorted.

"What!?" Shalba screamed.

"You thought I had no counter against hypnosis, and foolishly told me that was your intent before you even used it. Unfortunately for you, I _do_ have a way to counter hypnosis!" Issei explained.

Shalba's eyes widened.

'No way, he's lying... he can't have such a skill if he's a fighter-type, he wouldn't have the magic for it!' Shalba refused to believe it, despite the evidence before him.

"Damn you, then I'll make your death quick, and pain_ful_!"

Shalba's bug armor unleashed hundreds of insect legs, using them like lances, spears, or any other pointed weapon one could think of, at inhuman speeds that even Gebedon's Invader Sight couldn't keep up with. However, Issei was quickly able to react faster than each of them, turning and swinging around before smashing his fists through them, shattering them to bits.

"How are you countering everything I do!?" Shalba demanded as fear started to overtake his heart.

**「** **My Hero Academia: You Say Run** **」**

Issei looked at him, shaking his head.

"Like I'm gonna tell you, you'll learn when I finally do karma's job, and end your life with all the pain you gave to those you've murdered for your sick ambitions!" Issei stated.

"Just know this, I am..." He breathed deeply, his aura growing larger.

Within Issei's body, the sight of multiple lights, representing the lingering wills of all his past possessors, including Belzard, up to the wills of Ddraig and Great Red, before finally hitting the most important one of all... the will he inherited from God himself! With that, Issei felt his body full adapt to the power he was given, making his pupils turn a glowing white with a red tint.

"...Issei Akane, the True Sekiryuutei!"

Issei shot forward at a speed no one expected, least of all Shalba, leaving the mighty reincarnation of God to smash into his body with incredible force. Everyone nearby was suddenly pushed away by the massive recoil of the force, making it feel like they were trapped in a pseudo-hurricane.

"Holy shit!" Sieg exclaimed.

"Is he making this gale just with his own physical force!?" Cao Cao questioned.

"No, I think this is... Prana!" Leo remarked.

Everyone showed surprise at that, while Shalba's body was completely frozen from the impact.

'I couldn't even see him! What did he do to me, I... can't move!' Shalba gave a violent cough as the pain shot through his body.

Issei started punching him rapidly, further forcing everyone to stay low from the wind.

"Strike me all you want, but there's no way punching me with two fists will finish me, you're just gonna tire yourself out!" Shalba mocked him.

"You know, for someone who leads a terrorist group, you sure like mentioning what you'll do, or how to beat you!" Issei remarked.

Shalba realized what he just did again.

"If two's not enough, then let's see if you handle ten!" Issei exclaimed.

Just as Shalba was about to call bullshit on that claim...

**[[DREAM!]]**

Everyone suddenly saw eight additional arms of Issei form around his natural two, and Shalba started screaming as his body's movements were completely locked, ant the insect armor started to actually get dented.

"W-what the living Hell!" Zephyrdor exclaimed.

"Yeah, so this is the power he got from Great Red!" Bikou cheered.

Everyone turned at him.

"Wait, Great Red... can it be?" Gebedon gasped.

Using his Invader Sight... he spotted the brief traces of the Dragon God's magic circle, gasping as his possible doubts were instantly shattered.

"I don't believe, he's right! Issei's actually... commanding Great Red's power!" He exclaimed.

"What!?" Shalba gasped.

Issei roared, smashing all ten fists into the same spot, shattering a spot in the armor to reveal the soft insect skin underneath it. Issei lunged forward, smashing a single fist into it, and making Shalba vomit out slime in response to it.

"See that? I had a sword, I had fire, and I had even more... but all I needed was my two fists to smash through all your blockades!" Issei exclaimed loudly, smiling as he did.

Issei moves instantly, striking Shalba across the area, in every direction, before grabbing him in midair, and slamming him into the air. All of the guys watching the fight went silent, at best making quiet gasps, upon seeing Shalba's armor fully break apart, leaving him in a defenseless state.

"Alright, now for my finishing move! This one comes straight from the skies above!" Issei exclaimed, reeling his fist back as the same image of linking wills formed in his mind.

"**Heavenly... ZENITH!**"

A huge amount of holy light resembling that of Vali's Primal Abyss, shining as a white mass of power with a faint iridescent sheen, covered all of Issei's hand in a plus-like shape. Screaming with all his might as he said those two powerful words, he slammed into Shalba, making him scream, while all the elder Angels gasped at the sight. Shalba was launched into the air, his body shaking before it was purged in a massive explosion, and the holy power burst like a sonic boom, scattering every nearby cloud away.

** _ Winner: Issei Akane! _ **

While most were just in awe, the surviving Seraph all lost their voices entirely.

"That was... that was the Zenith Tempest, but how does he have father's power?" Sandalphon questioned.

"Who cares how he has it? Right now, he just signaled to Hades he's about to lose!" Metatron exclaimed.

Everyone looked at each other, smiles on their faces.

"I agree, that alone shows we're gonna win this war." Dulio agreed, looking at the Sekiryuutei with awe.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As he saw his fist stop steaming up, Issei smiled at himself, looking at his hand.

'God, thank you for this strength, I'll make sure to use it well.'

_'I know you will.'_

Gasping for a brief moment, Issei saw the face of God smile at him before vanishing. Chuckling a bit, he gripped his fist, looking at where Hades was.

"Alright, now time to take down the mastermind behind this all." Issei said with resolve.

* * *

Around the same time as Shalba broke off from Issei's charge, Jingu smashed Vali off of her. Upon doing this, the Lucifer heiress back flipped across the ground, sliding across it before coming to a full stop.

** _ Battle: Vali Lucifer VS Jingu _ **

Jingu panted heavily, growling at the girl standing before her. In her distorted view, she saw Vali's expression in a smug, mocking-like shape, with everyone watching having a similar expression of mockery against her.

"You mock me... I won't stand for it, my beauty! My power! My everything! All of it will make you a putrid flesh blob that my father will abuse for eternity!" Jingu roared.

Vali blinked a bit, looking at the others.

"Is... she even sane anymore?" Vali questioned, despite being sure she knew the answer.

"If that was sane, then I'd eat my underwear in an attempt to lie to myself." Ineelana shuddered, almost barfing from having the thought.

Vali gave an odd chuckle at this.

"Hey Ophis, I need to know, anything about my new powers I should be aware of? Issei did seem a bit worried to know he couldn't use his Blazing Soul at that one moment." Vali whispered to her.

**((Wise choice, I looked into it myself. You definitely can't use that equivalent to his Blazing Soul anymore, but you've got a little something new in compensation. Not to mention, your body's now in a state like Issei's Force Crystallization, but permanent. Oh, and it seems you've got something new about your Primal Abyss... I wonder, maybe your dad didn't tell the truth about its full potential?))** Ophis replied, playfully teasing Vali.

Vali chuckled awkwardly, somehow not surprised Ophis was still teasing her even now. Though at that moment, something flashed through her head, making her gasp as she felt a bit of what Elsha gave her.

** _Show it to the world you can do it, wield the Darkness of Hope_ **

'This is... alright, I think I know what to do, so here goes nothing!' Vali thought.

Holding up her hands, she formed over 50 magic circles, firing multiples of beams at Jingu, causing the adoptive daughter of Hades to scream as she was knocked down to the ground, some of her icy skeleton having to reform from the damage she took.

"Damn it, you... stupid... little... BITCH!" Jingu roared, gathering all of her arms to charge an attack.

"**Below Zero Freeze!**"

An icy inferno blew out, freezing the entire area, with Ineelana only barely keeping the rest of them from being caught inside. Vali felt the ice hit her, leaving Jingu to gasp at her suffering.

"Since you're so proud of your magic, I'll kill you by draining it all from you! This will sap away all your magic, and your stamina for good measure, you won't be able to fight me without your best feature of the energy to even move!"

As Jingu kept laughing... Vali smirked, looking at her opponent without any worries.

**「** **My Hero Academia: Jet Set Run** **」**

"Think again, you're chances of winning... just got snowed in!" Vali stated.

**((INFINITY!))**

Just like Issei, within Vali's body came the sight of multiple lights, representing the lingering wills of all her past possessors, including Elsha, followed by Albion and Ophis, and then Lucifer himself! Her pupils turned a glowing white, gaining a blue tint as she shrugged off the icy chill, surprising Jingu.

"What the f-" Jingu was blasted in the face by more of Vali's beams before she could finish.

"Always wanted to interrupt that curse word, it was quite satisfying. As for how that didn't work? It's quite simple, that trick doesn't work on me." Vali giggled before replying to her.

Jingu's body shook, her eyes glowing in a threatening manner.

"If ice doesn't work, then I'll just use everything else! Feel every bit of my power sap away your strength!" Jingu roared.

Raising her hands up, she summoned all the deathly energy she could to weigh down on Vali, smashing against her as it tried to weaken her like it had to most of the Alliance. Rushing ahead, she prepared to cut Vali open before she could even react, when...

**((INFINITY!))**

Vali burst through it again, shocking her.

"IMPOSSIBLE!" Jingu screamed in denial.

"**Infinity Blaster!**"

Vali unleashed the Ouroboros Dragon's signature ability, knocking her back as everyone gasped.

"I said the trick didn't work, not the fact you did it by ice! You can't reduce what's infinite! Something that my magic and stamina have become with Ophis' power inside of me!" Vali exclaimed.

Everyone's eyes widened at that.

"O-Ophis?" Lilith repeated.

"No, you're bluffing! There's no way you can have her power! It's a lie!" Jingu kept spouting refusals as she felt her sanity degrade more with every second.

She screamed even louder, charging more power from her body.

"Here I go!" Vali gathered her own power.

Everyone soon felt Prana explode from her body, surprising the one person who could sense it coming off her body.

"Guys, she can use Prana now!" Ophelia remarked.

"Are you serious!?" Ineelana shouted in shock.

Vali instantly appeared in front of Jingu, smashing her energy apart with just a simple magical blast. The mutated Hero Faction traitor fell onto her frontal knees, holding her skeleton's chest as she did.

"Ophis, this girl's too dangerous to leave alive, but I don't think she deserves the mercy of death... any way to give her a more deserving fate?" Vali inquired.

**"((Hmm... she's gotten some pretty foreign stuff in her, so I think if I you used my power to outright destroy her Sacred Gear's connection to her. Combine that with one good attack, and you should get a fitting result.))"**Ophis suggested.

"Alright, then let's try it out." Vali smiled.

Jumping onto Jingu's body, she dodged her free arms swiping at her before smashing her palms against where her heart should be.

"Now, take it all! Feel all your sins destroy you in a way you'll never stop suffering from!" Vali shouted.

"I have no sins to commit, you'll be the one who suffers!" Jingu retorted.

She prepared to strike at her only for Vali to start pouring all her power into her Freezing Archaeopteryx, something that made her scream in complete agony. Everyone watched as kept pouring more in, surprised at the bright flash she was emitting. As Jingu tried to reach her in vain, Vali kept screaming, forcing even more into her body, leaving Jingu to give one final shriek, and then...

*SHATTER*

The sound of her Sacred Gear breaking was heard, leaving Jingu to go silent, feeling her mutated form suddenly disappear. her Sacred Gear's broken pieces disappeared, going back to the System until it found a new wielder. Jingu's form reverted to normal, but with untied hair, tattered clothing, but her skin was still a deathly gray color, with her eyes all blank and lifeless looking.

"N-no, that's... that's mine... give it back!" Jingu shouted in a hoarse voice.

Vali breathed, giving an angry look to Jingu as she held out her hand.

"You've betrayed so many, hurt even more, mocked plenty, and made sure a ton of people can never be revived because you destroyed your souls... thinking you have a right to ask for anything? You're the most selfish person I've ever seen, my grandfather may be like that, but he's at least honest about how evil he is. You took that a stage further, and don't even have a goal... you just want to make everyone suffer!"

"And now, it has to end like this! You'll have to learn the hard way, know what it's like to be given everything you gave to others, in suffering unlike any other! I'd like to think you could come back in your next life a better person, but under Hades' influence... I can't believe that, you're just too far gone! This is what you earned, so you don't get to complain about it anymore!" Vali's held her hand out, also having the image of linking wills appear in her mind.

She charged her Primal Abyss, but this time... it's nature evolved to be more opposite to Issei's attack, taking more of an appearance of powerful glowing darkness, with the mix of purple & blue colors making it look like a night sky.

"**_Primal... ABYSS!_**_"_

Vali unleashed it, making Jingu scream as the entire power smashed right through her! As Lilith saw it, she gasped as she recognized it, or rather saw something that no other Devil still alive, except for her, could recognize.

'That's the... true Primal Abyss! Only Lucifer could use that, does that mean...' Lilith teared up at the sight, soon crying happy tears.

"Lady Lilith!?" Serafall asked in worry.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

At the moment the power fully vanished, Jingu's body went completely still... then fell over, her body looked as dead as it could be, yet was twitching every few seconds.

** _ Winner: Vali Lucifer! _ **

"Is she... dead?" Niruili questioned.

"No, based on what I'm seeing, she's... both?" Amalya answered, being surprised what her Akashic Calculative showed her.

Everyone looked at her.

"I think it has to do with her Sacred Gear being removed, the three Chaos Breaks she used, combined with Hades' blessings. It messed her body up so bad, she's... well, best way to describe it? She's not truly dead, but there's no way to say she's alive either, a living paradox... a fate truly worse than death."

Ineelana sighed, looking at the others.

"While normally that might seem too cruel, I think she completely deserved it. Any objections?" Ineelana admitted her view.

"No, I think you're right, no one can treat life that callously as her without this being a justified end." Eneely agreed.

"I'd like to save otherwise, but... even I can't feel sympathy for her." Niruili sighed, feeling Jingu had actually been _that_ bad enough she brought such an end on herself.

Vali took deep breaths, smiling as she looked at her hands.

"VALI!"

Vali soon felt Lilith rush up and hug her, crying out her heart as she wanted to never let go of her.

"I thought I lost you forever, but... you came back to me. For once, someone came back to me!" Lilith sobbed, while everyone sniffled as they saw the family reunited.

"I'm glad to be back, but... you should know it isn't just me. Turns out, dad's been closer than you think since the day we've met, more than we could have either known." Vali sniffled, hugging her back.

Lilith blinked, pulling back to look at her, and then...

_'Take care of her Lilith, she's our child now... right?'_

Lilith briefly turned before gasping, seeing a brief visage of Lucifer smiling at her, making her tear up as she took his hand for a brief moment. Once he faded, she cried again, holding it close as she treasured the small moment she was given.

Hearing a burst in the sky, everyone looked to see what had been Issei defeating Shalba, leaving her to smile as she turned to where Hades was.

"Looks like there's only one more fight left to win." Vali stated with determination.

* * *

As the both groups gathered back near the spot Hades and his two Reaper guards were, Issei and Vali soon started walking side by side.

"Hey Issei, what kind of trick do you think Hades has? If Indra could pull off his skin to gain that Prana body, and Loki mutated like that..." Vali questioned as they neared him.

"Don't know, but I get the feeling the two near him are involved, the sight alone makes it obvious."

As Hades saw them approaching, he was completely silent, having seen the traces of Great Red and Ophis' powers in their fights. Adding to the fact that by all means, Jingu could no longer be stated as alive...

"Everything I waited for, all of my planning, I... I won't... to avenge Jingu, I won't let them die yet!" Hades roared, finally shattering his silence.

The entire town began shaking, everyone struggling to hold their balance as they slightly hovered off the ground.

"Oh boy, I don't like this..." Ayumu began feeling queasy.

"What's he doing now!?" Homura shouted.

"I... don't know, but... Whoa!" Even deities like Shiva couldn't keep their balance from this strange phenomenon.

At that moment, the two Grim Reapers turned as they felt Hades' power.

"Thanatos! Nemesis! The time has come, the finale is now!" Hades exclaimed.

"As you wish, Lord Hades!" Both replied.

Their auras began glowing brighter, affecting the barrier as it began turning solid, and the two were swallowed into it... that's when it finally began clear.

What looked like a barrier, was really a cocoon!

"Oh, god... I think we're about to see Hades transform like the other two did!" Artemis realized.

At that moment, the hole leading towards Hell had a suddenly well of souls forced out of it, drawing with the exception of the living still trapped within the prison of Cocytus. The cocoon starts to pulsate, bubbling a bit with what looked like the face on "The Scream" painting within each of them, terrifying many at what was about to be born from so many souls being consumed.

Finally, the cocoon compressed itself into a smaller size, turning pitch black in color... followed by a glowing crack! Smashing out from the sides, two arms broke out, resembling something like an armored humanoid with buff muscles.

The rest slowly shattered out, revealing many arms, and multiple legs on a centaur like body, as a heavily armed creature that resembled a Dullahan if it didn't have a lose/missing head, with the helmet having a crest like that of a Brachiosaurus. From the single cut-out that represented the helmet's eye area, a purple glow formed, followed by the same colored energy flaring out everywhere, followed by a few spots that were red or blue.

** _ Battle: The Alliance VS Nightmare Hades _ **

Hades began chuckling, looking at himself.

"Finally, it's been so long since I've had a body that's not just a skull and bones! Flesh-like armor, or whatever you call it, I'm back in a physical form, and I'm ready to annihilate everything in my way!" Hades cackled loudly.

Orbs fly out of his energy, creating skeletons with heads that looked like knight helmets instead of skulls, and bones that were as dark as his body.

"This is going to be a problem, most of us are drained." Thor grunted, knowing how little fumes they had.

"We'll deal with Hades then, focus on the minions. Though, before you do that..." Issei decided.

Looking at the only members of the Phoenix siblings present, he walks near them both, then kneeled on one leg.

"Ravel, Alanira, either of you have a Phoenix Tear on hand?" Issei asked.

Alanira reached into a dimensional pocket she had made earlier, and pulled out a single vial.

"Just this one, what are you planning to do?" Alanira asked.

"Nothing big, just gonna show how much I can use from a single drop." Issei explained as he took it.

Breathing deeply, Issei held out the tear into the air.

**[[DREAM!]]**

**[TRANSFER!]**

Opening the vial, he tossed the tear forward, making it turn to sparkles as it washed over the entire alliance. Everyone gasped as while not as much as a Phoenix Tear usually would, they felt their wounds heal, and some of their energy come back.

"Had to dilute the effects to give it to everyone, but that one tear just worked on everyone through my partners' powers."

Sieg chuckled at that.

"Damn, I'm jealous of you right now, but at least you can't bend reality like Great Red can." He remarked.

Issei chuckled at that, bringing out Ascalon.

"If you want, I'll let you see how well you do in a duel against his power when this is over." Issei offered.

"I'll hold you to it." He smirked.

At that moment, both sides charged, with Issei and Vali taking to the sky. Hades looked at them as they floated in the air.

"You may have the power of Gods within you, but you aren't Gods yourselves, so I will crush you with the power I have as two, and the countless souls of the damned that have empowered me!" Hades declared, pointing at them.

The two readied themselves, readying to face down the last of the Worst Gods.

**「** **Shakugan no Shana: Opening 1** **」**

"If you think that's all we have, then you're about to be in a world of hurt." Issei declared.

"The power of the Red Dragons, and the White Dragons is just one third of the powers we've inherited... now you'll feel all that strength defeat you!" Vali shouted.

Both of them blasted out their ultimate breathes against Hades, the God grunted as he took them, only to shrug them off.

"We're all ready to walk to the future, so why do you think it's right to annihilate what you hate!?" Vali shouted.

Hades growled, throwing out all his arms, roaring as a beam from his jawline, and each of his palms. The two flew around, dodging the attacks before Issei flew at the mad God with his sword out, prompting Hades to catch Ascalon before it struck.

"You wouldn't understand, even if I told you! Someone ignorant to the truth will never understand! You can't change it, so I must destroy the source! This war will breed more violence as long as God's mistakes keep lingering!" Hades roared.

"That's your only reason!? You're an idiot, the one you should be targeting is Rizevim if that's the case!" Issei countered.

Hades screamed loudly, unleashing a powerful blast that sent Issei flying. Vali quickly caught Issei in her arms, only to see Hades surprise them, and smash them both towards the ground. Jumping into the air, the Greek deity prepared to stomp them to death!

**[[DREAM!]]**

Issei instantly held Vali tight, moving out of the way in time, but just barely.

"You think you're in the right? Then prove it, if you can! I know I'm right, and that you will fail!" Hades announced loudly.

"Alright, if that's the case..." Issei sighed.

"Together!" Vali shouted.

Both of them held each other's non-dominant hand, charging all their power together.

"**Dreamer Red!**"

"**Infinite White!**"

They used their new signature attacks once more, but this time their form changed. Issei's rose up before smashing down against Hades, covering him in a red flare of power, taking the slight form of Great Red's head chomping down on him. Vali's power moved around like a white snake, soon stretching out like it was a knot being tied, and squeezing against Hades' form.

"Man, I love these new attacks!" Issei exclaimed.

However, the moment he spoke... Hades began breaking free of the strike, surprising them.

"He's breaking free!?" Vali gasped in horror.

With a mighty shout, Hades smashed the two attacks away, and sent both of them flying into the remains of Kuoh Academy.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As everyone was fighting, they saw both Dragon Users fall to the ground, weakened.

"Oh no, those two are fighting with all they have, and it still isn't enough!" Yumina sweated worriedly.

"I know, but how can we help? If their power isn't enough, then how could we aid them, it's like we're... just useless baggage here!" Amalya winced, holding her arm in pain.

Asuka bit her thumb slightly, trying to think of something.

"Come on, there's gotta be a way to help them. Think Asuka... what haven't we tried yet?" Asuka asked herself.

At that moment, Asuka noticed her one hand glow, showing her aura.

"Huh? What is this?" She questioned.

"I've got it too." Asia noticed it.

"Hey, why are we glowing?" Tsukuyomi questioned.

Soon, everyone in the Alliance noticed it, and it wasn't just them either...

* * *

With the citizens of Kuoh Town noticed the same happening to them.

"Whoa, what's happening?" Katase asked.

"I don't know, but it's kinda pretty." Murayama replied.

Seeing the glow in everyone's hand, Tadami's eyes widened.

"Could it be... the power Humanity possesses? No, more than this, is it how the world connects all life? Or maybe, is the power inside everyone responding to someone's call for aid?" Tadami theorized.

"Hey, do you think everyone back in the Alliance is calling for help?" Millarca questioned.

"No, I think this is..." Ouryuu wondered quietly.

At that moment, everyone saw another aura on their other hand, but this one wasn't a bright light... it was a calming darkness.

* * *

As the others saw this, Lilith and Gabriel suddenly made a connection.

"Issei was able to use the Heavenly Zenith..." Gabriel mentioned.

"And Vali used the true form of the Primal Abyss, if we take that and then look at our hands..." Lilith added.

Looking at it, Tiamat's eyes widen.

"They're asking us to remind them we haven't given up! The signals of their light radiating courage, and the darkness carrying hope... everyone, raise your hands! They may be out cold, but we can still reach them!" Tiamat exclaimed, looking towards everyone.

Everyone was confused, but looking at the two, both their peerages quickly did just that.

"We're here!" They shouted.

"Yeah, stand up! This isn't over yet!" Tiamat shouted with them.

Seeing this, the others did the same, and the lights in their hands glowed brighter. Unknown to them, various others across the worlds felt the call, and despite not having anyone to explain what they should do, they somehow just knew.

* * *

Within their mental landscapes, both Issei and Vali were unconscious, no signs of them waking up.

"Stand up, you're not finished yet."

Both of the two finally stirred, and they both opened their eyes, seeing God and Lucifer standing by them.

"D-dad?" Vali gasped.

"Whoa, are you two really here?" Issei asked.

Lucifer chuckled at that.

"Guess I'm lucky, for that brief moment I got feel Lilith's hand one last time. Now I get to see the great granddaughter that would have been my child if you and could have existed together." He replied, rubbing Vali's face.

Vali put her hand over it, tearing up a bit as she knew this might be the one time she'd get to hold his hand.

"I... I always wanted to meet you, since I first heard about you. I never thought I'd get the chance after I heart that you already passed away." Vali sniffled, soon feeling Lucifer hug her close.

Looking at God, he chuckled a bit at Issei,

"Well, not the same for me, but I am technically looking at my descendant since you're indirectly the descendant of one of my own." God remarked.

"Wait, huh?" Issei blinked.

God remembered no one know, rubbing his head embarrassingly.

"Oh, well... let's just say at one point, the Christian Pantheon truly was higher than any other, because... the others came from my influence. I just didn't let history know so people didn't think I could make anything, and depend on me. So, in a way, I'm called God because gods as a whole were my children, and you Heroes of the hero Clan are one of the many Half-God species yourselves." God tried to explain.

"I'm a... Half-God?" Issei repeated.

The creator of the Angels sighed, shaking his head at that response.

"Your family didn't even bring it up? Please, make sure to bring it up later, I'm not telling you everything." God replied.

Issei blinked before shrugging, feeling the conversation took a weird turn.

"OK, so... why are you both here?" Issei asked.

"Guess we should explain that." Lucifer realized.

Releasing his hug, he jumped back where God was, and the two looked at their reincarnations.

"I guess, to remind you that you're not finished yet." Lucifer answered.

Both of them blinked in response to that.

"You already realized it, haven't you? Issei... you hold my power, the Heavenly Tempest, which the strongest form of light in this world." God explained.

"As for you Vali? The Primal Abyss you had before was just a level only my bloodline was left with, the true power that I had? The darkness to this guy's strongest form of light. I only intended for it to return to the world after the right time came, which was through you." Lucifer added.

Both of them looked at their hands, having somewhat realized it during the start, and ends of their fights with Shalba, and Jingu.

"Yeah, but... what can we do now? We're nothing like you, or either of our Dragons. We fought Hades, but he defeated us, how can we beat him when the two of us weren't enough?" Vali questioned.

"Who said you were ever alone?" Both deities asked.

**「** **Beyblade Metal Fury: All Bladers lend their Star Fragments** **」**

At that moment, various glows of light and darkness form around them, and the sound of everyone's voices resound to them. The two were surprised as they made some out.

"Fight!"

"You can do it!"

"Don't give up."

"Stand up!"

"Stay Strong."

"We believe in you until the end!"

"Get back up."

The lights soon spread out, as if every light made a shadow for the darkness, and each shadow allowed more light to be spotted. It was like... everyone was connected for a brief moment, just to call out to them.

"Everyone..." They breathed in surprise.

As their bodies faded, the two looked towards God and Lucifer before the last bits of their individuality began to fully dissolve into their future selves.

"We don't need to give you the answer, but it's more than we don't have it." God smiled.

"You can make it yourself, the light and darkness have shown you their voices, so... what's your voices to each other? The ones who aren't bound by our shackles, our mistakes? We know you'll make the right answer, and find the way to save this word, that's how strong our faith is." Lucifer encouraged them.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

With that, both of them finally vanished, waking the two up.

* * *

As that moment, everyone's hands stopped glowing as they woke up, smiling as they did. Hades glared at them, unable to believe they actually got up.

"Seriously, you still stand against me? Fine, you died once, and you can die again." Hades declared.

**「** **Seiken Tsukai no World Break: Liberation from Destiny** **」**

Neither of them spoke as they turned towards him, making everyone a bit confused by their silence.

"I think I get it, where there's light... the darkness casts a shadow." Issei stated.

"And yet, the deeper the darkness, the brighter the light is shining to make it." Vali replied.

Looking at each other.

"Neither can exist without the other, they're interconnected, yet separate. Despite that... our world, and the supernatural world, were once the same until Hades split the walls apart."

Taking each other's hands, their bodies glow with their respective element.

"I've found the answer!" They both announced.

At that moment, both of them walk forward, and everyone's eyes widened as they somehow stand in the same place.

**[[T-this is...]]** Great Red gasped.

**((...brother, perhaps this was our role, or a potential that only exists through us when united with them.))** O

Suddenly, a strange power welled within them.

**[[((UNITY!))]]**

Their two elements swirl together, becoming a black and sphere... before it starts to glow brightly, cracking apart! Within the air, something flew up, getting everyone's attention as they looked at it.

"Is that... Issei, or... is it Vali?" Georg questioned.

"The answer is both, and yet neither. I'm part Issei, and part Vali, the power they bring together." Spoke a voice that was female like Vali's, but deeper like Issei's.

Everyone gasped, as if that voice told them something amazing.

"If neither light or darkness together alone are enough, I'll be the one that unites them, the fruit eaten by Adam and Eve gave Humanity brought them the despair of sin, then I am the fruit of hope that will cleanse the world of those sins. I shall name myself after that representation, and the fruits of labor born from the love between the two who have created this possibility. My name is..."

At that moment, the cover of light vanished, revealing what looked like Vali with the slight messiness of Issei's hair. The difference was she was had some of Issei's muscle, in her arms, while her hair was a vivid plant-green. Opening her eyes, she revealed a calming shade of purple with the same pupils they both recently gained, and shared.

"Yuzuki!"

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

As the new warrior, naming herself Yuzuki revealed herself, everyone showed shock.

"Did... Issei and Vali, just fuse together?" Rossweisse asked.

"They did, and I'm not sure how they did, but... well, reality's clearly telling us to shut up if we wanna say otherwise." Falbium answered.

Yuzuki landed on the ground, instantly releasing a powerful burst.

At first, it didn't seem like anything happened, but after they did... the entire skeletal army suddenly exploded. Hades gasped at how easy it was, while Yuzuki looked at her hands.

"I see... only a minute? Alright, that's more than enough time." Yuzuki told herself.

**「** **High School DxD: Trip, Innocent of D - Instrumental** **」**

Hades growled at that.

"Don't get a big head, two weaklings combined as one still makes another weakling!" Hades roared.

He unleashed another blast from everything he had, which all hit Yuzuki... only for her to walk up, a bit scuffed up, but otherwise uninjured. Seeing the sight, Hades suddenly became terrified, especially once Yuzuki charged at him.

With just a simple punch, she tore his armor apart, leaving a gaping hole before she was forced off.

**[[45!]]**

Hearing her countdown, Yuzuki kicked the ground, launching right back as she ripped off all of Hades' right arms.

"No, I won't let you!" Hades screamed.

"And I intend to do it." Yuzuki smiled confidently.

Landing behind him, she back flipped a few times, dodging all the attacks he fired at her, including a storm of energy spheres.

**((32!))**

Hades roared as a huge beam went towards Yuzuki, who held up a hand.

"**Reflect!**"

A barrier forms, bouncing it back, and making Hades tip over.

"She's doing it, she's winning!" Eterna cheered.

"Take him down!" Tamara exclaimed loudly.

Yuzuki spun up, unleashing a row of light orbs, followed by a row of dark orbs created by spinning the other way. Hades screamed as they hit, leaving dents in his body.

"D-Damn... you..." He said weakly.

**(25!)**

Flying up high, Yuzuki soon dove forward, smashing into Hades' head from overhead. He fell over, a bit dazed, right as she held out her arms with her palms wide open.

She charged the Heavenly Zenith, and Primal Abyss in her hands, soon smashing them together.

**[7!]**

"N-No, don't do this... don't! This world needs to be fixed! Only I can-" Hades begged.

"I've had enough of you, say all you want, but know this... if you truly think that's the way, I'll spend every moment proving the world is wrong! We all deserve to exist, and you won't take that away from us, no matter what you try!" Yuzuki shouted, interrupting the mad God.

Using her last moments, she unleashed the fused powers together.

"**Ethereal Twilight!**"

She slammed it forward, right as she split into her two halves, with everyone watching as it struck Hades' body.

"N-No... this can't be, it can't... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

With a bright flash, the explosion of the two elements consumed his entire body from head to toe.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Hades' soul tried to fly away, and escape death, but no such luck... the light flew up to finish him off as his body kept being struck by the darkness. At that moment, the two powers soon burst outwards across the sky, causing the whole world to see it.

Everyone cheered as they saw it, including the Kuoh Town citizens, Aika smirking a bit as she readjusted her glasses.

"They really did it, impressive." She remarked.

Looking at the sight before them, Issei and Vali smiled, before they collapsed on the ground with their hands holding one another's. However, unlike the time before... they were alive, and there were no tears.

After a lengthy day of fighting the Tournament Finals, then Indra, and everything that came their way, the Second Great War... was finally over!

* * *

**That's it! After everything Hades went through, it's the Alliance that won the war, and he lost to the one thing no one expected! As you can see, this is the power I was talking about, Issei and Vali fusing together to bring both light and darkness together. The downside is right now, said fusion is too unstable, so they can only hold it for a moment before they end up like they did in the scene above.**

**Speaking of their fused self, Yuzuki, the thing about her name is actually symbolic. The kanji that make it can mean fruit for one, while the other means hope, which is why she made that "fruit of hope" comment. Another thing I'll mention is that this is only possible because of the melding of Great Red and Ophis' powers, hence why the fusion is unstable right now, like how Issei's life force after they revived him was unbalanced.**

**Anyways, we've ended the battle, but the Pandemonium has one more chapter before the final Season 6 arc begins, and the reason for that? Well, there's a bit of last minute things before we can go into an actual aftermath of the war. As you might remember, the last time we saw Nainen, Sun Wukong, and the Phenex Brothers, all of them were in bad condition... next chapter is where I'll reveal if they live, or die.**

**Not to mention things like preparing for the dead, having Issei and Vali restore their peerages, and revealing everyone who was killed off-screen to avoid dragging things out. There's also something our two protagonists will need to do that relates with their reincarnations, with Lucifer's having Lilith involved in it... and yes, in case anyone asks, Lucifer was not called Satan in this chapter intentionally for reasons I'm not revealing just yet. Overall, there's a lot left to happen before the day ends in-universe.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**【** **Yuzuki** **】**   
**The fused form of Issei and Vali using the power of Great Red, and Ophis to merge them via their power of light, and darkness respectively. Currently, they can only be fused for a whole minute due to the instability their Dragon Gods' powers have in a single body.**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	77. Chapter 77

**This is it everyone, the end of the Pandemonium arc, where the last answers related to things like war casualties and stuff happen before the aftermath showing how things are rebuilding after everything the Second Great War did to the world. Considering how things ended somewhat happily in the previous chapter, you... might wanna grab some tissues here.**

**Since we're on that topic, I need announce something about what I'll be doing next before the last Season 6 arc, the Epilogue arc.**

**As you all probably already know, the older chapters of this story are nothing like the newer ones, and I feel since this first story's coming a close, which is my first big story that will be doing this, it deserves to have all of its chapters up to date with my current writing style and quality. As such, before I begin the next arc, fixing them up is the first priority.**

**Fixing the older chapters actually relates to the Epilogue arc, since I'll be making sure to go through everything, making sure I address what I need to, while knowing what I need to wait until the next story to elaborate on. I will say know there's going to be some things I'll change, including necessary ones, which I'll reveal in Ch 78 up until Ch 79.**

**To give you one example, since I only realized this too late to fix it, I ended up have two Yumi's in the story. As a result, since Ineelana's Yumi is too ingrained into the story, especially Season 5, I'll be changing the name of Rias' Yumi back into Tosca. Due to the plans I have, not fixing this now could end up an issue later, as I've only evaded the problem by keeping them apart.**

**So, once you see Ch 78, you'll know that I've finished with this. For now, let's get to the start notes.**

**We're about to see who among the unseen were also killed in the conflict, while also seeing if Nainen, the Phenex Brothers, and Sun Wukong are gonna make it. Right now, things could go either way, and that's not even getting into how the Factions' rankings have shifted due to the losses everyone took, something I can't fully elaborate on just yet.**

**Many are gonna be dealing with loss this chapter, a few notable people being Rias and her family, Asuka, Gabriel, Mio, the Grigori cadre, and etc. since you all saw the family they lost in the conflict. *breathes* The hardest thing you can do in a story is kill a character you like, and many of those were characters this arc claimed in the war. It _was_ war though, and what I have planned required me to, so in a way... I feel the pain of these characters myself.**

**OK, let's get this chapter going everyone.**

* * *

**"()"** \- Albion Talking

**"(())"** \- Ophis Talking

**"[]"** \- Ddraig Talking

**"[[]]"** \- Great Red Talking

**"{}"** \- Vritra Talking

**"=="** \- Bahamut Talking

[] - Important term, phrase, or detail

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle beginning, or its result

**「」** \- Insert Song beginning, or ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an announcement, or through an announcer

『』 - Electrical voice or machine Speaking

* * *

** Infinite Dividing **

**The evolved form of Vali's Divine Dividing after being broken upon her death, and then repaired by Ophis after sealing herself within the Sacred Gear. Now with the powers of both White Dragon Emperors, it has gone from a Mid-Tier Longinus, to one of the only two Sacred Gears that exceed the True Longinus as Ultimate-Tier Longinus.**

**The Infinite Dividing has all of its original form's abilities through Albion, being the [Divide] with its interlocked abilities, [Reflect], and the [Freezing Miasma of Erasure Venom], although the first two have been enhanced by Ophis' influence. Among these, Vali now has the [Bless] ability, which allows Vali to unlock a minor ability in someone if she senses a strong compatibility with her energy, like an increase of luck.**

**For her Reflect ability, it can now aim where Vali wants instead of simply right back at the caster, with her Reflect barrier even being able to briefly hold it before firing. If attacked by multiple attacks around all sides, then the Reflect barriers can charge them all together, which allows her to gather all the power in a major flash that attacks the entire area within 50 yards.**

**What truly gives the Longinus its new level of power is her [[Infinity]] ability, granted from Ophis' power. By taking Ophis' power over infinity, which gives her unlimited stamina, and magic, her body will passively always make Vali's reserves for both be endless, leaving them unable to be emptied. There are limits to this, with Ophis warning Vali that her mortal body's muscles can still be over-stressed if she pushes herself too hard, or leave her overheated if she uses too many high-powered spells in a short period.**

**As the new strength of the Hakuryuukou with the True White Dragon God Emperor's power, Vali will use it well in the coming battles.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Pandemonium Arc: Chapter 13 – The Tragedies of War _ **

With the entire war over, all the people with more serious injuries across the world were sent to the nearest hospitals either for Humans, or the supernatural races depending on the situation. For those in less serious danger, first aid on the field was done through healers such as Asia and Eterna, while the Phenex Clan tried to make any Phoenix Tears they could.

As for Valerie, she was instead being lead to anyone whose soul was still intact to revive them, hoping to lessen the casualties, and keep certain families from being torn apart by the deaths that happened.

During all of this, Ajuka and his younger sister Amalya were using their respective abilities to gather all the information they could. Eventually, Amalya closed her magical window as she sent some data over to the Great Devil of Beelzebub.

"That's all the info I've got big bro, I'm gonna check on everyone else now." Amalya remarked.

"I was actually about to head over myself, there are a few... serious situations I'll need to address to them, before it's too late." Ajuka replied.

Amalya gasped, quickly nodding as they began heading over. As they were doing that, everyone was talking to each other.

"The moment things looked bad? Eterna unlocks her Balance Breaker, it was incredible!" Esketanus shared his Bandersnatch fight story.

"Oh, so that's why I saw all those plants when we were leaving." Ineelana realized.

Mio was more silent, getting Dulio's attention.

"Hey Mio, are you alright? You've been really silent a while now." Dulio mentioned.

The Demon Princess turned her eyes away slightly.

"I... I can't speak anything good, my father died taking an attack for me!" Mio instantly sobbed, covering her eyes.

"O-oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't intend to remind you of that." Dulio tried comforting her as she cried.

At that moment, everyone saw Ajuka and Amalya walk by.

"Everyone, I thought I'd get all your attention real quick, there are some specific situations I think you all deserve to be aware of." Ajuka alerted them.

"Lord Ajuka, please tell me if you have any news on my brothers, I never saw them return like the others." Ravel begged.

"Well... I guess the bad news had to start somewhere. I'm sorry to say this Ravel, and ask you pass this to your sister, but... the Celtic Pantheon's area was heavily decimated. Almost every one of their Gods were killed, possibly leaving them with only their numbers in the single digits. With what I was told... they seemed to only attack the supernatural areas, Humanity only saw them pass through."

"That unfortunately means that chaotic mess caught all your brothers in it, all of them are in a bad state, and the curse from the Grim Reapers' constant scythe attacks hasn't faded from them... they could still die. As for their peerages, while only Riser's Queen died, the others were all annihilated. I'm sorry, but there's not much good news I can share with you beyond that." Ajuka's eyes were closed, while Ravel's voice shook.

Everyone looked at Ravel.

"I'm so sorry..." Irina hugged her as she started to tear up.

Ajuka turned to Bikou, and Kunou.

"I'm afraid that Sun Wukong is in a similar state, as Issei's trick with the Phoenix Tear didn't soon enough, it's still touch and go for him." Bikou shook a bit, turning his head after hearing about the old man's current state.

"Now, for you Kunou? I think your news is a bit happier, if not still bad. According to Esketanus and Ineelana's reports, your sister went mad after Grand Elder Tenguu's death, and got badly hurt against a Bandersnatch. It's been confirmed she'll live, but I think she may be facing some kind of consequence... I'd take your mother to see her now, just to be safe."

Kunou gasped, quickly looking around before trying to find her mom.

"Mom! Mom, where are you! Nainen's really hurt!" Kunou called out to her over and over.

For everyone else, they looked at Ajuka, who took a deep breath, and said...

"As for the rest of you, no serious worries beyond a few hospitalizations, the worst is you'll just need to help your families get used to moving a broken limb after we can get a cast off them." He stated, smiling slightly.

"Oh, thank god..." Le Fay smiled, others panting behind her.

As Kunou ran, she soon slipped a bit, letting her spot her mother speaking with the Shinto Trio.

"Mom!" Kunou called out.

"Huh? Kunou, is something wrong?" Yasaka asked.

"Mom, Ajuka just told me Nainen's badly hurt! He didn't say he'd die, but... but... please, we need to see her!" Kunou cried.

Yasaka's eyes widened at that, quickly looking at the Shinto Trio.

"Can we finish this later, I need to-" Yasaka begged.

"Of course, Nainen's condition is something we'll likely need to know, go see how she's doing." Amaterasu agreed.

"A-and I think I need to... s-shake off this caffeine!" Susanoo exclaimed, making everyone cover his ears.

Kunou looked at his sisters.

"We didn't want him asleep, so Amaterasu and I shoved all the coffee we could get our hands on into his throat." Tsukuyomi winced.

"Yeah, we're gonna... knock him out, go take him home, leave him with our parents, and then finish up our work here." Amaterasu laughed awkwardly.

Tsukuyomi throws his fist onto Susanoo's face, making him fall over as he fainted.

"We'll see you later." Tsukuyomi waved, grabbing his arms.

"I didn't mean knock him right out here!" Amaterasu groaned, grabbing his legs.

The two Kyuubi blinked at the sight.

"Uh... let's just go now." Yasaka pushed Kunou away, moving to an open spot to make the magic circle.

As that was happening, Ayumu and Lilith were both resting near their children's heads, rubbing them as they were still sleeping from their fusion.

"That power they had for that brief moment must have really taxed them, wielding two opposite powers like that." Ayumu remarked.

"Yeah, while I've heard from Vali that Shemhazai is expecting a kid with his Devil wife, we don't know how that's gonna work out in terms of what powers the bay will have. Not to mention we haven't had any attempts for an Angel/Devil child. I guess this is proof it can work." Lilith replied.

As that was happening, Homura was somewhat frozen as she stood before a crying Asuka, finally grieving over the revelation that Pluto murdered her parents... murdered her own sister. Taking a moment to shake off the shock, she hugged her sobbing niece close.

"Why didn't they come to the Rating Game like I asked her to? If they had, then both of them would be..." Asuka asked sadly.

Homura teared up, unable to say anything to that. However, she knew there was something she had to say, and took a deep breath as she looked Asuka in the face. The sniffling Kusanagi wielder looked at her once she did.

"Asuka, I don't want you to think she told me this because she somehow knew the end would be coming for her, but..." Homura breathed as she began explaining.

* * *

_Homura was talking with Mizuki, smiling as she talked to her sister in what had been years._

_"I'm sorry I was never able to reach you, but you try sending a magic circle to a specific target you haven't seen in years. I mean, you moved out of the village, and had a child around... wait, when did you have Asuka?" Homura spoke through a magic circle._

_"Uh... just a few months after you had Issei?" Mizuki laughed nervously._

_Homura suddenly went silent at that._

_"A few!? My god, you were totally pregnant while I was, weren't you!?" Homura screamed._

_Mizuki whistled in reply, making her sister scowl at her._

_"Well, I already heard how Asuka spoke with you about coming, so do you think you'll make it?" Homura quickly asked._

_"Unfortunately, me and Daichi are gonna be busy that day, so we can't. Though since you bring that up, and Asuka mentioned she'll be joining Issei's peerage..." Mizuki took a deep breath._

_"Homura, since that kind of choice means she'll be with her cousin more, I'd like you to be her mother in my place should the worst happen to me or her father. I don't wanna sound like I'm about to die, because I'm not, but you're the person I trust most if that were to happen."_

_Homura showed surprise at that, turning to see Asuka laughing as she spoke with Irina about something._

_"Homura? You still there?" Mizuki asked._

_"Oh! Sorry, that caught me off guard for a moment, as for what you told me? While you ain't dying anytime soon, I promise to keep her safe for you." Homura promised._

* * *

Asuka showed surprise as Homura breathed, lowering her head.

"I've never been wrong as I was that day, she disappeared as quickly as we found out we were both alive... it's awful." Homura sighed sadly, looking back at Asuka's face.

"Despite that, I still have part of her left, and that's you. So, I know I can't replace her, but... I'm gonna do my best to be a mother for you. You're no longer just Issei's Queen and his cousin, you're his Queen... and his sister." She felt the tears flow out again.

Asuka's eyes widened before she hugged Homura, letting both their tears flow out. From a distance, Ayumu felt himself sniffle a bit, soon turning away.

"Give me a moment!" He gasped out.

Lilith pats his back, and that's when Roygun walked by, stretching her arms out as she looked at the Devil Queen.

"Hey, Lilith. We just found Jingu's body... it had an interesting reaction." Roygun revealed.

"Huh?" Lilith blinked.

Moving to the side, Lilith's eyes widened as while still in her paradoxical life state, she was in binds with willing movement.

"We say she survived everything in a demolished area after we lost her. Considering the whole thing, we figured we should keep her contained just as a precaution, and I figured that with how she lost a Sacred Gear, we could study her to avoid more situations with Sacred Gears killing their wielders, like with Rudiger's son... if you'll allow it that is." Roygun explained.

"Hmm... I guess it's better to keep her locked up then out in the elements to become a possible threat." Lilith mused.

Roygun looked at her as she thought on it a bit, then decided.

"Alright, I'll allow it, but you keep her in a strait jacket at all times." Lilith decided.

"Deal." Roygun said with her hand in a ring shape.

As she was about to leave...

"Wait, one last thing. If you see anyone from the Egyptian Pantheon, tell them to tell Anubis that we decided he'll take over lead of Tartarus, he's the only Death deity I'm willing to trust that's both still alive, and able to take the position." Lilith requested.

"Got it." Roygun replied.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Kyoto, a frantic Kunou ran through the halls of a Youkai Realm hospital as she headed to her sister's room.

"Wait Kunou, and don't run in the halls!" Yasaka called out.

"Nainen! I'm coming!" Kunou shouted.

The Youkai leader sighed, face palming a bit before following her. Finally, Kunou found her room, and opened the door... before her face shook in horror.

"Nainen..." She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

It was horrible, her forehead was bandaged, with various spots on her body bandaged, or having an IV attached to them. A breathing mask was attached to her face, and only after hearing the door forced open like it was did eyes open, weakly looking towards Kunou.

It was then that Yasaka caught up, and the moment she did... her body gave out, and she cried while holding the side of the door.

"Nainen!" Kunou cried, hiccupping a bit as she held her sister's hand.

"I'm... I'm so sorry, I'm supposed to be... someone you look up to. Yet all I did, is show you... what not to be. I'm so... pathetic..." Nainen's eyes teared up.

Kunou cried, lowering her head on the medical table. It was at that moment that a Youkai Doctor walked in, seeing Nainen's family inside.

"Doctor, be honest with me, how bad is it?" Yasaka asked, her eyes threatening to spill tears.

"I'm... not sure how to put this, but... while she'll still be able to walk, run, jump, and related acts... she'll never be able to do so in the same manner. Best way to describe it, she's crippled in the best possible way, except for one thing." The Doctor explained.

Yasaka shook a bit, waiting for the news.

"She's completely lost the ability to link with the Leylines, there was nothing we could do... I'm afraid she'll never be able to succeed you as Kyoto's leader." He revealed.

Yasaka's eyes widened, and she broke down.

Hearing that, Kunou turned to the Doctor, realizing what that meant. If Nainen was unable to become her successor, then... she was the only one.

"I'm... I'm sorry Vali, but I'm not coming back." She teared up.

* * *

Bikou was standing in front of Sun Wukong, not saying anything as things seemed steady for now.

"...Bikou, I need to say something." Sun Wukong.

"...What is it, old man?" Bikou asked.

Turning towards him, he stared coughing, making Bikou's eyes widen as his readings started to take a bad turn. He wasn't sure what to do, except keep listening.

"Back then, when you... stood up to me... when I trained Vali, I had... never been prouder, that you... made your own... choice... so, keep on... living..." He wheezed out, soon closing his eyes.

The beeps flat lined, and Bikou went silent before turning around... his body shaking as he teared up a bit.

"Is that... all you had to say, you stupid... geezer!" He asked, sniffling a bit.

* * *

Ravel and Alanira showed up at the hospital, and once they had arrived, they saw everyone from Riser's peerage, excluded the already deceased Yubelluna. Mira saw them coming, turning to the others.

"Guys, they're here!" Mira stated.

"They are?" Xuelan replied in surprise.

Ravel panted as she stood before the group, quickly realizing the reality of Yubelluna's absence.

"She... she really is gone." Ravel sniffled.

Alanira went silent, soon looking at Xuelan, who was technically the leader when both of them were absent.

"Tell us, how are they right now?" Alanira asked.

"You... probably got here at the right time. Ruval, Reves, and Riser... even though the Doctor says they might survive, things look bad right now. We're already prepared for the worst." Xuelan answered her.

Alanira's eyes shook in horror, and grabbed Ravel's hand, nodding.

"Come on, we'll say hello now, and come visit again when they recover." Alanira stated, shaking as she tried to tell herself things would get better.

Both of them went inside the room, seeing all of them in their beds. The only one of them awake was Riser.

"Hey, how are you doing?" Ravel asked.

"Ravel, I'm... glad you and... Alanira, came." Riser weakly smiled.

He coughed a bit, making Ravel hold him still.

"Please, tell us what happened? We heard the Celtic Pantheon barely walked out of this alive... just what happened?" Alanira asked.

Ravel breathed a bit, looking at them.

"Aside from ignoring Humanity aside from damage... while passing through, they just wanted to attack the supernatural first, and... the moment we thought Lugh's arrival changed things, we saw it. There really is... still one out there." Riser explained.

"One what?" Ravel asked.

"The Evil... Dragons." Riser revealed.

The two sisters gasped at that, with Alanira thinking a bit as she did, only one Evil Dragon would be within the Celtic Pantheon's borders.

"You ran into... Crom Cruach..." She realized.

"Crom Cruach?" Ravel repeated.

"The one Evil Dragons rumored to have not been in the Dragon's revival cycle, and the second strongest if you ignore Vritra being sealed away. He ranks as one of the strongest beings in the world. It's no wonder they're in such a state, as the Celtic Pantheon, for anyone to fight against him... that just proves the brutality those beasts possess." Alanira explained, realizing she'd need to tell Lilith about this later.

Riser petted Ravel's head, making her smile a bit.

"Hey Alanira, let me... do it to you, like... old times?" Riser requested.

"...Sure, just promise you'll get better, got that?" Alanira agreed, sniffling.

She bent onto her knees, letting Riser pet her head.

"Thank... you." He smiled.

Alanira sniffled, wiping her eyes as she heard that... before three flat linings all sounded off, making her gasp. Riser's face was serene with closed eyes, making her gasp. Ravel fell to the floor, whimpering as her brothers left this world... forever.

"No... you promised! You just promised me, didn't you?" Alanira questioned him.

"RUVAL! REVES! RISER!"

Riser's peerage all came in, and that's when they saw Ravel on the ground, while Alanira just curled herself up as if to reject the presence of everything while she sulked to herself. It was at that moment they realized it, all crying themselves.

* * *

After some more time passed, both of the twin dragons finally woke up, and saw the state of things for everyone as they were with their respective peerage members.

"Wow, the reveals within the cleanup are really bad, aren't they?" Issei asked, hearing some more from them.

"Yeah, I still can't believe that all my brothers are..." Ravel sniffed as Issei rubbed her back.

Vali looked at her peerage, taking a deep breath as she took out her Evil Pieces, getting everyone's attention as she did. Holding out the pieces she had given to them before...

"I know the timing might be not be ideal, but the world's going to change after today, so let this be our way of remembering we have each other." Vali stated.

Looking at her, she got a response from Le Fay, Arthur, Bikou, and Kuroka, who each grabbed the Evil Piece they owned once before, and would own again. However, Kunou ended her silence as she gave a sad face.

"Vali, I'm... I'm sorry, but I can't rejoin your peerage." Kunou revealed.

"Kunou? Wait, something happened... didn't it?" Vali asked.

Kunou nodded, hugging Vali's legs.

"My sister, she... can't ever reconnect to the Leylines ever again, so she can't succeed my mother. I'm the only one who can succeed her one day. Because of that... I can't rejoin you, even though I wanted to stay with you all." Kunou cried, feeling Vali rub her head.

Everyone sniffled a bit, with Vali kneeling to look at her.

"Kunou, no matter what happens, you'll always be considered part of this team. Just promise me you'll become the kind of leader every Youkai can be proud of." Vali asked with teary eyes, holding a pinkie out.

"P-promise!" Kunou sniffled, making the pinkie promise.

Yumina wipes her tears, and that's when she noticed Vali hold out an Evil Pieces to her, and that piece ended up being... her Queen!

"W-what?" Yumina gasped.

"Back then, I didn't know which piece to give you, and Issei told me something important when we came back to life, about how without it we were now equals. I think... you were always meant to take the role as my Queen, the fights you fought in the war were proof of that." Vali explained.

Taking the piece into her hands, Yumina's eyes watered, sniffling a bit.

"I... I never thought I'd get... thank you, Vali!" Yumina wiped her eyes with her arm, a slight hiccup escaping her mouth.

Vali smiled at that, and everyone held their Evil Pieces to their chests, causing them to bond back into them. This time, the only difference was they didn't transform them into Devils, a sign of the influence they gained from Ophis power.

After doing that, Issei held out his own Evil Pieces.

"I guess that's the same promise I'm making here." Issei declared.

Everyone took their pieces, although Yuuma suddenly felt something while trying to take the two Pawns, and then only took one. It glowed on its own, showing that was all she needed.

"Only one Pawn now?" Yuuma blinked.

"Guess the gap we have is bigger than when you joined Vali." Issei suggested.

"Maybe, or... it's something more." Yuuma smiled as she thought about it.

Asuka looked at Issei, getting his attention.

"That's not the only difference this time, I'm not joining as your cousin this time, I'm... joining as your sister." Asuka smiled, showing her new resolve.

"Yeah, that's right." Issei smiled back.

At that moment, Diehauser walks into view, getting everyone's attention.

"Vali, your mother would like to meet you at Agreas. As for you Issei, Gabriel wants you to visit her at the Seventh Heaven, seeing if it might react with the System." Diehauser told them.

"Right this instant?" Vali asked.

"No, you may go when you need to, I'm just here to let you know." Diehauser answered.

Looking at each other, the two nodded.

"Alright, let's go then."

* * *

A cross of light floats up to Heaven, showing Gabriel with Issei's peerage, as they appeared by the area dividing the Sixth and Seventh Heavens. Looking at it, Issei took a deep breath, almost feeling a small sense of nostalgia from it.

"So, you really think... that I can effect this place somehow?" Issei asked.

"I'm sure of it, and either way... without my brothers here, leading Heaven falls to me now, and I only have three of the Seraphs left to help me. The system needs to at the very least know I'm replacing Michael as the new center." Gabriel answered.

Issei nodded, and soon walked up to the gate, causing his hand to generate the light of his Heavenly Crest ability. Pausing for a moment, he tapped it. The gate suddenly shone brightly, blinding the two as it opened up, revealing the Seventh Heaven for the first time in 2000 years.

"Well... I think that worked?" Issei remarked.

Gabriel gasped as she saw it, soon taking the lead as Issei followed her, and they walked within the Seventh Heaven... they heard the sound of devices booting up. That was when it finally happened, the system fully reactivated, and following it... various magical screens showing a recording of God appeared before them.

"F-father..." Gabriel gasped.

"So, that's... God?" Asia breathed in shock.

"The real deal... I'm actually seeing him, even if just a remnant." Irina gasped, looking around.

In the recording, God's head lifted up as he looked forward.

_"I don't believe it; the day finally came... then I guess this message needs to be delivered to my reincarnation. As you can see, the system reactivated from your touch removing the gate to the Seventh Heaven. However, I must reveal something else..."_ God began.

* * *

Within the island of Agreas, Vali's peerage and Lilith were seen walking towards a certain area, with everyone looked around in wonder at the technology scattered about.

"So, these are the crystals that helped create the Evil Pieces?" Yumina questioned as she saw some red crystals.

"That's right, my husband began the prototype for the Evil Piece system here, before it was fully completed by Ajuka." Lilith confirmed.

At that moment, a door showing the Lucifer crest was seen.

"This door was only closed before the Great War's final moments, before I saw him leave... then never return." Lilith said sadly, soon turning to look at Vali.

"Vali, I think you're the one he intended to open it."

Vali nodded, feeling some of her Primal Abyss flow off, shattering the seal on the door.

Everyone saw it open up, surprising them a bit. The moment the door fully opened, they all walked inside, looking at a room full of even more tech that wasn't within the rest of Agreas... and then, the sight of a strange magic circle.

"Hey, look at this." Yumina said, pointing at it.

The moment she did, it suddenly glowed, making Yumina panic as everyone saw a magic circle show a recording of Satan within it.

"...Lucifer?" Lilith gasped.

'She's been doing that a lot lately, I wonder why?' Yumina thought.

_"Lilith, if you're here, then the time has finally come. That means my old man was right... now, it's my obligation to explain what I can, so please listen, because I have something that I need to say to you as well."_ Satan explained.

* * *

God took a deep breath, preparing to say everything.

_"As you can see, the entire system regained its functions just by this action, but I'm sure by this time you thought my death caused it to malfunction... that's not the case. The real truth, is that I put the system in the state it was before I lost my life in my efforts to stop Trihexa. I left just enough that part of my powers to give blessing, miracles, and such through the Angels I created."_

_"The reason I did this? It's simple, the apparent bugs in the Sacred Gears? The Longinus... the Balance Breakers... the Sub-Species... are all my creations, with the help of Lucifer. We were both wrong, and right in our beliefs. My attempts to main a certain order were too extreme, and restricting, while Lucifer's freedom defied too many rules and clashed against that. Because of that, we needed a balance."_

_"We let freedom and order co-exist, in the natural order, by letting life itself, and those who wielded the Sacred Gears lead the world on its own. What we were hoping, is that the Prophecy I had was right, and lead to the development of the Sacred Gears, the people who wielded them, and the world itself developing to give a true sense of unity between the two words."_

_"That was... the true freedom that both of us had been striving for. A natural choice for everyone, but the senses to know what the wrong choices were."_ God's explanation had him turn away from the screen briefly.

Gabriel's eyes widened, right as he looked back at everyone.

_"To whatever Angel's taken my stead, hear me. The fact my reincarnation has lead you here... now I know I was right, so keep living alongside the Devils, and avoid the mistakes Lucifer and I made. That's how you may just save this world, finish the mission I could not."_ God smiled, his eyes tearing up.

"Father... I promise, no matter what." Gabriel sniffled.

As they watched, Irina and Asia turned to look at Issei, realizing what that last bit meant.

"Issei, if you opened the gate, then..." Irina realized, her eyes watering a bit.

"I don't believe it." Asia gasped.

Rubbing his head at that, Issei nodded his head.

"Yeah, I'm the reincarnation of God. In a way, our meeting wasn't just simple coincidence, it had meaning. I know that it isn't the same as him being here, but-"

Issei stopped as the two hugged him, and he gave them the moment. It was probably the one instance they could feel they could truly thank God for everything.

* * *

Lilith was getting a bit teary eyed as he listened to everything.

_"This technology? Share what you can with the world, because right now, the two worlds are no longer divided, and everyone is standing like me and God did that one moment. A way for both Humanity and the Supernatural truly co-exist in a way like never before, and... to finally release some of the restrictions that couldn't have been avoided because of my personal choice."_

_"Also, something I need to tell you Lilith..."_ Satan looked at her, suddenly tearing up.

Lilith sniffled a bit.

_"By the time you hear this, it's already been nearly forever since you've lost me. It's strange, to leave a message for you after you died, except..."_ Satan covered his eyes, crying a bit.

_"I'm sorry!"_

Lilith's eyes widened, more tears flowing out.

_"I promised you that I would come back, but... I knew. Knew that I was going to die, and break it, from the very start. I'm so sorry for lying to you, I... I wanted to tell you the truth, but I was never strong enough to do it! I've let you be in pain, crying for all these years because of that weakness, and I can't apologize for that, no matter how much I want to justify it!"_ Satan break down, looking away in guilty.

"Lucifer... don't cry, I... love you, more than anything in the world!" Lilith sniffled.

_"But, you know what?"_ Satan turned back to face her, holding out his hand.

_"At the very least, you gave me the strength I needed, to protect you in the end... I finally feel I've repaid him from saving you all those years ago. Not to mention, you're with my reincarnation now, so maybe... through her, I'll get to hold your hand, just one last time!"_

Lilith cried before falling to her knees, touching the magical copy's hand, crying heavily as the others put a hand on her back. Vali cried a bit herself, hugging her from the side, crying a bit with her as she did before looking at the others.

"So, now you all know... the one my father's reincarnation is." Vali rubbed her, eyes, looking at the others.

"Who cares, because... you're still the Vali we all know and love." Yumina replied, smiling a bit.

Vali smiled, still sniffling a bit.

At the same time, both God and Satan's messages spoke the next part together.

_"And now, the walls between Heaven and Hell are no more... the world has been reborn, and now... it can become a great place for everyone living in it, not just a simple few. Promise me, you and everyone else, will make this world's future a great one."_

Issei and Vali look up, and nodded.

* * *

** _~Ireland_ **

Very soon, it was afternoon, and everyone was across the world as they all stood before multiple tombstones that were marked with everyone they had lost. For those who had bodies to bury, all of them were carried over to the soul of their homelands. Everyone was either wearing black suits/dresses, or black versions of their usual outfits, as they stood before the graves of their allies... friends... leaders... family... and more.

The first group to shown was the one in the Celtic Pantheon, where the newly appointed leader, the Goddess Morrigan, placed a bouquet down. Stepping away, everyone tearfully looked at the names written across a monument meant to honor them all.

** Rest in Piece **

**Lugh  
Lord Tepes  
Lady Camilla  
Alpha Wulver  
Mannanan**   
**Ogma**   
**Criedhne**   
**Goibniu**   
**Luchtaine**   
**Aed**   
**Beag  
etc.**

There were many deities and other important figures on the list, and ultimately the damage was represented by one simple fact... the only surviving Gods among the Celtic Pantheon were Morrigan, Aengus, Aine, Dian Cecht, Lir, Ecne, and Flidais. If anyone had still doubted the hit the Celtic Pantheon had taken, this sight promptly removed those doubts.

"Everyone, thank you for everything... and goodbye." Morrigan said softly.

She made a praying motion, with everyone else following suit, letting no sound other than the blowing winds pass by.

* * *

** _~Egypt_ **

A large bonfire burned near their monument, having just been lit up by Ra, who had survived the damage he had taken. Since Aten realized neither of them would have survived, and they were both connected to the sun... he gave up his half of his soul to save Ra, essentially making the latter his successor as the pantheon leader, and his existence.

"Aten, I... don't know how I'll do, but... I'll do my best to prove you made the right choice." Ra breathed, looking up.

He put a hand on the monument, and then walked back a bit to everyone else, making them all look at the names engraved on it. At that moment, many began tearing up.

** Rest in Piece **

**Aten  
Horus  
Selket  
Thoth  
Osiris  
Wadjet  
etc.**

They make the same praying motion the Celtic Pantheon did, and everyone else would do in their own regions of the world.

* * *

** _~Kyoto_ **

Izanagi and Izanami finished placing up some streams alongside their monument, soon finishing up as they stood by the Shinto trio, and Yasaka, who had Kunou by her side.

"To the spirits of the Youkai, may you travel to a better place along the wind." Yasaka stated.

"May your lives guide us while we keep living our own." Izanami prayed.

"Bless your souls, and thank you... thank you for living with us." Tsukuyomi thanked.

They all bent on their knees, which everyone else did.

** Rest in Piece **

**Raijin**   
**Suijin**   
**Fuujin**   
**Grand Elder Tengu**   
**Ugajin**   
**Moreya**   
**etc.**

After that, they began their prayers.

* * *

** _~Foot of Mount Meru_ **

People watched as the Trimurti finished putting protection on their monument.

"All of you gave up everything for our sakes, and for that... thank you." Shiva thanked.

"Hopefully, one day we'll see how much your actions touched the world." Brahma prayed.

Both of them closed their eyes in respect.

** Rest in Piece **

**Yama  
Sun Wukong  
Varuna  
Ganesha  
Hanuman  
Nezha  
Prince Mahabali  
etc.**

Vishnu soon waved his arms high to low, motioning everyone to start praying, and then doing so himself.

* * *

** _~Greece_ **

Artemis covered her yes, crying as she finished the last bit of decorations on the monument, with Hermes putting a hand on her shoulder to try and comfort her.

"I can't believe they're all gone..." Artemis's voice shook.

"Me too... me too..." Hermes briefly sniffled.

** Rest in Peace **

**Zeus  
Poseidon  
Aphrodite  
Athena  
Hera  
Ares  
Apollon  
Eros  
Rhea  
Atlas  
etc.**

Wiping her tears, Hermes looks at her.

"I know it'll be hard, but you're the one our people will need to lean on from now on, so be strong. For now, it's OK to be weak, because no one's that strong today..." Hermes explained, sniffling again.

"Right." Artemis sobbed.

Everyone prayed again, a slight drizzle raining down around them.

* * *

** _~Scandinavia_ **

Vidar looked at the monument before all the bodies of the deceased, and anything that could represent those they had no bodies for, were placed on a nearby Viking ship, preparing for a Viking funeral.

"I... never thought this kind of day would come." Vidar breathed, still unable to believe his father was gone.

"None of us did, and... that's probably what hurts most." Thor sighed, lowering his head a bit.

Looking at the monument once more, Vidar grabbed his bow as he set the arrow on fire. Everyone else did the same as they readied themselves.

** Rest in Peace **

**Odin  
Heimdall  
Forseti  
Ullr  
Eir  
Zisa  
Herja  
Skuld  
etc.**

Vidar breathed, finally find the words.

"Father, I'll make sure our home is in good hands, so... don't worry." Vidar promised.

"May the Valkyries welcome you, and lead you through the great battlefield. May they sing your names with love and fury, so that we shall hear it echo to Valhalla. Because, we have lost the King of Kings... he was a warrior. A leader. A father."

He launched his arrow, followed by many others, as the ship set on fire. That was the moment everyone began praying.

* * *

** _~The Shadow Realm_ **

Cassiel's eyes were stained with tears as she walked to the monument, Mio's peerage by her side as she covered her face, crying noticeable. Many of their fellow Demons also felt the sting of their losses.

"Wilbert, I... don't know what to say, I haven't felt this low since... the period after what happened with me and Lucifer after he left Heaven. My heart... it was so broken, and you healed it for me." Cassiel spoke, holding a picture of him.

"But, I won't let myself be lost again... our daughter needs me, the whole Shadow Realm needs me. So, just for today... lend me a little strength while I grieve." She placed it down, soon walking away from it.

** Rest in Peace **

**Wilbert Naruse  
Haniel  
Camael  
Moroni  
Jequn  
Puriel  
Abraxas  
Raum  
Pruflas  
etc.**

Cassiel soon hugged Mio, while everyone else prayed, they just stood there, crying together as the grieved over the loss of a husband/father.

* * *

** _~The Underworld_ **

Penemue sighed, sniffling a bit as she left an unfinished invention of Azazel's on the top of the monument.

"I can't believe he's gone, I..." Penemue instantly broke down.

"No one expected this, no one..." Baraqiel agreed.

Shemhazai put his hand on Penemue's side, sniffling a little as he looked at her.

** Rest in Piece **

**Azazel  
Sahariel  
Tamiel  
Armaros  
Arariel  
Nuriel  
etc.**

"So, I guess... that means you'll be leading us now?" Penemue questioned.

"No, I've always done better being second, the only one who truly understands the legacy he left is you, so that's the role you'll need to take." Shemhazai replied.

Penemue's eyes widened at that.

"He always mentioned that if anyone should take over, it's the woman he trusts most in this world." Shemhazai continued.

Penemue teared up more, sniffling again as everyone began to pray.

* * *

** _~Heaven_ **

Heaven's monument was placed within the area by the Seventh Heaven, with Gabriel taking a deep breath as she and their fellow Angels cried, pouring holy water over the caskets of the fallen. They soon lowered them into the clouds.

At that moment, everyone made their prayers, with Heaven going completely silent.

** Rest in Piece **

**Michael  
Uriel  
Raphael  
Raguel  
Kerubiel  
Raziel  
Zachariel  
Caesar Villiars  
etc.**

Once the prayers were finished, the new leader of Heaven felt the hands of Sandalphon, Metatron, and Raziel. They were all that was left of the Great Seraphs, and the Seraphs... the remnants of God's strongest.

"You gonna be OK?" Sariel asked.

"Maybe not now, but... I will be eventually. Michael had to be strong when we lost father, and now... I'll be strong too. After all, this time, we know father's watching us in a way." Gabriel answered.

The four huddled together, letting the rest of their grief disappear.

* * *

** _~Hell_ **

Within Hell, everyone was gathered on a large hill, showing many graves that marked it as Hell's cemetery. Carving the last name into the monument, Lilith walked back, with everyone seeing it before the six graves marking the Elder Devils near the cliff's edge.

Everyone made their prayer motions as they did, with Issei and Vali on each side of Lilith as they did so.

** Rest in Piece **

**Zeoticus Gremory  
Mephisto Pheles  
Ruval Phenex  
Reves Phenex  
Riser Phenex  
Ruval's Peerage  
Reves' Peerage  
Yubelluna  
etc.**

After the moment ended, Vali looked at some of the others, noticing Rias wiping her tears.

"Hey, you... gonna be OK?" Vali asked.

"Yeah, I'll be alright, I... can't cry forever, truth is I don't think my eyes can even shed any more tears. They're all dried out for now." Rias sniffled a bit, looking at her.

Taking a deep breath.

"Me, mother, my brother, Grayfia, and Millicas? It'll hurt for a while, but we'll keep going... my mother's already made the same decision, to keep living so his memories will keep living as well." Rias stated.

Vali smiled a bit, soon putting her hand on top of hers.

"You're a lot stronger than you realize, Rias." Vali praised.

Rias smiled a bit, while Issei felt Ravel hold his hand tightly, looking at the monument with a similar look. It seemed she was trying to make the same promise herself.

Seeing this, and remembering what she heard throughout today... Lilith made a decision.

"Everyone, I have something important to say. While not among those of us who died today, there's... another we should be respecting today. Someone we should have long ago." Lilith stated, getting everyone's attention.

Lilith walked past the moment, right up to the spot where the cliff face ended, before holding out her hand. At that moment, without any warning... a larger version of the Great Devil's memorial stones appeared, surprising everyone.

"W-what is that?" Ineelana stuttered.

"This is my husband's real memorial, I hid it because there was something Lucifer didn't want people to know." Lilith said.

Before anyone could say anything, she went to the monument saying [Satan Lucifer] on it, and then... wiped the Lucifer part of the name away, revealing it wasn't a carving. That's when people suddenly widened their eyes.

"So, you've finally revealed it." Vali said quietly, having already had a good idea.

"Oh, my god..." Yumina finally began to piece the puzzle behind Lilith not calling her husband as Satan.

Lilith breathed, looking at everyone.

"Everyone, long ago, my husband took the name Satan not to distance himself from God. It was because there was supposed to be Seven Great Devils. This is our fallen friend who never got to see Hell... the real Satan." Lilith revealed.

If anyone tried to best define the situation from the reveal, they'd fail at it, because it was something no Devil was able to react the same about... expression wise that is.

"Uh... so, what happened to him?" Issei asked, finally breaking the ice.

"Sorry, I'm not ready to say everything, not yet at least. Lucifer told me he felt once the false sky we lived under was finally shattered... he could finally feel he repaid Satan enough to no longer bear his name. Right now, Hell's got a long journey to become the place my husband intended it to be, so I'll make restoring Hell into that state the day when I reveal it all, since we'll have reason to celebrate. However, what I can say... I should have been the one to die, but he saved me, at the price of taking my death." Lilith looked at Issei, tearing up a bit.

At the sight of her tears, everyone decided to not press any further on the subject, while Lilith then did something no one ever thought she'd do.

She removed her chains.

"For so long, I kept these chains because I thought they were all I had left of Lucifer, but maybe deep down... I was still chained by Satan giving up his life to save me." Lilith looked at the chains, shedding some tears.

_"Don't cry, because I'm happy... that in the end, you were all my friends. That's why, I'm glad that... I could save you." Satan's voice echoed happily._

She placed the chains over the monument.

"However, now... I think I'm finally free of that burden, and now I need to be the one that sees Hell become the dream we wanted it to be. I'm all that's left, but now I know part of Lucifer is always with me, there's something else of him that's still here. Something we helped make together." Lilith gave a smile as she looked at Vali.

Vali smiled back, tearing up herself.

Looking at Alanira, Lilith walked up to her as she put her hands on her shoulders.

"Alanira, don't ever forget your brother's last words to you. He smiled at you, and then told you... thank you." Lilith reminded her.

"I... I wanted... to say, you're welcome! But I didn't get the chance!" Alanira cried, lowering her head as she cried.

Lilith rubbed her head, soon lifting it up.

"Alanira..."

She soon turned to the other Great Devils.

"Sirzechs, Ajuka, Falbium, Roygun, and Serafall... all of you helped me out so much. Because of that, while I still need you to help me more by representing their positions until Vali's time to take the stage, from this moment on... I hereby order you live under the names you once had. You no longer need to bear the burden of helping me stop the Elders from taking control of our home, we can all finally rebuild it." Lilith declared.

"Lady Lilith..." Alanira gasped, while the others went completely silent.

Issei put a hand around Vali's waist, resting his head on her shoulder. Smiling, she lowered her head, smiling as she put her other hand up to her hair. Feeling it blow in the wind, the sight of a flock of butterflies flew through the air, representing the winds of change.

Change that would be for the better.

* * *

** _~Human World_ **

Eventually, the night sky came, with Issei and Vali staring at the clear sky. It wasn't just them, across various places, everyone was doing this tonight, as an old legend the supernatural world shared? A bright sky full of stars represented those who had passed on looking at their family.

"I think that legend is true, because it honestly feels like everyone we lost is watching us tonight, making sure we don't have anything to fear." Issei smiled.

"I know, and with how warm it is, feels like they're holding us close, telling us not to worry." Vali agreed, nuzzling against Issei.

Issei nuzzled back, and soon looked at her.

"Hey, so I've been thinking..." Issei suddenly stated.

Vali looked at him, wondering what he was about to say. Taking a deep breath... the Sekiryuutei finally said it.

"When I proposed to you, I wanted to wait until after we graduated before the wedding happened. However, considering we ended up dying, it... it just hit me how lucky we were to get this second chance. I don't think we're gonna get another, so..." Issei took her hand, making her blush.

"Let's do it as soon as possible, so we don't regret losing that chance." Issei reasoned, blushing just as much.

Vali gasped as she heard that, quickly tearing up in response. To his pleasant surprise, he responded to him by pressing him to the ground, intentionally hugging her breasts onto his chest, and then kissing him deeply. In only a few seconds, the two were making out.

This went on another five minutes before they needed to breathe again, and Vali picked them back up, hugging her fiancé close.

"I will, that's how much I love you." She answered, crying happy tears.

Issei's mouth moved into a big smile, and his face's blush got redder in response to his mouth's movements.

"Yes!" He whispered, pumping his fist up.

At that moment, the sight of their parents walked by, with Asuka in tow. Realizing this, both of them waved at them.

"Hey guys, bug news... we've decided to have the wedding as soon as possible!" Vali announced.

Lilith smiled at that, while Issei's family showed surprise.

"Wait, seriously?" Asuka asked.

"Damn... you two are bold, and I like it, we'll help you set it up!" Homura smiled, giving a thumb's up.

Her husband sighed at that, holding his wallet up.

"Great, this is gonna kill my wallet." Ayumu worriedly remarked.

As they looked up at the stairs, the group sat down beside them, looking at the stars, Lilith suddenly brought up a conversation.

"If it weren't for you two, we wouldn't be here now. You saved everyone." Lilith smiled, rubbing her daughter and eventual son-in-law's heads.

"Mom, you're missing the whole picture here." Vali replied, making her blink at her.

The Hakuryuukou smiled as she looked at the stars.

"Every one of the Young Devils, and everyone else among all the factions... they all risked their lives, fighting as hard as those who came before them. Back when the tournament began, you told us that we had to be ready for anything, nor did they expect to fight in a war like this, and almost every one of them came back alive. Now they know of such a world, and how to be ready for when Rizevim finally makes his move."

"Hades and the Khaos Brigade made a mistake when they attacked us, because they let us prove we have the strength to fight them, strength they didn't expect. God and father said we had the power to change the future, but I don't think it meant just the two of us, but everyone we're connected to. The courage, strength, drive, potential, and the hope we all share? That's what will save the world." Vali's smile soon spread to the others.

Asuka gave a bright smile at that, feeling happy, and then looked up at the stars. Following that, one by one, across the entire world... everyone else, both the current and previous generations alike, those young and old? They and their peerages members all did the same in response, one by one. The stars seemed to shine even brighter as they did, until both Issei and Vali held up their dominant hands, giving a thumb's up to each other.

Then, to everyone's surprise... the entire world saw shooting stars fly by, making them all smile in surprise.

_"Go for it everyone, show the future that you can make a 100 out of zero!"_

While no one could hear that voice, everyone reached to the sky, people of the human and supernatural worlds alike. On this day, the Rating Game Tournament came to an end, while many lives were also lost in the conflict known as the Second Great War...

There was a tomorrow, and one that they'd all be creating together, because as of this day, the two worlds were now one.

* * *

**That's it, the pandemonium of the Pandemonium arc is now over!**

**A lot of big changes have marked its end, only Nainen survived out of the five we knew were in the hospital, but she's lost her connection to the Leylines, so now... Kunou is her mother's only possible successor, meaning she wasn't able to rejoin Vali's peerage, while Yumina has become her new Queen. The system of Heaven has been reactivated, and a new area of Agreas has been opened that will allow future possibilities for the reincarnation systems.**

**For changes relating to people, Asuka's been adopted by Issei's parents, so now they're adoptive siblings, which I'll admit was intended. I created Asuka to be a sister to Issei, but not his biological sister, which is why I made her his cousin, to let adoption make them siblings in certain stories. Along with that, the Great Devils, while still being placeholders for Vali and the Great Devil heirs, are no longer bound by those names.**

**That one might seem odd, but look at the Phenex household's situation. They had five children, and now they have two, so Alanira's their only heir now. While I know Ravel's a Phenex, since she doesn't show any signs of a peerage, which other heirs/heads seem to have, I'm having this story consider that a natural born High-Class gives up the right to be an heir, and owning a peerage, if they join a peerage themselves.**

**Basically, unless Alanira were to somehow die in the future, there's no way Ravel can be the heir to the Phenex clan.**

**While I didn't plan to reveal it here, I realized I can reveal one detail now, but still withhold the rest until JOHD to keep the importance it'll have there. Anyways, now we know that Satan was not actually an addition to Lucifer's name upon becoming a Devil, but a way to honor a friend who gave his life up to save Lilith's. Works with both the idea they're not the same, and the same being, so it was an interesting twist to add in.**

**Now, for the most important thing revealed in this chapter? Issei and Vali's wedding is happening sooner than planned because of their death and revivals, so I'm just gonna say this now... it'll be what finishes the story of LOHD! *plays applause sound* So, keep an eye out for that, because the moment you see any signs that the wedding is drawing, you'll know JOHD is on the horizon.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Engaged  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	78. Chapter 78

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter, as the AN will mention, is where the revised chapters began, so you'll need to read to understand some of the changes after this chapter I didn't share here as a result.
> 
> Said revisions will have a gap of info, as I only got to Chapter 46 before I gave up and ended up with what became "When Dawn meets Dusk."

**Hey everyone, we're here with Chapter 78, the first chapter of the Epilogue arc! As the name applies, this is the last arc of the first story, and once it ends... we're finally going to be moving on to the next story of the trilogy, Journey of the Heavenly Dragons! This arc will focus on the aftermath of the Second Great War from the previous arc, while also exploring Humanity's reaction to the Supernatural, including our heroes' Human friends.**

**Before I say anymore... while I know I said that I wouldn't be making a new chapter until I finished the revisions, that was before I realized it took me nearly an entire day to revise just one! *breathes* Sorry for the outburst there, but if I kept following that, you wouldn't see another chapter for a month at best, and two at worst... I'm not doing that to you all, so I'm gonna revise those plans.**

**To walk around this issue? I'm going to cycle around by updating a whole arc, and then making a new chapter after I've revised the whole arc, which will let me gradually make the updates, but not leave you all hanging. As of right now, I've revised all four chapters of the Raynare arc, and looking between them, and Chapter 5, I think you can tell how much better they've become.**

**However, I didn't just revise the old chapters, but changed up a few things, so the Raynare arc is now both different, yet the same. Due to this, I'll be mentioning the major alterations (some may be made when I begin revising the other arcs) that apply as of this chapter, so you guys know of the changes I had to make, and that I chose to make myself. These changes are:**

**~Tosca doesn't change her name after joining Rias, due to Ineelana also having a Yumi in her peerage, while her last name is now "Shirayumi" to keep the "bow" theme.**

**~Azazel never adopted Vali, but he does become her honorary Uncle.**

**~Lilith has already adopted Vali, but isn't able to call her "mom" until the end of Season 3.**

**~Albion is girl, like Vali**

**~Vali moves in with Issei upon returning from her training journey.**

**~Penemue is now Azazel's wife, rather than his sister, while Yuuma and Raynare are their children.**

**~God's real name is Elohim, while his title of "God", and the fact the indirectly created the other pantheons, are why other deities are called as such.**

**~Satan isn't an addition to Lucifer's name, but his equivalent to Elohim's title of God, though it still honors his fallen friend of the same name.**

**These are just the ones I've made as of the first arc, so there may be more that I haven't listed here due to these decisions having not been made just yet. Also, these are just the "major" changes, there are also some minor ones, like how Murayama and Katase are actually the nieces of Issei's adoptive mother, and father respectively, and are dating Motohama, and Matsuda respectively.**

**As this is part of my revision process, and I'd like this story to fully flow with how I've planned for it up to his point, I hope everyone understands the changes I make, I'll make sure not to do anything _too_ drastic, so don't worry about certain things changing. Like the one part of Ch 77, the section mentioning the notes about the revision will be removed once I finish them.**

**Now, with all of that said, time for us to get back to the start notes.**

**I don't know how long this arc will be just yet, but I'm going to be focusing on all the characters who were involved in the last arc, while also having Homura, Ayumu, and Lilith preparing their children's wedding that will be the epic finale I've already said it would be. So, in a sense, this whole arc is best summed up as giving everyone their own little conclusions on what I can actually conclude here.**

**Well, we've all come this far, so the only thing I can say is this. Let's start the beginning of the end.**

* * *

**()** \- Albion Talking

**(())** \- Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig Talking

**[[]]** \- Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Vritra Talking

**⟨⟩** \- Bahamut Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**‹›** \- Important Term, Phrase, or Detail

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle Beginning, or its Result

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** After-War Faction Rankings **

**The Second Great War left a huge shift of powers, rearranging the rankings of each faction for the first time in an entire millennium. Another change that occurred during this is the Youkai are ranked separately from the Shinto Pantheon, while the Dragon faction has resurfaced.**

**As of now, each faction's strength is ranked as the following.**

**1\. Christian Pantheon - While they lost a lot of people, due to the Elders' deaths, Saji becoming the next Longinus wielder, Mio's capture of the Incinerate Anthem, and the reactivation of the system in Heaven, the Christian Pantheon has once again reclaimed their spot as the strongest faction after two millennia.**

**2\. Shinto Pantheon - They didn't lose too many of their major gods, and still have the support of the Youkai within their faction. The fewer Human casualties due to Japan's nature as an island country also limited the damage.**

**3\. Hindu Pantheon - Due to the in-fighting of Indra and Hades' army, alongside the deaths of many Buddha, they took a big enough hit to fall below the Shinto Pantheon, who now have a small, yet noticeable lead over them.**

**4\. Norse Pantheon - While Odin's loss was a big one, a few of the stronger gods, like Thor, survived the conflict.**

**5\. Egyptian Pantheon - Since Ra inherited Aten's power, their losses were slightly mitigated. Also, by becoming the new ruler of Tartarus, the surviving Grim Reapers are now part of their faction, meaning they gained more overall.**

**6\. Greek Pantheon - Aside from Hades' forces being the one who started the conflict, and the surviving Grim Reapers now being tied to the Egyptian Pantheon by Anubis, the faction's main trio of gods were all killed. A few Titans, and some of the primordial gods, were destroyed as well.**

**7\. Dragon Faction - Before this conflict, the Dragons were just too scattered to be a faction like in ancient times. However, upon regaining their memories of the Prophecy, they all united together, reviving the Dragon faction. The various factions have offered them more land, allowing more Dragons to live outside of Hell once more.**

**8\. Hero Clan - Despite they were not involved in the Great War, Pluto's words to Asuka did confirm they did take some losses, her parents being among them. Luckily, those losses weren't too heavy because Pluto seems to have been the only one to attack them, and was forced to leave before he did much.**

**9\. Magician's Guild - Their situation seems a bit more ambiguous, as with the destruction of Hexennacht, yet a few Magician's deaths, it's hard to tell how much they truly lost overall. That being said, Mephisto's death has left a small void, since they currently don't have a successor to lead the various Magician groups.**

**10\. Celtic Pantheon - By word of Riser, one of the beings attacking them was none other than Crom Cruach, who decimated their forces. Now, they have only seven gods left, and the leaders of each Vampire group, and the Werewolves, are dead. As such, they've become the weakest faction, requiring the most aid in repairs.**

**The supernatural side of the world truly felt this war in their own ways, and no one knows how badly this will affect their changes of freeing Trihexa, should Rizevim succeed in releasing it from its seal...**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 1 – First New Day _ **

The scene opens to Kuoh Town, which had already been repaired due to the efforts of the Alliance's magic. Where the hole to Hell was, a few Devils were seen beginning a project to create a new train station, one with a dome to let the sun's light shine into Hell, and were currently moving all the trains for supernatural realm into it.

At the moment, many people were at the restored Kuoh Academy, which was currently hosting an open house of sorts to see if any supernatural beings would be interested in attending. With the Humanity and the supernatural in the transition to co-exist, Kuoh Academy was now set to be one of the first schools to have such students, as many students already qualified as such.

Speaking of which, Issei and Vali were currently with Issei's adoptive cousins, the kendo duo of Katase and Murayama. Talking with them about everything, since they now had no reason to hide about their adventures, and... there was the fact Issei had to reveal they weren't related, and the deaths of their aunt and uncle.

"I still can't full wrap my head around it, especially you being a princess, of Hell no less." Katase mentioned, looking at Vali.

Vali chuckled at that, rubbing her head with a slight blush.

"So, you tow never had any idea I was adopted?" Issei asked, just to be sure.

"None, while I did know Aunt Hana had at least one miscarriage, she never really told anyone about having adopted a child. You looked enough like them that I never really questioned it." Murayama answered honestly.

"Well, you at least you _did_ look like them, not so much now." Katase giggled.

Issei chuckled lightly, playfully putting a hand to his head as he shook it.

"Yeah, this will be a thing for a while, won't it?" Issei sighed, smiling a little.

"Probably." Vali replied.

At that moment, the heiress of Lucifer remembered the other reason they were talking with them, pulling out five invitations to them.

"Here you go. If you don't mind, give the other three to Motohama, Matsuda, and Kiryuu for us." Vali remarked.

"Sure, but... what are these for?" Katase asked, blinking at them.

"Uh... well, you see..." Issei motioned the two closer, soon whispering to the both of them.

Their eyes widened.

"Wedding!?" They both shouted in shock.

"You mean, you two are getting married, as in fairly soon?" Katase questioned.

Vali blushed a little, nodding with a smile.

"Issei... proposed to me yesterday, he did plan on waiting until we graduated High School, but considered we ended up dying for a while..." Bali explained, still blushing.

She didn't need to finish that sentence, the message went through fairly well.

"I get it, don't waste the chance while you have it." Murayama replied, knowing she'd probably do the same if she got a second chance at life.

"Well, we'll definitely be there, and congratulations to you both." Katase gave them both her blessing.

The two smiled at that.

"We've gotta get the rest of these invitations sent out, we'll see you later." Issei waved, he and Vali heading off.

The two waved back, soon heading off to find their boyfriends, and the resident Pervert of Kuoh.

* * *

Within the office of the Student Council, the sight of Saji was seen as due to the recent events, and the supernatural students already deciding to enroll into Kuoh Academy next year, he was already starting to begin his work a bit early.

He sighed as he rubbed his head from, adjusting the glasses he was wearing for show, as Xenovia came in with a stack of papers. Seeing them, he groaned.

"Aw man, have I mentioned how much I hate Hades right now for making this all happen so fast?" Saji questioned.

"About once, twice, maybe a few dozen times?" Xenovia answered.

Saji sighed again, this time Vritra did it alongside him, feeling stressed because he felt Saji's stress.

**{Hades and his stupid bullshit... if he wasn't dead already, I'd kill him right now!}** Vritra roared with fury.

Xenovia sighed, having to agree with the strongest Evil Dragon.

"Well, if you need a break from the paper work, the members of the New Student Council are ready to report their supernatural connection to the both of us." Xenovia offered.

"Anything to justify ignoring these papers for a while." He quickly agreed.

At that moment, Xenovia whistled with her fingers, prompting the trio of Millarca Vordenburg, Ryuuta/Ouryuu Nakiri, and Tadami Kamo into the room.

"Before anything else, I'd like to say this... thank you for defending Kuoh Town like you did. We didn't suffer any casualties here thanks to your involvement." Saji said in gratitude.

"It would help if you could tell us the identity of that hooded girl fighting with you." Xenovia mentioned.

"Sorry, we don't know who she is either, but Tobio seems to be somewhat aware of her." Ouryuu admitted.

Saji sighed, soon taking off his glasses.

"Alright then, I guess we'll start by asking what you three are. Let's start with you Ryuuta, which I'm guessing isn't your real name, or at least your _current_ name." Saji asked.

Ouryuu nodded, taking a step ahead of the others.

"Ryuuta was my name at birth, one that I had to shed upon becoming the current host of Huanglong. I'm the current Ouryuu of the Nakiri Clan, one of the Five Principal Clans, and the one tied to the element of Earth." He revealed.

"I see, so you're a shrine priest." Saji realized.

He soon turned towards Tadami.

"OK, and how about you, Tadami?" He asked.

"I'm from a family of Onmyouji exorcists, it's kinda similar to Ouryuu's standards, only I rely on talismans." Tadami answered.

"Understood." Saji nodded his head.

He soon turned to the Vampire Princess, who was currently holding a somewhat sad face... it made the host of Vritra realize she may have lost family in the war, or just hasn't heard their current status.

"And what about you, Miraka?" He asked.

"First off, my real name's Millarca, I call myself Miraka while in the Human world. Also, I'm... a noble from the Vordenburg House, a Sub-Family under the Carmilla House." Millarca revealed, looking away after.

That's when the rest of the New Student Council members, aside from Tadami and Ouryuu, gasped. No wonder she was looking sad, the Vampires got hit fairly hard as a result of the damage to the Celtic Pantheon.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have made you reveal that." Saji apologized.

"No, it's OK. A friend of mine told me my family's alright, I'm just concerned about what will happen... she said we might fall into a Civil war with the Tepes Family." Millarca reassured him.

"Really, a civil war might happen?" Tomoe asked.

"I'm afraid so, the only thing that held us at bay were some of the gods that died during the Second Great War, which also worries me about how the Werewolves might act." Millarca gave a loud sigh.

Reya put a hand on her cheek, looking towards Saji.

"Things are gonna be a mess for a while, aren't they?" Reya remarked sadly.

"Yeah, I've already had Sona warn me that even if most of Humanity's been accepting of us due to our actions in the war, there's likely going to be some Anti-Supernatural people, and/or groups that will be in opposition of it all." Saji confirmed, groaning after he said it.

Everyone looked at him, and then...

"You... want us to help with the paperwork?" Ruruko offered.

"Yes, I'd appreciate it." He accepted.

* * *

Back with Issei and Vali, the two were walking around, handing out more of their wedding invites to the invited guests, and occasionally replying to their surprised reactions. It was fairly justified, considering the two were only just about to start their Senior Year in High School.

"I'll admit, when you consider what everyone went through a few days ago, seeing them so focused on us getting married is a good sign." Issei chuckled.

"Well, no one can mope around forever, and it helps the whole world can understand the pain. It's hard to bear something alone, but it's easier to bear it with others, kinda like you and me when it comes to our parents." Vali replied.

Issei nodded at that, and the two went silent for a bit. And then...

"Hey Vali, you made any choices for the roles in our wedding just yet? My mom said I could choose the Best Man, and the Flower Girl." Issei asked.

"For me, I'm getting to pick the Maid of Honor, and the Ring Bear." Vali replied.

Looking at each other, they realized something.

"We should probably make sure we didn't both pick the same person for something, shouldn't we?" He chuckled nervously.

"Yeah, good idea." She agreed, laughing awkwardly.

"Well, I'm not sure who to make the Best Man just yet, as I'm trying to choose between Kiba, Saji, Sairaorg, or Cao Cao. For the Flower Girl, I decided on Asia." Issei answered.

Vali sighed in relief at that.

"No double picks then. For the Ring Bear, I'm deciding between either Arthur, or Bikou. For the Maid of Honor, I've decided to pick Irina." Vali revealed.

"Somehow, I knew you'd pick Irina." Issei chuckled playfully.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Vali pouted, playfully puffing her cheeks.

It was only a few seconds later that the two began laughing, looking forward as they kept walking.

"So, what's making it hard to choose between Bikou and Arthur?" Issei inquired.

"Well... on one hand, Arthur's likely the most familiar with how it would work since he and Elaine are engaged, even if he's waiting until he graduates compared to us. But with Bikou, he's the first person I promised to bring into my peerage, so I feel like I should give him the honor." Vali explained.

Issei smiled a bit.

"I get what you mean, it's similar to why I'm unsure about choosing between my Best Man choices. For Kiba and Saji? They're both good friends of mine due to our time with Rias and Sona... that, and I don't wanna give Gasper a heart attack."

Hearing that, Vali's cheeks puffed out as she tried not to laugh.

"Though when it comes to Sairaorg and Cao Cao, I've fought with both of them, and they've become strong rivals to me. Picking Sairaorg is based on him being my first rival, where for Cao Cao, it's because I think he's my strongest rival." He explained.

"Makes sense, so you're choosing between good friends, and respected rivals. I think those choices have the same reasoning behind choosing between a trusted teammate like I am." Vali replied.

Eventually as they were walking, the noticed something.

"Come kids, one and all!"

Both of them stopped, turning to see Menes standing in front of a crowd of kids, using his Sacred Gear to put on a small show for them.

"Oh, it looks like Menes is cheering up the kids." Issei remarked.

"He has always seemed a bit flamboyant based on how he acts, so putting on a performance is in character for him." Vali giggled.

At that moment, Vali's eyes widened.

"Hey, Issei? I know there's the bachelor, and bachelorette parties, but maybe we should have an event before our wedding? You know, kinda like what Menes' is doing right now." She suggested.

"Hmm, an event... the hard part there is that we'd need to tell everyone we invited, and then we have those we didn't, or just couldn't come..." Issei mused.

He tried to think of something, while Vali worried her idea wouldn't work... until Issei's eyes widened.

"Wait, I got an idea that should get everyone's attention without worry, and I think it's something most people have been thinking about since our revivals unbound me from your Queen Piece." Issei realized.

"Really? What is... wait, you're not suggesting we have a-" Vali suddenly realized Issei's thoughts.

"Yep, we should have a Rating Game against each other!" Issei verified.

Vali put her hand near her chin, thinking about it. While Yumina had technically been in a Rating Game, that was due to the Champion Match's unique rules. Not only that, her and Issei's peerages were the only two who knew she was her new Queen right now. At the same time, Asuka was the only one in both their peerages who had never been in a Rating Game.

It wasn't just a great opportunity for people to see a match up that just became possible, but a great chance for both of them to introduce their Queens to the world of the world of the Rating Games. Best of all? It would be the first Rating Game following the Second Great War, making it the perfect opportunity to show Humanity one of the supernatural world's various forms of entertainment, which would help Lilith's preparations for the International Championship she was planning.

"Alright, then let's have a match set up a week before the wedding." Vali agreed, smiling a bit.

Issei smiled at that, getting excited.

"Oh yeah, I think one of your new ideas was that peerages can now have a team name, we should use that in this game. Have any ideas for yours?" Issei asked.

"I do, it's..."

Vali whispered her answer to Issei, who looked interested.

"I like it, mine's gonna be..."

Issei whispered his to her, with Vali also liking his choice.

"The way we named them are the same, but I think it fits the powers we have, and the wills we've inherited." Vali giggled.

"Yeah, that's why we're gonna make the first Rating Game of the New World the best game anyone's seen to date." Issei agreed.

They give a pinkie swear at that, already anticipating the upcoming event.

* * *

Asuka saw a magical transport drop off some belongings of hers from the Hero Village she came from, as well as surviving mementos belonging to her parents. Seeing almost, if not everything of theirs, in good shape, she found herself smiling.

"Mom, dad... now part of you will always be here with me." Asuka smiled.

"Hey, Asuka! Ready to get your new room set up!?" Homura called from inside.

Asuka turned to the door, putting a hand near her mouth.

"Coming!"

Grabbing all the boxes, she carried them inside. Looking around, she saw Ayumu waving to her, following him.

"So, which room's mine?" Asuka asked.

"You'll see in a moment." Ayumu replied.

Soon enough, they stopped by the room that Vali used, surprising Issei's Queen.

"Wait, but this is Vali's room." Asuka said, slightly confused.

"It _was_ her room, actually. Since they're getting married soon, she's decided to move into Issei's room, and said you could have it." Ayumu explained.

"Meaning it's her first present as my sister in law, that's so sweet of her." Asuka smiled.

Carrying the boxes inside, Asuka's eyes widened even more as she saw how the actual rooms compared to the guest room she had been staying in up until recently.

"I knew this house was a mansion, but... wow!" Asuka remarked in shock.

"Yeah, still surprises me at times." Ayumu agreed.

He soon put on goggles, and a face mask, before pulling out a magic wand that lit up at the top.

"Now, if you'll excuse me... I gotta fumigate the bathroom only Seiji was allowed to use." He groaned, nearly barfing after he said it.

Asuka chuckled a bit, and sweat dropped at the sight.

Meanwhile, back downstairs, Homura was seen stretching as she walked out of the kitchen.

"Looking at this house, and knowing me and Ayumu technically own it now... still hasn't sunk in." Homura sighed, looking at everything.

"You know the old saying, Rome wasn't built in a day."

Homura looked, seeing Tiamat lying on the couch, making her jump back in surprise at the giant egg next to her.

"Tiamat!?" Homura screamed in shock.

"Yo." Tiamat waved, looking at her.

The matriarch of the Hyoudou... or rather, Akane Household as of now, looked at the strongest Dragon King, and the egg near her.

"OK... two questions. Why are you here, and where the heck did you get that nearly two-foot tall egg?" Homura asked.

Tiamat sat herself up, looking at Issei's mother.

"For the former, I'm officially moving in here now since I've got less reasons to laze in the Familiar Forest. And for the latter?" Tiamat answered.

"Well, this just happens to be the egg of me and Ddraig's child." She smirked, a fang showing.

Homura blinked, looking at her, and then the egg.

"But... that was during the Great War, shouldn't of it had hatched by now?" She asked in confusion.

Tiamat gave a slightly somber look.

"Truth be told, long ago... I thought this egg was lost in the conflict, lied to myself that it didn't exist. Who wants to remember the only child they could have ever had with the one they love never got to be born?" Tiamat revealed.

Homura gasped.

"But, when Issei and Vali learned the truth, all of us Dragons regained our memories. That's when I recalled that Elohim did something for me in exchange for Ddraig sealing himself away." Tiamat revealed, motioning to her egg as she rubbed it.

"You mean, it was kept safe within the Seventh Heaven for all those years, frozen in time?" Homura asked in disbelief.

Tiamat nodded, smiling at her egg.

"Honestly, if he had acted like he did when Trihexa was the threat he was, maybe our world would have been a better place long before it was today. Although, maybe that's why it is now, it's those very traits that your son inherited." Tiamat giggled a bit.

Homura chuckled, looking at the sky.

"What can you say? That's my son you're talking about, even if I've been gone for most of his life, I can see how many people he and Vali tied together." She smiled, her early worry passing away.

Tiamat nodded in agreement, soon standing up.

"Anyways, do me a solid and let Issei know if I don't respond to a summon should he need it, that's because the other Dragon Kings need me. We're seeing signs that our old homeland, Lemuria, seems to be resurfacing in response to Heavens System's reactivating. Because of that, I've gotta help the main groups of Dragons settle in by helping set up." Tiamat requested.

"Sure thing, he's probably busy with his and Vali's wedding preparations anyways, so he may not even need to summon you." Homura agreed.

Tiamat smiled at that, soon whistling with her fingers.

In response to it, the human form of Freezie, and young Rassei both appear in the room.

"I'll be try to be back soon, take care of my egg." Tiamat waved, vanishing in a magic circle.

"Will do ma'am." Freezie promised.

Homura smiled a bit, soon seeing Elaine walk down the stairs.

"Mrs. Akane, I've finished cleaning the Hyoudou's room, and applying the protection spell to preserve it." Elaine reported with a smile.

"Thank you, Elaine. Now that you're finished, why don't you go help Le Fay with her wedding preparations?" Homura suggested.

Elaine bowed slightly, accepting the request.

'Despite the tragedy we all lived through, we're all still living... so, we've gotta make sure this world keeps living as well.' Homura smiled, deciding to do wedding prep herself.

* * *

Lilith was seen in Hell, holding a checklist as she was managing everything for Hell's repairs, reforms, new developments, and etc. that she, Vali, and the Devils she trusted most had talked over as a group. While she stood there, Sirzechs walked up to her.

"How are things going so far?" He asked.

"Well, time's the only thing I can't predict, but it looks like when this is all finally finished, Hell might literally end up a "Heaven on Earth" as the saying goes." Lilith replied playfully, making Sirzechs lightly bop her shoulder.

As the two laughed, the say a magic circle bring Issei and Vali into view.

"Oh, hey you two. Any reason for this unexpected visit?" Lilith greeted.

"Well, we had an idea for something a week prior to the wedding, so we wanted to run it by you." Issei answered.

"Also, I... have something I'd like to ask Sirzechs." Vali added.

Lilith nods, soon putting the clipboard away, and whistling towards all the working Devils.

"Everyone, take a short break! My daughter and her fiancé need to ask me something!" Lilith shouted.

The working Devils all sigh in relief, taking the rare chance for a break.

"Alright, so what is it you wanted to talk about?" Lilith asked.

"Well, me and Vali saw Menes entertaining the kids of Kuoh Town with his Sacred Gear, and thought we should have an event before the weeding, and our respective parties. After thinking on it, we decided..." Issei replied, looking at Vali.

Vali giggled, finishing the rest.

"That we should have the first Rating Game the Human world gets to see, against each other." She revealed.

Lilith showed surprise at that.

"The Sekiryuutei, and the Hakuryuukou, having a Rating Game? That would be..." Lilith didn't take long to see how many would love such a match up.

"An interesting match to say the least, I think it's a wonderful idea." Sirzechs remarked.

"Hmm... a week from the wedding, that's actually a day off for everyone's work, so that actually fits perfectly. What better way to spend a day off for some people than to see the two strongest Rookies battling it out? Especially since Vali's the current champion among the youths, while Issei holds the record for becoming a High-Class Devil." Lilith agreed, nodding excitingly.

Looking at her daughter and her coming son in law, she put her hands on their shoulders.

"Alright, you two have yourselves a Rating Game." Lilith smiled.

The two smiled, followed by sharing a high five with one another, and all four Dragons sharing their own thoughts.

**[Looks like our hosts are gonna fight this time.]** Ddraig smirked.

**(However, there's no longer any curse for them to worry about.)** Albion remarked.

**[[Wonder if they'll tie like we always do.]]** Great Red chuckled.

**((Somehow, I just knew you'd say that...))** Ophis sighed.

After that, Vali turned to Sirzechs.

"Before I say what I need to, how is Millicas? You've had a lot more time to spend with him, since you became a Gremory again, haven't you?" Vali asked.

"Yes, while not as much as I could do to repairs, I think he's fairly happy I can spend more time to him. Grayfia as well, based on what Yumina's been telling me." Sirzechs replied, chuckling a bit.

Vali snickered in reply, knowing how rarely Grayfia wasn't using her **‹**Maid**›** personality.

After finishing her laughter, Vali took a deep breath, and then exhaled. Then, with a few simple words... the silver-haired Lucifer said something no one could have expected her to say.

"Sirzechs, if you wouldn't mind, it would be my honor... if you attended the wedding ceremony as my father.

Lilith's eyes widened at that, while Issei went silent. Sirzechs looked at her in surprise, unable to believe the request she had just made... or rather, that she had made it to him.

"Me?" Sirzechs asked.

"When I began attending Kuoh Academy, despite that I was a Devil, your sister treated me the way she wanted to be treated, Not as the heiress of our respective Clan... like a normal Human girl. Everyone else I would have asked isn't here anymore, so to properly show my thanks, I figured choosing you was a great way to honor her." Vali explained.

Lilith cried happy tears at that, while Issei smiled.

"But, if it puts you off too much, I have Lucifuge Rofocale as another option." Vali stated, trying to remove pressure from his decision.

Sirzechs looked at her a little longer, then smiled as he nodded.

"Vali, I'd be honored." Sirzechs agreed.

Vali's eyes widened, and she gave a bright open smile.

"Thank you, so much!" Vali said in gratitude.

"Aw man, this wedding talk is making me feel like an old lady." Lilith sniffled happily.

"How can you say that? You're over 2000, but you don't look a day over 20." Issei joked, making the Devil Queen giggle.

Hearing that, Vali suddenly hummed a bit.

"That reminds me of something Sona mentioned about Gods after the First Great War, something about their primes and not getting physically older. Why is that?" Vali mentioned, suddenly making Lilith flinch.

Sirzechs gave an odd look to Lilith as he saw the sweat going down her face. Luckily, she realized something that saved them.

"Issei, isn't Asuka the only member of your peerage that's yet to see the normal Rating Games?" She mentioned.

"Crap! I forgot that, she's gonna go in completely blind!" Issei panicked.

Lilith turned her head in response.

"I think Diehauser has some videos he can lend you, so she can watch them." Lilith recalled.

Hearing that, Issei sighed in relief.

"Come on Vali, let's go get those videos." Issei stated.

"Right!" Vali replied.

The two headed off, making Lilith slump onto her knees in relief.

"Oh god, that was close..." She breathed out.

She felt Sirzechs behind her, making her go blue in the face as she realized he was still there... and not gonna fall for anything she said.

"I'm quite curious, you seem to be hiding something, and it seems like Lucifer's peerage knows what it is as well based on what Edelweiss said about the battlefield for the last leg of the Rating Game Tournament." Sirzechs mused, looking at her intensely.

"Uh, well..." Lilith said, sweating a bit.

After a few moments, she sighed in defeat, getting up on her feet.

"Yeah, there's... something only a few people who lived through the First Great War know about, but I can't tell you about it. At least, I can't tell it yet, but I will one day, otherwise the story of what killed Satan will never be brought to light." Lilith answered, making sure her words told him that's all he'd get from her.

Sirzechs blinked at her, but seeing how she mentioned other factions being in the know, he decided not to press any further.

"Alright, just know when you're finally ready to talk about it, we're here to listen." Sirzechs replied.

Lilith smiled, and soon took the clipboard back out.

"Alright everyone, time to get back to work! Hell's not gonna rebuild itself!"

* * *

Somewhere else in the world, the sight of the two hooded figures who attempted to capture Issei and Vali's bodies while they were lifeless both landed somewhere, with the Knight figure holding out his hand to sense the area. After a bit, his magnetic waves didn't sense anything.

"I think we're safe at this distance." He stated, finally sitting down to recover his stamina.

"Finally! I can't believe we went through all that crap to try and stop the Prophecy, but all we walked out with was the shit we were attempting to clean." The Bishop figure growled.

The male Devil didn't reply for reasons only he, and a few others were versed in.

"You know, this reminds me of something I've once heard about events you try to prevent from happening." He remarked.

"Let me guess, often what we seek to prevent is actually the catalyst that allows it?" She inquired.

His eyes widened at that.

"If you've seen what Humanity says about my Clan's name in some of their inaccurate depictions of the supernatural, you'd probably get it. Let's just say aside from the Succubus depictions, they also think my ancestor had some kinda sightseeing, and we both know I can't do that." The Bishop figure explained.

Hearing that, he chuckled a bit.

"Guess that's not too different from how they mark my abilities as connected to lightning, which I guess isn't technically wrong." The Knight Figure remarked.

As they spoke, the Bishop Figure suddenly sensed something, turning to face a certain direction.

Her fellow Devil looked at her in surprise, only to gasp as she suddenly rushed off somewhere, forcing him to rush after her. Luckily, his Knight Speed let him catch up to her in only a few seconds.

"Lumiru, what's going on?" He asked.

"I felt her, she's around here, I know it!" Lumiru answered, rushing ahead.

He matched her pace as she kept running, and then eventually... they found a spot with a flickering purple flame. The Knight figure gasped, knowing that despite the Incinerate Anthem had been stolen from her, this fire was clearly Walburga's.

"Heh, you see that Exelerea? That woman's full of surprises." Lumiru chuckled.

Exelerea nodded, and the two walked near the flame, with Exelerea using his powers to levitate it without hurting himself.

"Hmm... yep, I feel life in here. Lend me some magic, considering the forbidden magics she dabbled it, I might be able to restore her body." Exelerea requested.

"Got it." Lumiru agreed.

Pouring out some magic into the flame, Exelerea's eyes flashed in response. The flame suddenly shook a bit, followed by a hand of magic forming out, and then launching out of the flame. It materialized into the shape of a person, revealing what looked like a familiar magician, only having regressed to a young teenager in appearance.

Walburga had returned, somehow having cheat death through the sole ember of purple flames she could keep.

"Damn, stupid bitch... haven't had to use that trick in centuries." Walburga grumbled, seeing her current appearance.

The two Devils blinked at the sight, both looking at each other.

"I... think I just figured out why the Demons are always calling her an old hag." Lumiru realized.

"Me too." Exelerea agreed.

"Huh?" Walburga blinked before turning around, paling a bit.

The rogue magician laughed a bit.

"Shit, I said that out loud... didn't I?" Walburga asked, seeing them nod.

She lowered her head.

"Relax, we won't tell, I mean... we've never seen you as an old lady, if you've even had your body at that age in your whole life." Exelerea reassured her, not wanting to see it period.

"Not sure how much of that's an actual compliment, but whatever..." Walburga said, giving him a flat expression.

Drawing the purple flame towards her, Walburga smirked.

"Well, at the very least, we have this one bit of Jesus' divine power in our hands. That should be enough, provided we've found what we're looking for." She remarked.

Looking at them, she crossed her hands.

"Well, have we?" She asked.

"Don't ask us, the others are still out looking while things are getting finished up with Ruihi." Lumiru shrugged.

And the moment she finished speaking, a large crash is heard behind the three, making them turn as they saw something familiar, yet unexpected. It was a large, jet black Dragon with an appearance that matched that of the Heavenly Dragons, but where Ddraig's scales were more armored, and Albion's were sleeker, this one's scales looked like they were meant to cut people with a mere touch.

The sight of golden-yellow aura radiating from his body could also be noticed, similar to that of the emerald green, and sapphire blue ones the two Heavenly Dragons emitted. While Walburga had no problems witnessing the beings, the two hooded figures were... less neutral with their unseen expressions.

"C-Crom!? Hey there, w-what brings... you here?" Exelerea questioned.

"Since neither of you can answer the question, I came here to do it myself." Crom Cruach answered.

A magic circle briefly formed around his body, causing him to take Human form, before revealing a golden shard in his hand. Seeing him hold it, the former Hexennacht smirked with excitement.

"By that reaction, I believe this is it?" Crom inquired.

She smirked, nodding her head.

"Well done, you truly are the strongest of the Evil Dragons that aren't still sealed away." Walburga praised him.

"You think that's all? Look at the Celtic Pantheon's current state, he managed to kill Lugh of all people, and knocked their remaining gods down to a mere seven. I think we all know who'll enjoy that, and will get the perfect moment to act on it in the coming future." Lumiru remarked.

"Speaking of which, how's Ruihi doing?" Exelerea asked.

Crom Cruach turned to the Knight, revealing his Human form had a golden right eye, and a black left eye.

"Still not ready, but I'd say it won't be long before she'll be able to stand on her own." Crom answered.

Tossing the shard to Walburga, she looked at it, and the purple embers she held, clutching them both as she gave a dastardly grin.

"Well, I believe a certain someone will be happy to know he doesn't have to wait for the next stage of his plans to start initializing, so..." Everyone looked at her as she spoke, seeing her body shake with anticipation.

"What do you all say we get back to Rizevim's hide out?" Walburga suggested.

Crom just closed his eyes and shrugged, while Exelerea cracked knuckles, and Lumiru licked her fingers excitedly.

* * *

**Well, looks like the first signs of Qlippoth beginning their preparations have shown themselves. Considering how Rizevim's goal is to revive Trihexa, I don't think it'd be any secret for me to mention here that he was the real mastermind behind the Khaos Brigade. To be specific, the Khaos Brigade of this story was a lot like the original Organization XIII from Kingdom Hearts, a decoy for a much more dangerous group.**

**It seems we just saw the reason Walburga lead the rogue Magicians, she has ways to cheat death under the right circumstances, and she was able to be in one of them when Mio "killed" her. This also relates to the whole reason you keep hearing Cassiel, but I won't reveal the full story on that just yet, other than it has to do with an incident that neither she, or Walburga, even remember anymore.**

**At the same time, Issei and Vali are getting their wedding preparations set. The invites are being sent out, already have plans for their bachelor/bachelorette parties, finding someone to be the "father" walking her down the aisle, deciding on who'll be assigned to certain jobs/roles, and most of all... they've decided to have a Rating Game against each other as a pre-wedding event!**

**The best part about this upcoming Rating Game? It has everything come circle, as a Rating Game is where the two confessed their love back in Season 1, where Issei proposed to her in the previous season, and now... it'll be one of the things marking their approaching wedding. Just like in-universe, I'm pretty sure this is a battle people will be excited for.**

**Oh, here's a semi-related thing to the upcoming Rating Game. Had Issei still been Vali's Queen, they could still have a Rating Game through Vali having a substitute take his place.**

**Most of you might be surprised about the egg containing Tiamat and Ddraig's child, but my reasoning for that? The egg that Tannin brought to the Hyoudou Household hasn't hatched yet, so we don't know if it has any more importance beyond Nidhoggr almost eating it. Because of that, I decided to replace it with this one, since it's a good chance to flesh out Tiamat in JOHD.**

**Next chapter, we'll get more focus on our heroes' peerage members, along with more on how the Christian Pantheon's handling the war's aftermath, especially Gabriel and Penemue, who are now their races' respective leaders. Although, before I end this chapter... out of the candidates that Issei listed for Best Man, and Vali for the Ring Bear? I'm not sure who they should decide on, so tell me who you want them to choose.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Weaponry/Equipment/Abilities in today's chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** -Pairings List- **

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating**


	79. Chapter 79

**Hey everyone, we're back with the next part of the epilogue arc, and with it, the Riser arc's revisions have been made. I'm really liking how it's been going so far, and the Riser arc definitely benefited from it. Before I fully start today's start notes, I wanna thank everyone who gave their opinions on who should be the Ring Bear, and the Best Man among the choices from last chapter. I'll withhold revealing who was chosen for now, so that's an answer that'll appear alongside the wedding.**

**Due to how Crom Cruach physically appeared in the previous chapter, I feel the need to clarify something that most of you have been wondering, and I'll admit is justified in being explained now, that being how strong Crom Cruach actually is. Well, back when I revealed the Top 10 Strongest in my story's world, Crom was part of the lower five, but this was prior to his attack on the Celtic Pantheon in the previous arc.**

**If you recall canon, it's heavily implied Crom became massively more powerful since Ddraig and Albion last saw him. Considering that Vritra was considered a Dragon King, but none of the other Evil Dragons were, I chose to reflect his known strength when people had last seen him in-universe. Now, he's powerful enough to heavily damage the Celtic Pantheon on his own.**

**Also, here's an interesting question a friend asked me, it was about who would be in Issei's harem, if this story had actually been one. Since we're nearing the end, I figured it would be an interesting question to answer. I'd say that including Vali, had this been a harem story, the other girls would have been... Irina, Yuuma, Asia, Le Fay, Kuroka, Ravel, Tiamat, and possibly Rossweisse, since they're the closest girls to Issei who have no known romantic interests.**

**Oh, there's something important I should bring up here, and while it may seem annoying for me to do this now... or maybe not, because I feel most people haven't actually seen it, which reflects how I'm currently feeling about this. *breathes* The events of the crossover are no longer going to be canon, and I'm considering it as having never happened once I get far enough.**

**My reason for this is that I don't feel like I actually chose to make it myself, and felt I had to... now I just hate how it's been a required part of canon. Luckily, the only real thing the crossover gave was everyone's new powers, and I have a simple fix to make sure everyone still gets their powers, which the Kyoto Arc itself gives me the means to explain.**

**So, what does this mean about the crossover itself? I'm not completely sure, all I can guarantee is it won't be canonically connected to any of my stories. I know this is out of nowhere, but a fellow author told me this once, that success can be blocked when you let something that affects you negatively linger, and I feel the crossover has since become that to me, so I hope you understand my decision.**

**Now to reply to a guest review.**

**To Themainpersonn:**   
**"Glad you like the story, now let me answer those questions of yours. First, the story is currently in late-August, as it's been Summer Break in-story since Season 3. I didn't know how the Japanese School System worked at the time, so this story considers Japan uses the same system as America. As for the power levels? While I can't give a proper answer until JOHD, due to spoilers, I can explain a bit."**

**"Issei and Vali were only able to tangle with Indra and Hades due to having the right powers, as without their god slayer breathes, or fusing into Yuzuki... they wouldn't have defeated them. Right now, it's mostly their abilities that make them strong, and even after they amend that, the enemies of JOHD will still be a challenge for them, even Rizevim... that is, during the times he bothers fighting ^^;"**

**"Basically, our protagonists will struggle against Qlippoth, and not just against the main trio of Evil Dragons, so no worries there."**

**Now, time to see how the Christian Pantheon's doing with their post-war activities.**

* * *

**()** \- Albion, or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig, or Great Red Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**‹›** \- Important Term, Phrase, or Detail

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle Beginning, or its Result

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Evil Dragons: File 01 **

**A sub-species of the Dragon race, also known as the "Brutal Dragons", the "Vicious Dragons", and even the "Broken Dragons" by others. They are said to be more powerful than the Five Dragon Kings, though Vritra states this is an exaggeration due to his status as one, and they're only slightly weaker, and they only appear stronger because they lack any restraint to hide their power compared to even the Dragon Kings.**

**No one knows how the Evil Dragons came into being, but it's believed that the Evil Gods knew, or were close to finding out the truth prior to their deaths, as they were the only ones who could control them, which is a nearly impossible task in the present, due to their extremely savage brutality. Either way, they are some of the most dangerous beings in the world, being high on the strength of all supernatural forces, with two of their members being in the Top 10.**

**The Hero Clan is known for their history in facing the Devil Dragons, with some legends stating the Shinto Pantheon began the Hero Clan because they believed it was the best way to give anyone a chance to defeat them. Like all Dragons, the Evil Dragons are able to resurrect, being some of the faster members, especially Nidhoggr who resurrects yearly due to his intense malice, which leaves the Hero Clan on guard in case he decides to act.**

**Current, the only Evil Dragons that are currently alive, based on Vritra's memory of their resurrection cycles, are Nidhoggr, Crom Cruach, and himself due to being sealed within a Sacred Gear. However, shortly before the Rating Game Tournament, Orochi was found to be alive when Walburga used him to attack the Elves' homeland, which Vritra said isn't possible due to Orochi's cycle having not finished.**

**Originally, the strongest evil Dragon was Vritra, due to both his physical strength, and the various abilities he possessed. However, recent events have shown that Crom Cruach was attacking the Celtic Pantheon during the Second Great War. Although unconfirmed, Riser's last words implied he alone killed all, but seven of their Gods, and may have had a hand in killing his Queen, and the peerage of both his brothers, when Lugh could originally force him off.**

**Despite their current state, Vritra believes there is a way for them to be returned to normal Dragons, but he himself doesn't know how it could happen.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 2 – Remembering Family _ **

Gabriel was currently within an area of the Seventh Heaven, currently going through a process that Michael had long ago when he took over the role of Heaven's leader, but this time with the system giving her a bit of power that Michael couldn't receive. From its aid, she felt a massive surge of power given to her, causing her wings to gain the same golden tint once possessed by her brother.

It was finished, her registration as Heaven's new leader was completed.

"Father... I don't know how well I'll be a leader, but I'll still do my best to be one." Gabriel promised, slightly misty eyed.

She stood up at that moment, which was followed by Sandalphon walking into the room, yawning a bit as she did. Gabriel noticed this, walking up to her.

"Sandalphon, are you alright?" Gabriel asked.

"Yeah, just a little tired, cleaning up a lot of messes with Metatron and Sariel's help, trying hard to fill the shoes of the Great Seraphs... it isn't easy when you were just a normal Seraph before it." Sandalphon replied while admitting to her stress.

"Oh my... how are they handling it?" Gabriel asked worriedly.

The new Great Seraph designated with the Spade Suit hummed for a bit, wondering how to answer that.

"Well, Metatron's finally starting to face a bit of delirium from sleep deprivation, but she's sort of holding on like I am. Sariel on the other hand? She didn't even get sleep before the Championship, and she finally passed out. Luckily, she had Liu take her to bed, hopefully she'll be rested by tomorrow." Sandalphon summed it up.

Gabriel gave a flat reaction to that, then a nervous laugh.

"We're... that understaffed?" Gabriel realized.

"Oh yeah, our losses have led to a lot of reorganizing, the fights on the surface caused some indirect damage due to friendly fire somehow hitting Heaven, and we're still dealing with upcoming meetings we'll need to have over the states of the other factions in relationships to us. I can't even ask Grigori to send help because they're no better." Sandalphon groaned.

Gabriel sweated a bit at that, soon giving a loud sigh.

At that moment, a cross of light formed behind them, signaling an Angel's arrival into Heaven. The light faded to show Irina was the Angel in question.

"Irina!" Gabriel exclaimed happily upon seeing her granddaughter.

"Hi grandma, it's been a while, hasn't it?" Irina replied happily as she waved hello to the two.

Sandalphon chuckled, realizing Irina wanted to spend some family time.

"Well, I better make sure Metatron's still functioning despite the delirium, so..." Sandalphon excused herself.

As she walked away, Gabriel looked at Irina.

"So, what's the reason for the visit?" Gabriel asked.

"I wanted to see how you were holding up, my mom already told me she came to visit... said you two were grieving together." Irina replied honestly.

Gabriel sighed, smiling despite her real expression of sorrow slipping through.

"Oh, I also came to deliver this on behalf of Issei." Irina added as she grabbed something from her pocket.

Gabriel looked as Irina handing her an invitation.

"You're hereby invited to the wedding of... Issei Akane, and Valiana Lucifer!? Didn't they only just get engaged?" Gabriel's eyes widened as she saw it.

"Didn't they also temporarily die?" Irina answered with her own question.

"Uh... OK, I guess that is a fair reason to wed early, and... wait, a Rating Game?" Gabriel replied, soon noticing the rest of the print.

"Yeah, a week before the wedding, they're having a Rating Game against each other. So, can we expect you at any, if not all three events?" Irina inquired.

"What's the third?" Gabriel asked.

Irina blinked a bit, and then Gabriel realized it.

"Oh, you mean the bachelor, and bachelorette party." Gabriel chuckled embarrassingly in realization.

Gabriel thought for a moment.

"Well, I guess some of the Angels need to get some rest, so count all of Heaven in." Gabriel replied with a smile.

Irina smiled at that.

"That's great to hear." She smiled, putting an arm behind her.

"So, tell me how these wedding preparations are going?" Gabriel inquired, walking down to the Sixth Heaven with her.

Irina whispered to her, getting the interest of Heaven's leader.

* * *

Deep within the Underworld, the sight of Cassiel was seen, still sighing as she looked at a locket with a picture of her, Wilbert, and Mio inside of it. Seeing the current state she was in, Demon Lord Vasiariah walked up to her.

"Hey, Cassiel? If you're still grieving... I don't mind dealing with your work. In fact, I'm sure neither would Remiel, or Leliel." Vasiariah offered.

"Thank you Vasiariah, but... no thanks, I can't let this stop me from being our people's leader. Besides, I think we both know whose grieving most of all." Cassiel answered, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Vasiariah's eyes widened, realizing what Cassiel meant.

"Oh, poor Mio... she can't stop blaming herself over starting that fight with Walburga, and I can't blame her." Vasiariah sighed.

At that moment, they heard Mio walked into the room, making the two panic a bit.

"Uh... oh, hello Lady Mio! We were just..." Vasiariah suddenly scrambled to find the words.

Mio walked up to Cassiel, making her mother swear nervously... right as she held up a paper to her. The Demon Queen blinked as she took it, revealing it was... a Kuoh Academy student application?

"Wait, a student application, why do... you..." Cassiel slowly realized what she was asking.

At that moment, she saw Mio's sniffling face directly.

"Father always told me this... I was trying to grow up too fast, that I should enjoy living out my childhood. I wanted to be strong, not have to worry about you, or have you worry about me, but the moment I saw him die right before my eyes... only now I realize what he meant." Mio sniffled as she explained herself.

"Growing up quickly doesn't keep you from feeling the pain of such a loss, in fact... I think it only hurts more because now, I feel I didn't get to spend enough time with him. Now, I never will, but I can fulfill this as my last promise to him... is that alright, mom?"

Seeing this, Cassiel's eyes began pouring out tears, hugging Mio close as they both cried together. Vasiariah sniffled, soon patting both their heads.

"Of course it's alright! Me, and your father... we only want you to be happy, and I miss him too!" Cassiel replied, holding her closer.

"We miss him too."

Mio suddenly looked up, seeing Akari, Shiina, and Maria come in.

"Maria... Akari... Shiina..." Mio breathed.

"We spent a lot of time with Wilbert, he was a great Demon, and a great man." Shiina replied, sniffling a bit.

"All of us fought Walburga with you, even if you feel guilty over starting the fight... we regret we couldn't stop her from ever having the opportunity to take his life." Akari said, wiping her tears.

"If there's any blame, then it's with all of us... that's a burden we'll carry together." Maria reassured her.

Mio sniffled, and held out her hand, prompting them to all pull into the hug.

"Yeah, Wilbert really was a great man... and I don't think any Demon in the Underworld is ever gonna forget him. I know I'll never be able to repay him for saving Cassiel." Vasiariah commented as she teared up.

That caught Mio's attention.

"Saved you? Mom, what does Vasiariah mean by that?" Mio asked.

Cassiel took a deep breath, looking at her.

"I did intend on telling you this one day, but I felt it was best that I only told you when you felt you were at your lowest... and in case I needed to remind myself what he taught me." Cassiel answered her.

"Sit down you four, because this is the story of how I realized I had to be the leader of the Demon race." She patted the floor, sitting on it herself.

They all did, and the blue-haired Demon breathed a deep breath.

"Most people don't know this, but when Lucifer chose to abandon Heaven, leading to him meeting Lilith, and the other Maou... I wasn't just there, I actually tried to stop him." She revealed.

That surprised everyone, minus Vasiariah who walked out of the room to let this story unfold.

**「** **Full House: Sad Theme** **」**

"I begged him to try to let us work things out, and it wasn't just me. The same was true for Azazel, with Gabriel even there to watch it, despite not getting involved. That very moment was ironically what decided the Fallen Angels and Demons would be born, and who would lead them. Azazel was quickly knocked out, so he didn't see the worst of it, but for me... I was left fully conscious as he brutally attacked me, all to warn Heaven of the Devil he'd become."

Hearing that, all four members of Mio's peerage gasped in horror.

"Being one of the Great Seraphs, I was incredibly close to Lucifer, and that made not just his abandoning of Heaven hurt... but the fact that when left, he went far enough to do that. I lost the cheer I had, yet hoped she'd come back, but eventually... I heard of the Devils, and Hell. That was when I realized that he wasn't coming back, and it felt like part of me had died, and that's when I heard Azazel convince other Angels that this was the chance to sway our father."

"While I was the told other Angels about leaving Heaven because I knew Elohim wouldn't be swayed... truth was, I only left because I couldn't look at Heaven without remembering that Lucifer would never be in it again. The Demons Lords were the only ones who knew how I really felt, especially my fellow Great Seraph who chose to follow me. It helped to know they understood, especially when we finally shed most of our holy light, and finally became Demons."

"Needless to say, I think it's clear why I went to Lucifer, hoping the Demons would be welcomed in Hell. That made hearing him refuse us, and just giving us the Underworld he didn't care for, really hurt. That's when everyone began saying I had to lead us, but... how could I? My own brother hurt me, left us all, and then refused me. I honestly felt like nothing mattered, enough I was the cynic to Azazel's idealist."

Mio felt Cassiel put a hand on her shoulder, and then smiled a bit.

"However, some time before the Great War, that's when I finally met Wilbert. I don't know how, but he knew exactly what I was going through. He comforted me, made me feel I wasn't alone, and gave me a warmth that I was sure I had lost. Then the strangest thing happened... Lilith came, and that's when I found out why Lucifer really did what he had to me both times, it was because he cared."

Cassiel then noticed them giving her an odd look.

"How did he care if he hurt you, then denied you?" Akari questioned as she rubbed her head.

"Well, let me ask you this, would you want someone following you into danger if you didn't want them to follow you?" Cassiel asked.

Akari blinked a bit, realizing it.

"That's right, the path Lucifer chose to walk was one of darkness, and he chose not to drag me, or any of his sibling Angels into it. He knew they might fight, but he chose to go against our father by himself, so that we wouldn't suffer his fate if that battle ended with his demise. Then, when I met him in Hell, the Demons were sent away because he hadn't forgiven himself for what he had done. He had been suffering as well, and had to stay strong for his people." Cassiel finally finished her story.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"Wow, that was..." Shiina replied softly.

Hearing that, Cassiel nodded.

"Yeah, that was when I finally realized that was why I was meant to lead our people, because I knew that same feeling. Azazel knew that same feeling, and I know all the Great Seraph were the same, the only reason Gabriel hadn't taken over as leader was she was sad hearing Lucifer had died more than anything."

Cassiel sighed, looking to the side.

"However, that's when things truly got sad, hearing he had dead. We learned that in a way... Lucifer had always been right, but not in the way he thought. While we never fully figured out the truth behind the monster, we learned something worse, a truth the entire faction just couldn't accept." She admitted.

"You know how Samael was apparently cursed through God's negative emotions?" Cassiel questioned.

"After Samael killed Issei and Vali for a short time? Who doesn't?" Mio replied.

"Well..." Cassiel responded.

Cassiel closed her eyes, clasping her hands together.

"The truth is, at a certain point, Trihexa's influence infected God, and that's when the divide began. God realizing the truth? That was really him realizing too late what had infected his mind for so long, and Lucifer kept his distance until the end because he couldn't swallow his pride over that being the truth for his actions."

And with that, all four of them went silent at that terrible revelation.

"Y-you can't be serious, that horrible monster Rizevim's been trying to free is what caused all of this!?" Mio gasped in horror.

"It was... the Christian Pantheon never talked about it because it was our great guilt." Cassiel confirmed as she revealed why no one knew about it.

"But, the Second Great War had you fight together, so..." Shiina realized.

Cassiel nodded at that, confirming her thoughts.

"Yeah, now we have to accept the past to move on, and because Humanity itself deserves to know, we can't hide the truth of our pasts if we want to co-exist. That's a burden the entire world will now have to bear... together." Cassiel verified.

Mio thought for a moment, and then looked at her mother.

"Hey mom, I gotta ask... hearing Lucifer dead? How long did it take before it stopped hurting? It scares me, that the pain will go away, and then... I might forget dad." Mio asked while admitting her fears.

"Mio..." Cassiel breathed.

She looked away, and hugged her by the side.

"Then you'll never forget him, because it never goes away. There are times it can be easier, but sometimes it can be hard, it just depends on the situation. Losing people, it's the same as losing a part of yourself, because everything changes. That's the point thought, because while we should never welcome them... good things can come from bad, because things can, and will get better." Cassiel summarized her beliefs.

Mio went silent at that, taking it all in.

"We're still a family, even if your father's not here anymore, and that's why now we need to stick together. It's because I still have you I can be strong, because you are the proof all those years I spent with Wilbert were the happiest days of my life. That's why, nothing will break this bond we share." Cassiel smiled, making her daughter do the same.

"I'm glad of all the mothers I could have had, that the one I got was you." She replied before hugging her.

Her peerage all went "Aww~" at that, and joined her in a group hug.

"We'll make it through this, and make Wilbert proud, no matter where he is now." Cassiel promised.

They held the hug, with Vasiariah, Leliel, and Remiel all smiling at the sight.

* * *

Penemue hurriedly went through some filing, while making signatures on whatever she needed to. Mittelt, and Kalawarner, who were born watching closely, each gave a sweat drop at the sight.

"Uh... Lady Penemue, we could-" Kalawarner tried to offer.

"No!" She shouted.

Kalawarner flinched at that, only to notice Penemue going even faster.

Eventually, the duo saw Kalawarner burn through the remaining work she had, finishing up everything related to post-war relationships... which should have taken an entire day to achieve.

"Finished! Take that, I just burned through my stress born of grief!" She exclaimed.

And with that... Penemue slumped on the table, going white eyed as her overclocking finally burned out all her energy. Seeing her current state, her two Fell Saints look at her worriedly.

"Is... this your way of dealing with your pain?" Mittelt questioned.

"Yeah... I miss him, I miss his funny smile looking all adorable, I miss his crazy inventions... it was bad enough losing Raynare, even if she did end up becoming horrible person." Penemue admitted, sighing a bit.

"Uh... is this a bad time, mom?"

Everyone looked up to see Yuuma walking in, holding the wedding invite.

"Yuuma!" Mittelt cheered.

Issei's Pawn felt one of her best friends glomp her, making her giggle as she rubbed head.

"How's my favorite Jack doing?" Yuuma asked.

"Fine, although me and Queenie here keep seeing your mom acting on odd work ethnics." Mittelt answered.

Kalawarner sighed at the nickname, while Penemue slightly retreated under the table.

Chuckling a bit, Yuuma decided to place the letter on her mother's desk, getting her attention as she saw it. Picking it up, she opened it to see the shocking news it held.

"Issei's marrying Vali already?" Penemue asked in surprise.

"Yeah, something about likely not having a third chance, best to do it before anything happens... I think." Yuuma chuckled, blushing a bit.

Penemue gave an odd laugh at that explanation.

"Uh... yeah, sure thing?" Penemue replied, having no honest idea how she should have replied.

Soon something fell over outside the room, getting everyone's attention.

"Kouki, you irresponsible idiot!" Natsume screamed.

"My god, will you stop criticizing everything I do when this happens!? Kouki roared in response.

"Great, the wild lovebirds are fighting... again." Mittelt sighed.

Yuuma blinked, looking at her mother.

"Remind me again how those two even fell in love?" Yuuma asked.

Penemue shook her head, chuckling a bit.

"You really had to be there to see it, because you'd be surprised how much they didn't seem that way, and just how much they still stay close despite their occasional spats." The female cadre answered.

Getting on her feet, Penemue went to deal with their recent argument.

"Why don't you go let the others in Grigori know? This might finally get me to learn when Tobio's finally gonna pop the question to Sae." Penemue suggested.

Yuuma looks at her two friends.

"Wanna help me go find everyone?" Yuuma asked.

"Better than watching more extreme paper filing." Kalawarner shrugged.

They both walked out of the room with their best friend.

* * *

In part of the Kuoh Town, Jeanne was seen helping out with reconstruction, with her brother, and Tosca helping her out.

"Hey Jeanne, who was that said they needed more wood?" Kiba asked.

"I'm pretty sure it was that mustached man in the West." Jeanne answered.

Kiba nodded, picking up the wood to deliver it over to the area that needed it. As that was happening, a loud creak was heard... followed by part of an unstable building structure falling towards some of the civilians.

They screamed as it did, prompting Tosca to throw out her hands, forming a barrier around them.

"J-Jeanne, hurry!" Tosca grunted.

"Got it."

Jeanne summoned her Stake Victim Dragon, and it quickly pulled the fragmented structure away before it could hurt anyone. Tosca sighed in relief, dispelling her barrier.

"Oh man, thank you so much." A woman spoke.

"Who knew that area was so unstable, it looked fine." Another man remarked.

"And that's why we repair everything that's broken, because that can happen." Jeanne replied.

Wiping the sweat from her brow, a pair of familiar footsteps.

She smiled a bit upon realizing that it was none other than Cao Cao who had come into view.

"Cao Cao!" She greeted happily.

"Ah, it's been a while, hasn't it?" Cao Cao greeted.

"Uh, y-yeah, it has." Jeanne chuckled a bit.

Tosca took a deeper look, and her eyes widened in surprise as she noticed Jeanne was _blushing_ at Cao Cao. She shook her head, and then felt around her face, trying to make sure she was actually seeing the sight.

'No way, Jeanne has a crush on... eh!?' Tosca thought in confusion.

Kiba came back, noticing Tosca's current state, and waving a hand over her face to try getting her attention. At that same time, Jeanne took a short break from work, talking with the True Longinus wielder.

"Say, I've been meaning to ask you for a while now, but... how did you save all our friends? We were sure the poison gas killed them all." Jeanne inquired.

**«"That's quite the story to share, but definitely have the time."»** The Will of Longinus spoke.

This finally snapped Tosca back into reality, getting her, and Kiba's attention.

"Alright, I guess it is fair that I share the story with all of you." Cao Cao decided.

He looked up at the abandoned church area, which was slowly being restored, letting his memory of the event start playing back.

* * *

_Cao Cao was trekking through the snowy area that housed the Holy Sword Project, with the Hero Faction's current members being a mere four. Trudging not too far behind him was Georg, who was walking ahead of their third member; the an incredibly young Leo, who was holding onto Georg's robe; and then there was Sieg, who had recently join them after exorcist life had bored him._

_"So, you honestly think we'll find any more Sacred Gear wielders in this area?" Cao Cao inquired._

_"I'm sure of it, I heard there was an orphanage that the church owns, where they keep children who they've found have Sacred Gears. We can get some good allies there, if anyone's willing that is." Sieg answered._

_As they walked, Georg noticed something off in the air._

_"Guy's something's wrong, I smell..." Georg suddenly stated._

_Blinking a bit, Sieg smelled himself, but realized it wasn't him. However, the True Longinus formed itself in Cao Cao's hands._

** _«"Something's wrong, I feel signs of life getting weaker... I think people are in danger!"»_ ** _ The Will of Longinus warned._

_"If that's the case, then..." Sieg quickly realized who was in danger._

_Sieg rushed ahead, forcing the others to follow, and Georg to pick up Leo. As they got closer, Leo coughed a bit, getting everyone's attention._

_"Stinky... don't feel so good..." Leo shivered, feeling the poison gas._

_Georg used a spell to try sensing for any abnormalities, and when he did... he noticed the gas._

_"There's poison gas in the area, and it's coming from a nearby building." Georg warned._

_"What? Oh no... we've gotta do something, but how can we get past that gas!?" Sieg grunted helplessly._

_Georg formed a magic circle, and created an aura around the four, making Leo feel better as the gas stopped wafting near him._

_"This should protect us for a few minutes, let's go." Georg stated._

_They all rushed ahead, unknowingly missing the fleeing Kiba as they headed to the church he just left. When they got there, the only ones' left were the dying children of the Holy Sword Project, horrifying everyone._

_"No... this is, we're too late, aren't we?" Sieg realized in horror._

_Looking at them closely, Cao Cao gave a determined look._

_"We're never too late, I can save them." He declared.0_

_"Really?" Sieg replied in shock._

_Cao Cao held out his Sacred Gear, and then held its blade towards the sky._

_"**Oh Spear, the true Holy Spear which pierces through God... suck the ambition of the King that sleeps within me, and pierce through the gap of blessing and destruction. You, Will of God, announce the truth of my idea, and turn into a glow!**" Cao Cao chanted._

** _«"Oh, young one, wielder of the spear of Saint Longinus, I hear your call. I hear your desire, your wish, and I beseech you! Healing winds, save these souls who cry out to the man I was once the will of!"»_ **

_At that moment, a sudden green wave of energy burst across the church, dispelling the poison gas while healing all the children before it was too late. Gasping for air, they suddenly began waking up, murmuring over the fact they were somehow still alive._

_At that moment, Cao Cao tapped his spear on the ground, getting all their attention._

_"I don't know why, but there were people who wanted to have you all dead, and will likely continue trying to do that. If you wish to survive, and see another day... come with us! We shall make sure whoever tried taking your life will never succeed!" He announced._

* * *

With that, he finished his story, surprising the trio.

"Our orphanage was for unknowing Sacred Gear holders? No wonder Michael was angry at Valper, well, beyond the obvious that is." Jeanne realized.

"And the coincidence between all three of us somehow having a Sacred Gear, that always did feel odd... yet to think all of us in the project had one?" Tosca added.

Cao Cao nodded at that.

"Sieg did some looking into it, and it seems Valper chose you all specifically because the Sacred Gears were created by God, so the one who should know how to use any Holy Swords? The person who made both." Cao Cao revealed.

"So, it was God who made the Holy Swords? That... actually makes a lot of sense, considering no one knows how to make them, or at least can." Jeanne questioned, realizing it explained a lot.

"That didn't come to mind when you realized you were the reincarnation of Joan of Arc?" Cao Cao remarked jokingly.

Jeanne gave an embarrassing chuckle, blushing again. This time her brother saw it as well.

"Wait, is that..." Kiba whispered.

"Yeah, I think it is." Tosca nodded, still in surprise.

* * *

Walking around the area a bit, Sieg gave a tired yawn, scratching his head.

"Man, there's not that much to do today." He sighed.

Sieg's Sacred Gear made him get too much work down in his area of repairing Kuoh Town, so... he was now completely out of things to do.

"I wish something would happen, like anything! I don't care if it means I have to have someone's ice cream into my face! Just do something to distract me from this boredom, please!" Sieg shouted while ignoring the odd stares he got.

"Sieg!"

The wielder of the Cursed Swords suddenly froze from the surprise, and turned around as a familiar face ran towards him, after landing with what looked like silver-colored Angel wings, being one of the few to have non-white wings.

The person in question was a girl around his age, sharing the same shade of white hair he had, and even the same red eyes, although her hair was also naturally black in some spots. On her hand, the sight of a glowing white "J" a red outline, with its top area being angel wing, and a small heart within the middle was seen, only to quickly fade as her wings, and halo disappeared.

"Lint!" Sieg smiled as he saw his technically biological sibling.

"It's been so long, how's it been?" Lint asked.

"Well, aside from the war, I've been fine... and bored because I already finished my share of the repair work." Sieg answered.

Lint giggled at that.

"Well, at least now you can make that joke you not being an Octopus because you have six arms." Lint giggled in a way that sounded like Freed, but more light-hearted.

'At least when she does it, it's actually cute.' Sieg mentally chuckled at the Jack of Heart's energy.

Lint soon bounced by Sieg's side.

"So, tell me everything that's happened lately!" Lint asked with sparkling eyes.

"Alright, and thank you universe for finally stopping my boredom!" Sieg replied, soon cheering towards the sky.

Lint blinked at that, making him sweat drop a little.

"Eh... ignore that second part." Sieg remarked embarrassingly.

* * *

On the continent of Lemuria, the sight of Tiamat landing in her Dragon form was noticed, followed by her assuming Human form. Taking in the sight of Lemuria, she felt the nostalgia of her old home, a sight she never thought she'd see again.

"I wonder... if maybe one day, Ddraig can see this with me." Tiamat said wistfully.

She started walking around, seeing the other Dragons already working to restore their formerly lost home. As she did, she saw a familiar spot, and smiled at it. The carbonized scorches from her fire, and a few faded, and chipped, but still recognizable scales from Ddraig.

The very place he fought to prove his affections to her, and where they decided to set up their nest together.

"Guess you withstood the same test of time that we, and this land did." Tiamat said with pride.

"Hey, Tiamat! You gonna help anytime this century!?" Yu-Long shouted.

Tiamat immediately scowled at that.

"Shut up! Give the Dragons recalling old fond memories a chance, something you don't have you little brat!" Tiamat roared.

Grumbling a bit, she wondered how Yu-Long ever managed to become a Dragon King.

However, at that same moment... she felt something off. Realizing this, she felt herself being drawn to a certain spot in Lemuria, and when she made it, found some kind of device she didn't recognize being on Lemuria at any point.

"Is this something that showed up around the time this entire land sank?" She wondered.

Tiamat hit it with her wrist, hoping to get some kind of reaction, seeing it still looked to be in working condition. After she did that...

It fizzled before it's systems imploded, causing it to smoke.

"I guess it was kind of a stretch to think it would still be able to work after all these years. Although, I should probably let the others know that it's here, just to be safe." Tiamat remarked as she waved away the smoke that neared her.

Walking away from the device, she soon missed the screen on it lighting up, showing it wasn't as old as it looked. On it, the image of a few names popped up, with the outlines of about seven Dragons on it, three of which listed **‹**Active**›**underneath.

Two of the names listed on it were... Crom Cruach, and Orochi.

* * *

Issei and Vali were walking through Hell, looking for where Diehauser might be, but not having that much luck in finding him.

"Wow, I knew it might not be easy to find the current champion of the Rating Games, but I didn't think it was going to be this hard to find him either." Issei remarked.

"If you recall how he helped my mom in exposing the Elders, he's likely been talking to many families about the truths they didn't know. Even if they're aware of what killed them, they have a right to know the stories of those they lost before they can fully move on." Vali suggested.

Issei hummed a bit, realizing that made sense.

As the Sekiryuutei prepared to turn to ask if anyone had seen him, he ended up bumping into someone, making his head rattle a bit.

**["Ooh... that'll screw with anyone's senses."]** Great Red winced.

Issei shook his head, readjusting his senses to see the person he had bumped into was none other than the Rating Game Champion himself.

"Oh! Diehauser, we were looking for you." Vali stated.

"Really? That's a bit surprising, I came here to do the same, so what reason are you looking for me?" Diehauser inquired.

"Well, unless you were behind us, and talking with my mom within the last few minutes, you probably don't know that Issei and I are going to have a Rating Game a week before our wedding. However, Asuka doesn't know how normal Rating Games are like because she only saw the Championship." Vali explained.

Diehauser realized where this was going.

"Lilith told you about some videos I could lend you, didn't she?" Diehauser stated with certainty.

"Yeah, pretty much. Can you?" Issei confirmed before asking.

"I can spot a few, it'll be fairly hard for me to actually compete in Rating Games as often in the coming days anyways." Diehauser agreed.

The two blinked at that.

"You'll be doing them less? Why's that?" Issei asked.

"Simple, as part of the changes Hell's going through, Lilith decided we should have a Great Devil representing Satan as well. So, she wants me to be the representative for that, just like the others still technically represent the roles despite not possessing the titles they once did." Diehauser revealed.

The two showed surprise at that.

"Really? Well, congratulations, you earned it after helping stop the Elders... despite the fact Zekram's still out there somewhere." Issei congratulated.

"Oh, speaking of which, how's Cleria doing? I heard they got her out of the ice safely." Vali inquired.

"Well, there's good news, and not so great news, but there's also nothing we can consider as bad news. While she's free now, she's also still not awake, it seems being in the ice so long has left her body in a small coma. The only good thing is that the Doctor's say it shouldn't be any longer than two years." Diehauser explained.

"So, she's still not awake yet..." Vali summed it up.

"Yeah, and when she does wake up, we don't even know if she's aware that Yaegaki is dead or not, so aside from telling her the world she knew disappeared years ago, we may also have to tell her the man she loves is gone. With how such unions are possible now, that's likely going to weigh heavily on her heart..." Diehauser sighed.

The two Heavenly Dragons looked at each other sadly.

"That doesn't mean we can't make up for it, remember... the Elders were responsible for what happened. You honestly believed their love was a bridge a bridge. It may not make her happy, but you can at least give her peace, isn't that what you did when you helped stop the Elders?" Issei reminded him.

Diehauser looked at him for a moment, then nodded his head.

"Yeah, you're right, and who knows... maybe we can find Yaegeki's soul, and have Valerie revive him." Diehauser agreed, realizing a silver lining.

Issei smiled at that.

"Oh yeah, didn't you say you were looking for us?" Vali asked.

"Oh, right. Ajuka wants to see you. I'm not sure of the specifics, but it relates to the unique mutation your Evil Pieces gained from Ophis, and Great Red using their physical forms to revive you." Diehauser explained.

Vali giggled at that.

"Should have seen that coming, the guy just loves toying with his inventions when he has the free time, especially when someone brings in something new for him to play with." Vali smiled.

"Then I guess we shouldn't keep his waiting." Issei agreed.

As they prepared to leave, Diehauser coughed a bit, getting their brief attention.

"I think you might want to take these first?" Diehauser implied.

He formed the videos they needed from a magic circle, making Issei chuckle embarrassingly as he took them.

"Oops, thanks for catching us there." He replied.

And with that, they finally left, and at that same moment... Diehauser finally realized he was missing something as well. Looking around, he suddenly realized who wasn't with him right now.

"Wait... Cecilia, Lirenkus!?" He panicked, seeing his niece had disappeared with her friend.

In a rare show for the nearby Devils, the Champion of the Rating Game gave a fearful scream as he went to find the two.

* * *

The two Heavenly Dragons soon found themselves at the Astaroth Clan's home, with Issei blinking as he saw it.

"Are all Devil Clan's homes like this?" Issei asked.

"High-Class ones, and speaking of which... I just remembered that I've gotta give you an area of land within the Lucifer territory since you became a King." Vali answered before recalling an important detail.

Issei paled at that, remember how the Gremory Clan, which was one of the lower numbers among the 72 pillars, had enough land to rival Japan's main island. He didn't wanna think how much the Lucifer Clan owed, considering he never actually seen it.

"Uh... yeah." Issei forced out a laugh.

Vali rang the doorbell, which made Amalya answer the door.

"Ah, I see Diehauser finally found you two, come in." Amalya greeted.

They went inside, where they say the members of Amalya's peerage all working on their own things. Among Ajuka's peerage, only Falak was present, currently sleeping in a curled-up position that left Issei unnerved as they passed by.

"I still can't believe Ajuka's got such a powerful monster in his peerage! Much less all of the Great Devils!" Issei whispered.

"Yeah, that was the surprise of the tear." Amalya chuckled at that.

"Oh, uh... I don't wanna sound rude, but you don't have any problems with us, do you? I mean, we did technically-" Issei asked.

"I hated Diodora, I actually praised what you did to him, because the bastard was too entitled. I'd had been the heir from day one if it weren't for the fact he was born "a few seconds" as he always bragged." Amalya reassured him.

The Sekiryuutei breathed out a sigh of relief.

Eventually, Amalya brought them into the office of her older brother, clearing her throat.

"Big brother, our guests have finally arrived." Amalya alerted him.

"Understood." Ajuka replied, not looking as he was tinkering with some invention of his.

Amalya shook her head a bit, looking at the two.

"Yeah, that's usually how he replies to just about... everything." Amalya shrugged, heading off somewhere.

Vali chuckles a bit.

'Yeah, I'm already familiar with this, Falbium's constant napping, Sirzechs and Serafall's sister respective sister complexes, Roygun's weird tastes in younger men, and Alanira's constant bluntness.' The Hakuryuukou thought, remembering when she first met them.

Eventually, Ajuka put down what he was working on.

"I'm glad you came on such short notice, considering your upcoming wedding plans." Ajuka stated.

"No biggie, we had to talk with Vali's mom about something related to our plans, then ask Diehauser to lend us some videos, so ending up here was fairly easily." Issei reassured him.

"Yes, but that's beside the point." Ajuka replied.

He stood up, walking near them.

"When you were killed, like most cases of a King's death, your retainers' Evil Pieces went into a voided state. However, upon being revived by the actions of our Dragon Deities, the Evil Pieces all changed. First, they all ejected out of their current possessors, including that of Asia and Kunou, who both needed theirs to survive against death. Not only that, but they all reverted back to their original species, and didn't become Devils again after you gave them back." Ajuka summarized.

"Yeah, so... where's this going?" Issei asked.

"The point I'm making is when I created the Evil Pieces, the one thing I couldn't do is make an option for those who didn't want to change species, something that turned many away. With the two worlds now one, kind of option being possible has now only become more vital. Not only that, but those outside our faction need to restore their numbers, as so some species, so sharing this technology is another must." Ajuka explained.

Holding out his hand.

"If it isn't a problem, I'd like to examine one of each of your Pawns. Hopefully, their new forms will help me find the answers I need. Not only that, but also find the way to give those who wish to no longer be Devils a method to return to normal." He requested.

Issei's eyes widened, his mouth forming an "O" before he took out one of his unused Pawns.

"Sure thing, I don't think there's anyone who'll be joining my peerage for a while, so one Pawn's not a big deal." Issei agreed.

"Here, you can look at mine as well." Vali replied, holding out her own.

Taking them both, Ajuka looked at them in gratitude.

"I'll make sure to return these two you in just a few days, although I hope it isn't a problem for either Dragon." Ajuka wondered.

**["Nah, I don't have any issues, not like I can say much about Issei's Evil Pieces, or the power I've given him."]** Great Red reassured.

**("Plus, even if it didn't work like that, we're not gonna have much of a say when we're no longer here.")** Ophis remarked.

That caught the duo's attention.

"Wait, what did you say?" Issei questioned.

"Hold up, since you gave us our lives back by sacrificing your physical forms, then..." Ophis thought.

"No way, are you two dying!?" She gasped in horror.

That made even Ajuka a bit concerned, and then both Dragons panicked a bit.

**["What!? Oh no! No, no, no, no, no! We're healthy, and still living. What we meant is we plan to start resurrecting our bodies from scratch soon."]** Great Red explained.

"Wait, you mean you can still do that? Even though you're sealed in there? Vali asked in surprise.

**("Well, we are the strongest beings in the world, aren't we? Such a thing is easy for us... well, that and God left a way for us. However, we decided that as gratitude for indirect saving our lives, we'd stick around until your wedding before we go.")** Ophis answered.

**["Once we do this, we'll be gone for the next 10 years before our bodies will pop back up, so we won't be able to help you out when Trihexa finally returns... which we've already come to learn is an inevitable result."]** Great Red added.

"So, what you're saying is... Trihexa is going to be freed no matter what we do?" Issei asked.

**["Afraid so, somewhere within the next year. Remember, God says you have the potential, but he didn't know if you would succeed, and that's enough for us to know he saw Trihexa would be freed. It depends on you, such as if you can weaken him, for how strong he'll be when that monster returns to the world."]** Great Red.

**("The seal on that monster is already close to breaking, and the people who sealed him away are gone... there's no way to replicate that seal. In fact, there's no way to seal the beast for a pro-longed time period.")** Ophis stated.

She paused before aiming her next comment at the former holder of the Beelzebub title.

**("Am I right to believe the deaths of the stronger people among each faction in the Great War ruined a back-up plan you all hand in mind, or am I wrong, Ajuka Astaroth?")** Ophis inquired with a tone saying she was already correct.

Vali showed surprise at that, while Ajuka just closed his eyes.

"In the worst-case scenario, we had a plan to seal some of the stronger beings of each faction in a special seal we've been working on with the Magician Guild's help. Unfortunately, the Second Great War took the lives of most who would have joined this, and now we just don't have the manpower to use it. I'm afraid they're both right when they say it's either us, or Trihexa." Ajuka admitted.

Issei blinked before giving a terrified laugh.

"OK, so there's no pressure whatsoever..." Issei shuddered a bit.

Vali took Issei's hand, giving him a look of reassurance.

"We'll find a way, together." Vali smiled.

"Yeah, I guess we always do." Issei agreed.

As they left, Ajuka watched them leave, briefly seeing their reincarnations standing side by side for a brief moment.

"You finally swallowed your pride, and fought to amend falling to that monster's influence. Even if you only said you see the potential to save the future back then, I think deep down... you know you can succeed." Ajuka remarked, betting his hopes on them.

* * *

**And there's the Christian Pantheon's side of the aftermath. The Angels are understaffed, the Demons are still grieving, and Grigori's Fallen angels are all working themselves to deal with the pain, all while dealing with some friendly fire damage that hit their homelands. However, most of all... we had a shocking revelation exposed, the whole reason for the faction's divide? Trihexa itself, causing the conflict between God and Lucifer.**

**I figured with how God suddenly began helping near the end, a sudden change like that, including the one that made Lucifer get angry in the first place needed to have an abnormal explanation. While people can change, it doesn't happen instantly, so now you know God wasn't himself... although that brings another question, just what was Trihexa doing?**

**We finally got the debut of Lint, who in this story at least, is Gabriel's Jack, right as we learn of how Cao Cao saved everyone from the Holy Sword Project. Now the question is if that orphanage was really helping those children, or something darker? Not to mention, it looks like we found out who Jeanne's been interested in, and boy did it shock her brother, and Tosca. I bet they're wondering how that happened.**

**Topping all that, Great Red and Ophis reveal they'll be leaving to start resurrecting themselves into new bodies, a process that will take a decade to finish. I did this to write them out of the story, but not kill them, mainly because they have knowledge that would help the protagonists too much in places I'll need them to struggle, and because these two honestly prefer their freedom. Issei and Vali still have their new powers, they just won't have their advice.**

**Next time, we'll be seeing some of the other nine factions dealing with their aftermath issues, and a certain face is gonna finally heal up. Not only that, but the first stage of the preparations for the upcoming Rating Game, and then... we'll be seeing a few surprises, although they may not be good ones when you consider that Qlippoth is starting to make their preparations for Rizevim's upcoming plans.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in today's chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Bikou is clueless, Xuelan isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating**


	80. Chapter 80

**This chapter's gonna be exciting, because we're about to take a look at the aftermath for some of the Hero Clan villages, the Magician Guilds, and... the villains in Qlippoth. *gives an evil laugh* This is gonna be the last time we'll see Rizevim's group until the next story, making this the chapter where I fully set them up for what's coming next. Let's just say... this chapter has a few surprises you might not expect.**

**Before anything else, here's the last big notice about the revision I'll be sharing with everyone. The two Omake chapters are no longer going to be simple Omakes, as I'm going to transform them into full chapters that are part of Season 3... that's it really, nothing else to say there. Well, maybe other than a reminder that the revisions are only up to the Excalibur arc.**

**With the videos in hand, Issei's gonna show Asuka what the usual Rating Games are like, so we'll also get the first tidbit of each peerage's training for their upcoming Rating Game. Also, if anyone's felt I've been lacking in showing anything about the wedding preparations beyond the invitations, that changes as of this chapter, since I've been reading about how Weddings are supposed to work.**

**I'll admit now, weddings are something I don't know that much about, so any advice would be appreciated. Just so everyone knows what kind of wedding I need advice for, it's for a Japanese wedding. I will admit it's not entirely a Japanese wedding, as since Vali's a member of the Lucifer Clan, it'll also be a traditional Devil Wedding.**

**And with that all said, time to start this chapter!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion, or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig, or Great Red Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**‹›** \- Important Term, Phrase, or Detail

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle Beginning, or its Result

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Evil Dragons: File 02 **

**While the Evil Dragons are some of the more powerful Dragons, they're also one of the smaller groupings of Dragon's, being the fourth smallest behind the Dragon Deities, Heavenly Dragons, and the Dragon Kings, totaling at only eight individuals. Despite their low numbers, each member is infamous, earned a title, and (with the exception of one) each come from one of the current supernatural factions with gods.**

**The most notable of the Evil Dragons is Vritra, who was sealed into four separate Sacred Gears until they were fused by Saji, who is also one of the Five Dragon Kings, and the 5th Strongest Being in the world. He came from the Hindu pantheon, and was known for not just his power, but the variety of cursed powers he possessed. While he's technically an Evil Dragon, he's also not one due to his soul being divided for so long.**

**Then, there's the Brutal triad, who the most powerful under Vritra, and overall when he was sealed, consisting of Crom Cruach of the Celtic Pantheon, Apophis of the Egyptian Pantheon, and Azi Dahaka of the now extinct Zoroastrian Pantheon. They were known for their more "controlled" destruction, proven by Crom being the 9th Strongest Being around the time of the Great War.**

**Orochi, and Ladon make the more neutral duo among the group, being less controlled than the Brutal Triad, but nothing like the remaining Evil Dragons. Ladon comes from the Greek Pantheon, and was known from his encounter with Hercules in one of his labors; while Orochi comes from the Shinto Pantheon, and faced off against Susanoo, while also being the apparent origin of Asuka's signature sword, the Kusanagi.**

**Finally, there's the most barbaric members of the group, Grendel and Nidhoggr. Grendel was the signature enemy of Beowulf, who technically comes from the Christian Pantheon records of the Anglo-Saxons, and is the same kind of Dragon as Tannin; whereas Nidhoggr comes from the Norse Pantheon, and known for his speedy resurrect, born from his intense malice. These two are so savage, the entire Brutal Triad openly despise them.**

**Normally, the Evil Dragons don't bother with one another, but if one could gather them together... it would be a signal of danger to the entire world.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 3 – Rising Shadows _ **

In an unknown location, only marked by darkness, Crom Cruach lead the group of himself, Walburga, Lumiru, and Exelerea. As they neared, a blast of acid intentionally missed them, but just barely. Lumiru sighed as she saw the rotting rocks behind them.

"Who goes there!?" A voice full of malice hissed.

"Someone who can break all your bones with just his foot." Crom Cruach warned, cracking his right knuckle's bones.

Hearing that, the sight of the one who fired the rotting acid walked into view.

It was a large, black-colored Dragon with red-colored sclera, and green serpentine pupils. Strangely enough, his scales had bones covering its entirety, possibly being fused to his skin, with the almost snug fit implying they were _his_bones.

"You, of course it is." Nidhoggr sneered, drooling eerie fluids from his mouth.

Crom ignored his fellow Evil Dragon, and the others followed him.

"Hey, brought some food." Exelerea alerted him.

The Evil Dragon noticed a magic circle appear, making a valley's worth of bones appear. Nidhoggr stared at them hungrily, and then began to devour them without restraint.

"That barbarian... disgusting." Crom sneered at him.

"Really, I think he's kinda-" Lumira remarked.

She instantly shut up as Crom's aura formed around him, making her gulp.

It didn't take long before the came to a room where a few people were seated in floating sphere-like seats, each of a different color. These multiple seats branched out in a way that if viewed from above, resembled the Qliphoth Tree.

"Ah, it seems they've finally returned." Euclid noticed, smirking from the yellow seat.

"So, I take it you were unable to reclaim those two brats before they came back to life?" Zekram assumed, sitting in the purple seat.

The two Devils lowered their heads, and sighed. Walburga snickered a bit, jumping over to the black seat, and sitting herself down.

"Cut them some slack, I'd have taken forever to get back if not for them." Walburga waved.

Turning around, the orange seat soon revealed a young man with a doll-like face, and the appearance of an older Valerie if she were a boy. Walburga whistled, looking at him.

"Well, if it isn't Marius! I didn't expect you to be here!" Walburga remarked.

"Unfortunately, it isn't the best time for me to plan my eventual coup, but I'll make my move in soon enough. After all, Crom made sure of it." Marius answered, looking at the Evil Dragon.

Crom didn't respond to that, just closing his eyes as some form of acknowledgement.

"Hey, now that I'm noticing it... where's Rizevim?" Lumira questioned.

"With Ruihi, the last stage of completing her is nearing, so all that's left is waiting for Heaven to give us the right moment." Euclid answered.

The traitorous Lucifuge looked at Crom.

"Crom, you should go and ready yourself for the moment you promised us." Euclid suggested.

Hearing this, the Crescent Circle Dragon simply nodded before he walked out of the room.

"And yet we're not anywhere near to acting? Seriously, the Khaos Brigade is finished, so we don't have any figurehead to hide us anymore. With Rizevim a clear enemy, people are gonna come after us sooner or later." Exelerea questioned.

"You need to be more patient, no one can afford to act so freely after what the war did." Zekram remarked.

Exelerea groaned, hating when he used his "Wisdom of your Elders" logic against him.

Right as that was happening, a hissing sound was heard as eight Eastern Dragon heads slithered into view, revealing Orochi slithering into view. While seven of the heads just randomly hissed without a pattern, one of them got closer to Walburga.

"So, you managed to find it, right? The way to revive our fallen brethren?" Orochi's first head asked.

"Yes, tell us." Orochi's second head requested.

Walburga smirked, revealing the golden shard, and getting all eight heads to widen their eyes.

"Incredible, the only remaining fragment of the Holy Grail before it became the Sephiroth Graal, to think it was actually real." Orochi's seventh head admitted.

"Does it really have the power as the Longinus it became?" Orochi's fourth head inquired.

"We'll be seeing soon enough. After all, we managed to bring you back earlier than you were meant to through just a simply theory I made, so I'd say reviving the other four Dragons along with our fallen allies is cakewalk in comparison.

Lumiru giggles in interest over idea, right as three more people in walk into the room.

"Lumiru, Exelerea."

The two turned to see three figures hidden by robes, and similar to how theirs had had symbols styled after a Knight, and a Bishop, these were styled after every other type of Chess piece besides the King.

"What is it, Itsuki?" Exelerea asked the one bearing the Queen symbol.

"Come with me, the time is near." Itsuki stated as he motioned a hand.

The two showed surprise at that.

"Ooh, so he's finally gonna finish Ruihi? Let's go, Euclid, it seems we're got our own bit of work to correlate with this." Walburga smirked with interest.

"Indeed." Euclid agreed as he stood up.

* * *

In one of the villages belonging to the Hero Clan, the sight of the various Heroes, both young and old, were seen cleaning up the mess created by Pluto's assault. Some of the children were seen crying, having lost their innocent before their time, while various others gathered the caskets to bury the few who died.

"What I hate about this more than anything is the realization... if only we had chosen to side with them sooner, we may have not had to face such a horror." An old man stated, being one of the Hero Clan Elders.

"Elder Akatsuki, don't blame yourself for this, we were all unprepared for this event. I still remember Asuka coming back just to say goodbye. She was grieving too much to stay here, and I clearly heard how she feels her parents would have lived had they come to the event she invited them to." His aide assured him.

Elder Akatsuki sighed a bit, looking at his aide.

"While that may be true, something I've learned from my years is this. We often blame ourselves for tragedies because if we feel there was something that could have changed, then we won't feel like the path was predestined, and strive to avoid it. No one wants to be told something horrible is absolute." Elder Akatsuki replied.

His aide mused over that, realizing what he meant.

"I see, even I wouldn't want to be told I couldn't save a life no matter my efforts... I worry how the children will grow up in response to this. Will it make them stronger, or destroy their resolve?" His aide replied before sharing his thoughts.

As they kept watching over things, the sight of a middle-aged Hero trudged into view, holding a bleeding wound on his shoulder.

"Elder... Akatsuki!" He shouted, wincing as his arm flared up.

Akatsuki and his aide looked at him in surprise.

"Hikage? Where have you been, we thought we lost you!" Akatsuki's aide questioned.

"I... I saw the reason we got attacked, we were... betrayed by one of our own!" Hikage answered.

The two showed shock at that.

"Betrayed? No way, who was it? How?" Akatsuki asked in disbelief.

"The secret entrance to village... someone left it open, and gave that Grim Reaper the means to get in without a problem, and without warning. As for who it was... it was the one we called the gem of the next generation, the sole successor of the Kuroshima bloodline!" Hikage revealed.

"He was the traitor!?" Akatsuki shouted in horror.

It was one thing to hear they had a traitor among them, but for that traitor to have been one of the current generation's best, like Issei and Asuka were... a dangerous enemy was now roaming the world.

"Hikage, don't let anyone in the village know of this, and send a message to the other clans." Akatsuki requested.

"At once." Hikari replied, nodding his head.

He headed over to find the other Elders, while Akatsuki's aid sweated a bit.

"It seems your words had been echoing more than we could have even imagined." His aide realized.

"Yes, they truly did..." Akatsuki said replied, lowering his head in worry.

"I'll let the Alliance know about this, make sure he's labeled as the fugitive he chose to make himself." His aide replied.

* * *

Within a certain area of Kuoh town, the sight of Ravel holding a clipboard was seen, looking around as Devils that served under the Lucifer Clan helped set things up for the chosen wedding spot. From a short distance, Yumina was doing the same thing, but for another half of the wedding that had to do with Vali's part of the choices.

"How's the order with the 1000 chairs coming?" Ravel inquired.

"Three more days till they arrive." A Devil replied.

"Did we get the Cherry Blossom petals, and are they fully preserved?" Ravel inquired, writing about the chairs.

"Fresh as pure water." Another Devil answered.

"What about the carpet? Did it arrive on time?" Ravel questioned, writing once again.

"Just picked it up." A third Devil replied.

Ravel sighed in relief, glad things were going alright on the Japanese half of the wedding.

As for the Devil half of the Wedding plans, Yumina started asking around in the same manner as her fellow manager.

"The cake maker says we ran out of are chosen frosting, did any get the spares I asked for?" Yumina asked.

"Yep, tell him we'll send them over." A Devil replied.

"What's the status on the food & drink, and was it properly tasted?" Yumina inquired, writing something down.

"Tasted, and freshest ingredients were guaranteed." Another Devil confirmed.

"Got it. Now, have we had the chosen flower girl, and maid of honor registered?" Yumina questioned, writing more down.

"Doing that right now." A third Devil verified.

Yumina breathed out, shaking her hand from all her writing.

"Phew... Ravel, I don't think I've ever used my hand so much within a short period of time." The Lucifuge heiress stated, revealing how red said hand was.

"You and me both." Ravel agreed, showing hers was just as red.

At that moment, a magic circle forms, getting the duo's attention as their older sisters both come through, along with their respective children.

"Yumina, good to see you!" Millicas shouted, hugging his aunt.

"Millicas! Good to see you, and you've gotten so big!" Yumina smiled, rubbing her nephew's hair.

She blinked a bit, giggling a bit.

"Are you stealing height from your parents?" She teased.

Both of them laughed at that, while Siarea jumped onto Ravel, making her sigh before she smiled at her.

"Hello Siarea, still a little spitfire, aren't you?" Ravel greeted.

"Not anymore, Aunt Ravel. I'm a flash fire!" Siarea declared, blowing a raspberry that put a fire on her tongue.

Alanira shook her head at that.

"Siarea, you know tackling your Aunt is rude." Alanira scolded her.

"Yes mommy..." Siarea apologized.

Yumina chuckled oddly at that, looking at her sister.

"So, what brings over, sis?" Yumina inquired.

"I just thought I'd see how you were doing, you've obviously been managing Lady Vali's wedding for a while now." Grayfia answered.

"Yeah, I'm both her Queen, and her manager after all. Not to mention that she and Issei want a mix between a Japanese Wedding, and a Devil Wedding. Trying to incorporate the two into one is quite the challenge." Yumina admitted.

Alanira chuckled a bit.

"A challenge? Please, you've got my little sister helping you, only way for you to fail is by being lazy on purpose." Alanira remarked.

"Uh... hey sis, you sure you're not putting me up too high?" Ravel replied, a bead of sweat on her face.

"Ravel, I'm one of the strongest women in Hell, and was once in the Top 10 Rating Game players alongside Ruval. I think by now it's obvious those in the Phenex Clan tend to go fairly high." The Phenex heiress mentioned.

"Yeah, mommy's always right!" Siarea agreed.

Alanira patted her daughter's head, letting her have her fantasy.

"Say, you all got wedding invites, right?" Yumina asked.

"That we did Yumina, just cleared up my schedule for it. Spending all day before the Rating Game to finish up my share of work." Alanira confirmed.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about the Rating Game, it's making me a bit nervous." Yumina admitted, rubbing her arm.

"It isn't just you, while I've been in quite a few, I never got to contribute that much to them overall, not until Issei convinced me to let lose. Even then, I haven't really done all I could just yet, which means this is a first for us both." Ravel responded, sharing her own nervousness.

The two Devil managers paused before chuckling a bit.

"Well, at least we're worrying about it together." Yumina remarked.

"Kinda reminds me of my first Rating Game." Alanira recalled.

* * *

_Alanira released a powerful flame against Serafall, only to hear her Queen get launched through the air._

_"What the-" Alanira exclaimed._

_Dropping her guard for that moment, Serafall's water magic hit her, soon entombing her in ice._

_"I did it, I won!" Serafall cheered._

_"Says who?"_

_Serafall's eyes widened as Alanira broke out, soon charging at her before the two crashed into a tumble, followed by both their elements firing out in a random manner._

* * *

Alanira winced at the memory, shaking her head.

"Yeah, not my finest moment... or Serafall's for that matter." Alanira admitted.

Ravel snickered at that.

"Well, at least I'm not as nervous now." Ravel said in relief.

At that moment, Yumina heard her phone ring. She answered it, showing a magic circle on it, making Vali's face appear.

『"Hey Yumina, can you get Ravel and meet us at the Kuoh Academy track field? We're about to start the first day of training for our upcoming Rating Game."』 Vali requested.

"Sure thing, we'll be there in a jiffy." Yumina replied.

Hanging up, she looked at Ravel.

"Well, guess we're getting are first break from this." Yumina smiled.

"Everyone, finish what you're currently doing, and then you can take the rest of the day off!" Ravel alerted them.

The Devils all sighed in relief at that.

"Good luck." Grayfia smiled.

Yumina nodded her head, prompting her and Ravel to head over to Kuoh Academy.

* * *

Both peerages gathered together at Kuoh Academy, with only their Kings yet to arrive.

"Hmm? Hey, where's Issei and Vali?" Rossweisse inquired.

"They were just in Hell, so it's probably just taking them a little longer to arrive. We should see them here any second now." Kuroka answered.

While they waited, Asuka noticed a golden necklace with a gold pendant, a purple gem encrusted onto it.

"Hey, Asia? That necklace you're wearing... is it what I think it is?" Asuka inquired, realizing the combination of colors was very familiar.

**«"You're correct, Asuka."»** Fafnir confirmed.

Everyone looked at in in surprise, seeing the new form if what was previously the Down Fall Dragon Spear.

"Before we got here, Irina took me to Heaven." Asia began explaining.

"Since the System has been reactivated, all of the artificial Sacred Gears have been brought to be made into official ones, including Asia's. It's now known as the **‹**Gold Monarch Treasure**›**" Irina finished explaining.

"Wow, that's pretty cool." Le Fay looked at it in awe.

"Hey, Fafnir? Does it feel any different from the Down Fall Dragon Spear?" Yuuma curiously inquired.

Fafnir hummed on an answer.

**«"I'd say it feels a bit smoother and roomier, though I'm not saying the Down Fall Dragon Spear was a poorly done job."»** Fafnir replied.

"Then that means we got pretty close to mimicking the real deal." Yuuma realized as she wrote down a comparison note.

Issei's peerage all sweat dropped at that.

"Well, I guess she's becoming a bit more like her father now." Bikou chuckled.

At that moment, two familiar magic circles appeared as Issei, and Vali finally arrived.

"Hey guys, sorry for being late. Had to make an unexpected stop in the Norse Pantheon on the way here." Issei smiled at everyone.

"Unexpected stop? For what exactly?" Kuroka questioned.

"Well, the new leader of the Norse Pantheon gave us a few things." Issei answered.

The first thing he did was toss a scabbard over to Irina who caught it, causing her eyes widen as she realized what it was.

"T-t-t-t-t-t-t-this is..." Irina stammered in shock, and awe.

"The scabbard of Excalibur." Arthur stated, recognizing it in an instant.

Everyone gasped at that, while Le Fay's eyes sparkled at seeing it.

"While the Norse Gods were cleaning up the damage the war left on Asgard, they managed to find the scabbard among the wreckage. They think that long ago, someone lost it while passing through, and since Irina's the wielder of Excalibur, they felt she was its rightful owner." Vali explained.

Irina started to spout gibberish from the shock, blinking a bit as she tried to calm herself down.

"So, are the legends really true? Does it really protect its owner's skin from taking any damage?" Yumina inquired, looking at the Pendragon siblings.

"It does, the reason the original Arthur died against Mordred was because he didn't have it to survive a fatal wound. However, that's only half the story, because the scabbard has a special power that it can give Excalibur when the two are close." Le Fay explained.

"If you only view the blades themselves, Caliburn is truly the strongest Holy Sword due to being unbreakable, but when Excalibur is paired with the scabbard... it gains the same power, making it the strongest Holy Sword. This is why some legends cross information between the two." Arthur revealed.

Hearing that, Irina froze before looking at the sword, and the scabbard.

"That means... now I can... quick, someone catch me!" Irina stuttered before she fell back.

Rossweisse caught her as she briefly fainted, taking about a minute to regain her senses.

"Now, here's the other thing they gave us, and this one's for you, Rossweisse." Vali stated, holding out a wrapped object.

"Me?" Rossweisse said in surprise.

She took the object, and then unwrapped it to see a gold, red, and green-colored sword, neither Holy or Cursed in nature, yet still quite powerful based on its appearance. Rossweisse's eyes widened as she recognized it.

"T-this is, Mistilteinn... why would anyone give this to me?" Rossweisse revealed questioningly.

A note is seen flying out of the wrapping, which Ravel grabbed.

"Maybe you should you should read this." Ravel implied.

Rossweisse did, seeing it was a message from Vidar. After reading it over, and getting to the end, the Valkyrie did something that no one from either peerage expected... turn as red as a ripened tomato.

"Uh, Rose?" Asuka questioned.

"Nothing... nothing at all, I swear." She said quietly as she hid the note.

Issei raised an eyebrow, but shrugged his arms.

"I have no idea what that reaction was about, but let's to the main point for why we're all here." He reminded them.

Clearing his throat, he looked everyone in the eye.

"As you all know, we decided to have a Rating Game between each other as part of the pre-wedding festivities. For most of us here, that means we're facing the people who used to be our teammates, while for a few this is like any other Rating Game. Because of this, we need to make a good game, because it'll also help renew the spirits of everyone, since it'll be the first fight for sport since the war ended." Issei began explaining, sharing the game's main message.

"As such, along with the fact that most of us know what the others can do, we'll be having a few training periods until the day of the game. Since wedding preparations are happening alongside this, we'll need everyone to do this best in training, while also helping with wedding plans at the same time. Now, is everyone ready to start the first training camp for this upcoming Rating Game?" Vali finished explaining, before looking at everyone with a smile.

It didn't take long for everyone to show their approval.

"Alright, let's do this!" Yumina declared, pumping up her fists excitedly.

"Good, but before we do that? I've gotta show Asuka the videos that we got from Diehauser." Issei mentioned, holding one of them up.

"Yeah, I'm still lost on the entire thing." Asuka admitted, chuckling in slight embarrassment.

Everyone gave a good laugh at that.

* * *

In part of the MHC's club room, Asuka was watching the videos of matches that Diehauser competed in, his opponents being the other six members of the Great Devils, and a few of other Top 10 players. Needless to say, it was only the former among them that ever gave him a challenge, or some of him losses. At the moment, her eyes followed a match he had with Sirzechs, who threw out his Aura of Destruction to overcome the Champion's Worthlessness ability.

"So, let me see if I'm getting this right. Rating Games are basically a mock war that use Chess in the form of certain abilities?" Asuka inquired.

"Yep, that's pretty much how you define them." Issei confirmed.

Tapping her chin, she tried seeing what else she figured out, and then looked at her brother again.

"OK, so... Pawns have no ability, but that changes if they can promote at the enemy base; Knights have the advantage with speed, weapons, and short-range; Bishops have it with magic, healing, and long-range; Rooks excel in strength, durability, and mid-range; the Queens are a mix of all but a Pawn, and while there is no official piece for a King, they get triple the effects of a Queen once they have one, but their chosen Queen's synchronization with them can either aid, or hinder them... is that right?" Asuka asked.

Issei gave her a thumb's up, making her sigh in relief.

"Well, glad to see I'm a fast learner." Asuka smiled.

"Don't worry too much, I learned how the general Rating Game works by watching one myself. It's the special rules a match could have that are what everyone needs to watch out for. For example, a Dice Battle limits who you can send out depending on the combined numbers each King rolls, while a Target Battle requires you get more points under a time limit." Issei reassured her, while revealing the more complex forms of the game.

"But unless a rule changes it, like the Championship match, you automatically win if you defeat the enemy King." Asuka replied.

Issei nodded, having a good feeling she was ready.

"Now, the last thing I need to see if you know? How much is each type of Piece worth?" Issei asked.

"Pawns are a single point, Knights and Bishops are both three, Rooks are five, Queens are nine, and a Mutation Piece has a varied value higher than a normal piece of its type, but can't exceed 12 due to the Dice Battle rules." Asuka answered.

"And we're in business now." Issei declared.

Standing up, the Sekiryuutei whistled with his fingers, getting the attention of his peerage.

"Ravel, go let Vali know Asuka's up to speed, and we can both head to our training areas now. After you're done, meet me in my house's training room." Issei requested.

"Understood." Ravel replied.

* * *

Within the training room of the Akane Mansion, everyone was gathered together, wearing the team uniforms that Lilith had created for them. They were the same as the ones Vali's peerage wore, but a bit more roughened up, and padded in spots to represent Issei and Ddraig more; while their color scheme was mostly red, with a secondary color in green, and a bit of gold.

"It almost feels like we're wearing our old uniforms, doesn't it?" Yuuma smiled, feeling some nostalgia from the outfit.

"Lilith must have had a feeling we'd prefer them, so she just gave it the Sekiryuutei touch." Irina giggled.

Issei whistled, getting everyone's attention.

"Alright everyone, since we have an odd number in our overall group, I've asked someone to join us to even that out, and give us all a sparring partner." Issei alerted them.

Looking at the door, everyone saw Homura walk into view, cracking her knuckles with an excited look.

"It's been a while since I've been able to have any action for just the fun of it, so... let's get this training started." Homura stated with a smirk.

"And now I'm terrified." Yuuma sweated nervously.

Homura held out her left hand, forming a magic circle before grabbing a sword from it, and spinning around to reveal it in reverse-sword style. The sword wasn't anything special, but the blade was entirely red to represent her name, with a flame pattern on it.

"Alright, here's who'll be fighting who. I'll be facing Rossweisse, Issei's got Asuka, Yuuma will pair with Asia, while Ravel will face off with Irina." Homura stated.

Yuuma sighed in relief, glad she wasn't dealing with the Akane matriarch.

"Alright son, let's see what your team can do!" Homura exclaimed, readying herself in a battle stance.

"Wow, you already look like you're having fun." Issei chuckled.

Everyone spread out to a corner of the training room, giving them all a set amount of room to avoid crossing over into the other duels. Rossweisse looked at her new weapon, and took a deep breath as she equipped her Valkyrie armor, which quickly took the color of her team uniform.

** _ Duel: Homura Akane VS Rossweisse _ **

"Been a while since I faced a fellow Half-God for pure sport, and it should be fun to go against the fabled Mistilteinn." Homura stated.

"I hope you find me an opponent worth your time." Rossweisse replied.

Homura closed her eyes, and then rushed ahead, catching the Valkyrie off-guard by how fast she could move.

'Her speed... it's nothing like Issei's, or Asuka's. This is the power of a veteran Hero?' Rossweisse thought in surprise.

Rossweisse tried her best to parry Homura's attacks, with her swordsmanship quickly showing it favored speed, and quick strikes over raw strength. Rossweisse gripped Mistilteinn tightly, and thrust it forward like a spear, sending a burst of power that shot out like one.

"I don't think so!" Homura smirked, her eyes glowing.

Intense ripples of force shot through the air, smashing the attack into the ground before the Valkyrie Rook felt herself pressed on her knees.

"You're not... even using your Domineering Will's... full strength, and yet I can... hardly move!" Rossweisse grunted.

"That's right, I have no need for my sword strikes to be strong when I can just use my willpower to deal a heavy blow, so combined with my speedy attacks... I'm a force of fury!" Homura answered with a toothy grin.

Jumping into the air, she dived down to swing her blade at Rossweisse.

"Mistilteinn... fire!" She grunted.

A barrage of magical blasts shot out like energy missiles, catching Homura by surprise. All of them hit, sending her to the ground, where she slid back, only showing some slight damage. Blinking a bit, she chuckled as she brushed herself off.

"So, the legends are true, Mistilteinn really is a sword that can be used like any weapon." Homura praised.

"And yet I'm nowhere near able to draw its full power just yet." Rossweisse realized, looking at it closer.

"Hey, that's the point of this training, best way to get used to a new weapon is to play around with it. Now, show me what else you can do.

"Well, I guess someone like you would know." The Valkyrie replied.

Homura rushed ahead again, with Rossweisse readying herself for whatever Homura tried next.

* * *

Yuuma stretched her body around, with Asia make a brief prayer for good luck.

** _ Duel: Asia Argento VS Yuuma Amano _ **

"Alright, you ready Asia?" Yuuma inquired.

"Just need to do one last thing." Asia answered.

Holding a hand to her pendant, it glowed a bright gold color, getting Yuuma's attention.

"Gold Monarch Treasure, lend me your strength." Asia requested.

The pendant glowed as Asia's outfit took the appearance it had during the battle Issei's peerage had against Pluto. Once that was done, Yuuma formed a bow of light.

"OK then, let's go!" Yuuma exclaimed.

She fired off some arrows from her light bow, while Asia raised out a hand to make a small barrier. Following that, Yellow grabbed the bow's string to slap it forward, making it into a whip that flew at the Holy Maiden. Asia motioned her hands out to form a shield.

"Looks like your defenses have gotten better since you got Fafnir." Yuuma complimented.

"Thanks, you're getting more versatile yourself." Asia praised in return.

"Oh, you haven't everything yet." Yuuma giggled.

"**Fell Blizzard Sword!**"

Creating a sword of light, it unleashed an icy chill off its blade. Yuuma swung it forward, causing Asia to make a magic field around her body, though the chilling wind still slightly froze parts of her body.

"Whoa..." Asia was amazed by that.

"Surprised? I found a way to mix my Fell Attacks into my light weapons, so now I can dish out some double trouble." Yuuma giggled again.

Asia giggled in return, getting Yuuma's attention.

"Guess we both have a new trick up our sleeves." Asia smiled.

Yuuma saw her tap her pendant, which glowed brightly, making her pale slightly as she got an idea of what she was doing.

"Oh boy..." She whimpered.

"**Balance Breaker - Call of the Gilded King.**"

A golden aura flew out of the pendant, soon manifesting into... Fafnir's dragon form! Seeing the sight before her, Yuuma freaked out, her hair standing on end for a moment.

"T-that's the replacement for the Down Fall Dragon Another Armor?" She whimpered.

Fafnir chuckled at that.

"Yep, I can temporarily manifest Fafnir for short time, which is currently three minutes." Asia smiled.

"Surprised?" The Golden Dragon Monarch inquired.

Yuuma answered in the only way that any Fallen Angel would have in that situation...

She fainted.

* * *

Irina looked at the scabbard of Excalibur, taking a deep breath.

"OK, here goes... combine!"

She put Excalibur in the scabbard, causing the later to fade into the, and cast a brief glow over her body.

"Whoa..." Irina was in awe of the sight.

** _ Duel: Irina Shidou VS Ravel Phenex _ **

"Alright, ready to see how true that claim about the skin not being damaged is?" Ravel asked.

Irina readied her signature weapon, nodding her head.

"You bet, show me what you've got." Irina responded.

Ravel created a fire in her hand, and then blasted it out as a flaming whirlwind. Irina screamed as it burned across her, but despite that, when the flames finally passed... while she was steaming a bit, there was no sign of any external damage on her body.

"It really does work, I don't see a single burn on you." Ravel remarked.

"Y-yeah, but that doesn't mean it didn't hurt." Irina winced from the pain the flames inflicted.

"At least you won't die if someone stabs you." Ravel shrugged.

Irina wasn't sure how to reply to that, so she quickly rushed at Ravel, making the Phenex Devil see she already created her six copies.

"**Phoenix Dragon Mode!**"

Ravel's hair gained its crimson color before she unleashed some tiny phoenix-shaped flames, prompting Irina to vanish from view.

'I've gotta figure out where she's coming from.' Ravel thought, looking around.

Focusing her hearing, she managed to see one of the Irina copies appear, and unleashed a wind wave at her... only for the attack to go through.

"What the... no way, has she actually learned how to make the clones turn back into illusions?" Ravel asked in shock.

"You figured that out fast, as I expected of you." Irina smiled.

Ravel turned to see Irina blade her, and created a shield of light as she was pushed back.

"It looks like our special Evil Pieces have boosted all of us in a short time, that was an impressive maneuver you just pulled." Ravel praised.

"I aim to please." Irina replied.

Ravel created a flaming dragon from her hands, while Irina whipped Excalibur as it charged the Destruction ability at the tip.

* * *

Asuka stared at her brother, swinging the Kusanagi around as it created a strong wind.

** _ Duel: Issei Akane VS Asuka Aoyama _ **

Issei readied himself, Ascalon in his hand.

"Bring it on, sis!" Issei smirked.

"You asked for it, bro!" Asuka answered.

Asuka swung around more, and Tiamat's chaotic power gathered around her, compressing the wind she formed into spinning blue discs. Issei suddenly blinked a bit, having been caught off guard by their creation.

**["That one's new."]** Ddraig remarked.

Asuka smirked, holding her sword up.

"One fish, two fish... now your red fish will face my blue fish!" Asuka declared.

"**Sapphire Surge!**"

She thrust the Kusanagi forward, causing all the blue energy discs to launch at Issei.

The Sekiryuutei slashed at them, cutting the ones that got near him... only for him to notice them reform after the cut energy gathered back together. From that moment, he switched to dodging them all.

"Look at that, the Sekiryuutei was actually caught off guard." Asuka remarked, snickering a bit.

"Oh, I'm gonna get you for that one." Issei stated, a playful smile on his face.

**[BOOST x5]**

**[DREAM]**

Issei's senses heightened, allowing him to dodge the multiple discs flying at him with ease as he neared his Queen, who gave a surprised face... until he stepped on a certain spot.

**["Oh no, it's a trap!"]** Great Red warned.

Issei stopped, trying to figure out where the trap was... which happened to be right where he was standing.

**["Oops... "]** Great Red realized in embarrassment.

"**Cobalt Typhoon!**"

A wave of blue magic launched from the ground, swallowing Issei within it as Asuka watched. Issei eventually spun around, cutting through the attack that encompassed him, but with clear signs that he took some damage as he panted, using Ascalon to support himself.

"So, what do you think?" Asuka smiled.

"That I pretty much just got my butt kicked by my younger sister, and took a slight stab to my ego because of it." Issei admitted.

The Kusanagi's wielder smiled at that, sheathing her sword.

Around that same moment, everyone else finished their training for the day, with only Homura still on her feet, and the others slumping to the ground.

"You've definitely got a solid team, Issei. Good coverage with their abilities, a strong healer in Asia, and everyone knows what they're doing. I think you'll stand a good chance against Vali's team when the Rating Game finally happens." Homura threw in her two cents.

"Glad to hear it." Issei smiled.

At that moment, Homura realized something else as she snapped her fingers.

"Oh, you two mind visiting the hospital for me?" Homura inquired.

"The hospital? Why?" Asuka questioned.

Homura rubbed her head, a slight look of worry on her face.

"Well... I just learned you have a cousin recovering in there, and there's a small chance that he might not recover. The Hero Clan's still not sure on the status of his parents, so they can't come visit him, and I figured that any family visiting could help him in his recovery." She explained.

That surprised the two, and since Issei had enough family getting hurt as of the recent days...

"Sure thing, we'll go see him right now." Issei quickly agreed, texting Vali to meet them there as soon as she could.

Homura smiled as she saw her two children head over.

* * *

At the hospital, Vali was seen pacing around when she saw Issei finally arrive, Asuka right behind him.

"Hey guys, I got your text, so what's up?" Vali asked.

"My mom just told us we have a cousin who arrived here, thought we should meet him since the Hero Clan doesn't know if his parents are OK." Issei explained.

The heiress of Lucifer's eyes widened at that, looking at the door to the medical rooms.

"Aw man, just when you think no more of your family will end up in here..." Vali sighed.

At that moment, a Doctor walks into the room, noticing Issei.

"Oh, are you the ones Mrs. Akane told us about?" The Doctor asked.

"Yeah, that's us." Issei confirmed.

"He's in Room 108, just go straight and you'll find it." The Doctor explained.

Nodding at that, the trio went to Room 108. Once they arrived, they saw a boy who was bandaged up in a few places, which combined with his closed eyes, made the trio unable to see any of his defining features.

"Ah, you must be his cousins." A nurse stated as she saw them.

"Yeah, so... what's his name?" Issei asked.

"His name is Seishi Shiraishi, and that's all we know about him, other than he comes from the other side of your grandparents' generation." The nurse explained.

Asuka looked at him.

"Shiraishi, huh... that's the other clan Susanoo blessed." She mentioned.

"Wait, I thought each god could only bless a single bloodline?" Issei questioned.

"They could _only_ bless a single bloodline, but Susanoo's laziness made him decide to bless another without realizing checking if he already had. The Toujou bloodline's powers seem to represent his obesity, making them more defensive; but the Shiraishi bloodline, the first one he blessed, is the reverse." Asuka explained.

The Sekiryuutei chuckled, realizing how in character that was for Susanoo.

"I can believe that." Issei remarked.

He kneeled at his cousin, smiling at him.

"Hey there, my name's Issei, you're cousin. I don't know you much yet, but I'd like to." Issei introduced himself.

"And I'm Vali, while I'm not your family yet, I'll be joining it soon enough." Vali greeted.

Issei hugged Vali close, and then Asuka looked at Seishi, wondering what she should say. After recalling what happened to her recently, she found the words she was looking for.

"My name's Asuka, I'm Issei's sister, but I used to be his cousin to. I hope you find your parents out there, because I wasn't as lucky as you. The last few days, I needed to find out what's important in my life, and my family had to help me find it, so... stay strong OK? Life's right here, and so many people want to live it with you, including all of us." Asuka encouraged him, rubbing his cheek.

Seishi's unconscious form twitched a bit before he smiled, making Asuka smile back.

"Asuka... you gonna be OK?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, I think I just needed someone to reach out to." Asuka replied.

She looked at the two.

"Thank you both, for being there when I needed someone to lean on." Asuka smiled, tearing up a bit.

Vali hugged her soon to be sister-in-law, letting her shed the last few tears she needed to cry.

"Make sure he gets better, OK?" Asuka asked the nurse.

"We'll do our best, just like we do for all of our patients." The nurse promised, smiling a bit.

"Thank you." She smiled back.

Issei put a hand around his sister, and fiancé's shoulders, and the three walked out.

"My... family..." Seishi breathed out.

* * *

Back in Kyoto, the sight of Kunou sleeping in Nainen's hospital room was seen, right as Nainen herself woke up. The sound of something being ripped off was heard, making Kunou's eyes slowly open as she began waking up, and once she did... she saw Nainen without any of her bandages, or IVs on, looking as healthy as she had before she injured.

Noticing her sister was awake, she playfully made a shushing motion to her.

"I don't believe it, Nainen!" Kunou cheered.

She hugged her sister.

"Nainen, you're finally OK!" Kunou cried, sobbing tears of relief.

"As much as I can be, since they can't heal my connection to the Leylines. Now, settle down, we're still in a hospital." Nainen reassured her, patting her head.

The door opened, showing Yasaka walking in to pick up Kunou, only to see Nainen was awake.

"Nainen..." Yasaka breathed.

"Hey mom, you not gonna join in?" She joked.

Yasaka sniffled before she cried as well, joining the group hug between the two sisters.

"Now, anyone got some food? The mush they have here is gross." Nainen chuckled.

* * *

Mittelt was seen in Heaven, carrying the last batch of artificial Sacred Gears that needed to be made into official ones by Heaven's System, looking a bit tired from the last few she delivered in the last hour.

"Glad this... is the... last batch." Mittelt coughed out.

Eventually, she made it to the Sixth Heaven, where Gabriel was with the Seraphs, showing Sariel still had black rings from a lack of sleep. At that moment, the Fallen Angel fell to the ground, stretching a hand out.

"Are you OK?" Metatron questioned.

"W-water... please..." Mittelt coughed out.

Sandalphon gave an awkward chuckle as she handed the exhausted Fallen Angel a bottle of water.

"Well, at least on the bright side, you don't have any more boxes to bring up, and you're not the one who has to bring them all back." Sandalphon reassured her.

"My arms are still sore..." Mittelt said after guzzling the bottle down.

Getting back on her feet, she looked towards the Seventh Heaven.

"Say, why are you in such a rush to get all of these through?" She inquired.

"Well... how should we explain this?" Gabriel wondered.

"It's easy, because we found a sign about the Longinus that Jesus left for-" Sariel began explaining.

The other three Angels cover her mouth, panicking a bit.

"Uh... what?" Mittelt questioned, blinking a few times.

"Oh, nothing! Sariel's still a little out of it from not sleeping for a few days straight." Gabriel waved, hoping she'd buy it.

Penemue's Jack raised an eyebrow, but didn't care enough to focus on it.

"Eh, not my problem." Mittelt shrugged.

At that moment, Mittelt's wings unfolded as she headed back down to Paradise, while the Angels all sighed.

"Sariel, we told you that we can't tell anyone about this unless they're another faction's leader!" Metatron shouted.

"You did?" Sariel blinked, her head too hazy to remember.

"No point in arguing with her, she's still too out of it." Sandalphon sighed.

The tired Seraph felt the two drag her back to her quarters, musing over the idea of forcing her to sleep with some sedatives. As they did that, Gabriel went into the Seventh Heaven with the box, looking at part of the system responsible for the Sacred Gears.

'Father, Jesus... what does this mean?' Gabriel wondered as she looked at something.

There was a series of 18 small dots, alongside 3 large ones. All of the large dots had already lit up, while among the smaller ones, only three hadn't lit up, namely two on the bottom row that had six, and on the top row that had three.

Despite that, Gabriel herself didn't actually see any of them lit up, as the lights were still too faded for even an Angel's eyes to fully make out.

"Well, no use in trying to analyze it right now." Gabriel decided, taking the first artificial Sacred Gear out of the box.

As she hooked it up to the system to start making the Sacred Gear a genuine one... she failed to notice some of the system's lights flickering. At that very moment, the last of the top row among the smaller dots lit up, as if responding to something that just happened.

* * *

Back in Qliphoth's secret base, a few moments before the event above happened, Rizevim was seen in a room with some kind of strange pod. Inside of it, the black-haired girl that helped Zekram kill the Elders, the one that was known as Ruihi, was having her finishing touches completed within its fluids.

"The time is almost at hand." Rizevim chuckled malevolently.

"So, it's finally happening, isn't it?"

Rizevim turned to see Euclid walk into view, followed by Walburga, Lumiru, Exelerea, Itsuki, and two with the hoods marked by a Pawn, and Rook chess piece.

"Ah, I see you got Itsuki's alert. We've finally got the moment we need." Rizevim smirked.

Euclid chuckled excitedly at that.

"Well, then it looks like I should make the finishing touches on my masterpiece." Euclid decided.

"Ooh, better get the purple flame, and Holy Grail fragment ready on my end." Walburga snickered with excitement.

Rizevim only then noticed she was younger looking, making her glare at him.

"Say anything, and I'll rip your beard out, hair by hair." She warned.

He listened, only because he wasn't in the mood to regrow said beard from scratch.

Taking out the gold shard she had, the purple flame soon consumed it. At the same time, Euclid grabbed two golden orbs that resembled the gems of a familiar pair of Sacred Gears, and put into a pair of black gauntlets that could only cover one's hands. Chuckling a bit, he attached it part of the pod, making them slip onto Ruihi's hands, and integrating with her DNA.

"Just let me know when to give the signal." Euclid smirked.

Rizevim kept watch as he focused on something, and once he saw it light up...

"Do it now." Rizevim smirked.

Euclid quickly typed on something, causing everything to flicker for a moment as the two gems on the gauntlets formed. At the same moment, the purple flames around the Holy Grail fragment intensified, blinding everyone as it shattered into pieces, causing eight masses of black blobs to hit the ground, and start forming into something else, each one being something different than the last.

"No way, it all worked without a hitch?" Lumiru stated in surprise.

"Oh boy, I think we should back up a bit..." Exelerea whimpered, doing just that.

At that moment, four of the blobs took the shape of certain Dragons, ones that were easily familiar to everyone in the room. Rizevim laughed at the sight of them, realizing he had succeeded in reviving the remaining Evil Dragons.

"Yes, yes!" He exclaimed.

The other four blobs quickly finished forming as well, taking more humanoid forms. Among them, there was a woman with a beautiful body, someone with a hunched back, a tall looking man, and a somewhat fat-looking man.

"Ah, welcome back you four, I hope your brief time being dead wasn't too inconvenient for all of you." Rizevim greeted.

"Gee, I don't know... how about you try it for a while!?" A female voice stated angrily.

"Whoa, whoa! Calm down, at least I kept my promise, I did say I was going to revive you, didn't I?" Rizevim reminded them as he held up his hands.

At that moment, the sound of a large machine breaking was heard, along with shattering glass. Everyone turned to see the pod in smoke, with one of Ruihi's hands gripping the side... followed by her ripping the door off. The artificially made Devil walked into view, cracking her neck as finally had complete awareness over herself, and tightened her fists.

"You've finally been giving a complete will, Ruihi. Care to share how you-" Euclid smiled as he walked to her.

She shot out her hand, causing a red burst of power to fire out and smash across the area, and send the traitorous Lucifuge flying. The sound of Euclid landing on a table sounded, right before it snapped under his weight.

"Ow... why'd you do that?" Euclid groaned.

"Because I find you annoying. Honestly, combining that with how you don't think for yourself, it's no wonder both of your sisters hate you." Ruihi remarked, giving him an intense glare.

That made many go silent, while Rizevim laughed his butt off.

"Ooh, you got burned!" Rizevim laughed.

Euclid sighed, not even bothering to reply to either of them due to his shattered pride as a man. Ruihi looked at her Sacred Gear before dispelling it, and then looking at Rizevim, who stopped laughing as he noticed.

"So, does this mean the stage has been set?" Ruihi inquired.

"Oh, it's been set alright, and soon... the whole world will know the fear of Qliphoth." Rizevim smirked.

He gave a toothy smirk, knowing time was all that stood in in the way of his plans to revive Trihexa.

* * *

**Well, there you have it... Qliphoth's completely set, and now the only thing that's keeping them from acting is Rizevim doesn't want to make his move just yet. As for the surprise, I think those who look hard enough can figure out what it is, otherwise you'll have to wait for JOHD before I can reveal what those surprises are. Regardless of that, all the Evil Dragons are back, ready to threaten the world once again.**

**The first training session for the Rating Game went well, and while I only showed Issei's group training, I can promise you that next time will be all Vali's group. I've also given Irina, and Rossweisse a small power up, with the former receiving Excalibur's scabbard, and the latter receiving Mistilteinn (which won't have its canon powers) from the Norse Pantheon... while making our favorite Valkyrie redder than a tomato ^^**

**Nainen's also finally made a full recovery, in the sense her body's no longer an injured mess, and it seems Issei's met another member of his extended family within the Hero Clan. This new cousin of his won't be important until the next part of the trilogy, but you'll see him show up fairly early in it, so you'll see how he's important when we finally make it there.**

**For something interesting about why all of Orochi's heads talk independently of each other? They all share the same brain, but each one of them has a different voice. I haven't chosen anything specific, so this is a "up to the reader" thing when it comes to his voices. If you want to, just imagine each one has a different accent, or a different pitch :3**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

**A/N: Mistilteinn's appearance resembles the Star Seeker from Final Fantasy XIII in its sword form, but with the hilt shaped like its bow form.**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in today's chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Yumi - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Esketanus/Eterna - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Former is clueless, Latter isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating  
Cao Cao/Jeanne - Latter has a clear crush, Former's feelings are unknown**


	81. Chapter 81

**Last chapter sure threw a wrench into the grand scheme of things. We found out that Issei and Asuka have another cousin, Nainen's fully recovered, making her capable of attending the three upcoming events resulting from Issei and Vali's wedding, and saw some insight on Qliphoth's current plans. However, the big reveals came from the last scenes, which showed something about the system, and Ruihi being finished.**

**For a big surprise starting in this chapter... despite that I said Qliphoth won't make any more appearances until the next story, there is one member this doesn't apply to, and that member is Ruihi. It'll make sense why she's the exception as you read the chapter, since there's already been one particular hint that's been floating around since her debut during the Tournament, where she did something that let Zekram kill the other Elders.**

**There's also one thing about last chapter I need to point out, because it was meant to reveal something without directly saying it, yet it seems more people didn't figure out. Last chapter, Crom Cruach went into the same room where Ruihi fully awakened, but no one saw him in when the others came inside... or rather, that's what it looked like. He was there all along, because he's inside the black & gold Sacred Gear that Euclid made for Ruihi.**

**I'll need to warn everyone about one thing, when it comes to her personality, she's... quite different from any OC that I've made before. While what she did to Euclid last chapter probably gave you an idea, this is gonna really show you what she's like. The way she acts isn't bad or anything, I just figured you might need a heads up since if you aren't on guard when you see it, then you might get a little frightened.**

**A big thing I need to reveal as of this chapter is while the revisions as of this point are still following the story's original path, the few changes I've been making are going to become much more noticeable. For one, let's just say Mio was given a much bigger role, and one that will not lessen Kunou's; while Eterna, Tamara, and Lavinia have all appeared earlier than before, with a major change to all three of them.**

**With the former two, they now have new names, mostly because I didn't put much effort into naming them during their creation, as I didn't expect them to become as prominent as they are now. That, and the fact I learned the wielder of the last two Longinus that appeared in Vol 24 was from Ishibumi's first work, so I wanted to represent him a bit by making each part of his name their new last names. Hope most of you can bear with me on these changes.**

**Now, time for a big announcement, after learning a bit more about Denpachi, and the character Kanzaki Mitsuya who appeared in Vol 24, I've decided to make a canon side-story that happens during the month Vali finally gets her peerage that's based on it. Since there's barely any information on it, unlike Slash/Dog, it'll be completely original. I don't know when it'll start, but I'll wait until "Story of the Slashing Dog" is finished before I start it.**

**To Guest:**   
**"Sure thing, I can summarize the story's events for you if really need me to, but I'll need to tell me which chapter (if you don't remember, just tell me which arc or season instead) you stopped at before jumping to this one. That way, I know where to start summarizing from."**

**So, let's get this chapter started!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion, or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig, or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**‹›** \- Important Term, Phrase, or Detail

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle Beginning, or its Result

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Lemuria **

**The original homeland of the Dragons, and one of the three lost continents that are confirmed to really exist. For reasons unknown, though likely to be the result of the Great War, the continent sank into the ocean, where neither Humanity, or the supernatural could find it. With their home gone, the Dragon Faction splintered apart until they were no longer considered as such.**

**After the restoration of Heaven's system, Lemuria returned to the surface alongside its fellow lost continents, having been untouched by the 2000 years it spent underneath the ocean, and the reunited Dragon Faction has begun restoring their home. Lemuria's landscape is notable for having incredibly lush land, and greenery, making it the ideal location for various vegetation that Dragons eat, like the Dragon Apples.**

**During the Great War, after telling the Dragons of the Prophecy he had, God did his best to salvage all he could from Lemuria, one such being the egg of Ddraig and Tiamat's unborn child, keeping it safe in a time stasis for the next 2000 years.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 4 – Hatching Magic _ **

The following day in Kuoh Town, the sight of Ruihi walking around was seen, no one the wiser to who she really was. Now that she was no different than a girl her age, she had given herself a bit of an identity through a sense of style, and clothing.

She had her hair tied up in a way that was identical to Vali and Asuka's shared hairstyle, but with the former's messier version, mixed with the smoother shape that was a signature in Issei's hairstyle. She even the same ribbon as the heiress of Lucifer, only with an edgier design to it. In her case, said ribbon was the same gold color as her eyes, with a few small, black and red lines near the edges, where the ribbon became darker.

Her outfit consisted of golden-yellow shirt that looked torn at the end, which made no attempt to hide her huge bosom; a black jacket with short sleeves, with said sleeves being the same as the end of the shirt; grey-red jean shorts with intentional flap cuts near the end of each pant leg's side; black, fingerless training gloves; and finally, brown boots that lacked laces, heels, or anything besides the normal material boots were made with.

"So, this it Kuoh Town, the place where _she_ lives." Ruihi stated, glaring a bit as she thought of certain someone.

A yellow glow showed up on both her hands, getting her attention.

**{"We are currently within enemy territory, you cannot pick a fight with her if you should come across her."}** Her partner warned her.

Ruihi glared at her partner.

"Crom, are you implying I'm stupid enough to actually do that?" Ruihi questioned.

**{"Uh... no, I didn't say anything."}** Crom replied, a bead of sweat trickling down his face.

At that moment, she noticed everyone staring at her.

"The hell are all of you looking at?" She shouted angrily, giving them a strong glare.

Everyone felt a strange feeling wash over them, and quickly looked away, completely ignoring the young Devil in response. Seeing her threat worked, Ruihi resumed her walk, confident no one would bother her again for the time being.

**{This is a stressful job, isn't it?}** Crom sighed.

"Yeah, we can at least agree on that." Ruihi admitted.

"Look, they finally have posters up!"

Ruihi turned, seeing a few Devils looking at a poster that showed Issei, and Vali's peerages in their uniforms. It was an advertisement for their upcoming Rating Game that mentioned how those not personally invited could get tickets.

"I'm not missing this for anything! Come on, let's see if we can shell out enough money for some tickets!" One of the Devils suggested.

All of them ran off, leaving Ruihi to see the required information.

**{"Look at that, we have a chance to see what they can do without any suspicion."}** Crom Cruach stated.

"Why am I not surprised that you're interested by this?" Ruihi snickered.

**{"Though that brings us a new problem, how do we get a ticket?"}** Crom questioned.

Ruihi smirked at that, pulling a wallet out of her pocket... a wallet with the Lucifer crest on it.

**{"You stole Rizevim's wallet!?"}** Crom shouted in surprise.

"No, I smashed punched him in the gut, and then made him give me his wallet. He might be why I was born, but I ain't letting the old fart think he can make me do whatever he wants." Ruihi answered, taking some money out.

The strongest Evil Dragon began laughing.

**{"Kid, I think we're gonna get along _just_ fine."}** He replied.

With that out of the way, she walked off to go buy a ticket for the game. Right as she did, Lilith was seen walking by, catching the attention of Crom. At that moment, the strongest Evil Dragon got an idea.

**{Ruihi, I have an idea, and it just so happens to relate to someone that walked by.}** Crom alerted her.

The black-haired Devil raised an eyebrow, soon seeing Lilith herself.

'I'm listening...' Ruihi replied.

**{Alright, I think we should...}** Crom soon explained his plan.

Hearing this, Ruihi's eyes widened.

* * *

Mio stretched as she walked into the Akane Household, getting Issei's attention as he noticed his Rook return.

"Oh, welcome back Mio, you finally feeling better after being on the home front?" Issei asked.

"Yeah, a few days back home did me some good." Mio replied.

Sitting down on the couch, she slumped down to relax, looking towards the Sekiryuutei.

"So, I heard you're challenging Vali to a Rating Game." Mio remarked.

"Yeah, I thought about sending you a message, but I figured that might be a sore spot considering everything happened after the Championship ended." Issei explained.

"Thanks for doing that, although I feel a bit embarrassed that it means I'm late in preparing for it." Mio replied.

Issei chuckled a bit.

"No worries, you only missed a day of training, I think we can get you up to speed." Issei reassured her.

"Hope so, I've still got a long way to go before making this power my own." Mio replied, forming a purple flame in her hand.

Looking at her chest, she went a bit silent.

**["Ah, that's right. You haven't heard the fragment of Jesus' heart respond to you since you obtained your Longinus."]** Ddraig realized.

"How bad is that, Ddraig?" Issei inquired.

**["Not really as much bad as it shows the Incinerate Anthem is likely still assessing if it wants to stay with Mio, or eventually find another wielder. Right now, the only plus she's shown is unlike Walburga, she's not evil, or most likely preventing it from leaving."]** Ddraig answered.

"I guess that means this Rating Game's a good chance for me to prove myself to the Longinus." Mio realized.

Before anything else could be said, Rassei suddenly flew in, stopping by the two as he swung his arms around in an attempt to convey something.

"What's he saying?" Mio asked.

"Hold on, I think it..." Issei squinted his eyes as he examined the motions.

As Rassei kept moving around, Issei pieced a response.

"Dragon... Egg... Move... Jump... Fast." The Sekiryuutei said in response to each motion.

"What does that mean?" Mio questioned.

**["Wait, egg... oh god, I think me, and Tiamat's egg might be ready to hatch!"]** Ddraig realized.

"Tiamat has an egg!?" Mio exclaimed in shock.

Issei rushed ahead, leaving the Demon Princess to blink before following. As Issei rushed by, the others were just as confused by his sudden action, and all decided to follow.

Once they got to the room where Freezie was watching the egg, they saw it slightly shaking.

"The egg just moved!" Asuka said happily.

"Then, does that mean it's about to hatch?" Yuuma inquired.

"I think so, but I don't get how that could be now, the egg wasn't anywhere near hatching when God put it into stasis." Freezie answered, looking confused.

That stumped everyone, until Rossweisse realized a possible answer.

"Perhaps while in stasis, the infant Dragon inside was still growing at a slower rate. Or, perhaps it grew as normal, but couldn't hatch due to the stasis, and only now is time catching up." Rossweisse suggested.

"Basically, the egg is technically ready to hatch, even though it didn't seem like it?" Issei summarized.

"Yes." Rossweisse verified.

Rassei hovered around the egg, lightly tapping his head on it.

"So, how do we hatch it?" Asia asked.

**["Someone has to sit on it, but that someone has to be another Dragon, while in their Dragon form... and not a child."]** Ddraig explained.

Rassei hung his head, having been willing to do that. That's when everyone looked at Freezie.

"U-uh... what? No way, have Fafnir sit on it!" Freezie stated.

"I can't summon him for that long." Asia replied.

"Uh, then... have Ddraig sit on it!" Freezie stated.

Everyone went silent at that, as if they could hear crickets chirping in the room, making Freezie laugh as he realized his goof.

"Oh yeah, you can't do that." Freezie apologized awkwardly.

"I've been learning to try manifesting him outside the Sacred Gear, but that'd have even less time than Fafnir, and I need to avoid using my power outside of training. The only time I could bother doing that is when the baby finally hatches." Issei remarked.

Realizing it had to be him, Freezie assumed Dragon form as he sat on the egg.

"I knew it... this isn't comfortable." Freezie sighed.

"Not our fault Tiamat had to go help the other Dragons restore Lemuria." Irina remarked.

"Yay, you're rubbing it in..." Freezie groaned, hanging his head down.

Everyone giggled at that.

"I should see if I can reach Tannin, while I can't call Tiamat right now, he might be able to tell her that she needs to come back to see her egg finally hatch." Issei decided.

"And I'll go tell Vali's group about it, there's no way Albion will want to miss this." Asuka offered.

"Good idea." Issei agreed.

Hearing that, the younger Akane sibling instantly sped out of the house.

* * *

Within one of the many buildings that made up the collective known as the Magician Guilds, the organization of Grauzauberer was being visited by Rudiger, who was giving them the bad news about Mephisto. His only support was his King, the current head of the Mammon house, and father to Aariliyn and Esketanus.

"I'm... very sorry to have to tell you all this, but... during the Second Great War, Mephisto was one of the earliest casualties. He's gone." He revealed, struggling to look at everyone in the eyes.

The various Magicians all showed surprise at that, unable to believe they were really hearing this.

"I know you might be trying to deny it, and I can understand, it does sound unbelievable, but... I was there. He, Odin, Zeus, and Poseidon were all killed by Hades. He left a message that we salvaged, one that he wanted you all to hear." Rudiger continued.

Lord Mammon opened his hand, playing his finals words through a magic circle he summoned over his palm.

_"To everyone that can hear me, pass this Devil onto the Magicians under my care, and the Devils I've watched grow for the last few years... If you're hearing this, then I'm afraid I've passed on, having chosen my time to come in a battle I knew I would lose. A choice I made because I'm a mere relic of the past, from a time that should pass on, a darkness that the world does not need."_

_"To my fellow Magicians, I did not call you to this battle because too many of you have a future, one I couldn't just let you toss away if I could prevent it. And to my fellow Devils... you may have been born in the darkness like most of us, but long ago... your Devil King told me that our future was one in the light. Under the real sun, not the false sky we see above. You live in a time that strives for peace, living together, rather than trying to destroy others."_

_"At first it was just the Supernatural, but now... the world is changing further, now we must live alongside Humanity. The time I lived in needs to pass, you must make the future we wished for. Lilith, you must remain to guide them, guide them until the day someone takes over to guide them in your place. I won't be there to see it with you, but I can tell, that day isn't much further away... in fact, it'll be sooner than you expect it to."_

_"I am so glad, that I lived long enough to see this potential. For that reason alone... thank you."_

Hearing the tone of his voice, and remaining doubts these Magicians had finally shattered, bringing them all to tears.

"It's... a heavy to bear, isn't it?" Lord Mammon remarked.

"The second heaviest I've ever bore." Rudiger answered.

Lord Mammon looked away in guilt, knowing exactly what he was talking about.

"I still regret being unable to save your son, it pains me that the money I poured into medical research for him was bested by a single Sacred Gear." Lord Mammon apologize.

"I told you before, I don't blame you for the limits of reality." Rudiger reassured him.

"That doesn't mean feel I don't feel guilty, it was like reliving my sister betraying our entire clan, because I was completely powerless both times." Lord Mammon sighed sadly.

Rudiger put an arm on his shoulder.

"We can only do our best for the future, so we can limit, if not prevent such things from repeating to others." The Bishop of Mammon remarked.

Lord Mammon looked at his Bishop before nodding, realizing he was right.

At the same time, one particular wizard looked at the two as they spoke with one another, then looked outside, forming a strong resolve in her heart. In response to this, she used a magic circle to look at Kuoh Academy, and made the biggest decision of her life.

* * *

On the track field of Kuoh Academy, a few students were watching as Vali's peerage was training for their match, including the kendo duo.

"You ready, Le Fay?" Vali questioned.

"Sure am, let's see how my new barrier spell works." Le Fay answered.

Closing her eyes, Le Fay focused her new spell.

**⟨****"Great fortitude wrought by discipline, harden your shell into a new diamond, and sparkle brighter than ever. Let your shield shine brightly, and defend weak from the strong who abuse their strength."****⟩** Le Fay chanted.

**⟨** **"Neo Aegis!"** **⟩**

An ornate-looking shield formed in front of Le Fay, surprising the crowd.

"Wow, that's incredible!" Murayama remarked.

"Hey Vali, I need a reminder. What kind of magic did you call this?" Katase asked.

"This is what we call a Custom Spell, it's an ability only Wizards can use due to learning magic through rebuilding the structure of Devil magic." Vali answered.

"Basically, as long as I understand the right details and properties, I can make my own spells." Le Fay added.

The crowd showed awe once again.

"Man, seeing this really makes me want to learn magic." A student mentioned.

"Hmm... I wonder if I should ask the school board to make a class for teaching magic?" Vali wondered.

Deciding to think more on it later, Vali held her hand out.

"**Ivory Crisis!**"

**("INFINITY!")**

Vali formed a dozen magic circles, which quickly became multiplied by eightfold, leaving nearly a hundred.

Le Fay sweated a bit, and braced herself as all of them fired off at her shield, causing all 96 white beams to hit it repeatedly. Her body slid back slightly, but didn't give up in trying to hold her ground until the attacks finally ended.

"Impressive." Bikou remarked, watching on top of his staff.

Arthur smiled a bit as he saw only a crack on the shield at best, proud of his sister's accomplishment.

"Nice job Le Fay, this shield should be able to handle any attacks that aren't from Issei or Asuka." Vali praised, clapping a bit.

"Considering you've got unlimited magic power, that's saying a lot." Le Fay blushed bashfully.

Vali chuckled at that, rubbing her head.

"Seriously though, getting the powers of Ophis? It's just exasperating how you Dragon wielders get all the good stuff." Kuroka sighed.

**("Says the lazy flirt of a cat, I'm surprised you haven't given people bad luck with your fur color.")** Ophis smirked.

Kuroka's eyes went white, flinching at that.

"Ooh, she saw right through you! Burn!" Bikou snickered.

**("Says the guy who gets blackmailed by the threat your team will force feed you bananas.")** Ophis smirked once again.

Bikou gave the same reaction to that, making the rest of Vali's peerage struggle not to laugh.

"He doesn't like bananas?" Murayama asked in surprise.

"Yeah... I'd explain why, but that's kind of a private story." Vali answered, seeing Le Fay rub the back of both Rooks.

At that moment, Asuka finally ran into view, getting the attention of Yumina.

"Asuka? Why's she here?" Yumina wondered.

"Glad I found you guys, I've got news for Albion!" Asuka stated.

**("Me?")** The white Dragoness replied in surprise.

The dark-haired hero jumped over, quickly landing in front of Vali.

"It's Tiamat's egg, Freezie saw it moving around, which means it'll hatch soon." Asuka explained.

**("It's ready to hatch already!?")** Albion exclaimed.

"Yeah, we think the time stasis didn't keep the baby from developing, so it just needed a day to reach its hatching stage. At least, that's our theory." Asuka confirmed.

Vali's face smiled as she got excited.

"Do you know how long it'll be until it hatches?" The Lucifer heiress asked.

"Not yet, so I figured I'd let you all know right now, that way Yumina can just teleport all of you over. Only reason I ran here instead of sending you a message was because it works as part of my Rating Game training." Asuka answered.

Yumina gave a thumb's up at that.

"OK, just let us know when it finally happens." Yumina replied.

"Now we celebrations today." Vali giggled.

Asuka blinked at that, tilting her head.

"Wait, two? Did I miss something?" Asuka inquired, completely unaware of what any other events.

"Oh... that's right, Lilith asked Vali to tell Issei for her." Yumina remembered.

"To be honest, we're not completely sure ourselves. However, earlier today, my mom found something that she says is celebration for all of Devil kind." Vali explained.

Asuka hummed in slight curiosity.

"Considering this is Lilith we're talking about, for her to call it a celebration would mean it's something even she didn't expect... though what could surprise her?" The Queen of Akane wondered.

"Well, we'll find out later today, hopefully the egg hatching doesn't happen during it." Vali answered.

Asuka nodded in agreement, soon jumping back to where she jumped from.

"Well, good luck with training, because I'm giving it my all when we finally face off on the Rating Game stage." She declared.

Vali gave a smile of challenge in response.

"Bring it on, Asuka Aoyama." The silvery-white haired Devil responded.

Everyone in her peerage turned her heads, giving a light laugh at the scene that felt like it was straight out of a comic book.

* * *

Artemis sighed as she confirmed the Mermaids of her faction were doing fine, being one of the new duties she inherited after replacing her deceased father as the Greek Pantheon's leader. Flying by her, Hermes wrote down their current status.

"Good, it seems everyone's recovering well after the mess we had to go through." Hermes remarked with relief.

"Yeah... guess so." Artemis quietly replied, a sigh in her voice.

Hermes looked at his new boss sadly, knowing just how badly the losses they took had affected her... and he didn't blame her either. Artemis was a hunting goddess, and one thing a hunter represented was coming out alive no matter the situation, which the war had been the exact opposite of.

'Will she ever be able to heal from this?' Hermes wondered.

As the hunter continued walking, the sudden appearance of a Norse magic circle appeared before her, surprising her as Vidar walked out.

"Oh, greetings to you Chief Vidar! I didn't realize you were coming!" Artemis shouted in surprise.

"No need, it wasn't really planned on my end. I just came over because I wanted to ask the Muses for some romantic advice." Vidar reassured her.

"Wait... romantic advice?" Artemis questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Immediately, the new Chief of the Norse Pantheon began stumbling over his words, causing Hermes to start snickering a bit.

"I knew it! You didn't just give Rossweisse a legendary weapon for no reason, you _like_ her!" Hermes teased.

Artemis looked at the messenger god in shock, while Vidar went so red, his next four words were just random gibberish.

"T-that's not the only reason I'm here. Tartarus is technically connected with your region, and because of her being tied to his plans in the Second Great War, Anubis asked me to come over to make sure there's nothing that Hel left behind to use against us if she had died." Vidar stated, still blushing.

"Ah, that's right, I remember Anubis telling me some of the other factions might visit the realm on his request." Hermes recalled.

"It still shocks me... everything that happened, why so many wrought for this destruction for some kind of purpose. Hades was the most confusing no less, I mean... he had to have known the truth of the First Great War, so what made him choose anarchy over order?" Vidar questioned.

Artemis blinked at that, with Vidar looking at her.

"You've heard the truth by now, haven't you? How are you taking it?" He questioned.

Both Artemis and Hermes tilted their heads.

"What are you talking about?" Artemis asked.

Vidar himself gave a confused look... until he realized who the Greek Pantheon lost in the war.

"My god... everyone in your faction who knew got killed, so none of them could tell you this." Vidar thought out loud.

"Vidar, what's going here?" Hermes questioned worriedly.

"Both of you, what I'm about to tell you is something I learned from my Uncle once I became leader, and... you two can't tell **anyone** about this!" Vidar replied.

The two shivered at that, right as Vidar got close to them.

"You see, over 2000 Years ago..." Vidar whispered.

As they listened the two suddenly paled in horror, hearing something neither of them could believe until the right bits of information destroyed their doubts.

The shock was so overwhelming, it made Artemis scream just because she could.

* * *

Tiamat blew out her blue fire, using it to weld together a structure that a few Earth Dragons had created. The Dinosaur-like Dragons all roared as it was completed.

"It worked!" An Earth Dragon cheered.

"Glad to see everything's as strong as we remember." Tiamat remarked.

At that moment, the Dragons all heard flapping as they heard Tannin fly into view, causing them to turn to the Dragon King.

"Ah, so this is where you were, Tiamat." Tannin stated.

"Did you need me for something?" Tiamat asked.

"Yes, but before that..." Tannin answered.

Tannin tossed some bags containing the seeds of Dragon Apples inside.

"Help plant these around for the Dragons that need them, and let me know when you're done so I can ask some Magicians to speed up their growth." Tannin requested.

"You got it!" The Earth Dragons promised.

Grabbing the seed bags, they flew off to start planting new Dragon Apple trees. With them out of the way, Tannin turned to Tiamat.

"Issei just sent me a message, and he said it was something you'd absolutely need to know about." Tannin explained.

"Really? Just what would be that important he'd have to contact you to walk around the fact I said I'd be busy for the next few days?" Tiamat inquired, feeling unconvinced.

"I believe it was something along the lines of your egg hatching within the day?" Tannin replied.

"Of course, my egg is hatching-" Tiamat replied, turning around to continue whatever work she was doing.

Tiamat's eyes suddenly froze, turning around as her mind finally registered "egg" and "hatching" being used in the same sentence.

"My egg is about to hatch!?" Tiamat screamed.

"Yes, so I think perhaps you should return to see your-" Tannin answered.

Before he even finished his suggestion, Tiamat flew off faster than any Dragon he had seen before.

"Never mind, you already have." Tannin remarked.

* * *

Yumina shouted as she swung her left arm forward, unleashing a surge of darkness towards her King. Vali's eyes glow, thrusting out some holy light to counter it. Smoke blew as the Lucifuge heiress was blinded, and right as she could see again, Vali held out two fingers by her eyes, making her flinch.

"And with that, I claim victory." Vali giggled, moving them away.

"Dang it, you always me there." Yumina sighed in a playful manner.

The two both laugh at one another, only for Vali to notice the Divine Dividing's gem start flashing like a warning sign.

"That light... Vali, do you think that's to alert us about the egg?" Yumina questioned as her eyes widened.

"Albion, is she right? Is that Ddraig calling for you?" Vali asked.

**("Yes, I can feel it... the baby's definitely getting close to its hatching stage! We gotta get back, and right now!")** Albion confirmed.

Hearing that, Ophis gave a hum of excitement.

**("I've never seen an actual Dragon being born, or the birth of any creature. This is a moment I can't pass up.")** Ophis remarked with joy.

"Quick, everyone get around me!" Yumina shouted.

All of Vali's peerage gathers around the Queen of Lucifer, who notices the nearby students looking at her.

"What are you waiting for? No one said you couldn't see the hatching." Yumina reassured them with a smile.

"Really? We can see it too?" Katase said in disbelief.

"Of course, in fact... why not let the whole town see it? After all, the celebration of a new life should be just what everyone needs to perk up their spirits." Vali approved.

They all gave excited looks, quickly gathering around.

"Le Fay, can you have your Familiar let the town know to gather around Issei's house?" Vali requested.

"Sure thing." Le Fay replied.

Holding her hand out, Le Fay's Evil Eye familiar popped into view. She whispered by its one wing, and its pupil "nodded" in response, quickly flying off to the closest location with a large group of people.

"OK, here goes..." Yumina breathed.

Yumina teleported everyone, taking them all to the front door of Issei's house, where Irina was there to greet them.

"Hey guys!" Irina waved to them.

"Hey Irina." Vali smiled.

Le Fay was the first to get close to the golden-orange haired Angel, surprising her a bit.

"What's the egg doing right now? Has it started cracking open? Is it a boy or a girl? When did you notice it was ready to hatch open? What's Ddraig like right now? Is Tiamat-"

The granddaughter of Gabriel's eyes began to spiral as Le Fay asked her way too many questions without pause.

Luckily, an interruption came as a certain Dragoness flew overhead, then landed on the ground in her Human form. The blue Dragon painted heavily, her adrenaline having pushed her to move faster than she had ever done so in her life.

"Tiamat, you made it!" Vali exclaimed.

"Of course, this my son or daughter we're talking about... I think I managed to go past Mach 25 to make it here in time." Tiamat wheezed out a reply.

"M-Mach 25? But that's like..." Murayama gasped.

"More than 19,000 miles per hour." Arthur answered, a bead of sweat on his left cheek.

Even Ophis went silent at that.

**('Even I've never gone that fast... is that was 2000 years of waiting to be a mom will do?')** Ophis questioned, wanting to understand Tiamat's speed.

Without further delay, Tiamat rushed inside, leaving a small dust cloud for everyone to momentarily stare at.

"Uh... let's go inside before we have to see something weirder than this." Bikou remarked.

"Yeah, let's do that." Vali replied, a sweat drop on her face.

Everyone went inside at that moment, with Freezie looking very green as the egg kept shaking. At the same time as that, Issei looked a bit blue in the face as he began focusing his power.

**["You're gonna pop a blood vessel at this rate... which I'd totally like to see!"]** Great Red chuckled darkly.

Tiamat glared at the Boosted Gear, making the Dragon of Dreams whistle in response.

**["DREAM!"]**

Finally, the Sekiryuutei screamed as he summoned a mass of red energy, allowing him to materialize Ddraig's body in its human form.

"D-Ddraig!?" Tiamat exclaimed.

Ddraig blinked a few times before feeling his arms, face, and head, trying to verify that he was actually moving what should be his body.

"No way, Issei... you actually-" Ddraig stated in surprise.

"Ddraig, I've literally gotta concentrate for this to stick! Don't waste any more energy than you actually need!" Issei gasped and winced, clearly showing the stress he was enduring.

"Oh... sorry." Ddraig apologized.

Vali walked up to Issei, channeling some of her magic into his body, slightly lessening the burden on him. He sighed as he relaxed somewhat.

"Thank you..." Issei breathed gratefully.

"You're welcome, and I think we should all thank you for giving Ddraig this chance." Vali smiled at him.

Before the Red Dragon Emperor even had a chance to give thanks to his host, Tiamat gave him a tight hug.

"It's been so long... so long since I could hold you like this." Tiamat sniffled as her eyes teared up.

"I know, and we have Issei to thank for that... well, there's also my father." Ddraig smiled as he hugged back.

**["Hey! Why did you refer to me like an extra!?"]** Great Red shouted angrily.

Freezie covered his mouth as the egg's shaking got more intense, looking at Yumina.

"Teleport... outside... please!" Freezie begged, looking like he'd hurl any moment.

One half of Yumina was grossed out at the sight of the Vali's familiar having a puke ready face, the other half was terrified of what he'd puke out, much more if said "special" puke hit them in a way that was dangerous... if not the puke itself. Shaking off the thought, she took a deep breath.

"Right!"

Yumina teleported everyone to the most open spot outside of Issei's home, right as Le Fay's Evil Eye flew into view.

"Alright, looks like everyone will be here soon." Le Fay smiled.

Finally, the egg threw Freezie off, standing upright to signify the baby Dragon just needed to break the shell to finish hatching. The Dragon Familiar finally lost to his nausea, hurling a few ice chunks in the nearest bush.

"Phew... thought it would be something worse." Yumina sighed in relief.

**「** **Clannad: Dango Family** **」**

At that moment, everyone looked as a crack appeared on the egg. At the same time, the rest of the town began gathering around the area, seeing the crack start to spread around the egg. The expecting parents looked closer, while everyone else gave an excited expression. At that moment, the crack circled around the top of the egg, and then... what everyone was waiting for finally showed itself.

A simultaneous coo could be heard from everyone as they saw a head poke out, revealing a red baby Dragon that resembled a female version of her father, but with her mother's head shape, light blue wing membranes, and her father's gold spikes in a sapphire color. She eventually opened her eyes, revealing the same eyes as her mother.

"You're a daddy." Tiamat smiled happily.

"And you're a mommy." Ddraig smiled in reply.

Seeing the two, despite they were both in their human forms, the baby Dragoness make a cute squealing sound as she instantly imprinted the two as her parents. She tried to climb out of the egg, only for it to fall over.

"Oh boy, I've gotcha little one." Asuka chuckled as she went to pick up the egg.

She picked it up... only for the baby to not be under the egg, confusing her. She heard the same squealing again as a giggle, showing the baby dropping out of the egg, and onto her shirt hem.

"Aw, you little rascal." Asuka giggled.

Tiamat took her daughter from the younger Akane sibling's shirt, quickly nuzzling her nose in a loving manner.

However, right as that happened, the egg suddenly shook, making everyone look at it as another crack broke out of the other side. In moments, eyes widened as another Dragon crawled out, this one being male, but with blue skin, and the opposite traits of his sister.

"T-t-two!?" Yuuma shouted in surprise.

The male Dragon quickly jumped out of the egg, tumbling on the ground before it ran around his father... and then biting his leg. Luckily, to another Dragon, this was more mildly amusing than it was painful.

**("Twins... this is incredible, we haven't had twins hatch in the last 1500 years!")** Albion remarked.

"I'm more curious how the blue one had such sticky claws." Mio questioned.

Ddraig chuckled as he picked up his son, who wagged his tongue out like a puppy, soon letting his mother take hold of him as well.

"So, what are you gonna name these two?" Kuroka asked.

"For the boy, I think we'll call him... Rekala." Ddraig decided.

Rekala burped in response, wagging his tail in what everyone assumed was approval.

"For the girl, we'll name her... Ishiki" Tiamat smiled.

Ishiki licked her mother's cheek in response, making Tiamat giggle at the affectionate gesture.

At that moment, Ddraig saw his form flicker away.

"Sorry Ddraig, that's all the time I can give you..." Issei apologized, panting a bit.

Both of Ddraig's children look confused before Ddraig's form fell back inside the Boosted Gear, making its gem light up.

**["Hey kids, in here!"]** Ddraig chuckled.

Hearing their father's voice, Rekala and Ishiki both babbled a bit, able to tell where he was. Tiamat giggled at how smart the two were.

"Congratulations, Tiamat." Homura smiled.

"The wait was worth it, and so are the small changes that Issei can give these two to be with their father." Tiamat replied, looking at the Sekiryuutei.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Issei chuckled in reply, a bashful blush on his face.

'Looks like we're all getting a new beginning, in more ways than one.' He thought before smiling towards the sky.

* * *

Gabriel scratched her head over the strange part of the system that she had been pondering over the other day, this time with her fellow Seraphs by her side... including the still sleep deprived Sariel.

"What do you think all of these lights represent?" Gabriel questioned.

"I don't know." Metatron replied before sighing.

As she took a closer look, Sandalphon tried to see the pattern hidden within the symbols before them.

"Eighteen small lights, and three big lights... they line up a pyramid, but there isn't anything else that seems to represent what they could mean." Sandalphon murmured as she looked over them.

Focusing on the three big lights, the Angel of Patience widened her eyes.

"Wait, if Issei is part of the prophecy, and he reactivated the system fully... then maybe these lights relate to it. While I can't be certain, these larger lights might reflect to Great Red, Ophis, and Trihexa." Sandalphon theorized.

"And if that's the case, then the big circle at the top might be Trihexa's because it stands alone against everything." Metatron suggested.

However, right after saying that, the Angel of Diligence became stumped on the remaining 18 lights.

"Then what about the rest?" Gabriel questioned.

As everyone was looking at the lights, Sariel was having trouble focusing on them due to her eyes struggling to properly make out anything... which is when she noticed something odd.

"Would you three make these lights stop flickering, I can barely see as is." Sariel requested.

That instantly caught the others by surprise, with Sariel noticing their sudden silence before turning towards her, despite her limited vision.

"What?" Sariel questioned.

"Sariel, we... we don't see any flickering at all." Gabriel explained.

The Angel of Chastity's eyes widened at that.

"Hey, wait a second... that would mean Sariel can see something important that we don't." Metatron realized.

"I... think I can." Sariel agreed in surprise.

"Then tell us what you can notice, because we only see twenty-one dots arranged as a six-row triangle, with three being bigger than the others." Sandalphon asked.

Nodding her head, Sariel looked at the dots.

As she did, she made out the flickering again, which is when she began noticing some finer details. The flickers had lights in red, yellow, and blue for the smaller ones, while the big ones in the second row had a white, and black flicker to them. The one up top? It was... well, for some reason she couldn't see anything.

"I see... flickers of red, blue, and yellow among the small ones, but I'm not sure what they mean. The big circle pair have black and white, but the one above them? I don't see anything, or maybe it's just too dim for my eyes to make out." Sariel revealed.

"A black flicker? I don't get that one at all." Gabriel wondered aloud, feeling confused.

"Still, the rest of these colors are a step forward, we just need to figure out how many, and what each one means." Sandalphon remarked.

"I hope we can figure this out, because this might just be a key to saving the world." Metatron hoped in a nervous manner.

* * *

A few hours after the hatching of the Dragon twins, all of the Devils had been suddenly called down to Hell, making them all wonder what was so important for such a mass summon. Finally, after twenty minutes of waiting, the Devil Queen finally revealed herself to the crowd.

"Devils both young and old, thank you for coming here today! I know this was a sudden event, but... truth be told, even I had no way to plan for what happened to me earlier today." Lilith greeted everyone as she made her announcement.

This instantly confused many Devils, who looked at each other in an attempt to understand what she meant.

"Vali, she's your mom, what do you think she's talking about?" Bikou questioned.

"Not sure, it isn't like her to be surprised by something without any kind of warning, so it could be anything." Vali admitted in equal uncertainty.

Issei looked at Lilith, asking the same question in his mind.

"Maybe the answer is tied less to Lilith, and more towards Hell as a whole?" Rossweisse suggested.

"It might be, but what qualifies as that?" Asia replied.

"Hmm... it caught Lilith by surprise, but it has to do with Hell, just what could..." Ravel thought to herself.

The Phenex Devil's eyes widened, catching her fellow peerage members by surprise as they heard her gasp.

"No way, that's not possible..." She said in disbelief.

Before they could even ask her, everyone heard the sound of trumpets playing, indicating that Lilith was about to make her announcement.

"Everyone, it's time for you to see just what this shocking revelation truly is, so... I give to you a person you'll likely say doesn't even exist!" Lilith announced.

At that moment, Lilith opened a warp gate using her Primal Abyss. In just a few seconds, everyone Ruihi reveal herself by walking out of it, the Qliphoth mole doing all she could to hide the annoyance she had over the situation.

'Crom, those two have to be in this crowd, you sure they can't notice you?' Ruihi asked.

**{Not anymore, due to this Sacred Gear I'm in, the energy signature they'd be looking for won't be what I have now.}** Crom Cruach reassured her.

Having no idea how Dragons sensed for certain members of their kind, Ruihi just mentally shrugged, deciding to trust her partner's judgment.

"Everyone, before Hell ever existed, we lost someone that should have been with us for years to come, even if we were likely going to lose that someone in the Great War in the same manner." Lilith began, slowly making some piece things together.

"However, for reasons I don't know, nor does this Devil before me know, his legacy managed to live on! So, to all of Hell, and all of Devil kind! I give you..." She announced.

At that moment, Ruihi revealed her unique magic circle... six dragons positioned in a six-pointed shuriken.

"Ruihi Satan!"

With that revelation, everyone sudden began shouting in shock, confusion, disbelief, amazement, and every other emotion that could possibly fit a possible reaction to what should have an impossible event.

"Yeah... what she said." Ruihi replied.

"S-Satan!? No way, this has gotta be a lie you're pulling on us because of the war's aftermath! Everyone knows he never even became a Devil!" Zephyrdor exclaimed, refusing to believe it was true.

Ruihi scowled at that, glaring at him...

Then she appeared right in front of the Glasya-Labolas heir, shocking everyone at how fast she moved.

"So, what you're saying is that the person who fought for your sake during the war, the person who was best friends to my apparent ancestor, is lying to you? That I just managed to make a magic circle that resembles the one used by a person from millennia ago that I had no reference for out of nowhere in god knows how short a period of time?" Ruihi inquired, purposely invading his personal space.

"W-well, I..." Zephyrdor stuttered.

"Let me tell you something, you think I wanted this kind of role? I thought I was like everyone else until that goddamn war changed my world! In mere self-defense, I used a power I never knew I had, and now I find I'm the apparent descendant of someone who knew Lucifer? Does that sound like something that happens on purpose you piece of shit!?" She demanded, daring him to answer.

Everyone gasped at the words Ruihi had no hesitation in speaking, quickly prompting them to move away from the duo.

"H-hey, don't shoot the messenger, who would believe this kind of thing when all the evidence proves this has to be fake." Zephyrdor said with his hands held up.

Ruihi gritted her teeth, and stomped the ground so hard, it left a large crater under it.

"You piece of shit... don't talk about like you know everything, do you hear me!?" Ruihi screamed at her.

She grabbed Zephyrdor by his collar, surprising everyone a bit as she pressed her face onto his.

"I heard it all, how for the past 2000 years she's been alone! Everyone she could call a friend was killed, and not only was there nothing she could do, she wasn't even there to say goodbye to them! Do you carry such a burden!? No, you don't! That's why you have no right to stand there and claim she's lying, when you don't know a damn thing about her!" Ruihi roared.

Lilith's eyes widened at that, surprised how Ruihi was defending her despite how little she had known her for. She soon threw Zephyrdor to the ground, and looked at the rest of the crowd, her next worlds generalizing a majority of them.

"Any of you could have done something, but you all just went off doing things on your own! If she hadn't met her granddaughter, and then adopted her, she would have likely ended up regretting her mistakes for the rest of her life! Now all of you wake up, because for all that time, the person that gave you all life... you were all ungrateful bastards to her!" She bluntly screamed in anger.

If words could beat an army... Ruihi may have just proven that true, because almost every Devil who could hear her? They all went silent, because the truth was spoken, and the truth hurt, cutting deeper than any weapon ever could.

**{Ruihi?}** Crom Cruach asked, probably the most surprised by her reaction.

Ruihi went silent, her eyes briefly shadowed... all while Issei stared at her.

'Holy shit, that was definitely a clear sin of the anger tied to the sin of Wrath... though it feels like something hit home for her.' He thought.

"Uh... attention, everyone!" Lilith shouted.

No one replied, forcing Lilith to take a deep breath before whistling loudly into the microphone, making everyone hold their ears from the sudden noise.

"It seems Ruihi gave us quite the... outburst from her stress, and since some of you seem to be unsure how legit this is, either by my words or hers, so let's have her verify her claims through the only way she can." Lilith suggested.

Whistling once again, everyone looked up to see Bova fly into view, landing before the crowd.

"Heh, I had a feeling you'd ask me to throw down!" Bova smirked.

"So, you want me to prove to everyone I'm the real deal through a small brawl?" Ruihi realized.

She cracked her knuckles, soon giving an excited smirk.

"Count me in." She stated, her aura flaring viciously.

At that moment, Ddraig and Albion finally noticed an oddity in Ruihi's aura.

**[Albion, do that feel that?]** Ddraig questioned.

**(Yeah, definitely a Dragon... strangely enough, I can't tell which one it is, other than its powerful.)** Albion answered.

This stumped them both, proving Crom Cruach was completely hidden from the duo.

"Alright, time to put up the dueling field!" Lilith announced.

The two were transported into a stone arena with large chess pieces surrounding the field, making Ruihi look around.

**{This must be a special arena used when two Devils are set to fight, and it's likely not for fun.}** Crom Cruach realized.

"OK then, let's get started!" Ruihi exclaimed.

After a few seconds passed, a loud alarm went off, signifying the start of the duel.

**「** **Gonna be the Twin Tail: Red Passion** **」**

The artificial descendant of Satan rushed before Bova had any time to react, and screamed loudly as she smashed her left fist into the Dragon's stomach. To everyone's surprise... Bova's eyes widened as he spat out from the intense pain.

"H-how did..." Bova gasped out in shock.

All the Devils watching were shocked silence, their pupils having all shrunk.

"We already saw her speed, but... all she did was punched him, and it already looks like he's gonna keel over!" Issei exclaimed.

"Normally I'd never make a claim like this so easily, but... Issei, I think she's got more physical power than you do." Vali admitted.

Issei's eyes widened at that, but he quickly ended up agreeing with her.

"What's wrong? You need to take a nap?" Ruihi mocked, giving a toothy smirk like she already won.

Bova grunted at that, roaring before flapping his wings, and pushing the Satan heiress back. As Ruihi slid across the ground, he screamed as he unleashed a giant fireball towards her, melting the field as it neared his opponent.

"Let's see you dodge this!" Bova declared.

"Dodge?" Ruihi repeated.

The black-haired Devil laughed at that, getting Bova's attention.

"No, I won't dodge it... I'll shatter it apart!" Ruihi exclaimed with excitement.

Bova's eyes widened at her reply, right as she shifted her body. Reeling her right fist behind her, red energy charged through her veins, glowing like there was fire inside them as her arm began vibrating from the power.

"**Rampancy Impact!**"

Smashing her fist forward, dark red beam-like bursts of power fly out, resembling horizontal lines with ring shapes forming inside, created by a camera filter to color the area they passed by in the same dark red shade. In a moment, they blazed through Bova's fireball, making the Dragon scream as they all rushed right at him, smashing into his chest with even more force than her punch, and instantly slingshot him to the walls, which got shattered by the excess shots that missed him.

The entire audience was shocked at that, the ability she just used? There was only one person who ever had that power...

"Rampancy Impact... there's no more doubts about it, Satan. The only way she could have that power is if you passed it onto her. I may not know how, but she truly is the heir to your name." Lilith breathed with slight nostalgia.

Ruihi smiled as her steaming fist soon sizzled back to its normal temperature.

"Game, set, and match."

* * *

**Ouch... *winces* sorry Bova, but you're gonna be feeling that one for a while, and it's gonna sting!**

**Anyways, now you know, Ruihi's main DNA donor? It's none other than Satan. As for how Rizevim got his hands on that? Well, that's unfortunately a spoiler for next story, but it shouldn't be much longer before it comes out. Anyways, that's also why Ruihi's appearance matches Vali's to a degree, because Lucifer & Satan are sometimes the same person, so I think we all know who Rizevim used for Ruihi's framework.**

**Worst of all? Ruihi's in the perfect spot to be a mole in the Alliance... one that's rightfully hers by blood, and none one's questioning it because no one has any clue about the method of how he created Ruihi, one that won't fully come to light for some time. Although, now one has to question her rage against Zephyrdor. Was is genuine, did she fake it, or is she letting her words become stagnation to Hell's recovery.**

**Either way, this is what I meant about Ruihi's personality. She is not afraid to speak her mind, and tell people like it is, something I think fits one who's descended from the Maou who represents the sin of wrath. Not to mention, Vali was right about Ruihi's raw strength, as she's much more powerful than Issei in physical strength, especially since his Hero heritage makes him better with Ascalon than bare-handed combat.**

**Not everything in this chapter was about her though, because we finally got to see Tiamat's egg hatch... and they had twins! *squees* I don't think many expected me to do this early, but that was part of the surprise, since not seeing it happen this early felt more exciting. That, and a second reason I can't reveal until _much_ later in the trilogy. Either way, that's it for this chapter.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in today's chapter ** **:**

**【** **Rampancy Impact** **】** **  
The power of Satan, and what would have been the Satan Clan's bloodline ability had he not died prior to becoming a Maou, but has been inherited by Ruihi due to the unique nature of her birth. This ability allows the user to unleash rampant energy that strikes the enemy with a hurricane of pure force.**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Tosca - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kirin - Dating  
Esketanus/Hina - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Former is clueless, Latter isn't sure how she feels  
Basara/Mio - Dating  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating  
Cao Cao/Jeanne - Latter has a clear crush, Former's feelings are unknown**


	82. Chapter 82

**Hey everyone, and welcome to the one-year anniversary chapter! I've been saving this update for this very occasion, and boy was it worth the wait, especially with all the reveals in Volume 25. *chuckles* Reveals that I think I was someone psychic too. I won't say what they were, especially since once is for something I've _yet_ to reveal in the story, because it's a JOHD reveal, but... wow.**

**The biggest surprise was hearing Vol 25 is the last one, and the series will now continue as "True Highschool DxD", and secondly... the fact there's a Valkyrie named after Issei and Rossweisse's daughter in the present. Volume 24 already made me and a few others I spoke to believe that the EX novel stopped being canon because of some reveals, but I think this is a good indicator the future in 30 years won't be the one from EX.**

**I do recall one of the team names in the Azazel Cup matches a joke name from the first volume's afterward, so I think at this point... never trust what Ishibumi says, especially since Pokémon and Dragon Ball are always giving him new ideas for DxD. *chuckles* Although, what really caught me by surprise was the fact Ddraig got a LN image, and it's nothing like his anime self! I won't be using that in this story, but I do like the design, so I'll save it for another Dragon.**

**Season 4's also got a new trailer, and we finally know what Kunou likes when she's hiding her tails and ears. It's really cute to finally see it in actual art form, and it looks just like I imagined it ^v^ *giggles* Although, it seems Yasaka does _not_ look like an older Kunou, her design's not bad, but "Older Kunou" it is what you can describe that appearance. I won't be changing how I designed Yasaka in-story, so like Ddraig's LN appearance, I'll probably it use it for a different Kyuubi.**

**Anyways, enough of my gushing over the newest volume and season, now it's onto the start notes.**

**I'm really happy to see that Ruihi was very well received by everyone, and that's a good thing because she's a major character in JOHD, but I can't say any more about that until we actually get there, and we still have this arc to finish before I can start it. Though, considering Crom Cruach is her partner, I have a good feeling most of you already have a slight idea of where I'm going with her.**

**With all that said, I think you'll be happy to hear what this anniversary chapter will be about. Well, as of this chapter... we're finally beginning the Rating Game between Issei and Vali! The fight we've had being prepared for the last few chapters is finally happening, a clash between the Red Dragon Emperor, and the White Dragon Empress, to see how far our two protagonists have come since the very beginning!**

**So, all of you get some food and drink ready, because this battle will be so intense, I can't fit it into a single chapter! I don't know how many it'll be, but right now, I'm estimating at least two or three, because it isn't just Issei and Vali who'll be in the spotlight, but every member of their peerage. Now, time to get this Rating Game started!**

**Now to answer some guest reviews.**

**To Guest:**   
**"No, it's OK. I just didn't want to repeat anything you already knew. Anyways, from Ch 40, Ineelana faces off with Sairaorg, managing to defeat him, and become Vali's opponent in the Championship Match, right as Yasaka's location gets revealed. The group heads to Kyoto, facing off the Hero Faction, who are actually double agents for the Alliance... except Jingu, who's the adoptive daughter of Hades."**

**"Once that's done, the last thing before the Finals begin is the Devil Promotion exams happen, right as Issei's cousin (who later becomes his adoptive sister due to S6's events) comes to announce the Hero Clan will join the alliance. Issei finally becomes a High-Class Devil, while Vali is promoted to Ultimate-Class, leading to the former undergoing the ceremony to make him a King."**

**"His peerage has him make Asuka his Queen, while he's traded Asia, Ravel, Irina, Rossweisse, Yuuma, and Mio. Upon starting the Championship Match, a series of 1 vs 1 battles happen, with votes deciding the victor... except the Elders have rigged the system to make Ineelana win. Good news is that Lilith planned for this, and the Elders end up being exposed."**

**"However, they summon Indra into Hell, who finally decides to kill our main duo like he promised, leaving Zekram to escape with Ruihi, but only after killing the other Elders. Indra eventually falls, and Issei proposes to Vali, right before Hades begins his ultimate invasion with the Khaos Brigade, and starting the Second Great War. From there... well, check Chapter 77, that'll show you how many died."**

**"And... that summarizes everything until now, where everyone's getting ready for Issei and Vali's wedding."**

**To Mario:  
"Aww~ thank you, glad you like this story. For the question about Mio, it's the chapter revisions at work, because Kunou was originally the last member of her peerage. The Elf arc had that changed so she's more like Ophis, the team's mascot of sorts, but only until the events of the Pandemonium arc. Lastly, I'm sorry to tell you this, but I already chose their team names."**

**So, let's get this chapter started!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion, or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig, or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**‹›** \- Important Term, Phrase, or Detail

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle Beginning, or its Result

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Crom Cruach: File 01 **

**The most infamous of the Evil Dragons, better known as the Black Dragon of Ireland that once served under the Evil God Balor before his death at the hands of Lugh, long before his days as the Celtic Pantheon's leader. Among all Evil Dragons, he is the only one that Ddraig and Albion were ever acquainted with, due to being notable Dragons of their own European nations.**

**Around the time of the Great War, he was considered the second strongest of the Evil Dragons, and the 10th Strongest Being in the world; in the present day, the intense training he gave his body and mind after Balor's death has awakened dormant power within him, and now he is the strongest of the Evil Dragons. How much stronger he is hasn't been confirmed, but it was enough that he nearly destroyed the Celtic Pantheon by _himself_.**

**During some unknown point, he allied himself to Qliphoth, having been the first Evil Dragon to join Rizevim, and the reason Walburga knew where to find Orochi to speed up his resurrection cycle. He would act without anyone noticing him, eventually taking an active role in the Second Great War, and nearly bringing the Celtic Pantheon to extinction, with his identity only confirmed by Riser Phenex on his deathbed.**

**When everything else he needed to do was all said and done, he helped gather the last few items Rizevim needed, and then let himself be sealed inside a Sacred Gear for Ruihi to wield as part of her completed awakening, with Euclid making it impossible for other Dragons to notice him by actually revoking his "Evil Dragon" status, and using something else.**

**He's currently with Ruihi, infiltrating the Alliance's ranks through his partner's genetic relation to Satan.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 5 – Clash of Dragons, Part 1 _ **

The black-haired Devil laughed at that, getting Bova's attention.

"No, I won't dodge it... I'll shatter it apart!" Ruihi exclaimed with excitement.

Bova's eyes widened at her reply, right as she shifted her body. Reeling her right fist behind her, red energy charged through her veins, glowing like there was fire inside them as her arm began vibrating from the power.

"**Rampancy Impact!**"

Smashing her fist forward, dark red beam-like bursts of power fly out, resembling horizontal lines with ring shapes forming inside, created by a camera filter to color the area they passed by in the same dark red shade. In a moment, they blazed through Bova's fireball, making the Dragon scream as they all rushed right at him, smashing into his chest with even more force than her punch, and instantly slingshot him to the walls, which got shattered by the excess shots that missed him.

The entire audience was shocked at that, the ability she just used? There was only one person who ever had that power...

"Rampancy Impact... there's no more doubts about it, Satan. I don't know how you did it, but this girl before us, she is truly of your bloodline." Lilith breathed with slight nostalgia.

Ruihi smiled as her steaming fist soon sizzled back to its normal temperature.

"Game, set, and match." Ruihi stated.

The KO'd form of Bova fell to the ground, only the sight of his chest pushing his body up confirming he was still breathing.

"She beat Tannin's strongest son like it was nothing... no way she'd be able to accomplish that without training if she didn't have power of an Ultimate-Class Devil, and only the Maou Clans can bear children at that level of strength." Ineelana stated in awe.

"Then that means Hell's finally got the bloodlines of both Lucifer's right hand, and left hand among the Maou." Leelexe agreed.

Ineelana chuckled a bit, a nervous sweat on her face.

"I can't tell if I should be happy, worried, nervous, or all of the above..." The Leviathan heiress admitted.

As the two were brought back to the ground, Ruihi walked off into the crowd, hoping she'd attracted a certain duo as she did.

"Excuse me, Ruihi?" Vali called out.

'Like bees to a honey trap.' She smirked.

The Satan heiress turned to the twin Dragons, giving a bored look.

"What?" Ruihi questioned.

Vali held a hand up, making Ruihi look at it.

"I thought I should introduce myself, my name's Valiana Lucifer, but everyone calls me Vali." She greeted with a smile.

"And I'm her soon to be husband, Issei Akane." Issei greeted.

Ruihi's eyes widened a bit at the mention of the word husband, looking at the two.

"Wait, but aren't you two only..." Ruihi questioned.

"We actually died once, so we're not waiting to die again before we do it." Vali explained.

"That's... actually good reasoning, I think?" Ruihi replied.

Ruihi soon noticed the lights of their Sacred Gears appeared on their dominant hands, and she pretended to be surprised.

**["Hmm... even up close, I can't sense who the Dragon within her is."]** Ddraig wondered.

**("Perhaps its merely a High-Class Dragon with a rampant aura, I wonder if she even knows she has a Sacred Gear.")** Albion theorized.

Ruihi blinked at the sight, pretending to be a bit nervous.

"What... the hell?" Ruihi questioned.

"Oh, uh... it's a long story, but one of the strongest Dragons in the world lives in each of us." Vali chuckled nervously.

"That what they meant by their comments about a Sacred Gear or whatever?" Ruihi asked.

The two nervously scratched their heads, prompting Ruihi to look at their hands.

"Hey, let me ask the two of you something." Ruihi smiled with closed eyes, not fitting her usual expression.

"Piss off, you body probing bastards." She suddenly glared, looking just like she normally did.

The two Dragons went silent at that, making their hosts blink.

"You're not afraid of saying anything, are you?" Issei realized.

"Nope, I'll say whatever crap I want, and no one's gonna tell me otherwise. That's how it's always been for me." Ruihi confirmed.

As that was happening, Lilith walked up to the trio, tapping Ruihi's shoulder.

"I don't mean to interrupt, but I think it's time we get you set up here." Lilith mentioned.

"But how? You thought my apparent ancestor was dead, so how can there by anything for a Satan Clan to be stationed at?" Ruihi inquired.

Lilith soon gave an awkward chuckle, making Ruihi's eye twitch.

"Wait, are you saying there's a region's worth of land you had set to honor Satan!?" Issei realized.

"Considering she had clothing set for the Satan clan she's always wearing at important Devil's events, I'm not surprised she's got so much of that set." Vali sighed.

"He was like your father's best of best friends, it only felt right we give such a monument to Satan." Lilith replied as she rubbed her neck, a sweat drop on her face.

Ruihi face palmed, groaning a bit.

**{'This could be a long day...'}** Crom Cruach realized.

* * *

The black-haired Satan soon found herself in a house within the Satan Memorial land, having now become the Satan Clan's territory with her existence. She blinked a few times, surprised at what she was seeing. Lilith kneeled to her, getting her attention.

"All of this belongs to you, but don't think you'll be living in it alone." Lilith smiled at her.

"What does that mean?" Ruihi questioned.

Lilith giggled a bit, walking out the door to Ruihi's surprise... followed by the Satan heiress noticing something about part of her hair.

"Uh... Crom, we both saw that, right?" Ruihi asked.

**{"I saw it too, but let's not focus on it, she implied this house has other residents. I'm assuming there are people that work here."}** Crom Cruach replied.

"Ah, you must be Ruihi." A female voice stated.

Hearing the voice, Crom instantly went silent, while Ruihi looked up to see a woman walk into view. She had an incredibly buxom figure, with long, flowing dark violet hair, and the same golden-yellow eyes as Ruihi.

"Uh... yeah, that's me. You some kind of maid assigned here or something?" Ruihi replied.

"No, it would be more accurate to say that I'm the closest thing to being someone who could own this area of land, without officially bearing the name of Satan." The woman shook her head as she answered.

"OK, no vague word shit, just say what you mean." Ruihi said bluntly, squinting her eyes in annoyance.

"The way you speak... it seems that Satan somehow lives through you." The woman said longingly.

Hearing the way she spoke, Ruihi suddenly flinched.

"Wait... as in, you knew him?" Ruihi realized.

"I didn't just know him, back before he died, he promised we'd get married when he finally made it here. Unfortunately, he couldn't keep that promise because there was another he had to keep even more." The woman answered.

Ruihi's eyes widened, understanding this woman's identity.

"You were Satan's girlfriend, weren't you?" Ruihi realized.

The woman looked at her, giving a smile on her somber face as she nodded her head, and then looked at Ruihi.

"My name is Fiara Amore, unofficially called Fiara Satan to all of Hell." Fiara introduced herself.

Before Ruihi could even realize it, she was suddenly being hugged, making her entire face red at the uncomfortable feeling. Strangely enough, she couldn't respond or move to try and escape it.

"The only way you could have been Satan's natural ancestor is through me, so I can tell that's not the case." Fiara stated as she hugged her.

'Shit, she knows something's up!' Ruihi panicked.

She closed her eyes, making Ruihi realize she didn't sense any feelings of suspicion from her.

"I don't know how you came into this world, but there must be a way, and regardless of what it is... your presence makes you like the child we never got to have. So, I'd like to say this to you, Ruihi." Fiara smiled.

"Welcome to our family."

Ruihi still couldn't response, and perhaps in this case... it was better she had nothing to say.

* * *

Later on, in the early evening of the night before the game, Vali was seen tapping a pencil against a notebook, trying to figure out what kind of plan she should make for her Rating Game against Issei... with little success.

"Damn... if my peerage was mostly the same, it wouldn't be this hard. Then again, maybe it isn't the fact my team is smaller, but that I've got two pieces less than Issei." Vali mused, putting a finger to her mouth as she kept thinking.

"A six against eight battle, and we don't even know what kind of Rating game we'll be having. There's no way I'd have enough time to get more pieces, so... what can I do?" She wondered.

Right as she started thinking again, she heard a knock at the door.

"It's open!" Vali alerted them.

Walking inside, she saw Lavinia and Tobio walk into the room, surprising her as she saw her old friend and half-sister.

"Tobio, Lavinia!" She replied, rushing to hug them.

"Happy to see you too, Vali." Lavinia hugged her back.

Tobio chuckled, ruffling her hair a bit.

"It looks like you're working hard on that Rating Game strategy." Tobio remarked.

"Yeah, but I'm not having much luck on anything solid. Guess that's what happens when you trade so many of your old retainers to your fiancé." Vali replied.

"I think I have some advice to help you there, but first... we came here for more than a small visit." Lavinia offered, holding her hand out.

Vali looked at her hand, seeing her open it to reveal the same Butterfly she saw on her one date with Issei.

"Hey, I remember you. Issei mentioned something about how you might be representing my mother watching over me." Vali giggled, seeing it land on her finger.

"He wasn't wrong."

Suddenly, Vali looked around in surprise as she recognized that voice, a voice she knew only belonged to one person.

That person... was her deceased birth mother.

"That voice, it's... Lavinia, where is she!?" Vali asked, breathing heavily.

Lavinia smiled before she placed her finger on Vali's head, turning it towards their mother's location, which happened to be... the very butterfly on her finger. The White Dragon Empress' eyes widened as she briefly saw the visage of her mother's human form in place of the blue-winged insect.

"My little girl, it's been so long." Mary replied in a sniffling tone.

"M-mom... this is... I can't believe it!" Vali stuttered, covering her mouth as her eyes teared up.

She collapsed to her knees, soon holding out both hands.

"But... how? I saw you die, so how are you here? Like this?" Vali asked, tears flowing out.

"Back then, when I smiled at you..." Mary answered.

* * *

_Knowing this was her end, Mary sniffled before giving the brightest smile she could manage._

_"Vali, you're not his slave anymore, so go... become who you want to be, and stop his evil from plaguing this world." Mary stated, closing her eyes as she accepted her coming fate._

_"Mommy!" Vali cried._

_In just mere seconds, Rizevim attacked them both, making Vali's eyes widen in horror as her mother's life was snuffed out. Her dead body was still smiling, making Rizevim grit his teeth as it stole all the satisfaction of killing her. As Vali finally ran away, causing Rizevim to give chase... Mary's body began to glow, and dissipated as it flew into her lingering soul._

_Her last magic spell finally completed itself, causing her soul to wisp through the air, right at the moment Vali fell off the cliff edge. Neither she, or Rizevim noticed a faint glow around her, transforming into the white, blue-winged butterfly she was now. As Vali crashed onto the ground, heavily hurt as her eyes gained a lifeless look, shedding tears at the loss of her mother._

_"Vali, even though you may not be able to see it's me as I am, even though it could be years before I can tell you... I'll always be looking your way, as your spirit guardian." Mary promised._

_Flying off, she soon attracted the attention of the nearby Azazel, who looked towards the apparent butterfly._

_"Aw, what a cute little-" Azazel smiled._

_Mary flew into the path that Vali was at, causing Azazel's eyes to dart to that direction, and notice her._

_"Oh god, that little girl's hurt!" He stated before rushing towards her._

* * *

Vali showed surprise as she heard that.

"You... it was you, the reason Azazel found was because you guided him to me." Vali breathed in shock.

"I did, because I knew that he'd lead you to Lilith, who I knew really needed you. Unfortunately, the cost of this means I can't be revived as who I once was... I'm sorry." Mary confirmed, lowering her head.

Vali shook her head, smiling a bit.

"Mom, I never thought I'd ever get to talk to you again, or see you again... never show you how I grew up. And yet, all along, you were there to see it." Vali reassured her, sniffling a bit.

Mary's butterfly eyes sparkled, mimicking her tears in her current form. As she watched, Lavinia cried as well, having already talked with her on the way here... right as that happened, Mary's body began to glow.

**「** **One Piece: Queen Otohime's Last Words** **」**

"Mom? What's happening to you?" Vali asked confusion.

Mary's own sniffles were heard as she flapped into the air, looking at her two children.

"My time has finally come, I've finally done my job, and now... I can finally move on to my next life. I wish I could stay, but... I thank you both for letting me see you one last time." Mary apologized, sniffling as she wished things were different.

Vali's eyes widened at that, but soon took a deep breath, wanting to show her she had no worries.

"Don't worry, I'll be OK... I have Issei, and my sister, and Lilith taking good care of me... so, you don't have to worry! No matter who you are in your next life, I'll make you proud of me!" Vali reassured her, crying as she smiled.

Lavinia cried the same one, but nodded her head to give the same smile to her.

"Vali... Lavinia... thank you for being my children, and letting me live and die... with no regrets. To the very end, I was truly happy." Mary thanked them.

"I love you both."

At that moment, her body disappeared, and a ghostly apparition of her previous form showed itself. Giving one last tearful smile, the two saw their mother disappear, finally getting to move on. The two finally broke down, holding each other as they cried.

Despite it not being his family, Tobio began to tear up as well, feeling the pure emotion of the bittersweet feelings of what had been a reunion... and a final farewell.

"If you have to lose someone, you should... at least get the chance to say goodbye to them." He stated.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

From outside the hall, Lilith heard everything that happened, and had been brought to tears herself, covering her mouth so the others didn't hear her.

"Vali, your mother... she was amazing. I promise you that I won't let her down." Lilith promised herself.

As she wiped her eyes, she briefly got a glimpse of her own hair... right as she noticed part of it was a rhodium plated white gold, not black!

Right then, she realized she was seeing her former hair color.

'My hair is... no way, that can't be! How's it changing back? Lilith thought in surprise.

Looking around, she quickly used magic to hide her changing hair color.

'I can't let anyone know... not yet.' Lilith thought sadly, remembering the reason behind her black hair.

Without even noticing it, the black of her hair that had disappeared? It suddenly crawled across the ground as a shadowy mist, heading somewhere, for a reason that would be unknown to even itself for the time being.

* * *

Issei was waiting inside his and Vali's room, looking at the ceiling as he sat on the bed, right as he heard Vali come in. Looking up, she noticed her eyes were all puffy, making him realize she had been crying.

"Vali? What's wrong? Why are you crying?" Issei asked.

"Issei..." Vali sniffled.

She rushed to him, knocking him back down onto the bed before crying again making her look him in the eyes.

After a few minutes, Issei's eyes widened as he heard everything.

"That butterfly... really was your mother? All this time?" Issei said in disbelief.

"She was, and now... she's moved on." Vali sniffled.

Issei hugged her closer, rubbing her back as she got the last of her sniffles out of her system, eventually drying her eyes too much for her to shed anymore tears.

"Are you gonna be OK?" Issei asked worriedly.

"Yeah... I think I'll be OK. Even if she's gone, and reincarnated into a new life, now I know that all this time... she was watching me. She got to see me grow up, fall in love, and make so many wonderful friends. That's enough for me." She sniffled once more before smiling.

Issei smiled, putting his forehead against yours.

"You're not alone, and you've never been. That's why..." Issei reassured her.

Vali suddenly felt Issei push her down onto the bed, holding himself over her. Vali blushed as she realized what this was implying.

"Issei..." She breathed, blushing a bit.

"Tomorrow, we'll be facing off against each other, but for tonight? I'm here for you." He promised her.

Vali smiled at that, closing her eyes as she motioned her mouth for a kiss. Closing his left hand over her right hand, he lowered himself to give her that kiss, one with incredible passion that would have likely made anyone other than Vali pass out from its intensity.

The door suddenly closed, blocking off the sight as Asuka walked in front of it, closing her eyes as she smiled, holding up a sign saying: "Nope!"

* * *

Finally, after a long wait in the works, the Rating Game between the Red and White Dragon Emperor had finally arrived! Many were getting seated around various area with magical spheres to let them view the match, while those who managed to afford a ticket were at the stadium used for the Championship match of the Rating Game Tournament, where they'd get to see the match in person.

Among those in Hell, one could see Murayama, Katase, Matsuda and Motohama reaching the VIP area, where Homura waved them over. Finally making it, the four sat down, making the Akane matriarch giggle.

"Glad you managed to find your way here." Homura smiled.

"I didn't think traversing through Hell would be so hard, clearly... I had no idea what I was getting into." Murayama panted.

Katase grabbed some water, handing a bottle to her fellow Kendo co-captain.

"So, Aunt Homura? These Rating Games... are they really that big of an entertainment for Devils?" Katase asked.

Homura nodded her head, looking at the two.

"They are, when the original Great War happened, the Devils were pushed to extinction because they have lower birthrates than Humans do. So, they eventually made a system to turn people into Devils, eventually creating the Evil Pieces that made this sport event we're about to see." She explained.

"Although, with how his Evil Pieces have changed, he's currently the only non-Devil with a peerage." Ayumu added.

Looking at the field again, the two wondered what they'd see.

"Oh, and remind me after this that I should speak with you two about something." Homura mentioned.

"Hmm?" They both looked at her.

"Don't think too hard about it right now, but considering your Uncle and I are both Heroes... you may need to wonder how much you really know about your heritage." Homura waved in response.

Hearing that, the two looked at each other confused.

"Uh... did you get any of that?" Matsuda asked his fellow man.

"No, no I did not." Motohama answered.

From a different spot in the crowd, Ruihi was seen sitting with a bored look, annoyed by the long wait she was having to endure.

"Seriously, someone start this match already!" Ruihi groaned loudly.

**{'I'm curious to see it in person, the two who've proven to you they earned the right to share the same titles as you... Ddraig, Albion.'}** Crom Cruach thought, watching intensely.

Once everyone was seated, and everything had gotten into order, Naud Gamigin slid into the announcer's spot, ready to start his role like he always had.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome one and all to our first post-tournament, and post-war Rating Game! Since I know many of you from the Human world have no idea who I am, allow me to introduce myself! I'm Naud Gamigin, a Devil from the Gamigin Clan, a member of Hell's media department, and the official announcer for all Rating Games!**

The usual crowd cheered as his announcements began, followed by Naud clearing his throat.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Anyways, since we've got a large new crowd, let me start things off by explaining the concept of the Rating Games to you. Each team has a leader who's marked as a King, while they have five to fifteen teammates based on Chess Pieces, and can represent anywhere between one or all of one piece! The goal is to beat the opposing King, while also dealing with any special rules the match has set.**

**Pawns have no benefits, but if they reach the enemy's base, they can promote to anything besides a King. Knights are fast and best with weapons, Bishops are the magical experts or medics, while the Rooks have incredible strength and defense. The queens are special, having all the benefits of the previous three pieces, as well as empower their king the same way... provided they're a good pair that is. With that, you've got the main gist of things.**

With his explanation finished, Naud soon hit a button, causing the entire arena area to suddenly turn dark as night.

**「** **Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Vivid Strike: Brave Strike - Instrumental** **」**

Fireworks suddenly went off, lightning area various spotlights of red, white, green, and blue covered the area.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Now, time to introduce our two teams!**

The red lights all gathered around the west gate, and that's when everyone saw green smoke come out, showing none other than Issei walking into view from the darkness.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
From the West Gate, we have our newest King, the amazing Super Rookie who reached High-Class in just two months, and the man known as the Red Dragon Emperor! I give you, the leader of Team Red Dragon Emperor of the Blazing Truth... Issei Akane!**

Issei walked into view, making everyone cheer as they saw him come into view. Following behind him, his teammates slowly followed.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Now, for the members of his peerage! She's a member of the Hero Clan's Aoyama bloodline, gifted by the blood of the Moon Goddess Tsukuyomi, and was recently adopted as Issei's younger sister! I give you, Issei's Queen... Asuka Aoyama!**

Asuka waved to the crowd, giving a shy blush of embarrassment.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**She's the younger sister of Alanira Phenex, the Devil acting as Hell's temporary Maou of Greed position, while also acting the team's strategist and manager! I give you, Issei's First Bishop... Ravel Phenex!**

Ravel walked into view, her eyes closed to give her an air of confidence in the eyes of the crowd.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
She was once known as the Holy Maiden of the Vatican Church, a powerful healer, and a descendant of the Dragon Tamers who currently holds the power of the mischievous Jade Dragon: Yu-Long! I give you, Issei's Second Bishop... Asia Argento!**

Asia gave a shy blush, waving towards everyone as many of the people she helped began cheering for her on sight.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
This lovely Half-Angel's heart is as golden as her hair, while also being the granddaughter of Gabriel, and the Princess of Heaven! I give you, Issei's Knight... Irina Shidou!**

Irina gave an open-mouthed smile, waving both her hands happily as she turned her head left and right.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
She's a lovely Valkyrie that might just become the new paramour of the current Norse Pantheon leader, and the daughter to the current leader of the Valkyries, Brynhildr! I give you, Issei's First Rook... Rossweisse Brynhildr!**

Rossweisse blushed as Naud said that, which also made Vidar hide from where he was watching. Irina slowed down a bit to pat her back.

"Why did he have to say that first part?" Rossweisse groaned.

"You know Naud by now, that guy likes to make a production out of all his announcements." Irina chuckled.

The Valkyrie sighed at that, making the golden-haired Angel near her ear.

"Out of curiosity, where are you with him?" Irina asked.

"We're... kinda... mostly... very likely to start... dating-ish?" Rossweisse answered with a blush.

Irina covered her mouth, smiling a bit.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
If you try to pick on this Demon, you'll learn she's the second red of this team to fear, while also being the daughter of the Demon Queen herself! I give you, Issei's Second Rook... Mio Naruse!**

Mio had her arms crossed with closed eyes, soon opening them as she looked forward, easing in a sweet-looking smile.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**And last, but definitely not least, she's a little timid, but this Princess of the Fallen Angels makes the word versatility become a synonym for deadly! I give you, Issei's Pawn... Yuuma Amano!**

Yuuma shyly looked away from the cameras, giving a weak wave to the crowd.

Following everyone's reveals, the east gate had all of the white lights focus towards it, followed by blue smoke coming out. As Vali could be seen walking into view from the darkness of her side.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**And from the East Gate, the current champion of the Rookie Supernova generation, the Devil Youths as a whole, and the woman known as the White Dragon Empress! I give you, the leader of Team White Dragon Emperor of the Morning Star... Valiana Lucifer!**

Vali soon appeared on the field, carrying the Championship belt over her left shoulder, raising a hand into the air as all the Devils cheered without any restraint. Someone came onto the field to take her belt for her, and the rest of her team slowly followed behind.

"Hope everyone's ready to be surprised." Vali smiled.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
She was originally just her manager, and aid in her battle plans, but now has now joined her team since Issei's become independent, and is the current heiress of the Lucifuge Clan that's considered Vali's twin due to their unique origins! I give you, Vali's Queen... Yumina Lucifuge!**

Yumina chose to teleport into view, rather than walk in, making the crowd gasp in surprise, before cheering at her unique entrance.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**She's a descendant of Camelot's King Arthur, but named after his one mage of a sister, Morgan Le Fay, and a powerful magic user that has no intentions of making her brother her enemy! I give you, Vali's Bishop... Le Fay Pendragon!**

Le Fay giggled as she flew on her broom, winking cutely to the excitement of many boys.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
And now, for her brother, who is named after the very ruler I just mentioned, while being the wielder of the legendary sword he once called his own, the mighty Caliburn! I give you, Vali's Knight... Arthur Pendragon!**

Arthur walked onto view, doing nothing else as he kept his usual expression.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
His ancestor was the victorious fighting Buddha, who you likely know as Sun Wukong, but unfortunately perished during the Great War, leaving his legacy in his hands! I give you, Vali's First Rook, who has inherited his great ancestor's name in his honor... Sun Bikou!**

Bikou swerved into the field on the Flying Nimbus, making many gasp as he did. He jumped off before landing by his teammates.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**And for the final member of her peerage, she was once wrongly accused as a Stray Devil, who we ranked at SS-Class, and had the power to rival an Ultimate-Class Devil, as well as one of the last two Nekoshou left in the world! I give you, Vali's Second Rook... Kuroka Toujou!**

Kuroka walked into view, giving a seductive look with her finger to her mouth, making many men scream at her sexiness before they fainted.

Vali's team suddenly stopped, confusing everyone as they did.

"Alright, come on out you two!" Vali announced as she turned to face the East Gate.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Hmm? What is... wait, I don't believe it!**

Most of the crowd was shocked to see none other than Tobio Ikuse, and Lavinia Reni walk onto the field, both wearing Vali's team uniform.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Tobio Ikuse, and Lavinia Reni? Wait a minute, if those two are walking with her team, then does that mean they're...**

Both of them instantly held up a used Evil Piece, showing a Knight and Bishop respectively.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Holy! Everyone, it seems Vali was saving this reveal for just this moment, because it seems Tobio Ikuse, and Lavinia Reni have become her Second Knight, and Second Bishop! That means both sides have an even 8 VS 8 force!**

**To those who don't know, Tobio is the leader of the Slash/Dog Team, and the one who rescued the students from the Ryoukuu High Boat Disaster! Lavinia Reni is a member of the team, but she and Vali are also Half-Sisters through her birth mother!**

Vali stood by them, holding their hands up as the crowd cheered.

**「** **Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha - Vivid Strike: Brave Strike** **」**

Both sides walked onto the field, and the newest barrier formed, creating a powerful alternate Dimension based on the continent of Lemuria. This new field was just fit in so there would no longer be incidents that could completely annihilated the protective barrier.

"Somehow, I had a feeling they might join her." Irina giggle.

"Yeah, me too." Asia smiled.

Taking a deep breath, Vali focused her aura, making a visible light blue aura cover her body as her magical power flowed through her very veins.

Issei moved his hand to his sheath, soon drawing out the Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi from it.

"Vali, this is the proof of how far I've come, and now we're finally here... standing as equals, ready to show the world what we represent." Issei quietly said to himself.

The two readied themselves, smiling at one another.

"You ready, Issei?" Vali asked.

"Give me your best shot!" Issei responded.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Everyone cheered at this, and Naud cleared his throat, getting everyone's attention for some final rules.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Alright, first off, I think it's time we reveal what type of Rating Game we're playing and it's... a normal Rating Game! These two are going to give it all they've got, so we're not going to restrict them at all, meaning the first Heavenly Dragon to be retired decides the game!**

Many looked excited for that, implying it was the type of Rating Game everyone wanted to see the twin dragons have.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Also, as Vali lacks any Pawns due to the trades she made with Issei upon him receiving his Evil Pieces, we'll have Yuuma be promoted into a Knight so each side's even, which will also represent the Dragons they carry inside their Longinus being equally matched rivals.**

**Now, let the Rating Game... Begin!**

Everyone watched intensely, with both sides preparing themselves as they were teleported to their respective sides of the battlefield.

Upon getting the signal, Ravel and Yumina instantly laid out a map of the battlefield, preparing their strategy against the other side. As that was happening, both Kings summoned their familiars, causing Tiamat and Fafnir to appear by their sides.

"Tiamat, you're the expert on Lemuria, what can we expect?" Ravel asked.

"The area is mostly fertile land, or high mountains, perfect for most larger creatures, and allowing flight where you can hide or take cover." Tiamat answered.

Ravel thought for a moment, soon moving everyone's Evil Pieces into place.

"Alright, then we should only have you and Asia be around the mountain areas, as her summoning Yu-Long will give us an advantage there. Though I think its best you stay in the skies to keep Fafnir at bay." Ravel suggested.

"Sure thing, Fafnir's just the right opponent I can go full power against." Tiamat agreed.

"Vali will most likely hear the same thing from Fafnir, so that means Lavinia will likely go that way using her Longinus. Yu-Long's probably our best bet since I need to wait until there's no choice but for me to enter the battlefield." Issei theorized.

* * *

Meanwhile on Vali's side, Yumina placed the Queen piece at an open area.

"This area will be best for my rapid teleporting, and while not completely safe for me, it's the best way to draw out Asuka, since I'm sure Ravel will factor her Kusanagi's winds into sending her there." Yumina suggested.

"Sounds risky, but I guess with how I've done my Rating Games, Issei will fight us the same way." Vali agreed.

Her thoughts then went to Mio, who was the only one she had no way to predict.

"Mio recently became the wielder of the Incinerate Anthem, so I can't really factor her. We'll have to just choose someone and bet they'll be able to handle her." Vali realized.

Yumina looked at the team, and then looked at Kuroka.

"Kuroka, I think you're the strongest person we've got that we can afford to gamble against Mio's Longinus, you up for it?" Yumina inquired.

"I can handle the challenge, no problem." Kuroka replied confidently.

Le Fay soon thought of something.

"What about Issei, how will he act in all of this?" She asked.

"No worries on that, since this Rating Game would be fairly boring if either he or Vali went out from the start, he's most likely acting the same way. He'll likely stand by until he's forced to move." Arthur answered.

"Well, I guess for the rest of the field more fitting to non-Dragons, we'll spread out." Tobio suggested.

Yumina nodded as their strategy was set, rolling up the map.

"Alright, take to the skies, Fafnir." Vali smiled, wishing him luck.

"I'll do my best." Fafnir replied.

He flew up into the air, preparing to encounter Tiamat while he was there.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Tiamat and Fafnir are both familiars, so I should clarify to those not in the know that unless they take out the enemy King, their presence in the game doesn't really matter. On the plus side? It doesn't mean we won't see some high-powered fighting from them, so they'll give us a flashy show of their own!**

Lavinia quickly headed towards the mountains, making her team's first move of the game.

* * *

Within the mountain area, Asia held tightly onto the Jade Sea Treasure, with Tiamat flying overhead of her as she kept an eye out for Fafnir.

"Yu-Long, do you sense anyone nearby us?" Asia asked her partner.

**«"Not yet, but if I'm being honest... I'm terrible at that!"»** Yu-Long replied, laughing after he she said it.

Asia face faulted at that, right as Tiamat noticed a familiar golden speck in the sky.

"Asia! Fafnir's here, so keep an eye out!" Tiamat warned.

The Bishop of Akane gasped as she kept an eye out for her surroundings, which is when Yu-Long finally caught something.

"Looks like they sent a real sister against the adoptive sister." The Jade Dragon warned.

Turning around, Asia saw Lavinia walk into view, making her jump back slightly.

"Hello there, Asia. It looks like we'll be each other's first opponents in this Rating Game." Lavinia greeted with a smile.

"Y-yeah, it looks that way." Asia nodded in reply.

Tapping the snowflake charm she wore in her hair, a glow bright glow shot out from it.

"I apologize in advance, but I won't be holding back, so I hope you don't mind that you're fighting the "Demise Girl" of Slash/Dog." Lavinia apologized.

"**Absolute Demise!**"

**«"Here she comes!"»** Yu-Long warned.

Asia tapped her pendant, causing an emerald glow to shine out from it.

"**Balance Breaker - Call of the Jade Empress!**"

An icy cyclone formed around Lavinia, forming the avatar Yama-Uba with Lavinia sitting on its right shoulder as its eyes slashed to life. Simultaneously, the emerald glow was followed with the Green Dragoness' Human form appearing, followed by her taking the powerful Eastern Dragon form she was known for, which curled through the air to let Asia get on her back.

Meanwhile, up in the skies above them, the two Dragon Kings smashed heads together, neither of them willing to let the other win the clash. Their showdown ultimately ended in a draw, the both of them pushed back as they stared each other down.

"It's quite ironic, don't you think? Our mates have always been in the rivalry, but we've now become familiars to their current hosts, and now we're fighting as they did." Fafnir chuckled, staring her down.

"That isn't something I care much for, but for the here and now? It is time to see how two strongest of the unsealed Dragon Kings do when they face off against each other!" Tiamat replied.

Hearing the challenge Tiamat gave him, Fafnir charged the Chaos Karma Dragon with all his might. After clashing again, the recoil blew a strong wind that smashed the nearby clouds away, with the nearby mountain taps shredded them in pieces.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Look at those two! All of that power from the clashing Dragon Kings is so intense, if they were fighting near the ground, all their team mates would be blown away by the force!**

Opening their mouths, Fafnir unleashed his fearsome metal breath, while Tiamat released her signature blue flames, which clashed in the air to form a massive sphere of the two forces. Seeing it, the crowd all gave a silent gasp of awe, before cheering loudly.

This Rating Game... had only gotten started.

* * *

**And the game has begun, with Asia meeting up with Lavinia, and each side's Dragon Kings beginning a powerful battle. Fafnir might be weaker than Tiamat, but he's still fairly powerful himself, being the 12th Strongest Being in the world as of the current list, so he'll still be able to give her some challenges. As for Asia and Yu-Long, how will they fair against Lavinia, who's one of the strongest magicians?**

**That scene with the butterfly... it was one of the hardest scenes I've ever had to write due to the raw emotion behind it. Throughout the story, you've likely noticed all of those scenes with the butterfly, which was usually followed by seeing an apparition of Vali's mother smiling down on her. Issei may have told her what butterflies represent, but for her mom to actually be the butterfly? I don't think many people in-universe would expect that.**

**However, that's why this scene was so hard to write... I began it knowing it was going to end in tears. Making a happy moment suddenly turn sad like that in a way that already had some sadness to it? Nothing like writing a scene that's just sad. In the end, Vali's had part of the hole in her heart filled by knowing her mother was always watching, and for her last moments happening in less tragic terms than the last time she saw her.**

**Finally, there's our last surprise, in the form of meeting the woman that would have been Satan's wife had he not died. In the area that's officially become the Satan Clan with Ruihi's appearance, she's been living there ever since Hell's founding, as it's technically the only thing she has left of him. That's enough to tell her that however she has Satan's heritage, it isn't the traditional way.**

**Luckily for Ruihi, Fiara doesn't suspect her, thinking she has her deceased lover's power through something like reincarnation, though unlucky for her, Fiara's attempts to be motherly are gonna make it hard for her to do her work as a mole. At the very least, she's taking a close look at the Rating Game, so she's at least getting her work on watching their skills done.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

**A/N: Fiara looks like Reine Murasame from Date A Live when her hair is untied, like in Season 2: Episode 3. Her bust size is 102 cm.**

* * *

**Issei's Peerage****:** Team Red Dragon Emperor of the Blazing Truth

**King - Issei Akane**   
**Queen - Asuka Aoyama**   
**Bishops - Ravel Phenex, Asia Argento**   
**Knights - Irina Shidou, Unclaimed Knight**   
**Rooks - Rossweisse Brynhildr, Mio Naruse**   
**Pawns - Yuuma Amano, Seven Unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

**Vali's Peerage****:** Team White Dragon Emperor of the Morning Star

**King - Vali Lucifer**   
**Queen - Yumina Lucifuge**   
**Bishops - Le Fay Pendragon, Lavinia Reni**   
**Knights - Arthur Pendragon, Tobio Ikuse**   
**Rooks - Sun Bikou, Kuroka Toujou**   
**Pawns - Eight Unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in today's chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Tosca - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kuisha - Dating  
Rossweisse/Vidar - Likely to start Dating  
Hina/Nanami - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Former is clueless, Latter isn't sure how she feels  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating  
Cao Cao/Jeanne - Jeanne has a clear crush, Cao Cao's feelings are unknown**


	83. Chapter 83

**Phew... sorry for such a long delay between chapters everyone, but getting all of Season 4 revised before the next chapter has been taking longer than I expected. I only decided to forgo that four chapters in because I had to make a chapter today for all of you, and why is that? *smiles* Because, today is my birthday! I figured that since you can't give me presents, I'll give you one through this chapter, and three others.**

**Also, for those of you who remember me mentioning a story that would act as the "Denpachi" of this story? That's one of those chapters, along with a new update for "Legend of the Slash Dogs", so you could say this is a triple update for the "Heavenly Dragon" series in general. This new story is about Nanami and Hina, and is called "Legend of the Twin Longinus."**

**Now, as a fair reminder due to it being nearly two months since the I've made a new chapter instead of revising one, and because of a few guest reviews I've gotten? Due to how the revision's going right now, if there's something that doesn't match the chapter before it, then it's likely a revision change. However, that's also why I've been trying to revise entire seasons at a time since recently, so the number of chapter that occurs in is lessened.**

**With that said, I'd like to give a big thanks to Ishibumi and the Passione animation studio for actually showing us the battle with Connla in Volume 7, as seeing that helped me a lot in figuring out some offensive and defensive ways to use Yumina's powers. That was something I was worried about, but now I'm confident that I'll do it right.**

**Also, for those who have been waiting for the answer to this? I've finally decided who the Best Man and the Ring Bear will be, so it's time for me to reveal who they are. For a quick reminder, in Ch 78, it was said that Irina was the Maid of Honor, and Asia was the Flower Girl. *clears throat* The winners are... Cao-Cao for the Best Man, and Bikou for the Ring Bear!**

**Before we officially begin the chapter, I have an important thing to say about the story that some of you have been asking me for a while, how many chapters are left in this story before we move onto the sequel? After doing some thought, I can definitely say that this Rating Game will take 5 chapters, which will bring us to 86 chapter.**

**Combine that with a chapter focused on Ruihi, one for the Bachelor/Bachelorette parties, the wedding chapter, and then finally a small epilogue that will bridge the two stories together? Add all of those, and this story will end on Chapter 90, so excluding this chapter, there's only seven more before the Journey of the Heavenly Dragons will finally start up.**

**That's all for today's start notes, so let's finally get this chapter started!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion, or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig, or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**‹›** \- Important Term, Phrase, or Detail

**_Bold Italic Underline_** \- Major Battle Beginning, or its Result

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Satan Clan **

**The third of the now _seven_ Maou Clans that helped create all of Hell, which has technically existed since Hell's founding, but never been official due to Satan's death before the founding of Hell, leaving no Maou to represent the Deadly Sin of Wrath. A common claim among younger Devils is that had he lived to the day of Hell's founding, he would have been considered Lucifer's left hand.**

**A sign of their power comes from their bloodline ability, the ‹Rampancy Impact›, which is based on the deadly sin the clan is associated with. As the name implies, the Rampancy Impact is literally a rampage of power that will strike the enemy with overwhelming force and fury. Even the Dragons, who are known for their durability, are unable to defend against this power, and will take a serious blow if they don't evade it.**

**When faced against another attack, this overwhelming mass of power will often smash right through it, and most shields will likely shatter under the weight of the attack. Attacks that try to rebound it may have more luck, but it can still be a challenge to properly deflect it. Despite this ability's strength, powers that don't try to resist it will often be the ones to come out on top, especially if they redirect it.**

**Other powers the clan have include the shared Maou Clan ability of holy light not being fatal to them like with other Devils, not suffering a drop in cognitive ability or planning when angered, being able to go up to 200% of the body's natural limits, manipulate heat (but not fire) or electricity, and cannot have their bones broken under any condition.**

**With the arrival of Ruihi Satan, after an eternity without the Satan Clan, the Devil race will have the influence of the Maou that never was through her. Though as the Clan has unofficially existed just to honor Satan's name, everything will have to be started from scratch through the efforts of herself, Satan's girlfriend, and the Abaddon Clan, leaving them as a blank slate for the moment.**

**Unfortunately, no one knows the truth about why Ruihi is related to Satan, or who she's truly allied with...**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 6 – Clash of Dragons, Part 2 _ **

Rushing through part of the open fields, Yumina kept her eye out for anyone that might intercept her.

"If my predictions are right, the one that Ravel should be sending this way is either Irina, or-" Yumina said to herself.

"**Azure Wind!**"

Yumina instantly reacted to the attack name, and used her teleporting ability to phase past a sharp blade of blue wind. Upon reappearing, she looked towards the direction of the attack, where she saw Asuka smiling at her.

"Or, it's Asuka." She finished.

Drawing the Kusanagi into view, Asuka readied herself for battle.

"You're the strategist of Vali's Team, and you haven't seen what I can do. That makes me one of the few factors you can't account for." Asuka stated.

"I'll admit that's a gutsy move on your end, but you forget that it's impossible for me to fight alone" Yumina chuckled.

Yumina's shadow rose up with crossed arms, followed by Shadow-Yumina folding them out, with her hands transformed into sharp claws. The blue-haired Hero stood her ground, refusing to let herself be intimidated.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
There we have it, Yumina's brought her shadow into the mix! For those who are knew to the Rating Game, the power of the Lucifuge Clan is the Astral Void, which allows power over shadows, including bringing it to life! The only downside? Yumina can't talk to it.**

Shadow-Yumina stretched out towards Asuka, who rushed ahead in response.

"A full charge? Sorry, but that was a bad idea!" Yumina apologized.

"You sure?" Asuka questioned.

Asuka jumped ahead, leaning forward before she began an intense spin. Winds began blowing from the Kusanagi, and caused her to start rotating until she became a drill tornado, and stabbed a hole right through Shadow-Yumina.

The shadowy apparition made a silent cry of pain as it sunk backwards, reappearing in a smaller form with its glowing eyes reflecting its pain via a sad, crying shape.

"But how!?" Yumina shouted.

Landing out of her tornado, Issei's Knight smirked at her opponent.

"Did you forget the own downside of your powers? A formless force like water or wind will shred your shadows apart." Asuka reminded her.

Yumina gasped at that.

'Of course, Ravel sent her because the Kusanagi creates wind! My usual defenses are useless against her!' She realized.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
And with a single move, Asuka's shown how deadly of an enemy she'll be for Yumina to defeat! Is it possible that Team White Dragon Emperor of the Morning Star will lose their strategist from the very start!?**

Yumina chuckled at that, now motivated to prove that wrong.

"Alright, you may have gotten lucky, but that's the last time it'll happen!" Yumina promised.

Turning her body intangible, she dove into the ground.

"Oh boy, this might be trouble..." Asuka realized.

* * *

Le Fay scouted the area ahead with her familiar, who immediately spotted someone, and flew over to her.

"Thanks little buddy, you were a big help." She praised.

The Evil Eye's lower eyelid blushed from the compliment before Le Fay dispelled him, and flew over on her broomstick, slicing the time it took to arrive by a speed enchantment.

Her opponent soon saw her arrival, revealing her familiar had located Ravel.

"Looks like you'll be my opponent, Le Fay." Ravel stated.

"That's right, and it's a bit unfortunate that means you'll be out so quickly." Le Fay replied, confident in her chances.

Ravel giggled at that.

"Really? Well, if you're that sure, then I see no need to delay this any longer." Ravel stated.

Le Fay giggled, flying upwards on her broom.

"Alright, don't say I didn't warn you." Le Fay apologized.

Holding out her staff, a familiar summoning circle appeared, causing Ravel to ready her flames in advance.

"**Summon: Gogmagog!**"

Gogmagog rose from the magic circle, and released his metallic scream once he did.

『"Gogmagog is battle ready!"』 He exclaimed.

"**Phoenix Dragon Mode!**"

Ravel's hair and flames turned crimson, prompting her to spread her wings out.

"Here we go!" Ravel shouted.

The Phenex Devil unleashed her flames, covering them around her body like a veil. Gogmagog chose to react to this by holding up his right arm, unleashing his laser blasts. The attack hit Ravel dead on, however... her flames vanished, leaving no trace of her.

"Huh?" Le Fay exclaimed in surprise.

"**Phoenix Bomber!**"

Gogmagog noticed his arm suddenly flare up, before a burst of flames struck his arm, and knocked the giant machine on his back. Ravel soon reformed where she had been prior, with her arm regenerating from her technique.

"Oh no, Gogzy!" Le Fay shouted.

『"Not worry!"』

The metallic Golem got back on his feet, pounding his arms together.

『"Gogmagog not defeated!"』 Gogmagog shouted.

Le Fay smiled in relief, while Ravel got ready as the mechanical summon readied itself for a second round.

* * *

Irina tossed a ring of light towards Tobio, who dodged it in an instant.

"Sorry, but you aren't going to beat me with just a cheap light show, especially when my girl does it better than you." Tobio teased.

"Don't count me out just yet!" Irina replied.

Irina held out Excalibur, and aimed Ruler's powers at Jin, who instantly struggled to fight it off.

"Oh no, Jin!" Tobio exclaimed.

Using the moment she was given, the golden-haired Angel dashed towards the Slash/Dog, and swung around.

"**Excalibur Impact!**"

The combined powers of Destruction and Mimic's abilities caused Tobio to feel the force of a whip that struck like a hammer, launching him into his fateful canine companion. Everyone in the crowd gasped as they saw him smash into one of the many mountains.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Looks like the fabled Slash/Dog may have paid the price for being too overconfident, and having his own partner fall to the effects of Excalibur Ruler's powers! Is this really it for one of Vali's new teammates?**

Irina panted a bit, right as she noticed a glow form on the mountain.

"**Evolved Balance Breaker - Perfectus Tenebrae Lykaon Fortis Densus Laelaps!**"

A huge explosion went off, revealing Tobio in his Balance Breaker state, with all six tails, his scythe of shadow, and his pack of shadow wolves by his side.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
And he's still in the game, now with the Canis Lykaon's second level of its Balance Breaker!**

Rushing ahead, he vanished into his shadow, making Irina stab her blade into the ground... only for his dark hounds to jump out instead.

"Uh oh!" Irina panicked.

They all lunged at her, biting into her skin. The Half-Angel screamed from the attack, but despite their efforts, none of the wolves could pierce her skin due to the power of Excalibur's Sheath.

"**Shadow Reaper!**"

Tobio appeared from behind her shadow, cutting right through her, and making her scream again. He turned around, expecting to see her retiring... except Irina was still there, simply panting from the attack she endured, with a smile on her face.

"You're still in the game, how is that possible!?" Tobio questioned.

"The rumors about Excalibur's sheaths are true, that's what." Irina answered.

The crowd went wild at that, leaving Tobio speechless.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Ooh... that's gotta sting! It looks like she can't be retired from fatal blows, meaning Tobio can't waste his big attacks to defeat her!**

Irina rushed ahead using Excalibur Rapidly's power.

"Get ready, this is just the beginning!" Irina exclaimed with a smile.

His scythe instantly clashed against her sword, sending a shock wave of darkness and holy light across the landscape.

* * *

Watching from the crowds, Ruihi gave a bored look at the match before her.

'Ugh... how long will it take for the Heavenly Dragons to get themselves on the battlefield? So boring!' Ruihi yawned.

"Excuse me?"

Ruihi turned to the side, noticing the voice belonged to Kuisha Abaddon.

"Mind if I sit here?" She asked.

Ruihi waved her hand in response, and Kuisha sat herself to the left the Satan heiress.

"I was honestly shocked when I heard about you." Kuisha admitted.

"And why's that?" Ruihi asked.

"Oh, that's right, you don't know who I am." Kuisha realized.

Clearing her throat, she offered her hand.

"My name's Kuisha Abaddon, the recently named heiress of the Abaddon Clan." She greeted.

Ruihi blinked a bit, suddenly realizing what she meant.

"Oh, that's right. You come from the Clan that would have served my great gramps if hadn't died." She realized.

"That's right, so I felt it was proper to introduce myself." Kuisha verified.

Ruihi shrugged her arms at that, making Kuisha sweat a little.

**{She's from one of the Devil Clans that has an ability based on the Primal Abyss, it would do well to associate with her to gain the info we need on that part of Vali's abilities.}** Crom realized.

'Don't act like I'm dumb, even I know that. I just can't give a damn with how boring this match is at the-' Ruihi replied.

Her thoughts were cut off as she felt something hit her feet, making her notice the mass that had fallen off Lilith's hair not too long ago. She was a bit confessed by what it was, but when her partner took a look at its aura...

**{Ruihi, this... whatever it is! there's so much power flowing through it that I'm terrified!}** Crom exclaimed, shaking a bit.

That got Ruihi's interest as she motioned her shoe, prompting it to climb up her body without anyone's notice.

**{So, what do you think?}** Crom questioned.

'That we've found something useful, if only there was more than just this one.' Ruihi replied.

However, right as she said that, she saw the black mass shake a bit, making her raise an eye. It took a moment before she felt something else touching her show, and saw three other masses on the ground.

**{Looks like you jinxed yourself, in the good sense.}** Crom smirked.

Ruihi chuckled as they climbed up body the same way as their sibling mass.

* * *

Yu-Long opened her mouth, releasing her emerald fire at the Absolute Demise's avatar, which tanked the attack with its icy body.

"Asia, my flames aren't enough!" Yu-Long warned.

"I have an idea, just hold on!" Asia replied.

The Jade Dragon was quickly slammed by the icy doll, with Asia struggling to keep her grip on her Yu-Long's horns.

"**Sub-Zero Breath!**"

Yama-Uba unleashed a deep shriek before releasing a cold wind towards Asia and the female Dragon King.

"Yu-Long, on my signal!" Asia grunted.

"Understood!" The Green Dragoness replied.

Asia channeled Fafnir's powers into her hands, and held them out.

"**Golden Glory!**"

"**Emerald Blaze!**"

The golden orb collided with Yu-Long's fire, creating a green ball of plasma that smashed through the cold winds that held them back.

"Lavinia, dispel my attack! Please hurry!" Yama-Uba warned.

"Dispelling it now!" Lavinia replied.

Bringing the icy gale to an end, Yama-Uba moved her avatar body to the side, but its arm failed to move out of danger in time. Lavinia watched the arm shattered, causing her partner to start losing balance.

"Buy me some time, and I'll rebuild the arm." Lavinia promised.

"Don't worry, even with one arm that'll be a cakewalk!"

Throwing her good arm out, the icy Longinus pushed against the charge of Yu-Long's body, sliding slightly against the rocky ground they stood (or floated over in Yu-Long's case) on as she struggled to hold her ground.

As this was happening, Tiamat and Fafnir collided up in the skies once more, zig-zagging through it as blue and golden streaks.

"**Chaos Flare!**"

"**Gigantis Strike!**"

Tiamat unleashed a blue flare against Fafnir, who hardened the scales around his head, rushing towards her like a giant lance being thrown through the sky. As the flames struck the Golden Dragon, he kept flying through, only being slowed down by the cobalt blaze that struck him.

Once he collided with Tiamat, she gripped him with her claws as they crashed on the ground, managing to push against it even as he charged through the nearest mountains without difficulty.

"I'm impressed... that you managed to... take that like you did!" Fafnir grunted.

"Just because... I prefer to blast, doesn't mean that... I can't handle a good old smash! Like... this one!" Tiamat grunted back.

She readied her tail, and swiped it at Fafnir's side, which knocked him away a few feet.

"**Flame Geyser!**"

Fafnir was instantly knocked off his feet as a concentrated beam of flames hit him, releasing steam from the scalding hot water she mixed inside of it.

"Oh, you've asked for it!" Fafnir roared.

Whipping his tail in response, he smashed the mountain where Asia and Lavinia were fighting at. Both of them noticed a sudden avalanche from the strike, making them gasp.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
I can't believe it! What were the chances that the Dragon Kings' battle would have caused an avalanche, much less where their own teammates are currently fighting!?**

Asia quickly patted Yu-Long's head, making the Dragoness regain her focus.

"Oh crap, retreat!" Yu-Long exclaimed.

Yama-Uba covered Lavinia with her remaining arm, and rushed away from the rain of stone heading towards them.

Once it was done, the duo had been drawn out onto the fields.

"Looks like this is where we're going to finish it." Lavinia remarked.

"Seems like it, so let's give it our all." Asia replied.

The icy wizard finished restoring Yama-Uba's arm, which she had remade with a blade instead of a hand.

"Yu-Long, are you ready?" Asia asked.

Before the Jade Dragoness could answer, she suddenly began to glow, and lowered her head.

"Yu-Long?" Asia asked worriedly.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Uh oh, looks like Asia's in trouble!**

Looking at her pendant, she saw it lose its glow, signifying her Balance Breaker had hit its time limit.

"I'm sorry, Asia..." Yu-Long apologized.

The Holy Sister fell to the ground as her Dragon disappeared back into the Sacred Gear, leaving her to face Lavinia and her Longinus by herself.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Looks like the battle pushed Yu-Long to her limits, and forced her to retreat back into her Sacred Gear... she's on her own now!**

Asia realized what position she was in, but took a deep breath.

"You did your best, that's all I can ask for... leave the rest to me." Asia promised, holding Yu-Long's Sacred Gear in her hands.

'She showed it during the Championship against Nanami, and she's showing it again. The power to stand tall under even the most terrifying situations.' Lavinia smiled with respect.

**「** **Hundred: My Prayer** **」**

Asia hold out her hands, creating a sphere of light magic in them.

"Asia, since you'll be giving it your all, it'd be rude for me to not do the same." Lavinia declared.

"Same with me!" Yama-Uba agreed.

Releasing a powerful blast of ice, Asia channeled all of Fafnir's strength into her sphere of light.

"**Holy Nova!**"

The sphere of light shot forward, and struck through the icy blast... which still continued towards her regardless. Asia was hit by Lavinia's attack, and trapped in a block of ice, right as her attack smashed the Absolute Demise's avatar.

She was quickly retired, having been completely incapacitated, and appeared by her team stands.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
One of Issei Akane's Pawns. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 7 | Valiana Lucifer: 8]_

With the first blood drawn, the crowd began cheering.

"This is bad!" Matsuda panicked.

"Vali's taken the lead, how's Issei supposed to recover from that?" Motohama asked.

"Wait, look at Lavinia's Sacred Gear!" Homura pointed out.

Yama-Uba's body shook, right as everyone saw the hole that Asia's attack had left in it, before it collapsed onto its knees.

"Lavinia... that was a big blow, I'm not sure if I'll be able to recover fast enough in this state. You'll have to fight on foot for now, possibly the rest of the game." Yama-Uba apologized, panting a bit.

"It's alright, you did what you could." Lavinia reassured her.

The avatar retreated into her hair clip, leaving the crowd surprised by the turn of events.

"Asia was retired, but it looks like Lavinia's unable to use her Balance Breaker for now. The battle with Yu-Long and that last attack must have pushed Yama-Uba to her limit." Homura realized.

"Then, that would mean..." Matsuda realized.

"Yeah, despite she lost, Asia was still able to take out Lavinia's greatest strength. Even in defeat, she scored her team a major advantage, just like how taking out a certain piece in Chess can work against you." Homura replied with a smile.

They high-fived each other, making Sayaka chuckle a bit.

* * *

Ravel flew around, trying to dodge the missiles Gogmagog fired from its body, and Le Fay's water spells.

'At this rate, my stamina will be depleted, and I won't be able to heal anymore.' Ravel thought.

『"Trouble for Ravel, our victory is high!"』 Gogmagog cheered.

Le Fay giggled at the Golem's enthusiasm, and formed another dozen magic circles, all of which shot pressurized water towards Ravel.

"**Flame Veil!**"

A sphere of flame burned around Ravel, blocking the water before it turned into a cloud of steam.

'Better make this one attack count!' Ravel thought.

"**Salamandra Strike!**"

Ravel threw her hands out, causing an Eastern Dragon made of flames to slither out, and rush at Le Fay.

**⟨****"Great fortitude wrought by discipline, harden your shell into a new diamond, and sparkle brighter than ever. Let your shield shine brightly, and defend weak from the strong who abuse their strength."****⟩** Le Fay chanted.

**⟨** **"Neo Aegis!"** **⟩**

The dragon crashed into an ornate shield, struggling to break through it.

'That shield's too sturdy, how do I break something like...' Ravel thought.

Remember that Gogmagog was on the battlefield, she smirked as a better idea came to mind.

'Of course, who says I need to break it?' She thought.

Shouting in response, the flaming dragon's body began to slither faster, and Le Fay felt it pushing her shield forward, causing her to move with it.

"Hold it Le Fay, hold it!" She grunted.

"That's right, hold it." Ravel repeated.

Le Fay looked confused, only to bump into Gogmagog's body, which left her trapped within the gap between him and her shield.

"Eh?" Le Fay blinked.

"Alright, let's heat things up." Ravel breathed.

The Dragon soon began reducing its firepower, exchanging it to produce more heat. Gogmagog watched, feeling his systems heat up in the one spot.

It was at that moment when Le Fay began to sweat from the heat, and realized what she was doing.

"She didn't!" Le Fay exclaimed.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
What's going on here? Forgive me for a lack of reaction folks, but I'm not exactly sure what to say when I don't have a clue what Ravel's up to.**

Eventually, steam starting to come out of Gogmagog's body, making him stomp around as he began to overheat.

『"Gogmagog too hot! Gogmagog too hot!"』

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Wait... scratch that, now it's making sense! Intense heat causes a reduction in oxygen! She's trapping her under the shield to eventually have the retirement system force her off the battlefield!**

Le Fay tried to shield, but the intense heat left her struggling to stay conscious, and after a few moments, the retirement system finally chose to pull her off the battlefield. Without her on the battlefield, Gogmagog disappeared as well.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Both of them reappeared in the stands for Vali's team, where Gogmagog turned his hand into an electric fan, attempting to cool her off.

"Someone throw me a water... please?" Le Fay panted.

Right on cue, a spectator tossed their water to her, and she took a drink before pouring the rest over her head.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
One of Vali Lucifer's Bishops. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 7 | Valiana Lucifer: 7]_

And with that, the crowd went cheered once again as both sides were tied once again. Each side's King had their own thoughts about what just happened.

'Smart thinking Ravel, realizing her shield didn't block out hear.' Issei praised.

'Ravel's attack didn't pierce her shield, and that left her thinking she shouldn't dispel it until it was too late. I'll need to help her learn when she should drop a shield against an attack.' Vali considered, putting a finger to her chin.

* * *

Irina jumped back before Excalibur into the air.

"**Excalibur Replicator!**"

Using Rapidly and Nightmare's power, Irina created six copies of herself, which all rushed at Tobio's hounds, and clashed with them. The real deal charged towards Tobio, hiding herself with Excalibur Transparency's power.

'Crap, where did she go?' Tobio questioned.

**«"Tobio, on your left!"»** Jin warned.

Hearing that, he instantly spun his scythe to the left, clashing with her, which caused Irina to turn visible again.

"Guess that won't work on you." Irina realized.

Tobio spun his scythe around, readying a stream of darkness around him.

"Of course, don't underestimate the leader of the Slash/Dogs!" Tobio smirked.

Both sides rushed forward, clashing their swords with Irina's speed against Tobio's strength. After being pushed back once more... they began their final charge against one another.

**「** **Bungou Stray Dogs: Season 2 Opening** **」**

"**Excalibur Blessing!**"

Irina's body glowed as she enhanced her strength, and then accelerated using Rapidly's power.

"**Canis Lykaon - Shadow Storm!**"

A wall of darkness formed from around Tobio's body, replicating the power of the Night Reflection that had been used to create it. Feeling all that power crash against her, Irina was pressed back as if standing against a black hurricane.

However, she quickly regained her footing, and managed to walk through it.

"**Reaper's Dance!**"

Rushing forward, the Half-Angel felt herself cut from all sides as Tobio rushed through the shadows unseen, and continuously struck her with small slashes.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Earlier in their battle, Tobio found a fatal blow wouldn't get through Irina due to Excalibur's sheath, but now he's found the loophole! Just because it protects her body, doesn't mean it'll protect her stamina! He's gonna try to wear her down before she can recover and strike back!**

Irina grunted a bit, and remembered what she was in.

"Even in the darkness, light can shine through!" She exclaimed.

Excalibur released a flash of light, forcing Tobio back as his dark energy subsided. Irina panted as she lowered her sword, clearly nearing her limit, with Tobio himself looking a bit tired.

"Alright, time to give my all... one last attack." Irina panted.

Irina whistled, and her clones all jumped back, joining her as they zip through the air flickering between visible and invisible as she began forming holy slash marks in the air, making the shape of a star. Those who knew what she was doing watched in awe.

Landing at that moment, Irina used Excalibur Mimicry's power to gather the slashes, forming a seven-pointed star before twirling it to shape Excalibur's blade.

"**Seven Star Sword Strike!**"

Tobio howled in response, making his pack of shadow moves turn into streams of darkness, and attach to his Balance Breaker's six tails as six extra pairs of scythes, with his main one splitting in two.

"**Shinigami Masquerade!**"

An orb of darkness covered him, with all eight of his scythes' blades sticking out as they spun, moving the orb towards Irina's attacks like a saw blade.

Both of the attacks smashed against each other, causing a wave of each element to blast out from behind their respective attack, and rip up the battlefield. Everyone watched with silent excitement, unable to speak a word as each attack struggled to gain dominance.

'Come on... come on!' Irina begged.

'Just a bit more!' Tobio thought.

The two attacks melded in midair, before they began to flash, and implode from the intense force. Everyone gasped at the sight, and wondered who won the clash of powers.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Once it was over, both fighters stood... followed by Irina collapsing to the ground.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
One of Issei Akane's Knight. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 6 | Valiana Lucifer: 7]_

Tobio soon began to catch his breath, devolving his Balance Breaker to its initial level.

"That took more out of us then I expected." Tobio realized.

**«"Think you can hold up using the Balance Breaker in this stage?"»** Jin asked.

"Yeah, this level shouldn't be a problem for now. Irina just forced me to use a lot of power quickly to get past her sheath's protection." Tobio answered.

Getting back up with his scythe in hand, Tobio readied himself for whoever his next opponent would be.

* * *

Asuka back flipped off the ground as Yumina's shadows launched out to attack her.

"You can run, but you can't hide!" Yumina giggled from underground.

"Maybe I can't hide, but..." Asuka replied.

Jumping into the air, she spun Kusanagi in circles, propelling herself into the air with a cyclone. Yumina's head popped out of the ground, realizing what she was doing.

"You can't fight back if I'm too far for you to hide!"

Realizing she had to physically come out, Yumina went back into the ground, and unleashed a pillar of shadows towards Asuka.

"**Crescent Brave!**"

Yumina's pillar was slashed by Asuka's signature ability manifesting as ghostly swords, making Yumina's eyes widen.

"This is the power of the Aoyama bloodline?" She stated.

"How about we stop our running and hiding, and just get to fighting?" Asuka suggested.

To emphasize it, her eyes glowed as her shadow released a ghostly version of Yumina's, even holding a silhouette of the Kusanagi's blade.

"Alright, if you're so certain about it... let's do this." Yumina decided.

Yumina rushed ahead, creating a wave of shadows while reforming Shadow-Yumina.

In response, Asuka dashed towards her, using her phantom copy of the technique to clash with said shadow, who formed a blade of shadows in place of her arm to parry the attacks. The phantom soon broke off from Asuka's body, and turned itself into chains.

"My shadow!" Yumina gasped.

A burst of wind launched the Lucifuge heiress back, though she quickly regained her feet before zooming ahead in the form of a shadow.

Asuka soon felt her arms get latched onto, and pulled to the ground.

"Try swinging your sword now." Yumina challenged.

"Gladly." Asuka replied.

Tossing her hand upwards, the Kusanagi flew into the air before Asuka flipped her legs up.

"Uh oh..." Yumina gulped, regretting her current action.

Asuka used her legs to swing the Kusanagi, forcing a strong wind to free her arms from the shadows' grasp.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Well, that's definitely one way to "kick" things off. Either the Hero Clan thinks of everything, or with the nature of Asuka's powers, she learned to do that herself!**

Asuka spun around, creating a hurricane of force that Yumina did her best to resist.

"**Sneaking Shadow!**"

Yumina's shadow slithered across the ground, enveloping Asuka's legs.

"What the?" Asuka gasped.

"This ends here!" Yumina exclaimed, thrusting her hands out.

The blue-haired hero was soon swallowed up in a sphere of shadow, making everyone gasp at the sight. Within the sphere, Asuka felt the shadows trying to crush her.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Is this the end for Asuka Aoyama, or can she bring light to the shadows that have surrounded her!?**

Gritting her teeth, and gripping the Kusanagi tightly... the blue-haired Knight began to rotate like a gyroscope. While it didn't look like it was doing anything at first... a sudden hurricane began to blow inside the shadow sphere, making it expand and contract as it tried to resist her.

"No way..." Yumina breathed.

**「** **Beywheelz: Sho's Comeback** **」**

"You may have shadows, but there's something you don't have and will never possess!" Asuka exclaimed.

Unleashing Tiamat's power from her body, her Crescent Brave's power manifested as an illusion no one expected... an entire dome of her power that caused the sun to appear as the moon from within!

"What!?" Yumina shouted.

Tiamat smirked at what she saw from the distance.

"**Lunacy Tempest!**"

Asuka flew towards the Lucifuge heiress with an intense blue aura bursting off her body.

"I won't lose here!" Yumina screamed.

"**Supreme Phantom!**"

Her shadow exploded out, using the massive increase of darkness to grow massive, and then rush out as multiple streams that smashed into Asuka's attack. The entire crowd felt the strong winds created by the attack blow out to reach them.

'This is...' Ruihi gasped.

**{'So, this is the one that Tiamat's lent her power to...'}** Crom realized.

Both attacks began to push against each other, with neither competitor refusing to yield against the other's attack.

"Just... how is she... emitting all of this... power!?" Yumina grunted.

"Yumina, I'll admit it... you're strong. However, this is a battle..." Asuka said quietly.

She paused as recalled everyone who lose someone in the Great War, ending with the faces of her parents, who turned to her with looks of encouragement.

_"You can do it, Asuka!" Their voices echoed._

"That I... can't afford... **_to lose!_**"

Asuka screamed as she released even more power, causing Yumina to gasp as the light of the false moon intensified, actually weakening her shadows from the intensity of the moonlight.

"This is for the memory of my parents! I will fight on, so their memory never fades away!" Asuka shouted.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Yumina felt her attack shatter, leaving her wide open as Asuka slammed right into her. In only a few seconds, she her body glowed as she was retired, leaving her to fall on her back in surprise.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Vali Lucifer's Pawn. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 6 | Valiana Lucifer: 6]_

The Lucifuge heiress didn't move, still shocked by what Asuka had just managed to do.

"Yumina, are you alright?" Le Fay asked.

"Yeah, I'm... just shocked. Just how did Asuka manage to overpower me like that?" Yumina questioned.

The crowd was cheering, with even both Heavenly Dragons showing surprise.

**['For once, even I can't tell where things will go. This battle's intense.']** Great Red thought.

**('It seems like this could very well be the way to finally define the battle between us, and our children. The possibilities of what comes next... I don't think I've ever been so exhilarated before.')** Ophis smiled with excitement.

Naud himself was struggling not to join the crowd's cheering, trying to at least hold it in until Issei and Vali finally entered the fray.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
There's just so much going on in this match! When one side takes the lead, the other steals it back! Neither side wants to give the other an edge! I just can't call where things will go except it looks like everyone in this battle will give us a show to remember!**

The crowd's cheers sounded like outright screams as they responded to his words.

At the same time, the sight of Yuuma, Mio, Bikou, Rossweisse, Arthur, and Kuroka were seen as they ran across the field in response to Ravel and Yumina's respective strategies, unaware they were about to find their first opponents.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Get ready, it looks like the next battle is about to begin!**

Ruihi focused her eyes as the battle continued, knowing this Rating Game was far from over.

* * *

**That's it for the first four battles of this Rating Game, and boy were they intense! Asia put up a good fight against Lavinia, but ultimately, Yu-Long wasn't able to hold out against Yama-Uba, who Lavinia's had much more time to train with. Still, despite losing the fight, she didn't go out gentle, and now Lavinia is without her Balance Breaker for what could very well be the rest of the Game.**

**With the fight between Ravel and Le Fay, who had the aid of Gogmagog, it was a big clash of magic, and one that ended with the fair reminder to everyone that despite what the Second Great War was about, a Rating Game doesn't require victory through overwhelming the other opponent. Sometimes, all it takes is a good strategy and good intuition.**

**Irina and Tobio had a heated clash, but in the end, Tobio just has more experience, and the advantage of his Longinus' unique Balance Breaker. The one edge she had was due to the nature of Excalibur's sheath, it was impossible for him to take her out in a single shot, which cost him a lot of stamina in the long run, and forced him into his Balance Breaker's default level.**

**And finally, the battle with Asuka and Yumina, which was my favorite one in this chapter. Yumina had the advantage of versatility due to the nature of how shadows work, but like the disadvantage of, just like Asuka said herself, not really knowing what her opponent could do, as she's only ever seen the Kusanagi's wind and her own swordplay.**

**Not to mention, she got a bit overconfident, and forgot that wind counts as one of the few things that can harm her when she's in her intangible or shadow states, the very weakness she used to defeat Connla back in the Kyoto arc. (To be fair, we've all probably had this happen to us at least once) They were both fairly matched, but in the end, Asuka just wanted it more.**

**However, the biggest thing in this chapter was the fact that Fafnir and Tiamat showed that their own battle in this game can affect the other fights, like it did for Asia and Lavinia's. Had that avalanche not forced them to flee, it might have been possible for Asia to pull a surprise turn around, because Yu-Long might have been able to stay manifested a bit longer.**

**In other words? Keep a close eye on those two, because they could easily change factors and cause someone who should have won to be defeated.**

**Unfortunately, it seems like trouble's beginning to brew as this game's happening, as whatever's going on with Lilith's hair has found our way towards Ruihi, and gotten both her and Crom interested. Whatever these black masses are, you won't have to wait much longer to find out, which is why there's a chapter focused on Ruihi coming up... and that's all I'll say for now :3**

**Anyways, hope this birthday chapter was worth the wait, and that you've enjoyed it, and enjoyed/will enjoy the new LOSD and LOTL chapters I've released alongside it. We've been on a long road with this story, and this first leg of the journey is almost over... *blinks before giggling* quite ironic I said that, considering what I named the second story in the trilogy ^^**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in Today's Chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Tosca - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kuisha - Dating  
Rossweisse/Vidar - Likely to start Dating  
Hina/Nanami - Dating  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Former is clueless, Latter isn't sure how she feels  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating  
Cao Cao/Jeanne - Jeanne has a clear crush, Cao Cao's feelings are unknown**


	84. Chapter 84

**Hi everyone! You're all probably shocked how I'm already set up for a new chapter, considering how the revisions are working so far. Well, it's because due to when the story will end, I realized the revisions will be finished when I reach Ch 88, the Bachelor/Bachelorette Party. As a result, I was able to do another chapter after finishing the revisions for S4, which are halfway done as of this update ^^**

**Now, before we officially get into today's start notes? I have to reveal something that I forgot to reveal last chapter, and is partially related to this story, and to let you know updates will be relatively slow for a few. You see, as of last month... I am proud to say I now have a baby brother! At this point you're probably wondering how this is important to the story in any form?**

**Well, remember how we got to see Ddraig and Tiamat's children (and soon, an Albion/Fafnir hatchling when the revision gets far enough) being born a few chapters back? It was me getting a brother that gave me the idea to create them in the first place. The only reason I didn't say anything before now is because I figured that if I did, a few scenes in previous chapters might have given away that Tiamat's egg had survived.**

**Another thing I forgot to mention? Well, for anyone who's seen HERO so far, you've had to have seen the official appearances for Elsha and Belzard by now. Well, while I began looking back at the Kyoto arc... to my surprise, I found out that I got their appearances right! Belzard had greenish hair with some stubble, and Elsha is a blonde in a ponytail, which is what I said they had in my story!**

**Then right before I made this chapter, my assumption that Hades might resemble the main character of Overlord, Ainz Oal Gown, ended up being right because he's got the red glow for pupils, wears robe, and holds a staff! *breathes* This happened in my one DAL story as well, and as a result? I think that if I add something in the story, and I'm not trying to guess a character's look... I end up being psychic! *shivers* What else will I guess right?**

**OK, moving on from my slight fan-girl moment... *clears throat* we're at the third part of the Rating Game between our two protagonists!**

**Last chapter, we had the fights with Asia and Lavinia; Tobio and Irina; Asuka and Yumina; and then Ravel and Le Fay, who had Gogmagog by her side. The various clashes ultimately ended with both sides still tied in members, with Lavinia and Tobio's victories leaving them unable to use their full powers. Now, the next four fights will be happening in this chapter, starting with the six retainers that haven't fought once.**

**Before we finally begin today's chapter, I need to mention a major change that, due to how the revision is done, won't be applied to the previous chapter until after Chapter 87's posted. As you recall, Asia faced off against Lavinia using Yu-Long, which was a choice I made due to feeling a Dragon Tamer should have an actual Dragon to fight alongside with. The fact Yu-Long was forced to retreat didn't sit well with me, but I had no other Dragon to give her.**

**Right after that, I ended up face palming myself when I did Chapter 40's revision, because I forgot there's one Dragon connected to Asia better than any other... her own familiar, Rassei, who I gave a power up for in that revised chapter! As such, until I actually get to revising Ch 83, treat this chapter like he was there in place of Yu-Long for a reason I can't say due to spoilers.**

**So, without any further delay, time for the next Rating Games to begin!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

**‹›** \- Voice Speaking through a Magic Circle

〖〗 - Major Battle Beginning, or its Result

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Dragon Tamers **

**A special kind of Tamer that were notable for their powerful connection to Dragons, and the first instance of co-existence between Humans and Dragons, which likely represented the transition of how people would eventually view them in modern day media. Unfortunately, in the present day, they have all disappeared, leaving Asia Argento as the only Dragon Tamer left in the world.**

**The power of Dragon Tamers was shown to be incredibly effective when they first appeared, having incredible luck with them, while also hoping the Dragons feel docile around them due to a strong sense of compatibility. While the reason for it is unknown, this was the result of a mutation in certain Humans that gave them a strong affinity to the Dragon Race, whereas other kinds of Tamers had to develop it through trial and error.**

**Eventually, due to strong feelings of wanting to protect them, certain families of Tamers began forging bonds with specific Dragons; the best-known example being Asia's family, who had ties to Fafnir. Through the bond the Tamers and Dragons shared, the relationship between them improved to the point that even after the Dragons Tamers died out, the Dragons still believed in the bonds they forged with them.**

**What actually eliminated the Dragon Tamers is unknown, other than based on what the Vatican Church managed to learn after Asia's exile, they had all been hunted by an unknown group that Rizevim sent out due to his paranoia of God's Prophecy, which he believed involved them. Eventually, only Asia's family was left, with Fafnir unable to protect them due to undergoing resurrection, which lead to Asia being left at the Vatican.**

**It's currently unknown if Rizevim's worries were justified, but Asia is the only Dragon Tamer left in the world, leaving Kiyome Abe to train her Tamer skills.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 7 – Clash of Dragons, Part 3 _ **

Yuuma flapped her wings as she searched through the skies for her potential first (and hopefully not last) opponent in the Rating Game.

"OK, let's see... Lavinia is weak, but probably not enough for me. I doubt Tobio's a good opponent to run into. That leaves Bikou, who I think I could have a good chance against; Kuroka, who has a good chance of wiping the floor with me; and then Arthur, who... also has a good chance of wiping the floor with me." Yuuma thought aloud, paling at the last two.

She dashed further, hoping to spot Bikou before she risked a running into the others.

"Calm down Yuuma, it's not like you have a good chance of running into-"

"**Caliburn!**"

Yuuma paled as she flapped her wings forward, making a wave of holy energy clip off a single feather from the twelve she had.

"Yeah... I jinxed myself." She whimpered.

She quickly saw Arthur flew up to her with a magic circle, which had been made by Le Fay prior to each team's split up, holding his legendary blade in hand.

"It seems you and I will be the first to face off in this Rating Game." He stated.

"Y-yeah... guess so." Yuuma nervously replied.

Realizing there was no way out of this, Yuuma clapped her hands together, forming two doubled edged swords in her hands, and multiple smaller light spears around her.

"Come at me!" Yuuma shouted.

"As you wish." Arthur responded.

Arthur rushed forward, catching Yuuma off guard before she had the chance to parry, and taking a huge blow. The crowd gasped as they saw her crash through the ground like damaged jet.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Oh god! If that looked at bad as it actually was, then Team Red Dragon Emperor of the Blazing Truth might have lost a fighter from the beginning of their fight! Is this really it, or...**

He suddenly paused, and glared to focus his eyes.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Wait, hold on just a second!**

Everyone looked to where Yuuma was, and saw from the clearing smoke that just narrowly... she had her light swords broken one of their dual edges, showing they had managed to protect her from the attack!

"She was fast enough to avoid a direct impact." Arthur remarked, a bit surprised.

"Did you forget Arthur? Back when we were in the same peerage, you were the one that trained me to parry for the Championship Battle!" Yuuma chuckled, slowly getting up.

Arthur's eyes widened as he recalled.

* * *

_Yuuma was knocked back as Caliburn's sheathed form hit her, making her cry a bit as she held her head._

_"You need to be able to defend yourself when you can't run away, now parry it!" Arthur shouted._

_Swinging his sword down again, Yuuma's eyes widened._

_The Fallen Angel gave a loud scream, and swung her arms up to block, and then..._

_*CLANG*_

_She looked up, seeing she subconsciously formed a light sword that managed to block the attack at the opportune moment._

_"I... did it." She breathed._

* * *

Arthur sighed, readying his sword.

"Now I fully understand the meaning behind those who say your friends can be your greatest enemies." He remarked.

He rushed forward again, which caused Yuuma to react by grabbing her light spears.

Spinning around, she combined them with her light swords, and after condensing them into an orb, she released it with extreme force. The spinning orb soon disappeared from view, but Arthur showed no worry.

"You should plan your attacks more wisely." He stated.

Swinging Caliburn forward, a powerful slashing sound was heard, and following that...

Nothing.

"Hmm?" Arthur realized no sound of cutting was heard.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
That's strange, it looks like Arthur didn't cut anything! Then does that mean Yuuma actually...?**

The orb suddenly reappeared _behind_ Arthur, splitting into multiple boomerang shapes that latched onto his magic circle. Grasping her hands together, Yuuma's palms made a pressing motion.

"**Fell Bomber!**"

Arthur screamed as he felt them explode, shattering the magic circle he was riding on, and falling towards the ground. Everyone either winced or watched in worry as he slammed onto it, though felt relief when he managed to get back on his feet.

"She managed to trick me into creating an opening for her... I was careless." He grunted as he stood back up.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
What an amazing move she just pulled off! I'm not sure how she did it, but she managed to get that orb to either teleport, or move faster than Arthur chose to cut it, and set up a trap to force him to the ground! Now that she has, the aerial advantage has turned what would have likely been a one-sided fight against the strongest Holy Sword to an end before it even began!**

All of the crowd's Fallen Angels cheered loudly at their Fallen Princess' clever tactics.

"Show them what you've got!" Penemue exclaimed.

"You've got this Yuuma!" Mittelt shouted.

"Give us a win!" Kalawarner cheered.

Yuuma blushed at her mother and friends' cheers, and immediately readied flames of light around her.

"**Fell Fire**!"

She threw it towards the ground, setting a mighty blaze across the area that Arthur stood... until he swung his sword, and instantly cut the flames away.

"Crap... alright then, try these!" Yuuma shouted, a bit of sweat on her face.

Sparks of lightning formed in one hand, and glowing mist in another.

"**Fell Thunder!**"

"**Fell Blizzard!**"

A snowstorm and lightning bolts made of holy light shot out, and stormed the field... once again yielding the same result.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Ooh... this might be bad! It seems despite an aerial advantage, it's no good against a sword that can't be scratched by even Gods! How is Yuuma gonna walk around this new wall formed before her!?**

Panting a bit, Yuuma realized what she needed to do.

"Alright, time to bring it out..." Yuuma decided.

Reaching into her pocket, Arthur noticed her action, and raised an eyebrow.

"What is she trying to do?" He questioned.

"Father, the War did so much to you, and I still blame myself that despite the results... I wasn't able to be there for you when you needed it most. So, promise you'll put your faith in the strength you've left in my hands!" Yuuma shouted.

She pulled out the Down Fall Dragon Spear, getting the audience's attention

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Her father's signature creation, the Down Fall Dragon Spear! Oh man, if she's holding that, then I think I know what she's about to do!**

Slamming the gem, Yuuma shouted as a green aura surrounded her clothes.

"Yu-Long, are you ready!?" She asked loudly.

**«"Yeah, let's do this!"»** Yu-Long passionately agreed.

"**Balance Breaker: Down Fall Dragon Another Armament!**"

Jabbing the spear into her chest, green energy split apart until it transformed her outfit into something like her casual wear, but with green armor plating in a few places that had a crystalline scale look to it.

Holding out her hand, the appearance of a spear that resembled the tip of Yu-Long's tail, with her golden arm spikes extended and angled to give a look that resembled a less oriental version of the True Longinus's blade, and the crests on her head sides as the handle area.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
There it is! While it seems to have changed from a scale mail armor into armaments for her to wear, this is definitely the power of the Dragon King Yu-Long!**

Yuuma shouted as she spun around, and thrust her spear forward.

Arthur swung Caliburn at it. However, against the might of a Dragon, combined with Yuuma's own strength... the Knight of Lucifer's eyes widened as he was knocked back!

"Such power!" He shouted in surprise.

The spear vanished before reappearing in Yuuma's arms, and changed into a Yu-Long version of two swords.

"Wait, those weapons..." Arthur realized.

He had little time to act as Yuuma charged at him, swinging both swords at him, which he barely had time to parry.

"That's right! Now that this is a real Sacred Gear, her power melds to my light weapons, and gives them a dragon form with ten times the original power!" She confirmed.

Shouting loudly, the Pendragon Swordsman did his best to defeat against the powerful push of her attacks.

* * *

Bikou zoomed through the air on the Flying Nimbus, eventually spotting Rossweisse on her flight path.

"Well, looks like I found myself a Valkyrie!" He smirked.

"Guess that means you're challenging me. Fine, but don't come crying to me when you get retired for picking a battle you couldn't win." Rossweisse replied.

Issei's Queen soon heard Bikou laughing, making her raise an eyebrow at his reaction.

"What's so funny?" She asked.

Reaching behind his back, the Valkyrie kept her eyes focused on him.

"Sorry, but I don't think you can say that to me in the way you used to know me." Bikou finally answered, pulling out what he reached for.

"T-that's...!" Rossweisse gasped.

In his hands, the original Ruyi Jingu Bang that was originally the now dead Sun Wukong's was seen, along with the replica that everyone had come to associate as his own. Everyone who was more familiar with him went speechless at the sight.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
The original... he has it, and he's using it! I heard he inherited things from his ancestor after his death, but I didn't think he'd be able to actually use the real deal!**

"That's right, I am now Sun Bikou, and I will at least acknowledge the old man's efforts to protect this world!" Bikou exclaimed.

He immediately grasped his replica, which instantly broke into particles that were absorbed inside of him. From that moment, without the Flying Nimbus' aid, he activated his Golden Ancestry... permanently!

"Alright, now that I'm ready... come and give me your best shot!" He challenged.

"Fine, you want my best? Here it is!" Rossweisse responded.

Pulling out Mistilteinn in its sword form, the Valkyrie Queen instantly rushed at Bikou, who lunged at her in return. Both of them immediately smashed their God-Class weapons against each other.

The resulting force caused the audience to feel a strong wind.

"Please tell me this isn't a regular thing!" Matsuda begged.

"Lie if you have to!" Motohama agreed.

"Sorry, but we can't do that." Homura chuckled nervously, a slight apology in her voice.

The perverted duo cried at that.

Bikou quickly regained his footing, and aimed his godly staff towards Rossweisse.

"**Extend!**"

The Ruyi Jingu Bang did just that, with Rossweisse immediately putting a hand out, and forming 30 layers of shields to defend against the attack.

She grunted as it hit, but while a few of the shields broke, she withstood the attack.

"Oh, come on!" Bikou complained.

Rossweisse shot into the air, which is when Mistilteinn shifted its form into a bow.

"**Alfheim Arrow!**"

An arrow of divine energy fired from Mistilteinn, which soon had a magic circle form at its tip, and caused it to split into around four dozen arrows.

Bikou immediately spun his staff, which hammered each shot away.

"**Smoking Strike!**"

Blowing out smoke from his mouth, the gray gas flew out before shaping into a fist. Rossweisse tried to block it, only for it to phase through the barrier, and deliver a heavy strike to her gut. The audience promptly winced at that, feeling like they got hit there as well.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Ooh... if there's any kinds of blow I hate seeing in a Rating Game, its one in the stomach, between the legs, or when a girl gets hit right in the chest. For some reason, you feel them just by seeing them.**

"He's got a good point, why does that happen?" Katase asked.

"Either it's a subconscious reaction, or related to empathy." Murayama theorized, rubbing her stomach.

Rossweisse quickly regained her bearings, and held out her hand, which instantly scattered the smoke with some lightning magic. Bikou closed his mouth and flew back before the electric charge reached him.

"OK, for that little strike in the gut you just gave me..." She said quietly.

Everyone suddenly felt the temperature drop as Rossweisse gave an angered look that Bikou remembered seeing from her when she was drunk... if it was five times worse, and held out Mistilteinn in the form of a long rifle.

The sudden chill was explained as three layers of magic circles for a high-level ice spell overlaid the barrel.

"**Niflheim Freeze!**"

A powerful blast of ice shot out of Mistilteinn, and Bikou once again swung Ruyi Jingu Bang to stop it. However, when it actually hit?

He screamed loudly as his left arm froze, leaving him unable to continue the spin.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Uh oh! Looks like Rossweisse wanted him to block that, and now his arm's been frozen by the spell!**

'Considering she's from the Norse Pantheon, trying to just break this ice might be a bad idea!' He considered, sweating a bit as struggled to move it.

Rossweisse shifted Mistilteinn into the form of a spear, and charged at him.

* * *

Mio landed on the ground, retracting her wings as she did.

"OK, based on what I've heard so far, the only one on Vali's side that no one's run into is Kuroka, so provided Lavinia and Tobio are still taking a moment to recover..." Mio theorized.

Taking a deep breath, she held her hand over her heart.

"If only you could give me advice... but I haven't earned your belief in me just yet, have I?" Mio sighed, speaking to the Incinerate Anthem.

"Well, in this particular case, I think your guess was more spot on than you realized." A familiar voice replied.

The Demon Princess' eyes widened as she turned her head, looking for the sound of what she instantly realized was Kuroka's voice, right as a sudden forest-like field manifested around her.

The Black Nekoshou instantly jumped towards the ground, making Mio raise her guard.

"Cute, but I'm afraid you'll have to brought down." Kuroka giggled, holding up a finger.

Mio instantly tried to run as Kuroka created symbols in the air with said finger, forming her Youjutsu symbols to instantly release her debilitating mist at a non-lethal level. Feeling it enter her lungs, she instantly fell to her feet.

"Too bad for you. Had Asia, Asuka, or Yuuma managed to run into me, this little trick wouldn't have been as-" Kuroka stated.

Her words were suddenly cut off as purple flames burned across Mio's body, making her gasp as she got back to her feet, no longer feeling the negative effects of the mist.

"What's going on!?" Kuroka questioned.

"Looks like the Incinerate Anthem's flames burned away those negative effects, which means I wasn't a good choice to use your mist on either!" Mio guessed confidently.

The Black Nekoshou shrugged her arms.

"Oh well, if that won't work, then I'll just have to take you on the old-fashioned way." Kuroka decided.

She began warping around, making Mio focus her senses.

'This is her Space-Time Magic at work, and she's only able to manipulate space, so in theory...' Mio thought.

"Try some of this!" Kuroka shouted.

Reappearing, she threw orbs of Senjutsu, which Mio barely dodged by bending back, which gave her the chance to prepare her own attack by back flipping.

"**Singularity!**"

Holding her hand out, she formed a miniature black hole, causing everyone in to feel a wind blowing the opposite direction.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Look sharp everyone, because this is the Demon Princess' special gravity magic at work! And based on what Kuroka did, I think it's clear to some why she chose to use it!**

Kuroka immediately flickered into view, unable to keep distorting space with Mio's attack in the way.

"Damn it, you realized warping the gravity with your magic would alter the dimensional plane, and render my Space-Time magic useless." Kuroka grunted.

"Of course! They say a black hole's danger comes from the intense gravity warping the fabric of space, so I figured making my own would work in a similar manner." Mio replied, soon holding out her hand.

Mio's signature smash spheres appear, and then set ablaze with purple flames.

"**Incendiary Iron!**"

The spheres flashed forward at incredible speed, but were immediately blocked by Kuroka forming a barrier of Touki.

"**Quasar Abyss!**"

Before anyone expected it, a huge flash of light was released from the black hole within the area, unleashing extreme flames that resembled the same blast of energy unleashed from Supermassive Black Hole that the attack was named from.

Kuroka felt herself slammed by the intense flames, screaming a bit as they pushed her back, and burned her illusionary forest to ash.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Woo... that's some hot fire we're experiencing... quick, someone bring me water...**

The audience all similarly agreed, with Ineelana actually spraying water into the air around the area she was in, an act soon copied by Sona, and anyone with water-based magic.

"You all call this hot? Wow, all of you are wimps!" Ruihi scoffed.

"Wait, do you not feel this at all?" Kuisha questioned.

"Are you deaf?" Ruihi retorted.

Kuisha gave a flat look at that, turning away from the blunt as always Heiress to the Satan Clan.

'Maybe this is a bad time to try talking with her...' Kuisha assumed.

As the attack ended, the sign of Kuroka panting with a partially scorched kimono was seen, with Mio looking just a bit winded from using the attack.

"Crap, that was too much power..." Mio wheezed a bit.

"Oh, so you can't even properly control the power of that attack? That's not exactly the smartest move you should make in a Rating Game." Kuroka warned, giving a slight smirk.

Mio sweated at that, trying to unfold her wings, but finding it too difficult to do so.

"Uh oh..." Mio paled.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
I get the feeling that whatever Mio was trying to do, and failed to do, it was something that's normally _easy_ for her to accomplish. That doesn't sound like a good sign.**

Kuroka giggled at that, holding her hands out to form a six Kasha on each side.

"**Kasha Zodiac!**"

She threw each of the kasha forward, and they spin together in a group of twelve like an even large kasha.

Mio's eyes widened as it neared her, worrying about what might happen.

* * *

Yuuma shouted as she rose her hands up, and thrust them forward, causing miniature dragon heads to appear, and then explode across the field like bombs.

Arthur swung Caliburn across the field, reducing the damage from the flood of draconic light.

"**Fell Dragon Storm!**"

A powerful gale blew out, crashing against Arthur's body like a hurricane of pure force, but he stood against it as he walked forward.

"Come on... come on!" Yuuma grunted.

**«"Come on, keep pushing it!"»** Yu-Long grunted.

Issei's Pawn screamed louder, unleashing an even greater gale, further forcing Arthur back as he tried resisting it.

"Don't give up, Arthur!"

**「** **Luna Sea: Tonight** **」**

Widening his eyes, he turned to see Elaine in the crowd.

"You can do it Arthur, don't let this stop you! Even if you can't win... fight with everything you have! The man I love won't be stopped by something of this level!" Elaine shouted, desperately trying to encourage.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Woo! Looks like Arthur's fiancé is showing her support, now the question is what kind of effect did it leave on Arthur?**

Gripping his sword tightly, Arthur managed to put his foot forward, and unleash the strength to charge through Yuuma's winds. The Fallen Angel Princess was surprised by this, and was caught off guard as Caliburn slashed her, making her tumble against the ground.

"**Fallen Jade!**"

Yuuma unleashed a storm of green rain towards Arthur, who rushed through the attacks.

Seeing the Rook of Lucifer rushing at her, Yuuma immediately formed a light sword, and instantly clashed it against Caliburn with all her might.

"Hey, father? Did I show you this was enough?"

A huge struggle of force was shown, until Yuuma's sword shattered, and she was slashed through by Arthur.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

She stood there for a moment, and then swung back and forth a few times before she fell on her back immediately retiring after she did. Arthur knelt on one knee, feeling a soreness in it from the force his attack used.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
One of Issei Akane's Pawns. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 5 | Valiana Lucifer: 6]_

Arthur panted as he got back up, nearly tripping from his still sore leg.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
It looks like Arthur's victory came at a price, and now the question is this... will that leg injury make or break his next fight?**

Trudging ahead, Arthur prepared for whoever he'd encounter next, hoping it would be after his leg was feeling better.

* * *

Tiamat and Fafnir's battle continued as they took to the skies, creating a sphere of gold and blue as their colliding forms zipped around like an erratic comet.

"Take this!" Tiamat roared.

She unleashed a rain of blue fireballs that came down like meteors, smashing into Fafnir, who was forcibly broken off from their collision lock. Tiamat watched as the Gigantis Dragon tumbled throughout the ground, and landed right between the battlefield of Rossweisse and Bikou.

"Ah! Fafnir, watch what you're doing!" Bikou exclaimed in a panic.

"Don't blame me for this!" Fafnir retorted.

He was immediately interrupted by another sea of raging flames, with Tiamat diving down as she unleashed them. Both competitors moved away, and in the process... the heat burned the ice off of Bikou's arm.

"Yes!" He cheered.

Rossweisse groaned before looking at Tiamat, who gave an awkward chuckle, right before Fafnir rammed him towards another mountain.

"I'm starting to see the other reason they normally don't get to be in Rating Games! They aren't just too strong for most, but they always forget to consider their teammates!" Rossweisse screamed angrily.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Uh... well, after seeing that? Yeah, I'll have to agree with Rossweisse on this, because the evidence so far is they can cause trouble for either team just by getting too heated and unaware during their battle.**

From their spots, both Issei and Vali face palmed at their Familiars antics.

'Yeah, we should probably keep them out of future Rating Games...' They both agreed.

**["Idiots..."]** Great Red said with irritation.  
**("Children...")** Ophis sighed.

Bikou laughed at the situation, only to suddenly be hit by one of Rossweisse's magic spells in the process of being distracted.

"Pay attention unless you actually want me to retire you!" Rossweisse reminded him.

Getting back on his cloud, Bikou began spinning the Ruyi Jingu Bang, which started to charge up power as a result. Rossweisse soon saw him swing his staff like nunchakus through switching it between both his hands, releasing waves of Chi at her.

The Valkyrie Queen countered by changing Mistilteinn into a shield, and taking all the attacks with ease due to the legendary weapon's strength.

"Crap..." Bikou winced, floating away.

Swinging her weapon again, it expanded into a chain whip, instantly striking Bikou while he was off guard. The crowd cheered as the battle's intensity picked up, and got their blood pumping.

Falling to the ground, he used his staff to cushion his fall, right as Rossweisse transformed Mistilteinn into an expanded sword that looked like it was a sword/blaster hybrid.

"**Ragnarok Storm!**"

At that moment, everyone went silent as they saw an entire wall of magic circles vertically line up behind the powerful Valkyrie, showing multiple layers for every form and type of magic she was known for using.

"Why does this look familiar?" Leo questioned.

"Because she saw me used something similar the one time, except... not as large scale." Georg answered, feeling like he was watching a waking monster.

Bikou suddenly screamed as a rain of magic stormed the field, making everyone watch in surprise as a rainbow of light struck the unfortunate Monkey Youkai with everything he had, and he could only run with his tail between his legs.

Even Tiamat and Fafnir watched the scene with worried looks at the unnatural storm of magic that was being unleashed by a single Queen.

"Are we sure Rossweisse isn't in the Top 10 Strongest Beings?" Tiamat questioned.

"If she is, then that list needs serious updating, or something along similar lines..." Fafnir nervously answered.

Rossweisse kept screaming as her magic rained down, and unfortunately, Bikou was eventually hit, shrieking like a little girl before he was eventually retired by the unnatural onslaught that had been unleashed.

The Valkyrie soon gave a happy sigh, wiping her cheek with a handkerchief.

"I didn't realize how stress I've been lately, letting that all out felt good." Rossweisse smiled, soon putting said handkerchief away.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Uh... one of Vali Lucifer's Rooks. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 5 | Valiana Lucifer: 5]_

Issei's stance moved away from his Queen, laughing nervously.

**["It is a good thing she's our ally."]** Ddraig remarked.

"Yeah, it's a very good thing, especially for us." Issei agreed, giving a nervous chuckle.

Although he hoped Mistilteinn had to do with why she never used such a massive overload of magic before. Otherwise, he would need to have a talk with her about her lack of using her full power, especially during the Second Great War.

* * *

Mio was knocked back by the intense flurry of attacks being sent her way by Kuroka, who barely found a need to try anything major against the tired Mio.

"I'd do more, but then it would feel like bullying you. Plus, it's actually more exciting to see how long it would take to defeat you." Kuroka giggled, licking her lips after she said it.

"That isn't a compliment!" Mio exclaimed angrily.

She was promptly shot up by letting one of Kuroka's attentions hit her in the face, and sent flying back.

"You moved your face in the way, so I am in no shape or form responsible for that." Kuroka stated immediately.

Mio got back up, purple fire flaring off her in response.

"Why you... I'll make it fell like I'll be killing you a hundred times for that!" Mio shouted, unleashing more flames in tandem with her voice.

She finally popped her wings out, with got Kuroka's attention.

"OK, it might be my fault in the one sense I didn't want it to be." Kuroka remarked, starting to sweat slightly.

"Damn right it is, because I couldn't unfold my wings until just now!" Mio confirmed.

The Black Nekoshou groaned at that.

"Alright, if you wanna get serious, then I'll stop holding back." Kuroka replied.

She vanished again, and Mio immediately formed her counter.

"**Singularity!**"

"Not this time." Kuroka smirked.

A ball of Chi flung out, and hit Mio's attack, which caused both to be disrupted, and burst into particles.

"No way!" Mio gasped.

Kuroka blasted some darkness at Mio, throwing her across the field.

"It doesn't matter if you can use that to bring me out of hiding if the black hole never forms. Sorry, but for someone like me? Your attack was a one trick pony." Kuroka snickered.

Mio struggled to get up, panting a bit.

"Well, this... one trick pony is... still galloping forward!" Mio declared.

**「** **Testament of New Sister Devil: Kareinaru Taiketsu** **」**

Mio shouted loudly as her aura flared out, branching out as a massive red force that swam around Kuroka, and getting her attention.

"What is-"

"**Gravity Break!**"

Kuroka felt a powerful vacuum force pull on her as a larger black hole formed out of nowhere, sucking the nearby rubble before spitting as projectiles at speeds that would make a cheetah jealous.

"Crap!" Kuroka grunted, struggling to deal with the massive force.

"**Smash Sphere!**"

Kuroka saw the familiar orbs fly at her, striking her hard as she was pushed closer to the powerful vortex behind her.

"I'm not giving in without a fight!" Kuroka growled, stabbing her tails into the ground as support.

Forming a longer, more complex chain of Youjutsu words... the audience watched closely before a concentrated surge of mist came out as a cyclone. However, unlike the poisonous one she watered down to act as a subjugating gas, this one seemed more like a burning agent.

Mio was struck by it, and screamed loudly.

"You might have a Longinus that creates fire, but not all heat comes from flames!" Kuroka exclaimed, a smug grin on her face.

The Demon Princess' eyes flashed at that, and she emitted her purple fire once more, quickly clashing with Kuroka's Youjutsu, and catching her by surprise as it kept pushing further towards the vortex.

"Let's put that to the test! I may be new to having a Longinus, and who knows? Maybe the Incinerate Anthem will leave me, but... I can't stand down! If this is truly the power that I'm not responsible for, then I'll prove it here, and then prove to myself I deserve to wield this power!" Mio shouted, making her promise.

"**Holy Hellfire!**"

She released the powerful flames ever further, which quickly collided with the Black Nekoshou's body.

Kuroka created a barrier with her Touki, struggling best she could to fully take the attack, and not yielding to anything that Mio was throwing her way. However, after a minute of trying to hold it... one of her tails slipped out, causing it to pull her in.

"This is gonna suck..." She realized.

Vali's Bishop was soon sucked into the vortex, and shot towards one of the mountains before crashing into it. Everyone closed an eye at the sight, with Naud rubbing his shoulder afterwards.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Ouch... that's gotta hurt, especially with how she got there!**

Kuroka slid down, looking like she might be able to hold on for a bit longer, but then... she fell over, and instantly retired.

"There, I... did it..." Mio panted, a slight smile on her face.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
One of Vali Lucifer's Bishops. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 5 | Valiana Lucifer: 4]_

Mio struggled to regain her breath, and decided to get moving, knowing she needed to move away from the area she was in, or risk someone from Vali's side noticing the area where Kuroka had been launched into the mountain.

"Ok, the only ones left are Arthur, Lavinia, and Tobio... neither's a good opponent to face, not without some help. I better find one of the others before-"

"**Freezing Demise.**"

Mio suddenly felt ice freeze her, and she shuddered for a moment before she managed to thaw herself out with Incinerate Anthem.

To her horror, she saw Lavinia looking at her with a finger held up.

"Oh no..." Mio realized, stepping back a bit.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Mio's nearly exhausted, yet her own luck chose to work against her, and bring Lavinia into view! Get ready everyone, because this is our first Longinus match up in this Rating Game! The Absolute Demise which is the epitome of ice, facing off with the Absolute divine, which holds the holy purple flames linked to Jesus Christ himself!**

The Demon Princess sweated as the Magician infamously known as the Ice Princess walked towards her.

"You put up a good fight with Kuroka, especially considering she's one of the stronger members of Vali's peerage, but I'm afraid as of now, your time in this game is over." Lavinia apologized, readying another a magic circle.

Mio gritted her teeth, realizing she didn't have the power to fight Lavinia.

"Fine, just whip out your Balance Breaker and retire me." She relented.

"Eh..." Lavinia sweated at that.

Mio blinked a bit, noticing the nervous look on Lavinia's face... which is when she finally remembered something.

"Wait, what Naud said earlier... you can't use your Balance Breaker right now, can you!?" Mio realized.

Lavinia struggled to keep a poker face at that.

"If you aren't whipping it out, then I think I do have a chance, as long as I play things smart." Mio stated, smiling a bit.

Admittedly, she was bluffing right now, as fighting smart wasn't something she was good. It was the main reason why under Vali, she always followed the plan she or Yumina gave her, and had been doing the same with Issei and Ravel.

'I... have to try. The war took so much from this world, but we also got things back, let my older brother... that's the only reason I'm able to stand here by Issei's side! The only reason I can honor Basara's memory!' Mio thought, trying to encourage yourself.

**«"And... you are _not_ alone."»**

Lavinia and Mio's eyes widened upon hearing that, with the crowd starting to murmur.

"That voice... it can't be." Mio realized, looking at her chest.

A purple flame burned above her chest before revealing the shape of an ornate cross with a purple and chrome coloration to it. The true form of the Incinerate Anthem.

**«"No, my partner... it is!"»** Jesus responded.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
I am really hearing this!? Everyone, the spirit of the Incinerate Anthem has responded, the spirit that's none other the very being that was executed on this Longinus when it was a crucifixion! It's Jesus Christ!**

Many in the crowd gasped, while those tied to the Church, both exorcist and Angel, all exclaimed happily as they heard it.

"I don't get it... why finally reach out to me now of all times?"

**«"After my last host was brutally murdered, I had every intention to leave them, but... she imprisoned me for the sake of evil. That act was so unforgivable that I blocked myself off from the world. Due to her evil intentions, I was unable to trust my next wielder may be any better, so I waited, listening for proof their intentions were not selfish. Now that I've seen the words in your heart... I can say that's what you are."»** Jesus answered, smiling as he did.

Mio's eyes widened as she heard that, and she cried a bit.

"Then... will you lend me your strength here?" Mio asked.

**«"While this may be a battle of sport, I can tell you are trying to help those who are suffering from the machinations that my captor was a part of. I shall lend you my strength, my partner!"»** Jesus agreed.

Mio smiled at that, and soon began releasing her purple flames.

**«"Lavinia, get ready. It seems that Jesus has truly chosen Mio as his next wielder."»** Yama-Uba warned.

"Think you could handle his flames?" Lavinia asked.

Yama-Uba chuckled as her answer, making Vali's Queen give a smile as she remembered the few spars she had with her teacher.

"Of course, that was a silly question." She realized.

Mio clasped her hands together, and at that moment, held them up to release the Incinerate Anthem's flames.

**«"Balance Breaker: Incinerate Antiphona Calvario!"»**

'Here it comes!' Lavinia thought, readying herself.

The flames of the Balance Breaker manifested in the form of a knight with chrome armor matching the colors of her Longinus, and when Mio saw it...

"Basara..." She cried, noticing how similar its body shape was to her deceased love.

At that very moment, Jesus possessed the Incinerate Anthem's avatar form, and immediately rushed ahead as he formed a sword of flames in his hands.

Lavinia instantly reacted by putting her hands out, and creating a magic circle to unleash a powerful blizzard... only for the Incinerate Anthem to rush through it like it was just a slight breeze.

"This might be too much for me without my Balance Breaker." Lavinia remarked, sweating a bit.

**«"Lavinia, try using it!"»** Yama-Uba recommended.

"But Yama, aren't you still-" Lavinia questioned.

**«"I think if you only form my upper body, then I'll be able to handle it."»** Yama-Uba reassured her.

Lavinia took a deep breath, and held out her hands, forming a sheet of ice on the ground.

"**Balance Breaker!**"

The sheet of ice had Yama-Uba's upper half form, causing the Incinerate Anthem's avatar to suddenly stop, and stay cautious of what might happen.

When Yama-Uba finally formed... the avatar cracked, making her scream in pain.

"Yama-Uba!?" Lavinia shouted in worry.

**«"I'm sorry... it was still too much. I'm afraid that this is last time I can lend you my full power in this Rating Game."»** Yama-Uba apologized.

"It's OK, had you not convinced me to do it, I might have been retired before I even could." Lavinia reassured her.

Forming a magic circle, Lavinia levitated the upper half of the Absolute Demise's avatar into the air, before making it zoom forward at the Incinerate Anthem's. Using the chance, Mio flew onto her partner's avatar, and looked at him.

"Let's go!" She shouted.

**«"Right!"»** Jesus replied.

**「** **Shakugan no Shana: Season 3 Opening** **」**

The Incinerate Anthem and Absolute Demise quickly crashed against one another, causing a massive blast of hot and cold to blow off from behind the respective force, with everyone in the audience feeling it.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Are we hot? A-are we cold? Are we both!? I have no idea, and it's not fun trying to figure out which it is through this clash of flames and frost!**

As they broke off, Mio held her hands out.

"**Incendiary Iron!**"

The spheres formed, but this time? The Incinerate Anthem grabbed them through the avatar, and after shaking his palms, the spheres were released at ten times their original size.

"He can do that!?" Lavinia exclaimed in surprise.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Now that's one way to go big or go home! And considering this is a Rating Game? Well, that's more literal than most cases!**

The spheres went flying at Yama-Uba's avatar, making her scream as they hit her, with Lavinia barely able to help shield the worst of it through the layers of shields she put up. When they ended, the arms of Yama-Uba had broken into a skinnier form.

"**Ice Age!**"

A powerful wave of icicles shot towards Mio, but the Incinerate Anthem held out its hand in response.

"**Blazar Abyss!**"

A more compact version of her prior attack fired off from a small gravity sphere, crashing against the icicles, and cancelling both attacks in the process.

"Alright, time to finish this!" Mio shouted.

"**Holy Demonic Storm!**"

The avatar of the Incinerate Anthem roared into the sky, blasting out flames like an erupting volcano, and causing them to fire to gather into a miniature, purple-colored sun above the stadium.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Well, if any said we had two suns by accident at any point today, they're not wrong anymore...**

"I'll admit, that's kind of impressive." Ruihi admitted, shrugging her arms.

Lavinia took a deep breath, focusing a swirl of mist around her, and causing the nearby ground to freeze as a result of the temperature dropping every second it gathered.

"**Absolute Zero!**"

The mist began a powerful white hurricane that shot everywhere, especially towards the purple sun.

That same purple sun fell towards the ground, where it slowly struck the white hurricane of ice and snow, blasting out across the area the two were in. Both attacks were soon shifted into a horizontal clash, each of which matched the direction of their casters.

"Come on, just a little... more..." Mio grunted, starting to feel her vision get fuzzy.

A huge flash went off, blinding everyone as a gale of hot and cold air blasted out, and made everyone shiver from the unpleasant (to most) mixture of the two temperatures.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Everyone soon opened their eyes as the flash faded away, and when they did?

Mio panted before falling back, blacking out as her body hit its limit, prompting the Incinerate Anthem to catch her.

**«"You did your best, Mio."»**

She immediately retired, with her Longinus' form disappearing as a result.

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
One of Issei Akane's Rooks. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 4 | Valiana Lucifer: 4]_

Lavinia soon saw Yama-Uba's avatar shattered.

"Thank you for lending me your Balance Breaker's strength this far into the game, I'll take care of the rest." Lavinia smiled.

With that, both team's remaining competitors became alert to their current status.

'With Mio out of the picture, that now leaves Rossweisse, Asuka, and Ravel left... among Vali's team, Lavinia's still as much a threat as Tobio without her Balance Breaker to help due to her sheer experience compared to the rest of us.' Issei thought.

'Rossweisse is the biggest threat, but if I sent Lavinia after her right now, she might be in trouble. I should wait until someone else whittles her down. I think that Tobio should focus on Ravel, so...' Vali thought.

Both check their magic screens of the battles so far, and soon made their decisions.

"Everyone, I want you to..." Both stated.

Hearing what each of their Kings wanted, both sides went towards their next opponents, nearing the last leg of this incredible Rating Game.

* * *

**And with that, each side's been dropped to four remaining players, once again having things end on equal grounds. Current standings have things pretty even as each side's Queen is still in play, both still have a Knight left, with the only difference being their third remaining teammates, as Vali's got a Rook through Arthur, while Issei's got a Bishop through Ravel.**

**Then we have the fact that everyone's has fought at least once in this Rating Game, with only Lavinia having fought a second time. Worse, due to the battle with Asia, her Balance Breaker hadn't fully recovered, and now the Absolute Demise can't use it until Yama-Uba fully recovers due to a safety measure applied to most Independent Avatar-types, which puts her around Tobio's level.**

**Essentially, as of this moment in the Rating Game, both peerages are on even ground.**

**Before I say anything else, I should clarify two things, Rossweisse's last attack against Bikou, and Mio having access to the Balance Breaker already. For the latter, as Incinerate Anthem can leave its wielder for another, it seems like it doesn't need to re-unlock its Balance Breaker, which has some evidence through Lint already having a Sub-Species in canon.**

**For Rossweisse, as Issei was thinking, that was the result of Mistilteinn giving her a boost. While HERO has shown Rossweisse can do it, after she did, we also saw her faint (which I don't think was entirely due to her being hungover), so I think without aid... she'd probably collapse from using that much power. She is a Half-God, so if Wukong can stop the True Longinus with his finger, then using such an attack doesn't seem like too big of a stretch.**

**Speaking of Wukong, his staff has now been inherited by Bikou, and while he can't wield it at the same level (because it weights nearly 8000 kg), he at least has enough strength to use it in a fight. His old staff has now been absorbed into his body, which means his transformation technique is now permanent. While this doesn't make him a Buddha, he's now on the road to becoming one if he chooses.**

**We're getting closer to the anticipated fight between Issei and Vali, so as a result... next chapter will finally close that gap! After that, we'll finally see the fight you've all be waiting for on the 5th and Final part of this Rating Game! The question for next chapter will be how the fight Tiamat and Fafnir, then the battles among Lavinia, Rossweisse, Tobio, Asuka, Ravel, and Arthur come into play.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in Today's Chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Tosca - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kuisha - Dating  
Rossweisse/Vidar - Likely to start Dating  
Hina/Nanami - Dating  
Jeanne/Cao Cao - Chemistry seems to exist, but the form of it is unknown  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Former is clueless, Latter isn't sure how she feels  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating**


	85. Chapter 85

**Surprise everyone! I know that last chapter had me say that you wouldn't be getting an update until the revision finished another arc, but I have some good news and bad news about that. For the good news? Well, I've decided that the revision will be on pause for a while, so I can finish this story, and finally get us to "Journey of the Heavenly Dragons", so the wait won't be much longer!**

**However, the decision to do this relates to the bad news... well, maybe it isn't really bad news, more like disappointing news for a few readers. To elaborate on this? A while back, I began getting focused in thought over something for the story, and it kept annoying me. However, after thinking about JOHD's earliest events, I realized it was necessary. What do I mean by necessary? Unfortunately, the best way to explain this is to bluntly honest about it...**

**If this isn't done, then I risk the story being _"cancelled"_, which I will not let happen.**

**Now, since that line's probably gotten your attention? Time for me to explain what I'm doing. *takes a deep breath* The revision is being paused because I've decided that I'm going to remove all the crossover characters and elements from this story. (From this chapter on, they simply won't be mentioned) As I said above, something I noticed about JOHD's story requires me to do this, or I could risk getting stuck, overwhelmed, etc., and/or worse.**

**I know this might leave some of you upset, but I hope you can at least understand the reasoning behind my decision. For one way to put it? Even if I just restarted the story to get around this, the fact that we're almost at the point of this Rating Game where Issei and Vali will fight each other would probably crush all of you that are patiently waiting for it to happen. Not to mention, I don't think any of you want the quality of this story to suffer.**

**This isn't like the chapter revising, as I just need to replace some characters with canon characters (like Lilitifa) or OCs, with the latter working due to one revision change related to the Extinct Clans all having survivors and not being purebloods, meaning I have plenty of material to work with in that aspect for the peerages that have bigger focus, similar to how Sairaorg's peerage has plenty of Devils from Extinct Clans.**

**And to help fix your moods a bit, since I'll be making these changes, I'll be giving everyone here the chance to state which Clans (all 72, not just the Extinct Clans), possible bloodline abilities for the said Clans, and even which Supernatural races, you'd like to see be added to replace the crossover characters. This is a big change, so I figure that to lessen the blow, I should give you at least this much as a compromise/apology.**

**If the suggesting part's not your fancy, then feel free to mention if you'd like to see a fanfic from one of the series the crossover characters were from, excluding Chivalry of a Failed Knight, Asterisk War, Akame ga Kill, or Sword Art Online (I have stories, or plans to make stories for them) instead. Know that I won't be able to do them all, but I'll at least consider the suggestions.**

**Lastly, before we finally get to the actual start notes, if any of you are familiar with my DAL Story known as "Spiritual Successor", then know I may also make a LOHD equivalent to that in the near future. While this would partially be an apology gift, it's also because I'm in the mood to try making a DxD story that has Ruihi in it from the start, as she's one of my favorite OCs.**

**With that, time to get to the actual start notes.**

**This is the last chapter before we finally have the long-awaited battle between Issei and Vali for not just this Rating Game, but the entire story! For everyone noticing the pattern I've had with the last few battles, I think you already have a good idea how things are gonna go for when they finally get into the fight, so I'm gonna make sure that sparks fly!**

**If you ignore Tiamat and Fafnir, as their fight doesn't matter by terms of a Rating Game due to being familiars (Heck, they normally can't even be used in a Rating Game because they're too powerful), the only battles left are Rossweisse, Asuka, Lavinia, Arthur, Ravel, and Tobio; all of which are tired, but still have a lot left to give in this amazing Rating Game.**

**Now, let's not keep things waiting much longer, and get this Rating Game started!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

〖〗 - Voice Speaking through a Magic Circle

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Top 10 Strongest Beings: Version 02 **

**Due to the severity of the Second Great War being like the first, but at an accelerated time frame, among some... "other" reasons, the Top 10 Strongest Beings list had to be updated, with Indra not even getting the honor of being mentioned due to what he did, and Hades taking his power, making their true strength now seem questionable.**

**The following on the new list are:**

**1\. Ophis, Great Red, and Trihexa - No changes to their ranking.**

**2\. Ddraig, Albion, and Crom Cruach - Ddraig and Albion aren't any stronger or weaker, but Crom Cruach's devastation of the Celtic Pantheon matches some of the damage the two did in the Great War, possibly confirming their worries that he'd eventually match their strength.**

**3\. God and Lucifer - No changes to their ranking.**

**4\. The Trimurti - Shiva's power hasn't changed, but due to the Great War forcing Brahma and Vishnu to fight in the view of many, the fact the three have always been equally powerful has become public knowledge.**

**5\. Izanagi and Izanami - With the destruction of Yomi allowing them to regain their lost strength, and for the same reasons as the Trimurti's ranking change, they've now gained their rightful rankings on the list.**

**6\. Amaterasu - Because of Indra being exiled from the list, she was moved up a spot.**

**7\. Tiamat - Same reason for Amaterasu's new rank.**

**8\. Tsukuyomi and Susanoo - A combination of Indra's exiling from the list, and Vritra admitting he lied about having what was Crom's original strength to prevent worries about how strong the Crescent Circle Dragon might become.**

**9\. Fafnir - Same reason for Tsukuyomi's new rank.**

**10\. Gautama Buddha - Same reason for Tsukuyomi's new rank. A member of the Hindu Pantheon through the foundation of Buddhism, and by extension, the Buddha system, which allows mortals like Sun Wukong to evolve into deities.**

**A good many that were ranked lower were also among the Second Great War's casualties, though most of the higher ranked beings have survived, leaving many still hopeful they have the means to fight against Rizevim when he finally begins direct action in the inevitable act of Trihexa's revival. Even so, the new Top 10 have a difficult job in inspiring the two worlds now joined from the horrors of war.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 8 – Clash of Dragons, Part 4 _ **

Looking at the magic screens of the battles that had already happened in their Rating Game, Issei and Vali made their next moves for what their remaining teammates should do.

"Everyone, listen up!" Both shouted.

Hearing their Kings call, each side's remaining trio immediately put their hands to their ears.

"Rossweisse, I want you to go after Arthur, since Mistilteinn should have an advantage over Caliburn by its nature as a legendary weapon. After that, take on Lavinia, as I think it's safer for you to fight her when you're both Queens." Issei stated.

『"Understood."』 Rossweisse replied.

"Ravel, I want you and Asuka to go after Tobio, but not at the same time. As Tobio's still got his Balance Breaker, it might be best to have you weaken him, and then leave Asuka to pull a sneak attack right after. He's a powerful Longinus wielder, so I don't think simply teaming up is the best idea when we don't know how he'd do to a team." Issei suggested.

『"I agree, that might be why Vali's never gone into full detail about the Utsusemi Incident."』 Ravel replied.

『"Lead the way Ravel, I'll hide and get ready for the right moment."』 Asuka responded.

Asuka spun around, using the Kusanagi's winds to create a veil that distorted the light around her, and render her invisible. Ravel and Rossweisse both took flight, with Asuka following the latter.

"Tobio, try to take Ravel out, as her tactical skills will be a problem." Vali decided.

『"Good idea, I'm probably the best fighter still in the game to fight against her immortality."』 Tobio agreed.

"Arthur, I want you to intercept Rossweisse, and give Lavinia time to recover. With her Balance Breaker out of commission, she's the one player I don't want to risk her fighting." Vali ordered.

『"Right."』 Arthur replied.

With their next moves set, both trios moved out to face their next opponents.

* * *

Ravel flew ahead with the still hidden Asuka on her tail, moving her eyes around the battlefield as she tried to spot Tobio. Needless to say, it didn't take long, as a rain of shadows show through her.

As her body regenerated, she turned towards Tobio, while Asuka found a hiding spot.

'Good luck Ravel, this guy's aura is unreal!' She thought, detecting his strength.

Issei's Bishop landed on the ground, staring against Tobio, who was holding his shadowy scythe in his hands, his expression unreadable to anyone that wasn't a fellow Slash/Dog member that could see behind his Balance Breaker's mask.

"Never thought I'd face you, especially in a Rating Game." Ravel remarked.

"Same here, to face someone with physical immortality is something I've never done myself. As such, know that I won't hold anything back." Tobio responded.

Ravel stretched out her hands, nodding her head.

"The same goes for me." Ravel answered.

Ravel instantly released her signature flames, which spiraled out into a fiery cyclone. Tobio rushed forward, dodging the flames with his Knight speed, rather than dodging them due to his scale mail's nature resembling that of Connla's.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Even at his Balance Breaker's lower level, it looks like Tobio's no worse for wear! This is proof of the strength that makes him the leader of the Slash/Dog Team!**

Sae cheered loudly, jumping up into the air with pumped fists.

"Yeah, do it Tobio!" She cheered.

"And usually that's the kind of reaction that I'd make." Natsume chuckled in embarrassment.

Hyo snickered at that.

"Just _usually_ you say?" The Toukotsu wielder questioned.

"Nope, it's always." Shieri answered with a snicker.

Natsume felt some sweat going down her face, leaving Kouki to laugh at his girlfriend's condition... until she kicked him in the shin.

"Ow!" He screamed.

Tobio rushed at the flaming Bishop as a surge of shadows, which immediately protruded blades for a gouging attack... only for him to suddenly stop as Ravel blasted out a small gale around her.

"Wait, is that a wind barrier?" Homura questioned.

"It is, did you not know the Phenex Clan used more than fire?" Shun answered, raising an eyebrow.

Homura looked away, chuckling in embarrassment.

"Let me see if I've got this... earlier, Asuka was able to fight Yumina because wind can harm shadows due to being formless. As such, a wind barrier would hurt Tobio if he tried to force his way through it?" Motohama tried to recall.

"That's right, and it isn't just wind he has to watch. All three elements the Phenex Clan wield are able to attack shadows in some manner." Sanae confirmed.

"Because fire can burn through the normal defenses, while light is how shadows form!" Matsuda recalled.

The matriarch of the Akane Mansion gave two thumbs up, confirming he remembered it correctly.

"Yes!"

Tobio spun around, releasing a typhoon of darkness into the sky, and threw it towards Ravel.

Issei's Bishop widened her eyes as the wave of shadows blasted through her wind barrier, making the crowd gasp as it sent her tumbling across the battlefield. Connla in particular took notice in this.

'Is this the different between my Night Reflection, and the Longinus made from a Sacred Gear that fused with a Night Reflection?' He thought, wondering if he had even used his Sacred Gear's full potential.

Ravel's body began to recover as it burned, showing her panting a little.

"Looks like neither of our usual tricks can work against each other." Ravel remarked.

"This takes me back to when I faced the Utsusemi." Tobio chuckled.

The Knight of Lucifer formed more shadows, which began spinning into the form of extra shadow scythes, and launched upon him pushing his palms.

Ravel retaliated by condensing light around her, releasing it as bright flames. The shadows were all burned away, and Tobio felt himself briefly blinded, which let the attacks slam right into him before he could even try dodging, throwing him across the ground in the same manner his attack threw Issei's Bishop.

"**Black Hound!**"

Tobio's shadow launched forward, howling like a fierce wolf ready to sink its fangs into its pray.

"**Phoenix Shot!**"

Ravel spun around, creating a sphere of darkness that she struck, causing it to burst into the shape of a phoenix made from dark flames.

The two attacks hit each other, with the shadow wolf biting down on the hellfire phoenix, only for it to screech as it flew into the sky. Everyone watched as it dived towards the ground, causing a dark explosion of power.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Whoa! Quick, is there anyone in the audience that can make out what happened? Which of those two attacks made it through, if either!?**

Shuriliu formed a magic circle, and activated her signature power... and then gasped.

〖"The one that made it through was..."〗 Shuriliu answered.

Naud listened, and soon got his microphone ready as each attack's silhouettes started to become visible through the cloud of dust.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Thanks to the Asmodeus Heir, we've managed to get a visual! And it looks like the end result is both survived, but we have a certain attack on the losing end, and not due to sheer force!**

Everyone gasped as the cloud vanished, showing Tobio's attack had chomped down on the neck on Ravel's, making the Phenex Devil gasp.

"No way..." She breathed.

"Gotcha." Tobio smirked.

The Phoenix Shot was finally destroyed as the Black Hound attack chomped down, bursting into the fiery darkness that created it.

"Now, go after Ravel!" Tobio ordered.

The wolf-based attack began charging, with Ravel immediately taking flight, only for the attack to follow her.

'Ravel needs help, but how can I do that without giving away where I am?' Asuka thought.

Thinking for a minute, she decided to tap her ear, contacting Issei.

『"Asuka, what do you need?"』 Issei answered.

"Ravel's in a tight spot, and Tobio still doesn't seem any worse for wear. Is there a way I can help her that won't give myself away?" She inquired.

『"Of course, you can both wind, so we'll trick him with that. Wait for my signal as I alert her to the plan."』 Issei replied.

Asuka smiled, and readied the Kusanagi for a powerful gale.

Ravel kept flying away from the attack, zig-zagging around in an attempt to confuse it.

『"Ravel, you hear me?"』 Issei questioned.

"Yeah, what is it?" She replied.

『"I have a plan, so I need you to get above Tobio's attack, and then unleash a cyclone with a clockwise rotation."』 Issei explained.

Ravel nodded her head, and shot straight up.

"Alright boy, finish her!" Tobio shouted.

"I don't think so!" Ravel countered.

Back flipping into place, Ravel held out her hands, releasing a powerful gale at the Black Hound attack, though it didn't do anything to stop its progression towards her.

『"Now!"』 Issei ordered.

Ravel shouted, and put more power into it, which was the moment that Asuka swung her sword.

"Go for it, Ravel." Asuka smiled, showing her faith.

"**Phoenix Wind!**"

Asuka's gale empowered the cyclone, which suddenly caused Tobio's eyes to widen as his attack was suddenly twisted.

"No way!" He shouted in surprise.

『"Ravel, dive down, and match the rotation of the wind! You'll likely only have this one moment for a good strike before you get taken down, so pave the way for Asuka's victory!"』 Issei shouted.

"Right!" She responded.

Diving down, she began spinning towards the right, creating a powerful crimson flame around her body. The flames grew three times their size, as did the heat of their blaze, slashing through the Slash/Dog's current attack.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**By using that tornado's rotation, her attack's speed and strength have tripled! Ravel's about to slam a ton of damage if she can make contact!**

"Crap, I've gotta move!"

"Asuka, do it now!" Ravel shouted.

Tobio's eyes widened, briefly darting around to find Asuka, unaware of her invisible state.

"One wind trap, coming right up!" Asuka replied, giving a thumb's up.

The cyclone shifted, leaving Tobio trapped as it focused around his body, and accelerated Ravel's diving attack. Once it neared him, the legendary Slash/Dog's eyes widened as he braced the inevitable impact.

"Take this!" Ravel screamed.

Tobio screamed as the attack struck him, leaving some areas of his armor to suddenly gain red markings from the burns, and then... Jin was suddenly separated from him, with both tumbling to the sides as Ravel crashed into the ground.

Issei's Bishop panted a bit, turning to look at Vali's Knight before she felt her legs wobble.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**An amazing show of teamwork between Ravel and Asuka, where the blue-haired Knight is, but it looks like Ravel's running on if not entirely used the last of her fumes! Looks like to give an opening for her teammate, Ravel's had to take the fall!**

Tobio got up, looking at Jin.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

**«"I'm fine, the blow was just incredibly sudden."»** Jin answered.

"Then search out where Asuka is, while I take out Ravel." Tobio decided.

Jin nodded, and began sniffing out her position, which was when Asuka realized she needed to get moving to let her surprise attack work.

Tobio walked up to Ravel, and readied his scythe.

"You were a good challenge, so I'll at least give you that praise before I retire you." Tobio praised.

"Don't thank me just yet, because you haven't seen my final move just yet." Ravel chuckled in reply.

He was confused by that, though swiped his scythe down, which finally caused Ravel to retire from the Rating Game after a long, hard fight against Le Fay and himself.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Issei Akane's Bishop. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 3 | Valiana Lucifer: 4]_

As he took a deep breath, Jin was still searching for Asuka, when suddenly...

"Surprise!"

Jin was caught off guard as Asuka rushed forward, and used her signature ability to made blades that slashed through the wolf. Tobio turned in shock as he heard Jin howl, disappearing as his power retreated into the scythe.

"Sorry, but I'm not letting you use your Balance Breaker on me." Asuka stated, rubbing her nose with her pointer finger.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**And with that, Asuka's taken away the main advantage that Tobio would have had against her! Combined with how exhausted he's probably become from fighting Ravel moments before, the Slash/Dog's in a bad position, and against one of Issei's stronger teammates!**

Tobio grunted as he readied his scythe, with Asuka readying the Kusanagi.

"Let's do this!" Asuka shouted.

* * *

Tiamat roared as she charged at Fafnir, smashing into him with incredible force, and sending the Gigantis Dragon tumbling across the ground.

"Come on, is that the best you can do!?" Tiamat demanded, her aura flaring out.

"You want my full strength? Fine, then you're about to regret it!" Fafnir responded.

Fafnir roared loudly, causing a powerful surge to fire out of his aura, and with it... everyone in the crowd felt a huge pressure.

This was the moment they all realized Fafnir was now at 100%.

"So, this is your full strength? Alright then, time for me to unleash my full strength against you!" Tiamat challenged.

Giving an even louder roar, everyone felt the same feeling, but now from the essence of Tiamat's power, causing the draconic energy from both Dragons to overlay throughout the atmosphere of the battleground.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Holy shit... here it comes, their full power's about to be unleashed!**

The two Dragon Kings began charging up their respective breath attacks, causing the entire area to shake like a small tremor, and causing the audience to scream a bit.

"They haven't even attacked, and the entire stadium's shaking!" Niruili exclaimed.

"This is the power of a Dragon King when they're not holding back? Holy shit, this is unreal..." Ineelana breathed.

Katase slipped over, landing on Murayama.

"If this is just them charging up, then what will the actual firing of those attacks be like!?" Katase panicked.

"Looks like we're about to find out, even if we don't want to!" Murayama answered.

The energies of their respective powers began glowing in their mouths, and with it, everyone began sweating,

"Here it comes!" Aariliyn exclaimed her warning.

Each of them reeled their heads back, signaling the time to unleash their full power was now.

"**CHAOS RAMPAGE!**"

"**CARAT TYPHOON!**"

Both attacks exploded out of their jaws, causing a gigantic explosion of fire and metal, with one side of the stadium feeling instead winds, and the other a searing wave of heat. However, that was nothing compared to the battlefield.

Tiamat's flames were melting everything, both land and greenery alike, and leaving it a melted mess of heated mud; while Fafnir's metallic breath shredded the environment into ribbons of rubble, grains, minerals, and large pieces of salad. That made the audience panic, wondering what it might do to them.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Don't panic everyone! Despite what you see, the battlefield wasn't able to perfectly mimic Lemuria because it's been missing for the last two millennia. Based on word of their fellow kind, such battles would barely even graze the land because of the draconic energies imbued within it.**

Leelexe's eyes widened.

"No way, is he saying that an entire continent is as sturdy as hundreds of Dragons!?" She exclaimed loudly.

"We have a continent in the ocean, and one that levitates in the air like Agreas, so why doubt a land that's as strong as the species mainly living there!?" Ineelana yelled her answered.

The Belphegor Heiress had no answer for that, and went back to watching the battle.

"Damn, to think that Tiamat was holding back this much? She's leagues above Tannin!" Issei remarked, covering his eyes from the light of Tiamat's flames.

"Fafnir's power is incredible!" Vali breathed as she saw it.

Both the blue flames, and golden metal shards kept pressing back and forth against each other, with a middle ground of the battlefield turning into glass from the mixture of the abnormal elements that were tossing around the dirt and sands.

"Which one of them will win this clash?" Both of them wondered aloud.

Soon enough, the two forces rippled, and with it... both attacks slipped through the other, causing the entire crowd to gasp as each Dragon King was smashed with the opposite power, being unable to dodge because they didn't see the attacks coming.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**The attacks slipped through each other! If I wasn't watching, then I'd say someone was telling me a big whopper!**

Both of the Heavenly Dragons' familiars crashed onto the ground, causing a loud crash as the land around them was tossed around, like a small tornado creating a small, yet airborne rock slide.

From the spot that Asuka and Tobio's location, both Knights screamed as they narrowly dodged the attacks.

Where Rossweisse was flying, she held her arms up to make a magic circle, barely able to shield from the shower of rocks flying towards her.

'Such incredible power...' Rossweisse thought, a bead of sweat running down her face.

Everyone saw both Dragons on the ground, panting a bit, but not looking anywhere near finished. Despite this, it was clear that they had run their roles in this Rating Game.

"Tiamat, you've done enough. I think it's time you rest." Issei stated.

"Sorry Fafnir, but I think you should sit the rest out." Vali

Upon hearing their respective contractees telling them to stand down, both Dragon Kings sighed, relenting to their decisions.

"Fair enough, I don't think we'll decide a winner by the time you and Vali do." Tiamat replied.

"Very well, just give us a good show when you get onto the field." Fafnir responded.

Both of them were summoned off the field, leaving the crowd to cheer as the game was about to heat up, with the remaining fighters now having to deal with the battlefield their last attacks had warped completely.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Whatever comes next, we now have a field of rubble shreds, hot mud, and a glassy surface for our opponents to fight over! Let's see how this changes the game!**

The crowd cheered once again.

* * *

After dealing with the flying stones that had been shot her way, Rossweisse managed to find Arthur, who had stabbed Caliburn into the ground of the glassy area. Most likely, he had been used Caliburn's power to shield himself form the debris in a similar manner she had.

Noticing her arrival, Arthur pulled his blade form the ground.

"So, you've arrived. That means the time for battle is here." Arthur declared.

"I've already been asked to go after you, so I was expecting this." Rossweisse replied.

This got Arthur's attention, having expected that she would go after Lavinia, rather than himself.

'Issei sent her towards me? Hmm... I better be on guard, his actions during Kyoto showed he's not one to make mistakes in his leadership, which means he saw reason to target me first.' The Knight of Lucifer thought.

Readying himself, Arthur moved forward.

"Very well, then let us-"

Unfortunately, before he could even do anything... he slipped on the glassy surface, making Rossweisse stare in surprise.

The entire audience also give a silent response.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Uh... it seems that the glass area of the battlefield is slippery, and that means big trouble for Arthur.**

Vali sweated a bit from her spot, while Issei struggled not to laugh at the current situation.

"This is disappointing, as you stopped being a Devil, and you could only fly due to your now retired sister's magic circle, it doesn't seem like this fight will go in your favor at all if you don't have the luxury of controlled movement." Rossweisse sighed.

'She's right, but even so, I'm not going to simply let myself be defeated here without a fight.' Arthur thought.

Knowing his usual movements wouldn't work, he had to improvise, and began skating across the glass, with Rossweisse easily able to follow his movements.

'He can't gain proper traction, so he won't be able to pick up speed. As long as my eyes stay locked on him, then he can't pull any sneak attacks.' The Valkyrie Queen thought.

Arthur swung his sword, creating a slash wave, Rossweisse held up her hand to block the attack with a magic circle.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Hate to say it, but it looks like Arthur can't win this battle. The best he can do is buy time for the rest of his teammates to either help him, or in Lavinia's case, recover enough to aid the fight!**

'This is the best I can do, so I need to buy all the time I can.' Arthur thought, still skating.

Swinging a few more times, Arthur sent more slash waves at Rossweisse, who managed to push them aside like before. The only difference being she had to speed up her deflections of his attacks.

Deciding to end things quickly, Rossweisse began aiming as she shifted Mistilteinn into its bow form.

"Looks like I've bought all the time that I can." Arthur realized.

Issei's Queen instantly fired a magical arrow, and it flew at Arthur with incredible speed, piercing right through him as he immediately retired.

'I had forgotten, the limits of being just human.' He realized before disappearing.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**One of Vali Lucifer's Rooks. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 3 | Valiana Lucifer: 3]_

Taking a deep breath, Rossweisse's attention soon focused on the magic circle that formed on the glassy battlefield, which instantly froze in that one area. Lavinia soon appeared from it, looking at the opposing Queen before her.

"All that's left is a battle between two Knights, and two Queens. I hope you're ready." Lavinia greeted.

"So, a battle between Half-Gods and Longinus wielders. Quite the odd spectacle for us to be here. Still, just because you wield a god slaying weapon, doesn't mean the God can't overcome the wielder." Rossweisse replied, changing Mistilteinn into its sword form.

Both sides dashed at each other, and once they did, the fight between each side's Knights began with it.

* * *

Asuka and Tobio began clashing, shadows and wind made by scythe and sword, and unleashing a powerful force with each attack. The blue-haired Hero back flipped after their most recent clash, followed by a neck crack.

"Alright, time to kick it up a notch!" Asuka exclaimed.

"I'm guessing you have another trick up your sleeve?" Tobio assumed, rolling his arm.

Asuka giggled a bit.

"Oh no, this is something else entirely. Now... ready to see how I fly?" She answered, giving a playful smirk.

Tobio's eyes widened at that, realizing that she was implying something.

**「** **Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm: Wings of Courage** **」**

Asuka shouted as her illusionary powers activated, taking the form of wing-like appendages on her back, flapping as she Kusanagi's winds picked up around her.

"Let's see how you can match my speed when I'm flying not through Half-God magic, but with my own set of wings." Asuka challenged.

"Uh oh..." Tobio realized, sweating a bit.

Asuka immediately kicked off the air, moving so fast, that she nearly matched Irina's Knight speed when combined with Excalibur Rapidly's power. Tobio tried his best to dart his eyes towards her, but struggled to keep his gaze locked.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**This is incredible, such speed from a Knight is rare!**

Asuka dashed around, and soon zoomed at Tobio readying an attack. The Slash/Dog moved his scythe out to parry... only for the blue-haired Half-God to stop just inches away from him.

"Huh?" He blinked.

The Lucifer Knight suddenly screamed as a powerful storm of wind suddenly blasted at him, pushing him across the battlefield, making everyone gasp as he was shot through the battlefield of heated mud.

"Didn't see that coming, did you?" Asuka questioned, smiling a bit.

'She managed to delay her attack's response!?' Tobio thought, his eyes wide in shock.

Managing to regain his momentum, he dove into his shadow, and then slithered across the environment. Asuka spun her hands around, creating illusionary blades that shot forward, and stabbed around the areas he was moving.

Tobio struggled to dodge, as Asuka managed to aim where he would be, rather than where he already was.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**This fight between Half-God and Longinus wielder is going every which way! Tobio's on the run, with Asuka now taking the edge with her aerial... wait, what's this!?**

Tobio shot out, spinning as shadows sprouted as wings from his back.

"So, we're taking this to the skies?" Asuka asked.

"I've got more tricks up my sleeve than you think, so don't expect to lock me that easily!" Tobio responded.

"Now this fight's getting exciting!" She replied, dashing ahead.

Tobio did the same, and once again, the audience saw a clash of shadows and wind throughout the skies of the battlefield.

* * *

Lavinia moved her hand out, creating a storm, while also sending the debris circling around the Valkyrie Queen.

"**Aurora Wave!**"

The ice smashed together, crystallizing with the debris, which became shining crystals that nearly blinded Rossweisse with their light. That wasn't even getting into the icy storm still heading towards her direction.

'Even without her Balance Breaker, she's still this strong! Guess that makes sense considering she's the oldest of the Longinus wielders.' Rossweisse thought.

"Impressive, but Issei and Ravel aren't the only one who can bring the heat!" Rossweisse stated.

Lavinia instantly went on guard, as Rossweisse fell back, and put a hand to her Mistilteinn's blade.

"**Muspelheim Flare!**"

The sword unleashed a powerful blaze, knocking the crystals to the grounds where they all shattered, and shielding against the icy storm. Lavinia put her hand up to form a barrier from the raging flames, and then split it into multiple magic circles.

"**Borealis Shroud!**"

The entire area suddenly got coated in a swirl of frosty mist, making Rossweisse look around... only to notice the Lucifer Queen disappear!

'I can't sense her presence at all!' She realized, sweating slightly.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Yikes! It looks like Lavinia's vanished from sight, just like a Yuki-Onna hiding in a blizzard!**

Something rushed at the Valkyrie Queen, making her turn as Mistilteinn took a spear form... only for Rossweisse to shatter something like ice, which instantly grabbed her from behind.

When she turned, it was a small-scale version of Lavinia's Balance Breaker, which made her gasp.

"You can still summon the avatar without your Balance Breaker?" Rossweisse questioned.

"That's right, this is Absolute Demise's usual size, but a magician can't reveal all of her secrets." Lavinia answered, playfully tipping her hat in response.

Realizing she was in trouble, Rossweisse moved her hand a certain way, causing a few magic circles to appear, and blast the ice doll from the sides. With her no longer trapped in its grip, the Valkyrie jumped back into the air.

"Yeah, take them down babe!" Vidar cheered.

Rossweisse blushed at his response, shaking her head to regain focus at her current battle.

"Heads up, Rose!"

Issei's Queen looked up as she heard Asuka's voice, seeing the blue-haired Knight flip towards the ground, with Tobio diving near Lavinia's side.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Whoa! Looks like both of each side's remaining duos of retainers have gathered together! This is now a 2 vs 2 battle before either King will be forced onto the battlefield!**

Looking at Rossweisse, the blue-haired Hero got an idea.

"I think I've got an idea, think you can pull that same trick you used against Bikou?" Asuka inquired.

"Give me enough time, I can probably do even more damage." Rossweisse answered.

She flashed a thumb's up in approval.

"Neither of us can use our Balance Breakers right now, so what should we try before they overwhelm us?" Tobio inquired.

"We'll have to rely on the Longinus Smasher, buy me some time while I create an opening for us." Lavinia decided.

Nodding his head, Tobio rushed ahead.

Asuka immediately did the same, with Tiamat's power spiraling around Rossweisse as a shield.

"**Ragnarok Storm!**"

The wall of magic circles formed once again, getting the crowd's attention as not only did it reappear, but Rossweisse actually poured more power into it, trying to make it bigger.

In response to it, Lavinia began preparing a special magic circle, making all the Magicians know what she was planning.

**⟨****"Chilling wastelands, bloom a new life beyond the evergreens in this icy realm, and crystallize your souls into a greater power. Become a diamond in the snow, creating a wonderful blizzard in the arctic gardens, become an absolute that creates life from the demise of evil!"****⟩** Lavinia chanted.

**⟨** **"Diamond Winter Paradise!"** **⟩**

The other members of the Slash/Dog Team all flinched, knowing very well what that attack would do.

"Ooh, here it comes!" Aaliyah snickered excitedly.

"How can you enjoy this!?" Her teammates demanded, still panicking.

Lavinia slammed the ground, and the entire area of the battlefield that the four were on froze up to a certain area, which immediately created a crystalline structure that grew and swung out.

"Alright, time to aid the battle!" Asuka shouted.

Sliding on the ground after her and Tobio jumped back, she spun like a tornado, holding the Kusanagi outwards as she combined its power, Tiamat's power, and her own illusionary powers together. The audience watched as a small breeze with a visible blue tint began showing itself.

Tobio stabbed his scythe into the ground, and then turned it, making a tower of shadow blast up into the air.

"**Azure Tempest!**"

"**Midnight Rising!**"

All four fighters instantly released their attacks. Rossweisse rained down her wall of magical blasts, Asuka's winds became a powerful mixture of a hurricane and cyclone, Tobio's shadows shot out like multiple crashing tsunamis, while the crystal growths of Lavinia's attacks became like a blizzard-sized glacier that dropped the temperature of the entire arena.

Everyone shivered as they watched the clashing attacks, with the front wall of the arena's standings gaining a slight coating of frost on them.

"C-c-cold!" Homura shivered.

She immediately blasted out her Blazing Soul around her, using her willpower to warm her section of the audience. Everyone nearby sighed in relief as they felt the warmth return to them.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**All of these powers gathering in one place, which ones will win!? The ice that can freeze a small country? The rain of various magics? The power of a legendary holy sword mixed with the great Dragon King's blessing? Maybe the shadows of the stars!?**

All four sides kept shouting, with their elements raging across the battlefield, and both team's Kings simply standing in place, the attacks just flying by them without either worrying about friendly fire hitting them.

"You're going down!" All four of them shouted together.

At that moment, their fusion of attacks condensed together, and a huge explosion went off!

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

The entire crowd stared in shock as a dim flash went off, and as it did, the entire battlefield was struck by the force, leaving only the two Heavenly Dragons unharmed as the spots they stood on were once again untouched.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**W-what just happened!? All of their attacks just mixed out of nowhere, and what's occurred to the field as a result of it?**

Soon enough, the answer to the latter came as the entire field became a flat battleground that both Dragons in each respective King recognized at some level. The skies of the arena's alternate dimension were now somewhat identical to what the Dimensional Gap's were, while the ground resembled the final battlefield for Ddraig and Albion during the Great War.

However, when it came to the fighters, everyone saw all four of them lying on the ground, shortly retiring afterwards to the shock of everyone.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**It's a twin double knock-out! Both sides Queens and Knights. Retired!**

_[Issei Akane: 1 | Valiana Lucifer: 1]_

Everyone gasped in surprise, looking at each other and murmuring.

**{No more delays, the time for action has come.}** Crom stated, focusing his gaze.

"So, the time have finally come." Ruihi smiled, knowing the only battle she wanted to see was about to happen.

Lilith showed brief shock before collecting herself.

'So, in the end... the battle will be decided by the very Dragons who were once eternal rivals.' Lilith thought.

Realizing they were the only ones left, Issei and Vali held up their hands.

"**Boosted Gear!**"

The gauntlet on his left flared up with power before it dispelled, showing Issei was ready.

"**Divine Dividing!**"

The gauntlet on her left hand did the same, though with more of a shine.

Both sides began walking forward, with an energy of anticipation in the air as everyone saw the two walking towards each other. As they approached, unseen to others, an image of Ddraig and Albion walking besides them could be see, and then Great Red and Ophis flying alongside them in the same manner.

"I can feel it..." Sanae suddenly stated.

"Yeah, so do I." Shun agreed.

Their nieces, daughter, and those closest to them all turned as they said that.

"Feel... what?" Homura asked, suddenly nervous.

As the two Heavenly Dragons got closer to each other, the energy everyone was feeling grew all the more intense. At that moment, most of the stronger beings in the crowd had felt Homura was.

"This battle... will be the one that ends the rivalry between their fellow Dragons." She answered.

Dreams...

Infinity...

Domination...

Supremacy...

Destiny...

Will...

And Love...

Those seven things had been represented by the four Dragons and the two hosts who wielded their powers. Now, in a world where there was no longer a divide between Human and Supernatural, this fight would decide the future.

**["This is the last time we fight, today will decide everything no matter the result."]** Great Red said.

**["Our rivalry of war has already ended, so let us see the efforts of the two who broke this cycle."]** Ddraig said.

**("Yes, it no longer matters who wins or loses.")** Ophis said.

**("What matters today is the efforts these two show through their battle.")** Albion said.

Eventually, the two Kings were within fighting distance.

"Vali, are you ready?" Issei asked, smiling as he did.

"I am, we've taken each other this far, and now it's time we show that to everyone watching." Vali replied, also smiling.

And with that, both of them unleashed their auras.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**I know this is only a formality, but for this instance? Let the final battle of this Rating Game... Begin!**

Issei and Vali immediately flew ahead, doing just that.

* * *

**There you have it, we've finally reached the battle you've all been waiting for. Issei and Vali are finally about to bring this Rating Game to an end, while also carrying the message of the future in what will be a united world between humanity and the supernatural. What will the result be? No one knows yet, but it seems like win or lose, neither they or their Dragons will question what they've decided the final battle of their eternal rivalries.**

**Now, before anyone makes a comment about Arthur losing so easily, that was done intentionally because I feel that with how he was a Devil before the Second Great War, he now has to remember those same limitations. This seems like the best time for him to remember he's Human again, which means he has to learn how to fight with those same weaknesses, something the Hero Faction is quite familiar with.**

**Only downside to Issei and Vali's battle finally happening is that it's the only one that Ruihi's wanted to see this entire Rating Game... not exactly reassuring when we know her current position. *shivers* Even more so when you remember the black masses that made their way to her, as those could now be applied to that, or at least connected to what she's doing.**

**Either way, the wait for their battle won't be much longer, because next chapter will have us finally bring a spectacular end to this amazing Rating Game, where you'll all see the battle you've been wanting to see for... well, can't remember how long ago the chapter where they decided to hold this was posted, but it's definitely been a while, so get ready for that wait to end with the next chapter, and final part of this Rating Game special!**

**Now, the last thing before we end today's chapter? After the last chapters of this story, and JOHD's first chapter are made? I'd like everyone to know the series will either go on a slight hiatus, or the updates will just slow down, but this is mainly because I think I've hit a small burnout for DxD, and need to recharge. So, without further ado, and as I say at the end of every chapter...**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in Today's Chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Tosca - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kuisha - Dating  
Rossweisse/Vidar - Likely to start Dating  
Hina/Nanami - Dating  
Jeanne/Cao-Cao - Chemistry seems to exist, but the form of it is unknown  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Former is clueless, Latter isn't sure how she feels  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating**


	86. Chapter 86

**Finally, after waiting four chapters since this Rating Game special began, we're finally here... you're all about to see Issei and Vali face off in the deciding battle for who'll win it all! Some of you have already guessed what the end result is, but I'm not saying who, so pay close attention to the battle at every point! Trust me, the ending will not disappoint!**

**Before anything, I want to once again thank the HERO Season, and Passione, who's animating it. Today's episode finally showed us a visual reference for how Kuisha's Power of Hole works, and you don't know how badly I needed to see that. If you all recall, Vali's Primal Abyss is basically a fusion of the PoD, Worthlessness, and PoH abilities, with the three powers all being based on those certain abilities in-story.**

**Only problem? While we've always had the PoD as a reference, and knew exactly how it works, while Worthlessness... you don't really need a visual for that due to how it works, you just need to know what lets it work. Power of Hole on the other hand? Because I've never seen how it works, that one's been harder to make Vali use in-story, with even scenes where Kuisha using it suffering from me being unsure how to use it.**

**So, now that we've finally gotten to see it through this episode, that's a BIG help from here on out. *sighs in relief* Thank goodness that the anime got a Season 4, especially due to all the characters we finally know the actual appearances of. Well, that's enough of my babbling here, so let's actually get to today's start notes before I just talk your ears off.**

**Like I said, this chapter's only fight is with Issei and Vali, though the entire battle doesn't make up the entire chapter. I'd say half of it will be the battle (though I'll be putting my best effort into every moment of it), and the other half is everyone's reaction to the celebration, among some other things, before I finally begin the chapter focused on one of my favorite OCs, the newly introduced Ruihi Satan.**

**Also, while no one's asked about it, I feel I need to explain the words said by our resident Red and White Dragons in the final scene of the previous chapter. Not so much what they said, but why they did. Well, if you recall what happened with the Second Great War, and with how it connected with something over the past 2000 years, starting from the original Great War?**

**Taking that into account, the rivalries between them have been like preparing and leading the foundation that Issei and Vali are walking right now. Because of that, a battle like this is the finale to all those years of fighting between Dragon Gods and Heavenly Dragons, a symbol to see whose efforts pushed further, if either even managed to accomplish such a feat.**

**With all of that said, let's not delay things any longer! *hits a gong* Time for this Rating Game to come to an explosive end!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

〖〗 - Voice Speaking through a Magic Circle

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** The World Creation Story **

**Long ago, the world was inhabited only by Dragons; with the siblings Dragon Gods, Great Red and Ophis, constantly fighting in the Dimensional Gap they called their home, which indirectly led to the birth of their respective son and daughter, Ddraig and Albion; life on Earth seemed like it would follow their example, but one day? Something different changed how the world would evolve.**

**From the source of magic, God was brought into the world, leading to the creation of Heaven and the Angel race. From there, he saw potential, leading him to create Izanagi from the power of Chi, and Brahma from the power of Prana, which then lead to the creation of the former's wife, and the latter's fellow members of the Trimurti, becoming the earliest, and most powerful of the Mythological Factions.**

**However, the peace of the world wouldn't last when they forfeited their overall range of creation to make Humanity, and during the process... God began to act different, marking Lucifer's eventual defection when he imprisoned Lilith for wanting a choice in love. Such an action was odd, especially once news of what he turned Samael into had gotten out, especially after the Christian Pantheon splintered into the Four Great Powers.**

**Eventually, the world at the time, which was the continent of Pangaea, was caught in the Great War that enveloped the world. Upon the rampage of Trihexa coming to light, and God's Prophecy coming to light, with his irregular behavior finally ceasing, he was left with no choice but to stop the monster that was rampaging across the world. Together with the aid of Lucifer, they sealed the monster away, which shattered Pangaea into the continents of today.**

**While this story is now known to the Supernatural World, and planned to be shared with Humanity... is there still something more that hasn't been said?**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 9 – Clash of Dragons, Part 5 _ **

Realizing they were the only ones left, Issei and Vali held up their hands.

"**Boosted Gear!**"

The gauntlet on his left flared up with power before it dispelled, showing Issei was ready.

"**Divine Dividing!**"

The gauntlet on her left hand did the same, though with more of a shine.

Both sides began walking forward, with an energy of anticipation in the air as everyone saw the two walking towards each other. Eventually, the two Kings were within fighting distance.

"Vali, are you ready?" Issei asked, smiling as he did.

"I am, we've taken each other this far, and now it's time we show that to everyone watching." Vali replied, also smiling.

And with that, both of them unleashed their auras.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**I know this is only a formality, but for this instance? Let the final battle of this Rating Game... Begin!**

Issei and Vali immediately flew ahead, causing their auras to smash into each other.

The entire crowd screamed in surprise, as what was a "weak" attack by the Twin Dragons' standards was still enough that an entire force pushed against everyone watching the battle. Even their own families underestimated the force it would unleash.

"What incredible power!" Lilith exclaimed in surprise.

Homura felt her shirt fly up before pushing it down, blushing as she hoped no one would get a show of her figure.

"This isn't even a real attack! How are they generating so much power!?" Shun questioned.

"I don't know, but then again... do we really know how strong they've become when they're able to fuse into that Yuzuki form!?" Sanae loudly answered.

Both of them broke off, with Issei sliding across the ground with his hand out.

**["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"]**

A familiar sphere of power formed in his hand, before he put both his hands around it.

"**Dragon...**"

"Here it comes." Cao Cao remarked, recognizing the attack.

The other Hero Faction Elites turned to him.

"Wait, so is this the attack that-" Georg inquired.

Cao Cao nodded his head.

"It is, this is when he achieved his Eternal Balance Breaker... the moment I had to use Truth Idea just to match him." He confirmed.

**["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"] ["BOOST!"]**

"**Blaster!**"

Issei screamed as a powerful red beam fired out, warping the battlefield's dimension as it rushed through.

Chuckling a bit, Vali held out her arms.

"**Black Hole!**"

The area around her began to spiral, tearing the fabric of space-time apart as his attack was swallowed up inside, and leaving Issei surprised by how fast she reacted.

"Just because you know all my tricks, doesn't mean I can't train in ways to still catch you off guard with them!" Vali replied as they vanished.

"**Event Horizon!**"

The warps reappeared, making Issei's eyes widen as they prepared to unleash his own attack against him.

**["DREAM!"]**

The attacks fired, but he was left unharmed, with the entire crowd in surprise as they saw him completely unfazed by the attacks.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**With the power of Great Red inside of him, despite it's nothing like the Dragon God's unlimited potential for it... if Issei dreams it, and has the right timing and awareness for it, then it will become a reality!**

"**White Hole!**"

His own attack was swallowed by a white version of Vali's, and then...

"**Horizon Line!**"

Once again, his attack was released back at his intended target, with Vali jumping back a bit.

**("REFLECT!")**

The attacks hit off Vali's barrier, and then she motioned her hand a bit.

**("INFINITY!")**

The blast ricocheted off the magic circle, soon appearing towards another Reflect circle, and instantly began bouncing around the field through them.

'What's she doing?' He thought.

**("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!")**

Issei grunted as he felt his power get siphoned away, forcing him to punch the ground.

Due to having Great Red's power, he wasn't getting any weaker from the siphoning, but it was still draining him, which was still an agonizing feeling on his body. Worse, because he wasn't getting weaker... Vali was gaining the same amount of power each time.

**("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!") ("DIVIDE!")**

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Issei might be in trouble! The Divine Dividing halves a user's power with each call, but he can't get weaker due to his own powers, meaning Vali's basically got an endless reservoir to take from him!**

"Is he serious!?" Katase exclaimed in shock

"I'm afraid so... Ddraig normally keeps boosting, so that always left a lot for Albion to take. Though with Ophis and Great Red?" Shun explained, wondering how to say the next part.

He soon looked at his wife, who sighed.

"While only Ophis is truly Infinite, the possibilities within Dreams are endless, so while the methods behind them aren't the same? There's no way to completely empty their power." Sanae finished for him.

Everyone nearby gasped at that.

"Then that means that against this ability, it's a disadvantage?" Murayama realized.

"Dreams are a necessary part of life, because everyone will dream in some way... even if he doesn't have the ability to attack for as long as she wants like Vali, that's balanced by the fact he can do anything he can think of." Kiryuu replied.

Vali clapped her hands together, making her eyes glow.

**("CHARGE!")**

The power in the Reflect circles flashed, causing Issei's attack to change color, and instantly fire back at him, but as _Vali's_ attack!

Everyone heard him scream, making the crowd stare as he was shot through the battlefield, and across the barrier area, which rippled from the heavy pushing his body was being slammed with.

"This... is... nothing!" Issei shouted.

**["PENETRATE!"]**

He slammed his fist forward, shattering the attack entire, and then diving forward at Vali.

"**Abyssal Tempest!**"

A powerful cyclone shot from Vali's hands, with the imagery of her power's nightmarish-looking Dragon shooting through it. However, Issei showed no fear as he thrust his arm forward.

"Murakumo!" He exclaimed.

The Shinto Pantheon's equivalent to Excalibur extended from the Boosted Gear, and slashed right through the attack! The attack's dragon representation burst apart, with Vali's eyes widening as Issei came in to fast for her.

Another burst of power shot out, but this time Vali was the one sent flying across the stadium barrier's, which actually shook and contorted like extra strong Jell-O.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Holy guacamole! This entire Rating Game's felt like a teeter totter, zig-zagging around with each side taking the lead after the other! Now that we're seeing this, I think we know why, only cranked up to what would be the maximum volume on a deafeningly large stereo set's sub-woofers!**

'That seems oddly specific...' The crowd thought.

Vali immediately broke free as energy rippled from her, showing the activation of his Force Crystallization.

"I've gotta say, Issei... didn't think you'd be able to take so much from my attacks." Vali panted, smiling a bit.

"You too, it's amazing how strong you look when I'm not fighting with you." Issei panted while chuckling.

Most of the normal Humans in the crowd murmured at that.

"Look at that, it's like they're having fun out there."

"They had to fight to save us all not that long ago, how are they not stumbling or worrying right now?"

"Are these games really that fun?"

Hearing this, a smile crept on Lilith's face as she looked at them.

'Looks like this was the right call. To see these two fight just for the fun of it, for nothing more than to rest and prove themselves... looks like their Dragons were right on the mark with their pre-battle statements.' She smiled as she turned back to watch.

Vali launched at Issei, who swung his arm back, leaving it to glow with his Heavenly Crest's power.

"**Clear Abyss!**"

A wave of shadows hit out, right as Issei slammed his hand into his back, and everyone's eyes widened as Issei began falling to his knees.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Uh oh! Because of the effects of that attack, Issei's powers have been negated, and Vali's one Devil that knows him well enough to have all the understanding for the Worthlessness part of her abilities to do it!**

"Sorry Issei, but this match is mine!" Vali apologized, charging up an attack.

She threw her hands up into the air, which made everyone look as a few magic circles appeared around her.

**("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!") ("INFINITY!")**

Those few magic circles suddenly multiplied into hundreds, no thousands, no... _millions_ of magic circles that were all charging the same attack.

**("They say less is more, but I disagree.")** Ophis remarked.

**("Mother, you did not just say that...")** Albion groaned.

Issei looked at her, a weak expression on his face... only for him to smirk, getting the White Dragon Empress' attention.

"Sorry, but I don't think I'm as weakened as you think!" He exclaimed, flashing a toothy grin.

"**Anneal Rainbow!**"

The bit of light he left inside of him suddenly flashed across his body as each color the rainbow, and he stood up with all of his strength back.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**That was simply amazing! Issei actually slipped his own counter against the Worthlessness ability before Vali used it, canceling its effects by empowering himself afterwards!**

The Red Dragon Emperor held his hand up, and then clenched it.

"**EXPLOSION!**"

Gathering all his power into his Heavenly Crest, the entire stadium began shaking, forcing the crowd to hold onto their seats.

**["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"] ["DREAM!"]**

The attack began growing, before spreading out into multiple twinkles pf light that flew around him.

"Let's see how your attack handles this!" Issei exclaimed.

"**Heavenly Nebula!**"

The divine-looking Dragon of his Heavenly Crest rushed forward as the attack fired off, which caused Vali to react by crossing her hands, and then swinging them forward.

"**Morning Star Nova!**"

Both of their attacks raced towards each other, rising and falling respectively, and as most of them clashed with one another... a few stragglers got through to smash into the opposing Dragon Emperor, which ended in a massive explosion that enveloped them both!

The crowd went silent from the result, staring intensely as they tried to see what happened.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Hold on everyone, we're doing our best to get a reading on the-**

In just seconds, the clouds formed by the explosions were blown away, with each respective King only a bit scratched up from the attacks.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Wait, never mind what I just said! They're both alright, and based on what we're seeing, those attacks weren't enough to do more than some minor scratches against each other!**

"Hmm..." Ruihi hummed.

Those sitting next to her looked at her in confusion, suddenly noticing Ruihi was actually interested in the battle.

"Both of them show some strong powers... I'd like to clash with those powers, and come out on top." She smirked, giving an excited chuckle.

Everyone sweated a bit as she cracked her knuckles.

"You actually want to fight these two? As in, seeing this is making you want to fight them?" Kuisha questioned.

"Are you saying this isn't?" Ruihi questioned back.

'Suddenly, what she did to Bova makes more sense!' She realized as she gave an awkward, but silent chuckle.

Those sitting around her felt even more nervous as her leaking aura matched Crom's desire to challenge them.

'Vali really is strong, but I'm not giving in!' Issei thought.

'It still surprises me that Issei became strong this quickly. Still, for as little of it that I have, my pride as a Lucifer is on the line, so I can't let myself be beaten so easily!' Vali thought in return.

They each hold up their respective Sacred Gears.

"**Second Liberation!**"

**「** **Dragon Ball Super: Ka Ka Kachi Daze** **」**

Both gauntlets glowed with power, which instantly shattered, and left the two Longinus in their Dragon Deity states. Their auras exploded to match them, with everyone immediately being pushed back against the walls of the stands.

**{Feel that Ruihi, that power they're emitting?}** Crom inquired.

"They're serious now!" Ruihi answered with a chuckled, looking excited.

At that moment, both of them began zig-zagging across the battlefield, which caused the dimensional barrier to start changing shape in response to their movements. It was only due to the upgrades that adjusted to the strongest fighters that kept it from breaking.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**I don't think I've ever seen these two push themselves so hard in all of their battles! Even in the Rating Game Tournament's Championship Battle! Right now, what we're seeing is the two fighting each other with all the strength and power, but without anything on the line but the chance to go full out for their strength, fighting to see who the stronger Devil is!**

Homura's eyes shined at she saw her brother's efforts, and more than anything... the glint in his eyes that said so much about what he had accomplished up to this point.

'Issei... you're so strong, and without going through the normal development a Hero goes through. Would I get that strong if I fought by your side?' She wondered.

"That's it Vali, show him the power of the greatest Maou's descendant!" Leelexe cheered.

Both of them soon shot back, and threw their dominant hands out.

"**Primal Abyss!**"  
"**Heavenly Crest!**"

The strongest form of the Sacred Darkness and Holy Light fired off, with their respective power's dragon shapes manifesting from them. As they met, the two Dragons began biting and clawing away at each other, giving loud roars from their mouthless bodies.

Smashing their heads against each other, a brief explosion of their combined from as the Ethereal Twilight attack shot off, making a kaleidoscope of energy shine across the skies.

"I... I can't tell who's winning, are they evenly matched?" Iolava questioned.

"They might just be. Just like their Dragons, they could very well be equals, with strong powers that still can't make one above the other." Eneely replied, feeling her eyes shake as they see it.

From the spot where Fafnir and Tiamat were now watching, both looked closely at the scene before them, joined by the human bodies of their respective mates.

"Just how can they achieve something like this?" Tiamat questioned.

"It's simple... because their states of mind are completely identical, as if they share one mind in two bodies." Ddraig answered.

"Eh?" Tiamat blinked.

Issei threw his fist forward, causing the recoil of his own force to rush at Vali like a rampaging Rhinoceros.

"The two of them understand one another at a level most don't because of the ground they've walked on being so similar that knowing them is like second nature to knowing themselves. If you viewed the Seventh Impulse as our strength to go beyond, this understanding is like showing your full respect. This is why Ddraig and I were such evenly matched rivals." Albion explained.

"But these two aren't rivals, they've lovers. How is that the same?" Fafnir questioned.

Vali rushed around his strike, and then threw her hands out, unleashing a powerful flurry of magical shots, which moved in a similar manner to Issei's.

"Exactly." Both Heavenly Dragons stated, smiling at they did.

Issei used his speed to rush around the blasts, and soon focused his eyes before giving a mighty shot.

"**Blazing Soul!**"

His will power fired out, shredding the ground of the battlefield as it did, which began distorting the sky until it changed back into the natural blue sky it started as.

"**Force Crystallization!**"

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**They just used their respective will power attacks! Get ready everyone, because this is the first time in history that we've ever seen such a clash, and the theories about it have had some interesting coloration to the possible result!**

As the will-based attacks representing attack and defense clashed, the barrier shot up into a cone shape, making an explosion of power go off as the wind around the arena began to spiral around, but not enough for something like a storm to form.

The intense force was enough that even Ruihi suddenly lost her nerve from it.

'This is just from pure willpower?' She thought.

**{It seems we'll need to take this in mind for our inevitable battle with them.}** Crom realized, acknowledging the strength of the two abilities.

And with one last condensing, the clashing wills exploded!

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Everyone watched in awe, while everyone from both team's peerages were completely woken up from the experience, and stared at the end result.

Both of their Kings were finally showing signs of fatigue, and the alternate dimension's battlefield... was now just a flat battlefield that had been completely smoothed out like glass, yet with a soft but firm feel to it like a basalt rock.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Amazing, the entire battlefield has become so simple... and right as our two Kings have started getting short on breath.**

Asuka felt her voice sputtered at the sight.

"Issei and Vali... how much longer will your fight go on for? Just how much can you keep taking?" She questioned.

"I'm surprised that it took this long for them to simply get _tired_ of all things!" Irina remarked.

Tobio lost his voice as he watched, but then found it.

"Back when we first met Vali, I had no idea that she'd grow to such a point." He stated.

"My sister's grown so much, it's amazing." Lavinia agreed.

"Question now is how will this battle end? I don't know what else she's got, aside from maybe just sheer force trying to overpower Issei." Yumina wondered.

Issei took a deep breath, holding out his hand.

**["BOOSTING BREAKER!"]**

"Alright, time to settle this!" Issei exclaimed.

Vali panted a bit, and soon flew into the air, her twelve wings being replaced by her Divine Dividing swapping into wing form.

**("RELEASE!")**

She expelled some of her power through her wings, using it to accelerate higher.

"Get ready Vali, because here it comes!" Issei announced.

"**Transcendental Storm!**"

He spun around before throwing his fist out, releasing his Heavenly Crest as a powerful gale towards Vali... who immediately smirked as she flipped around.

"**Abyssal Tempest!**"

Vali unleashed her Abyssal Whirlwind... after flipping, causing the Primal Abyss' own form as gale force winds to shoot down towards Issei's attack, though no one really understood why Vali flipped when she unleashed it.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Here it comes!**

The two attacks met, and at that moment, what everyone expected to be a cancelling of the two attacks... instead just had them stuck in a stalemate that emitted a strong release of pressure!

"The attacks are still going, but how!?" Kirin questioned.

"Even I'm not sure." Sairaorg admitted, surprised for once.

Naud focused on what was happening before him, and then his eyes widened as it suddenly clicked.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Of course, that's what the flip was for! To reverse the direction her attack would spin in! Because of that, the point the two attacks are meeting at ended up spinning in the same direction! They're only enhancing each other's force!**

Everyone, including Issei, all showed surprise at that.

Both attacks soon shredded each other apart, and Vali was seen focusing, which made Issei realize what she was trying to do.

**("CHARGE: EXCEEDED!")**

Vali gathered all the remaining power she had left, and dove at the ground, smashing into it as her aura began to flare up.

"I see, well two of us can play at that game!" Issei replied.

**「** **Metal Fight Beyblade: Soundtrack 16** **」**

At that moment, both sides unleashed their auras, creating a powerful force of energy that smashed against one another. One side of the stadium was covered with red energy, and shining a red glow through the crowd stationed on that side, while the other had the same happening with white.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Their auras are literally slamming into each other, it's as if the Dragons inside of them are unleash the force of their roars through their bodies!**

"Hey, look at that!" Homura exclaimed.

Everyone looked closely, only to gasp as the sight of two silhouettes appeared besides them, showing an illusion of Ddraig and Albion's Dragon forms unleashing their signature elements against the other.

"No way, is that Ddraig and Albion!?" Asuka exclaimed.

"This attack's getting so intense, you can see the Dragons within them fighting by their side!" Yumina gasped.

A slight tremor followed as another set of illusions appeared in the attack, showing the Dragon Forms of both Great Red and Ophis as part of the clashing auras that were playing reverse tug-of-war.

"I don't think this is just their auras clashing, it's as if the Dragons themselves are literally channeling their spirits into this attack!" Lilith stated, feeling her eyes shake as the sight overwhelmed her.

Naud began sweating from the intensity he felt in the battle.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**I don't think this just a 1 on 1 battle anymore! It's a 3 on 3, with Issei and Vali alone representing the battling done by the two Dragons within each of them! No doubt about it, we have to be near the final leg of this battle, and this Rating Game!**

Everyone went silent, only able to watch at the hosts of the Heavenly Dragons prepared to decide the battle.

"This match is mine!" Both of them exclaimed.

The two auras soon swallowed each other, and created a powerful explosion that knocked each other back! The entire audience watched them slam hard against the barrier walls, followed by intense smoke that was the result of their attacks.

Both of them soon got back to their feet, but looked a bit shaky as they did, slowly walking towards each other.

"This isn't... over yet." Issei smiled.

"Yeah, let's really get this started." Vali smiled back.

At that moment, they motioned to go into a run, but... the entire crowd gasped in unison as the end result was something else entirely... the sight of both Kings falling to the ground, with swirled eyes showing they were clearly knocked out.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Nothing but the shocked stares from those watching the battle happened for the next minute or so, and then... Naud immediately pulled his mic as close as he could.

**【** **Naud** **】**   
**Both of them have fainted, and based on the instant replay... it was at the exact same time! Not even a slight moment more over the other!**

"Wait, but then doesn't that mean..." Motohama questioned.

"I don't know." Matsuda replied.

Naud took a moment to look at the sight, and considering the nature of this battle, he knew there was one, and _only_ one kind of call he could make right now for such an amazing battle. So, taking a deep breath...

**【** **Naud** **】** **  
Normally, this would be a draw, but with what this match was about? with how hard both sides gave their all? This match's end result... is victory for both sides! There is no loss or tie, but a double victory!**

Hearing the result that was called, the entire crowd exploded with cheers, signifying they all agreed that there had been no better way for this Rating Game to end.

"Wait, so... we technically won?" Asia asked.

"Yeah, I think we did!" Asuka smiled.

All the members of Issei's peerage gathered in a group hug, cheering their lungs out at the result. Vali's group did the same, which included the normally composed Arthur, while Lilith gave a smile at the result.

"Somehow, this feels like it was meant to be. If that's the cause... I'm glad it was." The Devil Queen remarked.

The feeling of healing suddenly hit the duo, courtesy of the Innovate Clear, and they immediately regained consciousness as their respective peerages ran up to them.

"Hey, what happened? Did I lose?" Issei asked.

"No, it was a tie, but in the sense you both won the match!" Yuuma clarified.

"What? Both of us?" Vali gasped.

"Yeah, it was such a great battle that even Naud couldn't say it was a draw!" Yumina confirmed.

Hearing that, Issei and Vali suddenly smiled before giving a shout of victory. Right as that was done, the sight of Ruihi getting up to leave the stadium could be seen, getting the attention of those seeing her leave.

"Where are you going?" Kuisha asked.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm going to get my Evil Pieces now, because I'm planning on fighting those two as soon as possible. Oh, and things go the right way... expect to join me, considering what your fellow High-Ranked Extra Clans have already done." Ruihi answered.

Kuisha flinched at that, leaving the Satan Heiress to walk away.

'Ajuka, please fail that part of your studies, because I'm not sure that I want to be the Abaddon Devil that has to join her.' She sweated.

* * *

Lilith took a deep breath as she looked at a stack of papers that were all after battle reviews about the Rating Game.

"I still can't believe it, a single Rating Game managed to get all this attention. I'm even seeing offers to join peerages in these. Wonder how Azazel will react when he sees those wondering if they have Sacred Gears, and requesting for his artificial ones?" She chuckled.

"Sounds like we finally broke the ice."

Lilith looked up, seeing Diehauser walk in, wearing the new Great Devil outfit made for the Satan position he was given... which Lilith immediately began laughing at.

"Why are you laughing? You made this suit." He inquired.

The Devil Queen kept laughing, slamming the desk with one hand as he pointed at him with the other.

It was then that the sight of him having his signature open shirt look, which for male version of the Great Devil outfits, made him look like he was trying to be completely shirtless in just pants.

"Oh..." He remarked, realizing he did it by habit.

"I warned you to double check, but apparently you were in too big a hurry to listen." Lilith kept snickering.

"Yes, we get it. My usual dressing tendency is subconscious." He sighed.

After another minute or two, the Devil Queen finally caused her laughter, taking a deep breath to recollect herself. When she was finally done laughing, she looked at the new Great Devil before her.

"So, what's the nature of your visit?" She inquired.

His answer came from another stack of papers that he put on Lilith's desk, which she immediately began looking over.

"We're starting to begin the changes that finally ignore those sick Elders' discriminator standings, so we now have to decide among those in each Extinct Clan to become the new heir to their revived households. The Naberius Clan is already studying ways to possible even incorporate their heritage in an attempt to possibly restore the pureblood physiology they lost." He answered.

"Ah, that's right. None of the Extinct Clans technically had heirs due to their situations. I think we already have a good number of candidates, especially since they've been with the Maou Heirs for a while." Lilith replied.

Diehauser nodded his head, remembering their efforts in the recent war.

"Do you think they'll become independent if Ajuka's reverse engineering of Issei and Vali's unique pieces works, or that they'll stay?" He wondered.

"That depends on them, since Lucifuge is part of my husband's peerage. Not to mention some like Sairaorg's group have bonded well. I will admit that Kuisha will likely have to go, considering we have Ruihi, although that may be a while since she was a bit... uncomfortable around Ruihi when she talked to her during the Rating Game." Lilith answered, trailing off at the end.

Giving a slight shrug, she organized the papers by order of the 72 Pillars' numbers.

"Either way, it looks like Sairaorg's considering giving his right as the Bael Heir to Rias, so he's accepted Kuisha leaving his peerage due to the fact he'll likely marry into her Clan." She remarked.

"Wait, he's forfeiting his position?" Diehauser said in surprise.

"Considering what he was fighting for, he needed that position at the time, but that was rendered moot when Vali's wish did what he needed and more. Rias is already a Bael, and Venelana's now having to take the spot of the Clan Head means that Rias is an eligible heiress to the Clan." Lilith answered.

"Hmm... I guess there's not too much of a problem if we look at things in that angle." Diehauser admitted.

Lilith nodded, then widened her eyes.

"Oh, speaking of peerages and heirs... how is Ajuka doing with that reverse engineering on the end of non-automatic species transformation? Not to mention the plans on creating the variants for the other mythological factions?" She inquired.

"The former? Not so sure on that, but he seems to have made some progress on the latter, and estimates about... a month before he succeeds?" Diehauser answered, trying to recall the last part.

Lilith's eyes widened.

"I know he's smart, but he really figured out that area so fast? Damn..." Lilith breathed.

"And for the other topic, I'm going to assume that you're talking about giving Ruihi her Evil Pieces?" He assumed.

"Yeah, is that doable right now?" Lilith asked.

"Well, while everything that's happened has caused a tizzy, she is a Maou Heiress, so I think we can get her a set right now. Though we'll have to send someone with her due to Ajuka's work keeping him busy." Diehauser confirmed.

Lilith smiled at that.

"Not to worry, I know someone that can take her, and she doesn't have anything to delay the job." She replied.

* * *

Fiara had a magic circle by her ear, listening to Lilith contacting her about the Evil Pieces.

"Sure thing, I can take her over right now." Fiara replied.

〖"Knew I could count on you. So, think we can expect you revealing yourself to the public soon enough?"〗 Lilith replied, a hopeful tone in her voice.

Fiara giggled at that.

"Lilith, let's not walk too many steps ahead. There's a reason you never said who the 12th Founder of Hell was." She stated.

The Devil Queen sighed, shaking her head.

〖"Alright, I'll leave it at that for today. Talk to you later."〗 Lilith replied.

The magic circle disappeared, and Fiara turned to a bored-looking Ruihi, who was kicking a ball across the wall as she waited for something.

"Come on Ruihi, we're about to get your Evil Pieces." She alerted her.

"Wait, it's that easy?" The black-haired Devil replied.

"It is, though the war's been a delaying thing, and your heritage is the only reason we're able to squeeze you in now." Fiara clarified.

Ruihi face palmed, groaning at that.

"Of course it is..." Ruihi said under gritted teeth.

* * *

The two walked into the building where the King Monument was stationed, making the Satan Heiress looked at it in awe.

**{So, this is how the Devils founded this system.}** Crom remarked.

'That's not the only thing... something about this place feels odd, but I can't put my finger on it.' Ruihi wondered, her uncertainty amplified by the fact they were on Agreas.

Giving a rough tap on the ground, she felt a strange feeling for a moment.

**{Ugh... Ruihi, please... don't do that again.}** Crom groaned, feeling nauseous.

Fiara hit her on the back, getting her attention.

"Come on, you can't get your Evil Pieces if you don't touch the monument." Fiara remarked.

"Oh, right." Ruihi realized.

She walked up to the monument, and taking a deep breath, placed her hand on it. It didn't take long for her Evil Pieces to manifest, though as she did, four of them briefly flashed outside of Fiara's notice.

A box formed, with all of the Evil Pieces going inside of it.

"These are my Evil Pieces, huh... kind of expected more to happen." Ruihi shrugged, opening the box.

Fiara walked up to her, looking at them.

"Did you get a Mutation Piece?" She asked.

"How would I know that?" Ruihi asked, though she already knew how to spot them.

"You should see that particular piece flash, with the multiplies depending on how dim or bright it was." Fiara explained.

"Then I didn't get any." Ruihi answered.

Fiara chuckled, shrugging a bit.

"Only one in every 10 Devils, and even less get more than one, so don't feel too bad." She replied.

As they prepared to leave, Ruihi took a look at the pieces that flashed.

'Heh, looks like there's a reason we had four masses come to me.' She mentally chuckled.

**{And their multiples are fairly strong, which means we can gather anywhere from 5 to 15 powerful allies.}** Crom replied, noticing their power.

'Got any idea how much?' She questioned.

**{Looks like a Bishop with a 5 multiplier, a Knight with 6, a Rook with 7, and... ooh, looks like your Queen got the best multiplier of all.}** Crom answered.

The Satan Heiress gave a dark chuckle at that, and then...

"Ruihi, are you coming?" Fiara called to her.

"Huh? Oh, I'm coming!" She shouted.

Taking a moment, she lifted up her hair to show the four black masses slithering into view.

"I get the feeling you four have something to do with these Mutation Pieces, so that makes me wonder... are you asking me for something?" She wondered, a slight smirk on her face.

All four of them jumped into the box, touching the four Evil Pieces, despite having no way to bond with them.

Or at the very least, bond with them just yet.

* * *

Everyone was soon gathered in a small part of Hell, a small celebration to the results of the Rating Game that occurred only a few hours ago.

"That game was incredible, who knew you had such a thing in your culture!" Katase smiled.

"I know. It used to be a way for training our Reincarnated Devils, but eventually became an important part of our culture. It wasn't long before we created a safe way to battle without risk." Vali replied.

Yumina handed the Lucifer Heiress a drink, which she quickly gulped down.

"After seeing it, we've decided to take our grandparents' offer to train at the Hero Village." Murayama revealed.

The Lucifer heiress nearly choked as she looked at them.

"Seriously, you finally accepted it?" Issei questioned.

"We have. After we saw that match, we decided that we'd like to fully understand our heritage." Murayama confirmed.

"And once we finished our training, if you'd allow it... could we maybe join your peerage?" Katase added.

Issei was surprised by that, leaving him to smile a bit.

"If you still want to join by that time, I'd be happy to consider having you join my peerage." He quickly accepted.

The two smiled, leaving their boyfriends to sulk a bit.

"Would you two like to join them on this trip?" Izanagi offered, holding out his hand.

"Really!?" They both shouted.

Izanami giggled, already looking up their parents' information so they'd be aware of the offer her husband had just given the two.

"Uh... big brother, can I ask you something?" Homura asked.

"Of course." Issei replied.

"I'm still considering some more thought on this, but... if my decision ends up as such? Will you let me join your peerage as well?" She asked.

Issei blinked a few times, forcing Asuka to hit his ear to reboot his focus.

"You as well?" Issei replied.

She nodded her head, and grabbed onto part of her shirt.

"Unlike me, or Asuka, or most other Heroes... you lived like a Human, and only began training your special powers a few months ago. The fact you managed to achieve that? I'm wondering if I could find a similar path to become strong on my own, or if I'll find something fighting by your side. When I finally decide, and if it's the latter... will you have me?" Homura explained.

"I see, that's a pretty big decision you're making." Issei replied.

Crossing his arms, he took a while to think it over, and then...

"Alright, if you decide on it? Then I'll be considering it like I will with our two cousins." He agreed.

Homura jumped into the air and cheered.

"Aw man, my soon-to-be husband seems to be getting some potential peerage members already." Vali giggled.

"Maybe it isn't just you?" Tobio replied, closing an eye as if to hint something.

Vali blinked a bit, followed by a metaphorical question mark forming over her head.

"Oh yeah, if I can have everyone's attention!" Issei exclaimed.

Everyone turned in response.

"Since we're here, and the wedding's still a week away? I thought we should announce the important positions for those in the wedding." He stated.

"Ah, that's right! We haven't told them yet." Vali remembered.

Everyone listened close, with Issei beginning.

"Asia, we'd like you to be our Flower Girl. While Irina, we've chosen you as our Maid of Honor." Vali revealed.

"Eh!?" Asia exclaimed, blushing a heavy red shade.

"Me, really?" Irina replied, her eyes sparkling.

Yumina snickered a bit at the former's reaction, and then looked towards Issei.

"Bikou, you've been chosen as our Ring Bearer. Then finally... Cao Cao, you're our Best Man." Issei revealed.

Bikou fist pumped, while Cao Cao looked surprise.

"Me?" He replied, unsure of why he was chosen.

"You are kind of my rival, so I figured that you were a good choice." Issei replied.

"That's the most stupid, poorly thought out, and idiotic logic I've ever heard." Ruihi replied, emphasizing her bluntness.

Issei stared at her, blinking a few times before saying...

"Are you getting married, or in a relationship?" Issei retorted.

"The latter happens to be true." Ruihi countered.

The Red Dragon Emperor paled at that, having just been beaten at his own game.

"Shouldn't have mentioned the latter part, idiot." The Satan Heiress point out.

"Wow, you're not afraid to say anything." Niruili sweated.

"You wanna see where I grew up? Back there, it's commonplace." Ruihi answered, looking away.

'Something tells me I shouldn't ask!' Niruili thought worriedly.

Vali gave an awkward chuckle, and cleared her throat, which regained everyone's attention from the... strange experience that just happened.

"Anyways, we hope to see you all our respective parties soon. Until then? To a great Rating Game!" Vali announced.

"To a great game!" Everyone replied.

Everyone gave cheers, and while no one was looking, Ruihi opened her box of Evil Pieces again, seeing the shadowy masses resting inside. Taking a moment to move to a secluded spot, she formed a magic circle.

"Itsuki, think you can meet me in part of Kuoh Town within the next few days?" She inquired.

* * *

**And that's the game, a tie that's special because it's considered not neither said being unable to claim victory, but both earning it! I think most of you can agree with me that there was no better way to end this battle. Having either one of them win over the other would give some implications that, while not bad in any way, aren't the message I was going for.**

**This result helps reinforce that while this story had Vali as the focus character, with Issei's own growth to earning his own peerage as another major plot point, they're now equals that will share the role of protagonist in the next story. So, for everyone who guessed it wasn't gonna end with one side winning over the other? You were right, so give yourself a nice pat on the back ^^**

**Ruihi's finally got her Evil Pieces, and ended up getting "4" Mutation Pieces, all of which have high multiplier values! Though if we take those four masses that have been hanging around her since the Rating Game... it seems like they had something to do with that. *chuckles* This chapter has plenty of hints to what they are, so this is your last chance to guess before I reveal it in next chapter, which focuses on the Qliphoth Mole herself :3**

**Finally, we've got some idea on how Lilith and the Great Devils are incorporating the changes to the government that resulted from Vali's victory, and it looks like things are already changing for the better. (Although Kuisha might have reasons to worry soon enough) For why Sairaorg's considering forfeiting his right as the Bael heir to Rias, that's a throwback to canon, where he said he wants to be a Maou, and altered to fit this story's changes.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in Today's Chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Tosca - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kuisha - Dating  
Rossweisse/Vidar - Likely to start Dating  
Hina/Nanami - Dating  
Jeanne/Cao Cao - Chemistry seems to exist, but the form of it is unknown  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Former is clueless, Latter isn't sure how she feels  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating**


	87. Chapter 87

**Here we are everyone, the special chapter based on Ruihi, which serves to gives us some major information and revelations that will be important to her when I finally begin the events of "Journey of the Heavenly Dragons." Now, before anything else, I'm honestly surprised that almost no one had any idea on what those masses were, because while not obvious, those clues had something fairly easy to figure out if you looked hard enough.**

**I mean it, there are three hints that have been (at least in my opinion) clearly foreshadowing what they are, but there still hasn't been anyone that's managed to figure it out, especially since Ruihi is the biggest of these three hints. If I've actually managed to stomp all of you before you finish reading this chapter? Well, then I'll be impressed that I was able to stump everyone.**

**As I've mentioned recently, Ruihi is one of my favorite OCs, and _the_ favorite among those I've made for DxD, so I advise you all to be very attentive to every detail in this chapter when it applies to her. Anything about her can be important for when the events of JOHD finally happen, and believe me when I say that her time in this arc has barely touched on her as a whole. *gives a dark chuckle***

**So, without further ado? Let's begin this chapter and finally show you all what those four masses truly are!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

〖〗 - Voice Speaking through a Magic Circle

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Super Devils **

**A special title gained by certain Devils who are very abnormal in certain ways due to the strength they've managed to achieve, or as best defined by Lilith, a Devil that's grown incredibly powerful by natural means, rather than training. There aren't many Super Devils in existence, as many have noted they've only begun to show up in the recent century, and only among the Devils that sided with the Old Maou Faction.**

**The first major example of them popped up prior to the Devil's Civil War, where the seven who are currently the Great Devils showed incredible abilities that normally didn't belong to their bloodlines. The most noticeable examples of this came from Sirzechs and Serafall, with the former's two inherited abilities merged to create a new one that, and the latter's ability to create water _and_ ice through her Clan's signature power.**

**Due to being a result of their powers developing to a certain point in a natural manner, having a Super Devil in a family doesn't mean that any siblings, children, or etc. will end us as well. This is best shown through Rias and Millicas, as despite being related to Sirzechs, and having the same conditions to use his Aura of Destruction, he had to teach Rias how to use the ability, showing that neither she or Millicas were able to do it without his aid.**

**However, there also seems to be cases of Super Devils that aren't immediate from birth, and can gain an abnormal growth that creates the natural potential behind them. No one's completely sure how this part works, even Alanira, who's proven she has a near-perfect eye for finding talent due to noticing the future Great Devils long before they knew what made them special.**

**Ultimately, a breakthrough on what Super Devils are was discovered by Ajuka upon entering the Human World's 21st Century, when his studies concluded that Super Devils are the Hell's equivalent to the Longinus of Heaven's System, though with lower quality to gain higher quantity. This theory's ground comes from the fact that the Super Devils didn't get noticed until after Lucifer's death.**

**As he and Lilith created the Devils together, both of them seemed to have left some potential from their former ties to Heaven, which becomes something within Devils that, under the right luck or circumstances, allows them to gain the potential to be a Super Devil, which based on Ajuka's studies, is basically them showing signs of strength that match an Ultimate-Class Devil from birth, or suddenly gaining that strength.**

**By this logic, no Devils among the Maou Clans are able to be born as Super Devils because, as their natural descendants, they're already born at the level of Ultimate-Class by default (including Rizevim...); the main problem was, aside from not being possible to appear until Lucifer's death, like with the Longinus, it took the Civil War for those among the living Devils to awaken their latent potential.**

**Like with the Longinus, there's little known about them, but they don't seem to be as special as their Angelic counterpart for some reason.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 10 – Rise of the Black Satan _ **

Everyone gave cheers, and while no one was looking, Ruihi opened her box of Evil Pieces again, seeing the shadowy masses resting inside. Taking a moment to move to a secluded spot, she formed a magic circle.

"Itsuki, think you can meet me in part of Kuoh Town within the next few days?" She inquired.

〖"Ooh, what for?"〗 He wondered.

She made a loud grabbing motion that echoed through the line, making him whimper as she got his attention, and making him act more seriously.

〖I-I'm listening...〗 He nervously replied.

Ruihi smirked, glad he got the message almost immediately.

"Let's just say that I've found something interesting that I need help building." She explained, rubbing the top of one mass.

〖"Alright, then I'm on my way."〗 Itsuki nodded, immediately running off.

Ruihi crushed the magic circle, right as she walked back into the view.

"Where were you?" Seekvaira questioned.

"There's a thing called a bathroom, you ever use it before?" Ruihi replied.

The Agares Heiress didn't reply to that.

"Yeah, I thought so." Ruihi remarked.

* * *

Within part of the Hindu Pantheon, the sight of Shiva using his powers on the sight of any debris he could find as part of the cleanup efforts, which weren't anywhere near done due to the structure of Mount Meru being... well, a mountain.

"Ugh... normally, this wouldn't be an annoyance for my powers... if it wasn't for the fact I can't aim at just the trash!" Shiva groaned.

Kicking something, he caused a pile of trash to fall apart, revealing the remains of a Goliath.

"A surviving Goliath?" He stated, getting slightly cautious.

"Lord Shiva?" An Asura asked worriedly.

He motioned his hands to stay back, and he took a closer look. After getting closer, he slammed the machine, but... nothing. It didn't move at all.

Opening it up, he saw that most of the machine was intact.

"This thing's fine, and yet it looks like it's had a permanent cessation of functioning." Shiva noted.

"What should we do with it?" A Prana asked.

Shiva rubbed his chin for a moment, and then made a decision.

"Find anyone who's free, and asked them to deliver this to Grigori for inspection. Studying one of these Goliaths machines is a chance we can't give up." Shiva decided.

"At once, Lord Shiva!" His servants replied.

"Oh, and alert my brothers about this. If we can find a Goliath, we might remnants of the other forces in the enemy army, which have equal value. We can't risk losing anything that can tell us about the threats we might face in the future." He added, reminding himself Rizevim was still out there.

Everyone nodded before spreading out to do just that, with Shiva staring closer at the dead machine.

'What secrets could you be hiding?' The Destruction God wondered.

* * *

Ruihi was pacing around part of Kuoh Town, specifically the forest area near Kuoh Academy, stopping to occasionally tap her foot in annoyance.

"What's that idiot!?" She growled.

"Seriously, you can't give your boyfriend any respect?" A voice sighed.

The Satan Heiress turned around to see Itsuki drop into view from the trees, his legs hanging onto a branch like a monkey normally would.

"I mean, come on. You gotta give me some credit for being somewhat attractive to-"

He suddenly screamed as the branch broke off, and he fell on his head, making Ruihi shake her head.

"And that why you don't get respect from people, because things like that make it hard." She sighed.

"OK... guess that's fair..." He murmured, lifting his head up.

Getting up, he shook his face and hair free of dirt, and then hit some out of his ear.

"You are not kissing me until you shower." Ruihi warned.

"Fine, fine... so, what did you need to help you build?" Itsuki asked as he held his hands up.

"These." She answered.

Opening her box of Evil Pieces, the black masses entered the view of Itsuki, who's eyes widened as he saw the little things crawl out.

"W-what the heck are those!?" He questioned in fear.

"They seem to be alive, which is why I called you here. What I need you to do is help me give them bodies." Ruihi explained.

Itsuki blinked at that, and then chuckled.

"Well, this is a twist. Though it isn't really too impossible if I used my power alongside Grail shard." He replied.

Looking at the masses again, he blinked a bit before looking at Ruihi, pointing at one of the masses in her Evil Piece box.

"This one's a girl." He remarked.

"Uh... how do you know that?" She questioned, raising an eye.

He held out his arms, showing three of the masses were hanging onto his arm, with only the one he pointed out staying with Ruihi.

"Because as kids, we guys tend to stick with other guys." He answered.

Ruihi just gave him a blank stare.

"You want me to shut and start working now?" He asked, sweating a bit.

"Yes, I do." She verified with emphasis.

Itsuki gave an awkward chuckle, and cleared his throat as he held a hand out.

"Hair." He asked.

Ruihi ran a hand through her hair, making a loose strand fall out, and grabbed it.

"Here's your hair." She said, holding it out to him.

"OK, now for the rest." Itsuki stated.

He pulled out a small vial containing a drop of blood, and then grabbed some dirt from the ground, wiggling his fingers until he got the right amount. Rummaging through his pocket, he pulled out a few more materials.

The last material came from him plucking three of his own hairs, making him wince.

"OK, with a hair sample from both of us, this blood sample, and some of this fertile dirt... OK, let's see if this works out." Itsuki breathed.

Taking out what was a shard of the Holy Grail piece that Walburga obtained no too long ago, he placed each mass on one certain spot of the ground he laid out. Then, drawing up a certain shape resembling an alchemy circle, he slapped his hands together.

"_De terris ad vitam, et in sanguine... eripuit animam meam de fabricae huius studium exstat tum etiam quod in aliqua maiora turn! Benedicite obiecti sunt cum divina natura donum est cor tuum!_"

"_Now... live!_"

Ruihi covered her eyes as a bright flash went off (though luckily not bright enough to be seen from outside the sunlit forest), which is when the four masses suddenly began to swell like bubbles, then contract once more, before they slowly began transforming into a humanoid shape.

Itsuki immediately ripped off some of each his sleeves, and them crumpled them into his hands, throwing them forward to give the forming beings some form of clothing.

"This means it's working, right!?" Ruihi questioned.

Wondering for a moment, Itsuki shrugged.

"Has to be, or I doubt the glowing would last this long!" He answered.

"Good enough for me!" She replied.

After another minute, the bright flash faded, leaving a bunch of smoke where it once was. As Ruihi managed to regain her focus, she stared at what she saw, and then gave the usual dark smirk she gave when no one was watching.

"Congrats Itsuki, for once you actually earned respect for something." She chuckled.

* * *

Looking at the Goliath that was laid out on a table, the wheelchair-bound Azazel took had a look of interest on his face as Brahma stood by his side.

"So, despite it can't function anymore, the entire thing is intact?" He inquired,

"That's what Shiva said, it's likely that when all the peerages were sent out, one of them likely induced an effect similar to an electromagnetic pulse. That fried the parts of the system that made it an autonomous machine, but left all machinery that made it intact." Brahma confirmed.

Azazel rubbed his head on it, and then looked at the leader of the Hindu Pantheon.

"If that got fried, then how do I examine it? Even I'm not that much of a miracle worker." Azazel questioned.

Brahma chuckled a bit, shaking his head.

"Aren't you forgetting the Goliaths are just modified versions of the mass-produced models of Gogmagogs? Just have Le Fay come over, and scan hers for a reference point. Leo did mention both models had the same operating systems." Brahma reminded him.

Hearing that, Azazel suddenly laughed at his own stupidity.

"Of course, duh!" Azazel recalled.

"Guess that nasty damage Jingu laid on you is still lingering, isn't it?" Brahma inquired.

"A little, it's why I've retired my leadership role to my wife." Azazel confirmed.

Brahma winced a bit.

"Any serious or permanent?" He questioned.

"Nah, just can't fight anymore, which is why I gave my daughter the Down Fall Dragon Spear in the first place. I don't see it all as too bad, since I get more time to focus on my main hobby." Azazel chuckled.

The Hindu God of Creation chuckled back.

"Yeah, it makes sense you'd be the one person that would only see the bright sight of the entire thing." Brahma realized.

* * *

Hiding within a secret area that Ruihi had stationed within the outskirts of Kuoh Town, the Satan Heiress quickly peaked outside before dropping back inside. She immediately turned to the four former masses, now Devils, sitting down with only large cloths acting as their attire.

"How should I start this..." The Satan Heiress wondered, looking at them.

The first was the only female of the four, who looked to be around Ruihi's age, while possessing jade-green hair with eyes of the same color, and a voluptuous figure with a fairly huge bosom. Her expression seemed the most cheerful and innocent among the four.

The second was the first male among the four, who looked to be quite muscular, having an appearance that looked to be in his twenties (although Ruihi could feel he was younger than he looked, with the girl being the oldest), with copper-red hair and eyes. His expression appeared fairly cold, nearly emotionless.

The third was the second male among the four, looking fairly normal among the four, with sky blue hair and eyes. He was definitely younger than the two before him, though Ruihi couldn't tell if he was the second or third oldest of the quartet, but his curious look made her lean towards the latter.

Finally, the last of the males and the four was a bit shorter than the others, clearly making him out as the youngest. He had some golden blonde hair with hazel eyes, and seemed to be fairly timid if not outright frightened, actually hiding his entirety under his cloak.

"Alright, first thing we need to take care of... how aware of you about everything around you?" Ruihi questioned, finally finding the right words.

"Let's see... we're Devils, know you're a Devil, I'm the only girl, we were masses that came from Lilith's-" The girl stated, eventually rambling.

"OK, that's enough. I think we get the picture." Ruihi stopped her.

The jade-haired Devil shrugged at that.

"Well, guess now we have to name these guys. Though what should we-" Itsuki wondered.

"Verrine." The female Devil stated.

Both of them looked at her, surprised by her sudden reply.

"That's my name, and for my three brothers here? You can call them Balberith, Sonneillon, and Gressil." Verrine explained, introducing the three male Devils in the order Ruihi looked at them.

Itsuki blinks a bit before pulling on part of his mouth, and letting it snap back.

"Alright, so they already have names... fair enough." He groaned, feeling a headache form.

"If this is a strain, then go buy them all some _actual_ clothes." Ruihi glared at him.

"Uh... sure thing, I'll go do that." He chuckled nervously.

He instantly jumped through a magic circle, looking at the three male Devils.

"Do any of you talk?" She asked.

"I do!" Sonneillon replied.

Gressil whimpered, and wrapped himself into the cloth further. Balberith just stared at her.

"Yeah... that's totally not creepy." Ruihi sarcastically remarked with a flat face.

"Don't mind him, he just hates fun." Verrine waved.

"He can also hear you." Balberith reminded them.

Gressil peaked an eye through his cloak, shivering a bit as Ruihi looked at him.

"I'd like to be quiet, please..." He begged.

Ruihi sighed, patting the timid Devil's head in an attempt to make him more comfortable. It seemed to have worked, as he peaked his head out more, though only enough that Ruihi could make out his head.

"Sorry..." Gressil apologized.

'Who would have thought that a small mass of shadowy blackness that came from the strongest female Devil would turn into such a timid fella?' Ruihi thought, realizing the irony behind it.

At that moment, she remembered about her Evil Pieces, and took out the four Mutation Pieces she had.

"Tell me you four... how much do remember from your time being those shadowy masses?" Ruihi asked.

"Hmm... that something drew us to you?" Sonneillon mentioned.

The Satan Heiress soon held out the Mutation Pieces, with each of them having their attention focused on one of them in particular. Though they soon got their attention shifted to a certain pair of black gauntlets that she formed on her hands.

"If that's the case, then would you be willing to join my team?" Ruihi inquired.

* * *

Itsuki was walking through Kuoh Town's mall, currently wearing a hat and sunglasses.

"Let's see... Balberith needs the kind of clothes that Sairaorg wears. For Sonneillon, anything will do, though he looks like he might want something looser. Gressil's shorter, so gotta by clothes that are smaller. Then for Verrine, gotta adapt to her massive bust, smoking figure, and sexiness." Itsuki said to himself.

As he walked around, the sight of Aariliyn walking around with Hina.

"Hey, who's that?" Hina asked.

"Don't think I've seen him before, so maybe he comes from another faction." Aariliyn guessed.

Itsuki flinched as he heard their voices, and faked a sneeze.

"What the? Is someone talking about me?" He said, making his voice sound scratchy.

Hina blushed at that, with Aariliyn chuckling a bit.

"Sorry about that, we just haven't seen you here before." Aariliyn apologized.

Itsuki chuckled a bit, sweating under his sunglasses.

"Oh, it's nothing much! I'm just here to see my girlfriend!" He waved his hand, hoping to walk away from the conversation.

"Visit her? Sounds like you don't live near her, so she's lucky to have such a thoughtful boyfriend." Hina smiled.

"Eh... not exactly, she's kinda blunt and headstrong about speaking her mind." Itsuki sighed.

The pair suddenly paled at that.

"Did he just say... his girlfriend is blunt?" Hina inquired, making sure she heard it right.

"Oh god, please... tell us your girlfriend's name isn't Ruihi." Aariliyn begged, sweating a bit.

"I'd be lying if I did." He admitted.

Aariliyn suddenly began releasing a nervous laughter, and immediately grab Hina's arm.

"Come on, let's go get some coffee!" The Mammon Heiress stated.

"A-Aariliyn, this kind of hurts!?" Hina panicked, unsure of what her King was doing.

Itsuki blinked a bit, wondering what he just saw.

"Uh... OK?" He said slowly.

* * *

The four newly born Devils looked closely at the sight of Ruihi's Sacred Gear, as while they recognized what a Sacred Gear was, something about the one the Satan Heiress was wearing... it felt different to them.

"This is the Crescent Eradicator, an artificial Sacred Gear that has a powerful force inside of it." Ruihi revealed.

**{"And that's me."}** Crom responded, going along with Ruihi choosing to reveal himself.

Gressil released a high-pitched shriek after hearing that voice, enough that all three of his siblings were forced to cover their ears, and nearly split open the ears of Ruihi and Crom.

**{"Don't you ever do that again!"}** Crom warned.

The youngest Devil sibling shivered at the threatening tone in the Dragon's voice, and nodded his head fear.

"Ugh... OK, now that we've registered Gressil's got lungs that possibly can fell Dragon, maybe even a God, time to make it clear who I am; and that's the fact that I'm an artificial being like you four." Ruihi revealed.

"So, made in the dirt?" Balberith scoffed.

"No, in a lab by the worst Devil to ever exist, and maybe one you even recognize... Rizevim Livan Lucifer." Ruihi answered.

This got the attention of the four, even Balberith was finally paying attention.

"So, now that you know this... are you still interested in the offer of joining my peerage, or are you gonna run? I can assure you, if you try the latter, then I'll have no hesitation in taking care of you should you try to blab the truth." Ruihi asked again, giving them a clear warning.

The four Devil siblings looked at each other, and then at Ruihi.

"I don't really get all the complicate stuff, but we were looking for you as those shadowy masses, so I don't think we should care much about what you are." Verrine replied, shrugging her arms.

"Wait... really, that easily?" Ruihi blinked in surprise.

**{"Ruihi, don't question it."}** Crom stated.

The Satan Heiress rolled her eyes and sighed, then looked at Verrine again.

"So, based on what you just said, you're gonna stick with me regardless of that fact or what I do?" Ruihi asked.

"Yeah, because something tells me you aren't as bad as you make yourself sound like." Verrine confirmed, giving a warm smile.

Ruihi felt a bit uncomfortable at that, but shrugged it off as Verrine's friendly personality having yet to establish a boundary line due to the fact she was literally born only a few days ago.

"Alright then, guess we're in this for the long run." Ruihi decided.

Verrine saw her toss her Queen, and caught in her hands. Balberith was next, getting a Rook, followed by a Knight headed to Sonneillon, and a Bishop being rolled to Gressil.

"Let's see, how does that chant go? Ah!" Ruihi said, trying to recall the chant for Evil Pieces.

Right as Itsuki came back, he saw the sight of the Evil Pieces going into their new hosts, and settling the first four members of Ruihi's peerage.

"Aw man, did I end up missing the good part?" Itsuki groaned.

* * *

Back in part of Kuoh Town, the sight of the Wedding Area was once again resuming its preparations under Ravel and Yumina's united efforts.

"Little bit higher, and... perfect!" Yumina exclaimed, giving a thumb's up.

"At this rate, we'll be having the parties after we finish everything here." Ravel smiled.

Ravel looked towards a changing room, knocking on the door.

"Asia, you're not having any problems putting your outfit on, are you?" She asked.

Inside of it the changing room, Asia could be seen trying out the Flower Girl outfit.

"No, I'm OK, just... a little nervous." She answered.

"Don't be too nervous. After all, everyone's gonna be staring at the bride more than you." Yumina reminded her.

"Yeah, guess that's true." Asia chuckled.

Walking into the area, Issei and Vali saw how things were going, getting their respective manager's attention.

"Ah, good timing you two, we just got your outfits in." Yumina smiled.

"Really? Guess it's a good thing we came to check on your progress." Issei replied.

Vali looked at the sight before her in awe, her eyes sparkling a bit. The theme was a beautiful purple color with some accents of gold, with flowers of red and white decorating everything.

"And this isn't even the finished design, wait until we get everything else in." Yumina giggled.

"But first, let's show you the bride and groom outfits that were designed for you." Ravel replied.

She brought out a pair of boxes through magic circles, and together with Yumina, opened them out for the soon to be wedded Dragon Emperors.

"Whoa..." Issei breathed.

The sight of a special black and red kimono could be seen for Issei's outfit, representing the Japanese half of the wedding. For Vali, the Devil half was being represented by a pure white dress that had some barely darker areas showing the mark of starts.

"It's beautiful!" Vali cried.

"Glad to hear it, and so will the designers." Yumina smiled.

A loud sigh was heard, and everyone turned to see Ruihi walking into view, rubbing her head as her expression gave a clear "I really don't want to be here right now" look to it. Behind her, Itsuki and the four new Devils walked into view, all wearing the outfits that he had bought for them.

"Ruihi?" Issei said in surprise.

The Satan Heiress sighed, giving what seemed to be a blush of embarrassment.

"My caretaker said it was polite to give my congrats to the happy couple on their coming marriage, so... yeah, here I am." Ruihi grumbled, struggling to force anything about it from her mouth.

"Nice to meet you all." Itsuki greeted as he raised a hand.

While the initial mood was awkward, Vail held out a hand to shake Itsuki's.

"Oh, where are my manners? I'm Itsuki Kingston, and I'm Ruihi's man!" He announced.

He soon felt Ruihi elbow him in the gut, making everyone flinch as they saw her red face struggling to not outright explode at him.

"What did I say about you using that introduction to the fact we're a couple?" She asked through gritted teeth.

"S-sorry, I won't do that again..." He wheezed out.

Coughing a bit, he soon regained his air through a deep breath, and waved out his hands.

"Don't worry, this isn't an abusive thing. It's that while she loves me, I just have a tendency to piss her off... though I guess that proves she's a Satan." Itsuki chuckled.

"Shut up!" Ruihi blushed, giving a blush of anger and embarrassment.

Issei took a moment to stare, and then suddenly began laughing a bit.

"Ruihi, it's kind of glad to see you're just as normal as the rest of us." He smiled.

"Eh?" Ruihi blinked.

"Well, you've kind of giving a tense atmosphere around you for a while. It's kind of good to know you loosen up a bit at times." Vali explained.

Ruihi blinked a bit, scratching her head as she turned her head.

"Uh... yeah, I'll assume that was a compliment. Not like I'm heartless, if anything, I'm just a female and Devil version of that Cao Cao guy." She replied, crossing her arms to try and hold her dignity.

Ravel soon noticed the four behind them, mostly because Sonneillon was waving his hand like it was a speeding roadrunner.

"Forgive the delay in asking this, but who are the four behind you?" Ravel inquired.

"Hmm? Oh, that's right, you wouldn't know." Ruihi realized.

Clearing her throat, and pulling Itsuki to the other side, she held out her hand towards the quartet.

"Everyone, these are old friends of mine, and the first members of my peerage." She introduced.

"Hey there! I'm Ruihi's Queen, Verrine Zhihua!" Verrine greeted with a smile.

"Her Rook... Balberith Chronis." Balberith said, looking away.

"You can call me Sonneillon Ahearna, and I'm her Knight." Sonneillon said, letting his Gressil hide behind him.

"I-I'm... Gressil Huaman... my role is a Bishop..." Gressil whimpered, shivering a bit.

Yumina looked at them, noticing they had some strong potential in them, right as Ruihi put her finger out at the twin Dragons.

"Listen well you two! One day, I'm gonna take to the Rating Games, and then I'll beat both of you to the ground! So, get ready for that day!" Ruihi challenged.

"Oh, you didn't." Vali chuckled, smirking at her.

"You just walked into the fire, so you better not chicken out with that declaration of battle." Issei warned.

"Wouldn't dream of it." Ruihi replied, giving a toothy grin.

Everyone watched the three looked at each other, with Asia poking her head out of the changing room.

"Did I miss something?" She asked.

"Uh... nothing too important." Ravel answered, a bead of sweat going down her cheek.

* * *

**And that's a wrap for today's chapter. It's pretty short compared to usual, but since this chapter was about Ruihi, who still has some details I can't fully reveal until the next story, there was only so much I could put into the chapter before it risked dragging things out. Anyways, as you can see, the identity of the four masses... are the Devils from Team Black Satan of Darkness Dragon King!**

**Like I said in the start notes, there were three big hints to them being the shadowy masses all along. The first hint? We first saw them when the first one appeared after Lilith noticed her hair was starting to revert to its former color. The second? When we next saw them, rather than one, we had four of them. The last hint? All of them instinctively went to Ruihi, or more specifically, a _Black Satan_. *points to the paragraph above***

**For why I chose to make Sonneillon and Gressil like they were? Aside from the blue and yellow hair coming from Verrine and Balberith having confirmed hair colors, as they're on the same team, it seemed like those two might get influenced by their older siblings. As such, I made Sonneillon an energetic extrovert, while Gressil became a timid introvert; similar to ow Verrine is friendly, while Balberith is said to be kind cold and emotionless.**

**One major change I'll say now is, due to Hades not being involved with their birth, and because Ruihi is a female compared to him and Zeno, it's Verrine that's the oldest and strongest of the four, with Balberith being the second in both, and Gressil now being the youngest. I figured that with the different circumstances behind their birth, I should switch some things around.**

**Either way, the four of them being in Ruihi's Peerage means she's already got a strong team, having two Super Devils and two potential Super Devils... who saw her manifest her Sacred Gear, talked with Crom Cruach, and learned about who/what she really is. *breathes* Let that sink in for a moment. Just because their time as masses had them seek her out, all of them chose to side with Ruihi of their own free will.**

**We've also gotten a more official appearance from Itsuki, who we only learned last chapter is actually Ruihi's boyfriend (which was not influenced by Rizevim at all), showing of their... unique relationship with each other ^^; *chuckles awkwardly* They're meant to be an inversion of Issei and Vali's relationship, since Itsuki is the one with less nerve, like Vali was at the start of the story, but isn't the Devil among the duo.**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

**A/N: Itsuki's chant was a rough Latin translation of: "From earth to life, and blood into soul... twist the fabric of this existence, then turn it into something greater! Bless these objects with your divine gift of nature's heart!"**

* * *

** Ruihi's Peerage ** **:**

**King - Ruihi Satan**   
**Queen - Verrine (Mutation Piece)**   
**Bishops - Gressil (Mutation Piece), Unclaimed Bishop  
Knights - Sonneillon (Mutation Piece), Unclaimed Knight  
Rooks - Balberith (Mutation Piece), Unclaimed Rook  
Pawns - Eight Unclaimed Pawns**

* * *

** Bust Size of New Female Characters ** **:**

**Verrine - 115 cm**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in Today's Chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is approaching  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Tosca - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kuisha - Dating  
Rossweisse/Vidar - Likely to start Dating  
Hina/Nanami - Dating  
Jeanne/Cao Cao - Chemistry seems to exist, but the form of it is unknown  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Former is clueless, Latter isn't sure how she feels  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating  
Ruihi/Itsuki - Dating**


	88. Chapter 88

**Everyone, we're at the first of the final three chapters, and for this one? The time of the Bachelor and Bachelorette Parties are here! As such, you can say this chapter's mostly focused on romantic moments, natural fun, and for some of the characters that might not like dressing up... *coughs*like Ruihi*coughs* a bit of hilarity over how they have to deal with being "required" to attend ^^**

**A small heads up before we begin. I honestly don't know what a real Bachelor or Bachelorette Party are like, but I don't think that's a big worry as I'm fairly sure every culture has different ways to do it. Not to mention that since Vali is the Princess of Hell, it's probably even more different since they've gotta make the party something that you'd give to royalty. *shrugs* Well, at least Riser's party kind of gives us a basis.**

**This chapter is mainly a breather of sorts, as being just the party before the wedding, there's not much else to do... except for one thing. *giggles* And what that one thing is? Giving at least a moment to a few couples, while showing some new ones that I've been wanting to introduce for a while, especially one in particular. Some of the new ones will only be implied for now, as they won't get their development until either next chapter, or JOHD's events.**

**Before we officially begin this chapter, there are three new OCs that will be showing up. The crossover elements of LOSD and LOTL have been edited out, so the characters that are the new Demon Princess and Knight of Ineelana's Peerage are two of these three. The last one is a still unfinished OC, so I'll only be referring to them by the Clan they're from until this chapter's revised later.**

**So, with that being said... *switches into a fancy dress* how about we go join these parties?**

* * *

**()** \- Albion or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

〖〗 - Voice Speaking through a Magic Circle

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Devil Capital - Lucifaad **

**The capital city of Hell, which is also the area where the 7 Maou Clans, and the seven Extra Devils of the High-Class that serve under them all live. The area is based on a large-scale hexagonal shape, with center holding the castle and land of the Lucifer Clan, with the corner areas representing the territories of the other six Maou, with the area of the Satan Clan being a memorial ground only inhabited by the Abaddon Clan until recently.**

**Unlike most areas of Hell, the City of Lucifaad was once unable to accessed due to the Devils that call it home being the most important, those Lilith trust most, and many other reasons; as such, the only way to gain entry if not from the Clans born there was to earn the right, or be given temporary permission by Lilith or one of the Great Devils. However, this was only due to Lilith making sure the Devil Elders were kept out, and has since been removed.**

**Lucifaad holds, or is least located near many of the important locations for Devils. Key examples include the Familiar Forest within the shared borders of the Mammon and Beelzebub Clans, the island of Agreas floating overhead, the Dragon Mountains that were formerly made the Dragons' home, but are now just one of their territories since Lemuria's return, a small residence where Adam and Eve live, and a path connecting to the Underworld.**

**Due to the many things about it, the Angels like to consider it the Devil's counterpart to the Seventh Heaven, and Heaven's System.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 11 – Heavenly Celebrations _ **

The scene opened with Nanami and Hina in the ruins of a town, which had since been overtaken by nature, and become a field of flowers. It was currently 3 AM, so despite being morning, the sun had yet to rise above the horizon. In a certain house's ruins, two makeshift graves could be seen.

Nanami kneeled down, placing a bouquet of flowers on both of them.

"Hey there Mom, Dad... it's been another year, so here I am." Nanami greeted, tearing up a bit as she did.

Taking a deep breath, Hina put a hand on her shoulder.

"You should know that I found out what killed you both, and everyone here. It wasn't even its own fault. Jequn scarred more lives than I had realized, but hopefully, now what happened to you won't repeat itself. The world knows of the supernatural now, and because of that, they'll make sure things like this don't repeat, or give those innocent and defenseless people a way to protect themselves." She continued, sniffling a bit.

"And don't worry, I'm still watching over here, like I promised three years ago." Hina reminded them.

Standing back up, the two made prayer motions before bowing to the graves, and began walking to the spot one spot in the town that meant the most to them.

"Are you holding up alright?" Hina asked worriedly.

"Don't worry, I'm fine... it doesn't hurt as much this time. Besides, if I broke down right now, what I'm about to do wouldn't matter." Nanami replied, sniffling again.

"Huh?" Hina blinked, looking at her.

Taking a deep breath, the Telos Karma user stood up towards Hina, and then...

"I don't know where things will go, but no matter what happens... I want you to be at my side through it all. Just as we have while being near and far, apart and together, enemy and friends; but this time?" Nanami said, with Hina seeing her tremble.

She kneeled to the ground, and the Innovate Clear wielder's eyes slowly widened as she realized was happening, being proven right as Nanami opened a box showing a silvery band within it.

"Hina Mitsuya... will you bear this karma with me?" Nanami asked.

Without saying a weird, a smile went on Hina's face as she shed tears of joy before slipping her own finger through the ring.

Seeing her do that, Nanami shook a few times before leaping forward to kiss her.

* * *

Yumina yawned a bit as she layered a magic circle over the finished wedding area, hiding it until the day of the wedding, and protecting it from things like the natural elements ruining anything.

"Finally, we're finished..." She said tiredly.

"Yeah, so let's go get some sleep before the parties tonight..." Ravel agreed.

Both of them tried to walk back home, only to collapse on the ground, and start sleeping right there and then. Walking into view, the sight of Tiamat coming into view was seen, and she chuckled as she picked them up.

"You did a good job you two, now get some well-deserved rest." She whispered to them.

She formed a magic circle that brought them back to the Akane Household, bringing each of them to their beds. After she did, she headed back to her own room, showing a still sleeping Ddraig with their hatchlings cuddled up to him.

Tiamat smiled before joining her family, and nuzzled her head against her mate's neck.

* * *

A few hours passed, and then an alarm went off in Issei and Vali's room, making the two wake up from their sleep.

"Morning." Issei smiled.

"A good morning to you too." Vali smiled back.

She gave him a quick peck on the cheek, right as they heard a knock on the door.

"Thought you should know that Yumina and Ravel were up late getting everything done, so don't wake them up until it's time for the party!" Asuka warned them.

"Alright, thanks for letting us know!" Issei replied.

"See you downstairs then!" She replied back.

Jumping down the stair rails, Asuka slid to the bottom floor, surprising Homura from her sudden appearance.

"Sorry sis!" Asuka apologized.

Homura took a few seconds to take a few deep breaths, calming herself down.

Soon enough, everyone was downstairs, with a light breakfast put out by Sanae. The sight of it caught a few of them by surprise.

"This is it?" Bikou questioned.

"We have your parties later, so I figured we shouldn't give anything heavy to prevent you from enjoying all that gourmet food." Sanae explained.

"Oh, guess that makes sense. The Monkey Prince chuckled.

He immediately stuffed all of his food down his mouth, gulping it with intense speed.

"Don't make us lose our appetites..." Asuka asked with a flat stare.

Bikou gave a look of confusion, all while Vali gave a nervous chuckle.

"So, tonight's the night of the parties, huh? Still doesn't feel completely real to me just yet." Issei admitted.

"You sound like your father when he and I were near the end of our engagement." Sanae giggled.

"Honey!" Shun blushed in embarrassment.

Issei suddenly began to chuckle at his father's reaction, making his embarrassed blush even worse.

"Well, guess I feel better if I have a reference." He remarked.

"Why's everyone teasing me this morning!?" Shun complained.

"You are kind of letting it happen." Kelsey mentioned, her eyes looking to the side.

Shun groaned in defeat, laying his head on the table.

"I give up, just laugh at me all you want..." Shun relented before sighing.

His wife rubbed his back, comforting him a bit.

* * *

A few hours later, everyone began putting on their outfits for the upcoming parties.

On the side of the men, everyone was seen putting on outfits that matched the Pantheon their origins tied to (minus Issei by the fact he was the bachelor in question, and was given his outfit by Lilith), with all of them managing to clean up quite nicely.

"I've gotta say, when it comes to formal attire, Devils have good taste." Issei remarked, looking at his outfit.

His current outfit was something that Lilith claimed was an old outfit of Sirzechs, which he decided to lend due to being the one Vali asked to walk her down the aisle.

"Now this is how the future Monkey King should look." Bikou exclaimed.

"Bikou, you need to show manners. This is a celebration for one of our closest friends." Arthur warned.

Bikou was wearing something that resembled Cao Cao's outfit, but replacing the school uniform aspects with things that were more oriental. Arthur's outfit was much simpler, looking like an outfit you'd expect from an England Prince or Soldier.

"Well, you all cleaned up nicely." Kiba remarked.

Issei quickly recognized Kiba wearing the same outfit he had been wearing when the initial eight members of Vali's peerage (prior to the split when he became a King) came to stop the engagement between Rias and Riser.

Considering this party was a much larger version of that celebration, it made sense he was dressed in the same manner as back then.

"Glad that I'm seeing you dressed that way for a good reason." Issei chuckled.

"Hey, is Gasper going to be..." Bikou questioned, looking a bit nervous.

"Yeah, he's in a dress." Kiba confirmed.

All three of the Lucifer Household males gave odd chuckles in response.

"We should have seen that coming." Issei remarked.

"At least he's not alone." Arthur added.

Everyone turned to see Gressil, who was putting a masquerade mask on his face, causing him to freeze as he noticed the stares aimed at him.

"I didn't want people to see my face... this was the best compromise I was allowed." Gressil replied, shaking nervously.

Issei scratched his head at that.

"Are we sure that Ruihi needed to give him a Bishop?" He asked via a whisper.

"Yuuma didn't think she'd take two Pawns when she joined." Arthur reminded them.

"Hmm... true." Issei recalled.

Meanwhile, on the side of the women, the same was applying, but dresses in place of suits. Currently, some of the girls looked in awe at Vali's outfit, which easily resembled a dress that would be worn by a princess, which made sense when one remembered the Lucifer Clan was technically the royal family of Devils.

"So, how do I look?" Vali asked, blushing a little.

"It looks amazing on you!" Verrine approved.

"Kind of wish that I could be wearing that right now, but I bet I will when I finally get hitched." Kelsey praised.

Kelsey was wearing an outfit fitting her status among the Demon race, while Verrine had the formal wear of the Satan Clan for woman, being the first time someone other than Lilith wore it to any events.

"Hey, can someone help me? I can't reach this." Le Fay asked.

"I've got it." Yumina replied.

Yumina was wearing the Lucifer Clan's formal wear, while Le Fay had the kind of outfit you'd see from an English Noble.

A knock on the door was soon heard.

"Girls, we'll be ready in ten more minutes, so make sure you're finished dressing by then." A Devil maid alerted them.

"Understood." Vali replied.

Everyone used the remaining time to finish dressing if they already hadn't, and then headed out to the celebrations.

* * *

Out in the city of Lucifaad, multiple people from every race were eating at some restaurants or walking around, as they weren't attending the party. At one particular table, one party was having a conversation about the city.

"Get this. Until that whole Second Gear War business went down, there was tons of magic restricting possible access into this place."

"Whoa, you serious? Just what happened for them to restrict access to so many?"

"I heard it was a bunch of old farts that make most of the Mammon Clan look like saints, and they had been messing things up for since that First Great War. I bet it was related to those rumors about their government we heard."

A Devil waiter brought them their food as he heard their conversation.

"The rumors are true. Those old farts were a bunch of Elders that had been indulging their selfishness to levels that went against the vision Lucifer had for our people. It was our own Princess that finally broke their grip for good." The waiter answered.

"Oh yeah, she's the bride to be in the party they're having right now, isn't she?"

"Exactly, and if I'm right, then at this very moment..." The waiter confirmed.

Looking at the castle stationed in the city's center, everyone could be seen inside of a grand ballroom (decorated in the colors of gold, platinum, and diamond) that represented the middle area, which currently had both parties' guests within it as they awaited an announcement to be made.

"Whoa! All of this really belongs to Vali's family?" Kunou asked in awe, wearing a pink kimono for the occasion.

"Yes, it seems so." Nainen replied, wearing a silver kimono for the occasion.

A grumble could be heard as Ruihi walked into view, wearing an outfit that seemed to be a downscaled version of Vali's, showing she was just a high-ranking noble by the standards of the Devils.

"I can't believe I'm being forced to wear this... why can't I just wear the same outfit Verrine got?" Ruihi questioned, her left eye twitching.

"Hey, don't feel too bad. At least you look beautiful in that." Itsuki complimented, a fancier version of his glasses and hat accompanying his suit.

Ruihi blushed at that, and turned her head.

"W-whatever, just shut up about it." She replied, making Sonneillon give a silent giggle.

Kouki hummed a bit, impressed by what he saw.

"Remind me later to tell Vali she's got a sweet place here that earns respect." He asked Tobio.

Tobio chuckled as his reply, having trouble speaking from what he saw before him.

"Actually, why don't you tell her right now, because our guests of honor are about to walk in." Shieri said, nudging him in the shoulder.

At that moment, everyone turned as they saw Issei and Vali walk into view, getting the attention of many as they saw how amazing they were looking in their current outfits. Even those more familiar with them were caught off guard.

"Whoa..." Bikou breathed.

"Issei, he looks amazing." Asia whispered.

From a higher area by the stairs, the sight of Lucifuge walking into view was seen, and then...

"You're attention please!" She announced loudly.

Everyone turned to the mistress of Lucifer, going completely silent in an instant.

"A message from her royal highness, the Devil Queen Lilith!" Lucifuge announced once more.

"Thank you, Lucifuge." Lilith replied.

The black-haired Queen of the Devils walked into view, wearing an outfit that actually made her look like her position, and took Lucifuge's place. It was even the first time Vali had seen her wearing modest clothing as her formal wear, rather than something bold.

"All of you gathered here today, I thank you all for coming. I know that among the Devils, many of you have only come here for the first time, in no small thanks to the now deceased Elders having me force everyone out for our sakes, while others are among the other supernatural races or Humanity that have truly never even seen Lucifaad's borders at all." Lilith greeted, waving a hand out.

Taking a deep breath, a few Devils noticed something as a look of trouble and forgiveness appeared on her face.

"I know many of you may understand my reasons for saying this, but... I beg for your forgiveness, and thank you all for what you've done." She apologized.

"Mom..." Vali whispered, realizing what this was about.

"Long ago, things were worsening for our people because of those very Elders, and when the time came to act, the First Great War took our focus. In that time frame, I had to watch everyone here, while my husband went on the battlefield with Lucifuge, and his fellow Maou... only for the battle to end with only his wedding ring returning home. That loss hurt me so much, I let things here devolve into a worse mess, not even considering that I could have done something." Lilith continued.

The few who wanted to speak were silenced by the sight of the Devils sharing her expression, making it clear that it was just as it sounded.

"It wasn't until 7 years ago that things finally changed. A little girl chose to train across the world, and the Fallen Angel's prior leader, Azazel, had told me that someone only I'd understand was on her way. It didn't make sense at first, but upon her arrival 2 years ago, I finally did when I saw her. The girl that was my great granddaughter at the time, and now my own daughter... the wonderful Valiana Lucifer that we now know as our own princess."

"The storm of sorrow and despair that I had left myself in? I finally felt it clearing, a despite I knew she could have only come from my horrible disowned son, part of my husband had lived on in a form that was pure, someone who was like him and what he always stood for. Once that was finally before me, I stopped letting things happen, and finally began acting for the day things would change."

"Gathering those I trusted most, we spent 2 years building up our efforts to restore the Christian Pantheon by establishing peace. Once that was done? We readied a tournament that would cross the red tape by offering the winner a wish even I didn't have the authority to stop, and made a bet that Vali could win it. However, even I was surprised that before the Finals, that nearly everyone if not all the Devils in Hell had already known what the Elders had done, and supported her from the start."

That part caused Ruihi's eyes to widen, as that didn't match something she knew.

'Crom, didn't Zekram say otherwise?' Ruihi questioned.

**{He did, but I'm getting the feeling that if the Elders didn't know this, why would he... at least, I think?}** Crom answered, feeling uncertain to the info Lilith just revealed.

Ruihi's eyes moved around a bit, holding her head for a moment before shaking it off and resuming focus to the Devil Queen's speech.

"Despite a Championship that the Devil Elders littered with their cheating, deceptions, and traps? Thanks to many working to expose the truths, find secrets like they were hiding a clearly living Cleria Belial, and Ineelana Leviathan refusing to let the cheating ruin the result of the match... we finally won the battle against the corruption they left in our homelands, and begin the changes we have now. We didn't plan for Humanity to join us, but they're now aware of us, and we will accept that fact."

Lilith took a deep breath, and then smiled.

"And... that's why I'm not only apologizing, but thanking everyone. My apology is to how I had let myself rule for the past 2000 years, and my thanks is to everyone who kept hoping for something that would give them reason to stand, because you don't know how special it was for me to see that those who were silent out of fear was most if not every inch of Hell's land. From here on out, I will make sure I actually act as the Queen I'm meant to be, until the day I know Vali's ready to stand in my place."

Looking at her daughter, Lilith closed her eyes and smiled even brighter.

"But don't mistake this as my words being solely about me. After all, if it wasn't for Vali showing up to meet me, and fighting to victory in the Tournament, we could have very well been a land divided." She said softly, but clear enough everyone heard her.

"Mom... thank you." Vali smiled, tearing up a bit.

"Don't forgot it wasn't just her. Our princess became the hero she is now only because when she hit her lowest, it was the kindness and friendship of just one person that gave her the strength to do it, and those things became the love we see today. Vali may have done the hard work we needed, but it was only possible because of Issei meeting her. The union between two of them is undeniable, and I'd question anyone who speaks against it." Lucifuge added.

Issei blushed at that, while Vali smiled as her blush stayed.

"Now, with all of that said... we welcome all of you to this celebration! Tomorrow, our princess will finally marry her prince, and we're all welcoming Issei into the Lucifer Family with open arms! Thank you for coming here to honor this occasion!" Lilith exclaimed.

Everyone applauded at that.

"The men who'll be joining the Bachelor party will go to the room on the left, while the women joining the Bachelorette party will go to the room on the right. The area you're in right now? This is a middle ground for a dance later on in the parties, or for those who want to spend time without the gender restriction. Magic circles won't be allowed to communicate, so use your invitations as your way of contacting someone if you'd like to come to the middle venue at any point." Lilith explained.

"Now, with all of that cleared up... let's party!" She exclaimed.

Everyone applauded once again, and then divided themselves appropriately throughout the three venues.

* * *

Within the side of the Bachelorette Party, a majority of the women were seen hanging around, with Vali currently talking with Niruili over something.

"And that's when Shuriliu realized she accidentally grabbed Niruili's hot sauce!" Vali giggled.

"Really? How'd she act in that situation?" Marchosias asked.

Niruili whispered, making the likely to be named Marchosias Heiress to suddenly go red in surprise.

"No!" She gasped, unable to believe it.

The Beelzebub heiress kept laughing, and right as that was happening...

"Vali!"

Turning her head, she saw the sight of Hina and Nanami, who had finally arrived at the festivities after a slight delay. Hina was wearing a green dress that represented her connection to the Innovate Clear, while Nanami had something resembling Greek finery with a purple and black color scheme.

"Nanami, Hina! Glad you two finally made it." Vali greeted.

"Of course, we wouldn't miss this for anything." Nanami chuckled.

"So, it isn't much longer before you and Issei finally tie the knot. Still surprises me how everything you've gone through is Romeo and Juliet that ends like Cinderella." Hina praised.

Vali blushed a bit, rubbing her cheek.

"Well, it might not be much longer before we join you there." Hina continued, holding up a hand.

Said hand revealed a silver ring on it, making Vali gasped.

"No way, did you..." Vali asked, looking at Nanami.

"Right before we came here. Figured this was a good time, and considering why you and Issei decided to marry so fast..." Nanami admitted with a blush, rubbing her head in embarrassment.

Vali giggled, shaking their hands to congratulate them.

"I know you two will make each other happy, and I'm pretty sure Nanami's parents would agree." Vali smiled.

Nanami gave a somber smile at that.

"I'm sure they are, because... the reason we ended up a little late was because this is the time of year that I pay my respects to them." Nanami agreed.

"Oh, you mean they..." Vali realized.

Nanami nodded her head, taking a deep breath as she looked up a bit.

"You know, I don't think we ever told you the full story. About how we met with Aariliyn and Ineelana." Nanami recalled.

"Well, this seems like as good a time as any, since you just proposed to mark a new beginning between you two." Vali suggested.

"Good point!" Hina giggled.

Smiling as Vali and some of the others looked at the duo, Hina decided to begin.

"It all began that day when me and Nanami's relationship changed completely, and... the plans of Jequn we were indirectly involved with." She revealed.

Vali listened as she heard the events of what the two called the "Legend of the Twin Longinus", and was quite surprised by the time they reached the end.

"Whoa... I've heard the smaller details, but hearing the story in full?" Vali breathed in surprise.

"Yeah, so I think you can see just why we knew the full details about Kelsey's story beforehand. It isn't hard to learn about it when her mother was so angry that her personality changed until she finally cut that traitor down with her own hands." Nanami confirmed.

The Lucifer heiress nodded, being glad she didn't get to see Cassiel in that state.

"If there's anything about that tale I like most, it would be when you two found out that-" She replied.

Everyone heard a thud, which is when they noticed Ruihi on the floor, grumbling as she got up from tripping over the edge of her dress.

"These outfits are dumb." She remarked.

"Need a hand?" Irufea asked.

She looked to see the likely to be Valefor heiress offer her hand, prompting Ruihi to reluctantly accept it.

"Yeah... whatever." Ruihi replied.

Irufea blinked as she watched her leave, with Ruihi feeling similar nervous.

"Neither of you two have to worry. Ruihi might seem like she's a bit scary, but she's not as bad as you think." Vali reassured them.

"You sure?" Hina asked.

"Remember, she only just learned of her heritage, so I doubt she's not without stress that's making it hard to really bond with her fellow Devils." The silvery-white haired Devil reminded them.

Nanami chuckled, rubbing her head.

"I can relate to that more than I'd like to." She admitted, recalling the first part of the story she and Hina just shared.

Hina giggled in reply, making Nanami blush a bit.

* * *

Within the center area, the sight of Asia looking around the food could be seen, with Rassei flapping his wings beside her; the baby dragon's head's movements indicating he was extremely hungry at the moment.

"Want that! And that!" Rassei said as he hovered over multiple foods.

"Rassei, you can't have everything." Asia said with a sweat drop.

The young Dragon gained an annoyed look on his face as Asia went to grab something among the food he seemed interested.

However, in doing so, she failed to notice the hand that ended up placing itself on top of hers as it tried doing the same. Asia's eyes looked up to see it was Leonardo's hand, and the moment she realized this fact, her face lit up.

"Sorry!" Asia apologized, pulling her hand away.

"N-no, it's fine! I didn't see anyone trying to reach it!" Leo pushed his hands out in a panicked manner.

Rassei looked at the scene, and soon gave a quickly giggle as he flew behind the young Hero, and then... _accidentally_ bumped into him. Leo suddenly tripped towards Asia, and the result ended up with him avoiding his fall by holding onto her, making the two stared at each other with a strong blush.

'Kissy, kissy!' Rassei thought, making the appropriate motion with his mouth.

Leo sweated for a bit, and the cleared his throat.

"Uh... you're Asia, right?" He asked.

"Yeah..." Asia replied, still blushing.

* * *

On the men's side, Issei was currently enjoying the Bachelor Party's tables of food, grabbing a piece of a rib. As he ate it, he failed to notice the sight of Tobio and Jin walking up to him, the former holding two bottles of wine in his hands.

"Issei, as the unofficial brother of the coming bride, I owe you a drink!" Tobio offered.

"Uh... Tobio, you do remember that I'm still a minor, right?" Issei reminded him.

The wielder of the Canis Lykaon flinched, while Jin lowered his head, soon laughing in the manner only a wolf could.

"Aw man! Normally this is how you celebrate a bachelor party, why'd Hades have to make this happen sooner?" Tobio groaned.

Issei gave him a strange look, making Tobio sweat a bit.

"Wait, don't take that seriously! I'm happy for you and Vali!" Tobio waved his free hand out.

"Guess that makes you the awkward older brother for Vali." Bikou chuckled, walking by.

Tobio sighed, while Issei pat his shoulder a bit.

"If it helps, you can drink wine, and I'll just grab some grape juice. That is what they use for the fake champagne that minors have on New Year's." Issei offered.

"I'll drink to that. Bikou, want the other wine?" Tobio agreed, before looking at Bikou.

"Eh, I could drink." The new Monkey King shrugged.

As Issei went to find an alternative drink, Tobio poured himself and Bikou some wine. Once the Red Dragon Emperor secured his own drink, they hit their glasses together.

"A toast to coming King of Hell!" Bikou cheered.

"Bikou, did you really have to put it like that?" Issei questioned, well aware he'd be taking Vali's surname.

The three took a drink, and after Issei finished his sip, he looked at Tobio.

"Oh yeah, Tobio? I've never gotten the chance to ask this before, but while Vali's told me that she met you during a certain incident, but that's all I really know. Think you can tell me about it?" Issei inquired.

"You mean the Utsusemi Incident? Wow, haven't thought about that in a long time. Alright then, listen up." Tobio briefly recalled.

Issei looked at him, curious to the story he was about to hear, while Bikou looked for the others so they could hear it as well.

"Well, it all started this one fateful day. A school field trip... that went horribly wrong." He revealed.

Issei listened as he heard the events of what Tobio best defined as the "Legend of the Slash Dogs", while Bikou got the details from before he joined in on the adventure.

"And that's how it ended." Tobio finished.

"Hot damn... that's intense, although I'll admit that's an odd way for Vali and Lavinia to find out they had the same mother." Issei remarked.

Bikou chuckled at that, smacking Issei's back.

"And how she achieved her Balance Breaker wasn't?" The Monkey Princes questioned.

"You don't even know how I unlocked mine." Issei reminded him.

The Rook of Lucifer instantly went silent, making a flat expression as he turned to the side, and began whistling to reduce the awkwardness for himself; unfortunately, that only made everyone feel more awkward.

"Uh... so, Tobio? You aren't going to tie the knot with Sae anytime soon?" Issei asked.

"Well, you see... Issei, it's a complicated thing." Tobio replied.

The Red Dragon Emperor looked closely as the Slash Dog's face, and realized something as he tried to hide it. Issei gave a chuckle once he managed to see it.

'Tobio, you sly dog! I can't believe you're waiting for that.' He thought.

* * *

A few hours into the party, a chime sound began to ring out, getting the attention of everyone in the three rooms as a few magic circles appeared at key points.

〖"Everyone, we'd like all guests to rendezvous at the main ballroom, for it's time to begin the main event of this grand celebration."〗 Lilith's voice rang out.

"Alright, it looks like it's time." Issei stated.

He began walking out to the main hall, confusing some of the male guests who weren't sure of said event.

"This is your moment Vali, go start us off." Hina wished her luck.

"Thank you, and I promise to make it a good start." Vali smiled.

She was soon walking to the main hall in the same way as Issei, with Ruihi looking at her Queen, only to see her shrug in uncertainty.

Everyone began following, and soon noticed the main hall having the tables moved by magic, leaving them to the side. Once everyone walked in, the saw the sight of Issei and Vali moving to the center of the floor, where Issei took Vali's hands in a familiar dance position.

"No way, does this mean we have to..." Ruihi realized.

〖"To all couples in the room? I'd advise you gather, because it's time to end things with a dance. If you don't have anyone specific? Well... guess you'll just need to find someone, because we'd prefer you only sideline if you honestly have no other options."〗 Lilith said, answering Ruihi's question.

Ruihi groaned, slamming her head onto her hands.

"Issei, you've done this before, right?" Vali asked in a whisper.

"Not exactly, but my mom's been teaching me." He whispered his answer.

Vali exhaled to release her nerves.

"Don't worry, I'll lead the way." Vali whispered her promise.

**「** **Free Choice Insert** **」**

Music began playing as the two began dancing, with Lilith walking into view as she watched the sight, joined by Issei's parents. It wasn't long before the two stopped worrying about messing up during the dance.

With that, other couples decided to join in, with Sona holding a hand out to Saji.

"Shall we dance?" She asked.

He took her hand, and they were soon part of the dance. Quickly following them were the pairs of Gasper and Valerie, Kiba and Tosca, Sairaorg and Kuisha, Hina and Nanami, Arthur and Elaine, Shieri with Hyousuke, Kouki and Natsume, ending with a reluctant Ruihi and Itsuki.

"Don't talk during this or I'm leaving." Ruihi warned.

"Yes ma'am..." Itsuki promised, sweating a bit.

"I'll ignore that instance alone." She sighed.

After they were all on the dance floor, others began trying to find others to dance. Off to the side, Rossweisse could be seen sighing a bit, as Vidar wasn't at the party.

"I guess that I'll just stand here, as I have nothing better to do." Rossweisse said sadly.

"Oh, so you don't want to dance with me?"

The Valkyrie's eyes widened in surprise, turning to see Vidar walking into view, wearing a stunning suit.

"Vidar? But... aren't you-" Rossweisse stuttered.

"About that..." Vidar replied.

He got close to her eye, and began whispering to her.

"Promise you won't say anything to your mom or grandma?" Vidar begged.

Rossweisse's face briefly went blue at that, giving her a strong implication that he skipped out of something without anyone's notice.

"So, shall we?" He offered.

"Yes, I'd love to dance with you." Rossweisse answered, blushing a bit.

Bikou looked around, fiddling with his fingers as he did, until a loud throat clearing to the side got his attention. Turning his head, he saw Xuelan putting her hand out.

"Huh?" Bikou blinked.

"I'm letting you dance with me, so hurry up before I change my mind!" Xuelan exclaimed.

Bikou scratched his head, though shrugged after deciding not to question it.

Jeanne began biting her nails, and slowly inched closer towards Cao Cao, who noticed her nearing him. Shaking his head, he turned to her.

"You don't have to be so nervous about asking." He remarked.

"Uh, well... I mean..." Jeanne stuttered.

She went red and shook her head, immediately covering her face.

"How am I supposed to react? I mean, we're not officially dating because I keep getting cold feet, yet you know how I feel!" She said in embarrassment.

Before she realized it, Jeanne was suddenly moved into a dancing position.

"Then let me start this dance." He replied.

Jeanne blushed a bit more, but soon smiled a bit as she danced with him.

Asia nervously looked around, though just like before, Rassei decided to play the role of Dragon Cupid by pushing her from behind. The push made her stumble near Leo, who turned as he noticed her.

"U-uh..." Asia blushed a bit.

"Eh... you... wanna... go dance... together?" Leo asked.

Neither said anymore, but Asia soon gave a brief nod, with neither of them seeing Rassei snicker at the situation. From there, Lilith began looking around to see who else was dancing together.

As every dance continued, Issei and Vali looked closely at each other, everything around them feeling like it went quiet, as if time suddenly stopped itself for everyone.

"I still can't believe it, that the day after today... we'll be more than I ever expected us to be." Vali smiled.

"Is it really a surprise?" Issei chuckled.

"No, but looking back at when we first met? I would have never thought this is what we'd be, that this is what we meant to each other, and why you managed to save me from myself." Vali replied, remembering that day.

The day the two first met each other replayed through her head, focusing on the moment seeing Issei's face had changed everything.

"I didn't that moving into that house would bring me to finding a friend, who'd become my best friend, then my boyfriend, and then end by having me realize that very boy had been my soulmate all along." Vali continued, getting a bit misty eyed.

Issei smiled at that.

"Guess that I can say the same thing, as we were basically wearing the same shoes." Issei replied, hugging her closer.

"It's just like Hina said to me... we're a Romeo and Juliet story with an ending like Cinderella, and you're my prince." Vali smiled, hugging him back.

Issei soon felt his eyes getting a bit misty, and once Ruihi saw it...

"Damn it..." She sighed.

She looked at Itsuki, leaving his confused and off-guard for the moment she gave him a quick kiss.

"Mmph!" Itsuki blushed at that.

"Shut up before I regret doing that." Ruihi blushed, trying to force a slightly angered look on her face.

Itsuki quickly listened, looking away to hide his smile.

The dance continued for half an hour, and then the music finally died down to signal its end.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

Lilith watched as everyone began clapping at the happy couple, and felt a tear come to her eye. However, what happened next was something she never expected.

_"Thank you."_

"Huh?" She gasped.

Turning around, the Devil Queen wondered where that voice came from, only realizing it was one she didn't recognize.

The only thing she could recognize about it was that it sounded like a woman's voice.

'Who said that?' She thought.

A butterfly was seen flying around, but this wasn't the same butterfly that represented Vali's mother. It was much larger, had semi-clear wings that shined like a rainbow, with wing rimmed green, and quickly flew through the walls.

Unseen to anyone, it flew through the skies of Hell, then the Earth's, until it disappeared upon flying past the Heavens.

* * *

The celebration soon came to an end, with Lucifer Castle's entrances having crowds of people walking out of it. Looking at it from afar, Issei gave it a longing look, with his father putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, you'll see her tomorrow." He reassured him.

"I know that dad, but it doesn't mean I won't feel lonely tonight." Issei replied.

Yuuma looked confused, and turned to Kelsey.

"Lilith asked that Vali, her peerage, the Flower Girl, and the Maiden of Honor all stay for the night. She wants the wedding to feel more special by having Issei and Vali not see each other until they meet on the aisle." Kelsey explained.

"Ooh, so that's why Asia and Irina aren't here, yet Bikou is." Yuuma realized.

Bikou gave a chuckle as he waved.

"And it's also why I'm apparently spending the night with all of you." Cao Cao sighed.

Sanae slapped him on the back, laughing a bit as he nearly fell over.

"Hey, loosen up a bit. I'd think the Hero Faction's leader would like to learn a few tricks from genuine Heroes." Sanae stated.

"Considering what you achieved, I'm not sure if I want to learn them from you." He replied.

Sanae gave a playful pout at that, making Shun laugh a bit.

'Well, tomorrow's the day... so it's time to walk to my future.' Issei thought, looking at the castle one last time.

All of them headed back to the Akane Mansion, with Vali looking out of her room in the castle, up at the moon that was the last barricade between the wedding between her and Issei.

* * *

**There's the end of the Bachelor and Bachelorette Parties, meaning next chapter is what we've all been waiting for since the end of the Pandemonium arc... Issei and Vali's wedding! *cheers as I use a confetti popper* Get ready, because this chapter's gonna be big, and the moment Issei becomes the new Prince of Hell is when this story will have officially have ended!**

**Well, there's still the epilogue, but I don't really count that in the same way because, as I've said before, that's the bridge to the events of JOHD. If you remember this story's first chapter, most of the epilogue's going to be like that, and as a bonus? *giggles* You've probably been wondering who the identity of the character who narrated those events was, and the epilogue will finally reveal who that character was!**

**For those who couldn't tell, the couple that I was hoping to bring up was Asia and Leonardo, which was a surprise for even me. I didn't originally plan for Asia to have a love interest, but after a certain point in developing S5, that idea began to change. Only issue? I didn't have any idea who should be her love interest. Eventually, my answer came to me when I realized Leo relies on his Sacred Gear as much as her, giving some synergy.**

**In fact, this is the same logic for most of the pairings I have in the story, having at least one thing that they have in common. To give examples with some pairings that don't seem as obvious... for Jeanne and Cao Cao? They're both descendants of someone famous. As for Bikou and Xuelan? Because the latter's presumed to have Chinese heritage, which Bikou has because he's related to Sun Wukong.**

**Ruihi and Itsuki also have something else to explain why they're together despite how... awkward their relationship is, but I can't say due to major spoilers for both of them. Seriously, when I say major, I mean at the level that mentioning even a simple hint or comparison to ANYTHING could risk giving it away. *clears throat* Well, that's all I can really say, so...**

**Until next time everyone, and stay awesome! ^^**

* * *

** Bust Size of New Female Characters ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in Today's Chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Wedding is tomorrow  
Ddraig/Tiamat - Married  
Albion/Fafnir - Married  
Saji/Sona - Dating  
Gasper/Valerie - Dating  
Kiba/Tosca - Dating  
Sairaorg/Kuisha - Dating  
Rossweisse/Vidar - Dating  
Hina/Nanami - Engaged  
Jeanne/Cao Cao - Like each other, but aren't officially Dating... yet  
Arthur/Elaine - Engaged  
Bikou/Xuelan - Chemistry seems to be forming  
Tobio/Sae - Dating  
Kouki/Natsume - Dating  
Shieri/Hyousuke - Dating  
Ruihi/Itsuki - Dating  
Asia/Leonardo - Chemistry seems to be forming**


	89. Chapter 89

**This is it everyone... while there's still the epilogue of Chapter 90 to connect this story with the first chapter of JOHD, this is _the_ last chapter of the story for "Legend of the Heavenly Dragons!" After 14 months, the long road for this first story is over! Even better? Because I've managed to truly finish this story, even if the series isn't done yet, all the effort that got me here alone is a victory in my eyes :)**

**While I doubt you need a reminder, this is the chapter of Issei and Vali's wedding, which means the former's gonna be "Issei Lucifer" for the rest of the series. As for the actual wedding itself? Like I've said in earlier chapter notes, despite that I don't know what a real wedding's like, I spent all the time I could for how a real one works, and watched a few anime episodes with weddings as a basis.**

**I don't know how well I'll do, but... I'm gonna give it my best shot!**

**Anyways, this chapter is pure romance, with both moments you'll smile with joy, but also moments where you'll feel sad and possible shed tears, so... I advise grabbing a tissue box for tears of either emotion as a precaution. You have to remember that while there are plenty of reasons for every character to be happy, there are some things to be sad that you can expect, and others that will only show themselves now.**

**One other thing that I'll mention? While it's still not fully decided, this may be the last chapter I have Vali use her nickname, meaning JOHD will have her go by Valiana if this happens. Keyword is _if_ this happens, as there's still a few last details I'm thinking over before I decide if she keeps or drops the use of her nickname entirely. I ask that no one influences this decision, as it's a choice I want to make on my own.**

**Lastly, since a few of you might be misunderstanding the whole relationship between Ruihi and Itsuki works, I'm going to clarify something real quick. You might notice that Ruihi seems much more irritable since he came, and I guess it didn't show as clearly as I was intending. Ruihi's position as a mole is stressing her, so Itsuki's usual antics don't work with her like they normally would.**

**Normally, all she'd need to do is glare or growl at him to make him stand down or stop anything she finds stupid, disagrees with, or simply doesn't want him doing without getting physical. As she's a Devil tied to the Maou who represents Wrath, she doesn't even need physical force, just intimidation. The problem is the stress of being a mole is disrupting her focus, so her reactions aren't what they'd normally be. As such, she'll be fine once he leaves.**

**Now we're finally here, and the Legend is nearing its end, but... the Journey is about to begin.**

* * *

**()** \- Albion or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

〖〗 - Voice Speaking through a Magic Circle

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Valiana "Vali" Lucifer **

**The granddaughter of Lucifer, later his daughter upon adoption by Lilith, the 100th Hakuryuukou before being given the title of White Dragon Empress by Ophis herself, and the princess of both Hell, and the entire Devil race. Originally born to the son of Rizevim Lucifer, and a human woman, she went through a traumatic childhood under her grandfather's tyranny, which included abuse, brutal training, and being forced to kill against her will.**

**Eventually, she would escape upon her mother inspiring her to finally stand up against him, but at the horrible cost of her mother being killed alongside her father, and forced to run away, with only lucking saving her life. She was later found by Azazel, who realized how mentally and emotionally damaged she was, and tried to find her a way to have a proper childhood before her own pain made her do the unthinkable.**

**Luckily for him, all Vali needed was to find the right person to give her a light in the darkness she had been living in, which she found upon meeting with the boy that she'd later realize was her soulmate, Issei Akane, who was ironically the 100th Sekiryuutei that many a legend would claim as the rival she'd have to one day defeat in battle. However, it was because of his kindness that she strove to try and defy fate.**

**With Issei by her side, having been reincarnated as her Queen due to an unfortunate encounter with a rogue Fallen Angel, the two strove with the other members of her peerage to do just that, while also saving Hell from the Devil Elders that had been ruining it for so long. Despite many challenges, including dangerous deities and monsters, they managed to conquer the odds, even defying death with the aid of Great Red and Ophis.**

**Now, she's about to finally marry the love of her life, and begin the next step towards their future.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 12 – Heavenly Wedding _ **

Within her room in Lucifer Castle, the sight of Vali Lucifer in a night gown could be seen as she was enjoying a peaceful sleep. A hug pillow that was based on Issei from the show based on the two of them was in her hands, acting as the boy that would be her husband in a few hours.

Opening the door, the sight of Yumina opening the door could be seen, looking at her King as she had her peaceful nap.

"I'd like to let her sleep, but I have to wake her." Yumina sighed, a small smile as she saw how happy Vali looked.

Moving to the Lucifer Heiress' side, she lightly shook her shoulder, trying to wake her as gently as possible. When her motions weren't enough, she got near her ear.

"Vali, time to wake up. Today's your wedding day." She whispered.

Hearing those words, Vali's began to flutter open, causing her to see her Pawn's smiling face. She stretched out her arms as she let out a yawn, then ran her hand through her silky silver hair.

"Morning Yumina, what time is it?" She asked groggily.

"About 7 AM, give or take a few minutes." The Lucifuge Heiress answered, recalling the last clock she saw.

Vali looked at her, and then towards the window.

"Come on, I'll help you get ready for your big day, just as my mother did for yours." Yumina smiled.

Vali turned back to face her, nodding her head.

Getting up from her bed, the Princess of Hell and her Lucifuge headed to one of the castle's rooms, where the former sat on a seat. Grabbing a brush, Yumina began brushing Vali's hair, getting it ready for the style she had chosen for her wedding dress.

"So, the fact you're about to be married... what's it like?" Yumina questioned.

"Huh? I don't mind answering, but... why do you ask? It sounds like you don't expect that you'll ever get married." Vali inquired.

"Uh, well... even if I did, what would I be giving my child?" Yumina confessed.

The Lucifer heiress noticed Yumina's sad expression through the mirror.

"Yumina?" Vali replied, feeling a bit worried.

"I may be a Lucifuge, but every time a new heiress has come into the family, it's been because a new Lucifer's been born. If you have a child, my mom will likely just end up with another child, and they'll end up the next heiress. Not my child... is it right for me to even give my child that false hope if that's the case?" Yumina continued, struggling not to cry.

She paused for a moment, trying to fight back the sadness she let spill out for her sister figure to see.

"D-don't mind me, I'm alright. There's nothing you need to worry about-"

She suddenly felt herself being hugged by Vali, who didn't say a word as she did. That was too much for Yumina as she broke down in tears.

"Even if that's the case, I'd choose your child over anyone else to be the Lucifuge of mine." Vali reassured her.

The Lucifuge heiress' eyes widened at that.

"You've been like a sister to me, and that's the kind of person I'd trust with anything to any children I have in the future. More than anything, I don't want such a thought be the guilt that keeps you from knowing the joys of love like I'm about to experience today." She continued, her eyes shining a bit.

"Vali... thank you." Yumina sniffled, hugging her back.

After waiting for a bit, the Lucifuge Heiress finally calmed down, and wiped her tears away.

"Sorry about that, it isn't the day for me to be crying over that." She apologized.

"It's alright, I doubt a wedding doesn't end with someone crying over something, even if it's only the parents crying tears of joy." Vali reassured her.

Yumina blinked before giggling a bit, and resuming the brushing of Vali's hair.

"Also, you should know I think Connla's lucky that you have eyes for him." Vali giggled.

Yumina suddenly froze up, with her upper face going blue at the shock of Vali's reply.

"W-w-w-what are you talking about? I-I-I don't have any feelings for... I mean, uh... the thing about that is..." Yumina stuttered, pushing her hands out.

"You think I didn't notice? One, you outright said that he trained you in using your powers when we first saw him in Kyoto. Two, you once blushed when mentioning a boy that you said had powers you could relate to. And Three, you quickly started dancing with each other yesterday." Vali retorted.

The Lucifuge heiress screamed in horror.

'I can't believe she was paying that much attention to me!' Yumina thought, sweating like a waterfall.

Vali giggled once again, and that's when Yumina gave up, continuing to brush her King's hair without another word.

"Oh, and to answer your question? The feeling about how I'm about to marry? Well, the best answer I can give you is that Issei and I... it feels like we're about to unite our two hearts into one, forever." She smiled.

Yumina showed some surprise, and then gave a smile, wondering when she'd experience that feeling herself.

* * *

In another part of the castle, the sight of Tannin and Rassei watching over Asia was seen as the latter put on her Flower Girl dress.

Her hair was currently tied into a braided bun held by a band made of flowers, and the outfit itself was a beautiful lavender with accents of pink and bronze across the dress design. For the rest of her outfit, one could see pink gloves that reached past her elbows, and a bronze necklace.

"Does it look OK?" Asia worriedly asked.

"You have no need to worry, Asia. That outfit looks wonderful on you." Tannin reassured her.

"Asia looks good!" Rassei agreed.

Hearing their praise, the Holy Maiden gave a sigh of relief.

"Are you nervous? In all my years on this Earth, one thing I've come to know is those who worry about something will feel less pressure from such nerves if they admit it to someone." Tannin asked.

"Yeah, and I doubt anyone wouldn't feel like I am, at least someone my age. Though in my case... Issei and Vali are like my older brother and sister, so I'm worried about messing something up on their special day." Asia admitted.

"I see, then let me share my own advice with you. Worry is something we all feel at times in situations, but I believe worry that you focus on should only be justified when you truly face the unknown at every angle. Right now, you only have to focus on walking a set path while spreading the joy of flower petals, so don't worry about what could go wrong. Just as anger clouds the mind and judgment, worry can disrupt one's balance, and cause what one worries about to become a reality." The Dragon King advised her.

Upon hearing those words, Asia took a deep breath, and then exhaled. Having some of her nerves blow away with her air, she nodded her head.

"That's right, I just need to do the best I can. Vali and Issei chose me to be their Flower Girl, and that means they trust me, so I need to trust that they believe I can do it." Asia smiled.

Tannin smiled at that, proud at the young Dragon Tamer's courage.

'She's been through a lot, just as Vali has, but she's still standing strong. It makes sense why you've been given this role. Flowers often represent a fragile part of nature, but even something fragile isn't easily broken, or destroyed, just like how life finds a way from something as small as a flower's seeds.'

"Asia can practice, try sometimes before event." Rassei suggested.

Issei's Bishop put a hand to her mouth.

"You're right Rassei, I never even considered that. I'll try walking down some of the castle halls right now." She decided, a smile on her face.

Heading into the halls, and grabbing her empty basket, she began practicing her role in the coming wedding.

* * *

In another part of the castle, the sight of Eve wrapping Irina's hair in a certain way could be seen as the latter sat on a chair, already wearing in her Maid of Honor dress. With one last motion, the daughter of Gabriel's hair was finished.

"And there you go." Eve smiled.

"Wow, this is amazing." Irina smiled, looking at her hair.

Standing up to get a closer look, her dress was revealed to be a beautiful sea blue color, with black and silver accents decorating it. A silver necklace was seen on her neck, while her hair, which was styled into a design one would see on a Duchess, with a silver band around her forehead.

"Thank you for your help, Lady Eve." Irina bowed.

The successor of the First Woman giggled at that, and put a hand on Irina's shoulder.

"I am your Aunt in a sense, so it would be wrong to not help my niece on such an important day." Eve replied.

Irina smiled at that, giving her a hug.

"Not to make things sound sad, but... you did love Issei yourself. How do you feel about having to be the Maid of Honor in his wedding instead of his wife?" She asked.

"I'm aright, in fact... I couldn't be happier." Irina admitted.

"Really?" Eve asked, slightly surprised.

"Yeah. Back when I reunited with Issei, it did feel sad when I saw he had already found love, but I knew from the moment he was with Vali that she found the one she needed to truly move forward with her life. As time went on, I realized that even if I can't be his wife, he and I can still be a family through this." She replied.

Turning back to Eve, a few happy tears could be seen on her face.

"And to me, that's more than enough for me to smile without any regrets or sorrow when those two finally wed today. I'll be able to smile as Issei's Knight, and one day find someone I love, because Vali is why I got all these seconds changes by his side." She smiled.

Eve smiled at that, closing her eyes.

"I'm sure if your grandfather was here, he'd be so proud that he heard you say that, because those words held the soul of a true Angel." Eve praised her.

"Thank you once again, Lady... no, Aunt Eve." Irina smiled.

Eve squeed a bit as she heard Irina call her Aunt.

"Don't overdo it, or you won't be able to cheer when our newlyweds finally kiss." Irina warned her, giggling a bit.

Eve blushed a bit, covering her mouth in embarrassment.

"Oh my, can't believe I did that." Eve admitted, giving a slight blush as a giggle left her mouth.

"I believe I just saw a brief remnant of your prior naivete." Irina giggled with her.

* * *

Issei was seen brushing his teeth as a towel was wrapped around his head, wearing a red robe to signify he had just come out of the shower. After finishing every tooth, he washed his brush off as he swigged some water to rinse, followed by mouth wash, and a repeat rinse.

"Alright, nice and clean." He sighed in relief.

Right as he said that, a ding went off, prompting him to pull off the towel holding the lush waterfall that was his crimson-red hair. Taking a look at it, he touched it a bit before smiling at the result.

"Yes, just right." Issei smiled.

"Issei, are you out of the shower yet? I need to get your hair ready!" Ravel asked from behind the door.

"Just finished, I'll open the door." Issei replied.

Holding out his finger, he unlocked the door using Great Red's power.

**["Did you really use my powers for that?"]** Great Red questioned, sounding a bit annoyed.

'What? We're on a tight schedule.' Issei replied.

The Dragon of Dreams groaned at that response, face palming within the mental landscape. As he sat down, Ravel finally entered the bathroom, carrying a bag holding Issei's outfit, and some hair supplies.

"Try not to move best you can, this is the first time I've tried this hairstyle, so I'm not going to be used to any sudden movements you make." Ravel warned.

"Not to worry, dad showed me a trick for keeping still." Issei replied.

He immediately went into a meditation stance, becoming completely devoid of any movement. Just to make sure, Ravel poked his cheek, and he didn't even budge from the unexpected contact.

"Wow... I need to thank Issei's father when I finish." Ravel remarked.

Grabbing the bottom of the Red Dragon Emperor's hair, she began her work on Issei's wedding hairstyle.

"Uh... Issei, are you able to hear and talk to me?" Ravel inquired.

"I can still do both, I just can't do it with open eyes. You'll have to describe anything I'd need them for if something like that comes up." He answered.

The Phenex Devil sighed in relief.

"That helps a lot." She remarked.

Issei chuckled a bit.

"You know something funny? Around the time before we first met, I actually had a dream that I'd be marrying Vali, with everyone there to watch." Issei recalled.

"Really?" Ravel replied.

"Yeah, though the dream didn't match the reality of today. For one, the wedding in my dream was only a Japanese wedding, and most of the people that I've met since then weren't in it. Even Irina was absent from the dream since I hadn't seen how different she looked from her 6-year old self." Issei confirmed, mentioning the differences.

"Huh... it was almost like you were seeing the future." Ravel hummed.

"It might have been. Me and Vali had a few odd dreams after I learned of the supernatural, and now that we know why I have the Heavenly Crest in the first place, that could have just been another dream in the puzzle. The difference was this had no connection to the prophecy." Issei replied.

Ravel thought for a moment, and then started giggling.

"What's funny?" Issei inquired.

"I was just thinking that maybe God and Lucifer might have been messing with you If they could show you that, they may have known their reincarnations were going to fall in love." She answered.

Issei made a strange face at that, unsure of how he should reply to that.

* * *

Bikou gasped for air as he was forced to get into his Ring Bear suit, which a bit tight on him. Adam gave a worried look as he tried getting to get it on him.

"I swear we measure this right, didn't we?" Adam wondered.

"Uh... Adam, did you use his measurements before his transformation technique became permanent?" Ddraig inquired.

The First Man suddenly froze, and then face palmed with a noticeable groan.

"And that suddenly explains a lot. Guess I'll need a bit of magic here." He answered.

Holding his hand up, a magic circle hit the suit, causing it to adjust to Bikou's size. The Monkey Prince gasped as his breathing returned to normal.

"Thank you! If I have to wear this itchy outfit, then I'd at least like to survive in it." Bikou remarked.

"Know that only lasts a few hours, so I'd bring your other formal wear to change into as a precaution." Adam warned, making the Rook of Lucifer pale.

Ddraig laughed at his reaction, followed by all three of the hatchlings.

"I hope those three have no idea what they're laughing at..." Albion though aloud, worried about her daughter learning any bad habits.

Bikou immediately tugged his own suit to distract himself, showing it was a normal black suit with bronze accents added to it. There was also the bronze bow-tie around his neck, which was one of the more notable features of the outfit.

"So, where are the rings?" He asked.

"Right here." Adam answered.

He showed him a box containing the rings, which were a gold band with a green line running through the middle, and encrusted with a ruby as the gemstone; then a silver band with a blue line running through the middle, and encrusted with a pearl as the gemstone.

"Whoa..." Bikou was wowed by the sight.

Adam chuckled, closing the box.

"The one advantage of Issei proposing without a ring? We got to design the real ones to fit them, and I think these two are fitting." He stated.

"And somehow I saw that reply coming." Bikou remarked.

Adam shrugged at that, chuckling once again.

* * *

Jeanne was walking through the halls of the Akane Mansion, and then heard some grunting from one room.

"Hmm?" She walked back to the door in question.

"Why's this so hard to get on?" Cao Cao grunted.

Hearing that, she instantly knocked on the door getting the attention of the True Longinus wielder.

"You need some help in there?" Jeanne asked.

He sighed in defeat.

"Yeah... I could use a hand here." He admitted.

Opening the door, she walked in to see Cao Cao struggling with the upper half of the Best Man suit... which instantly made her blush as she got the eye candy of his toned upper half.

"Jeanne, gawk at my muscles later." Cao Cao stated.

"Huh? Oh, sorry about that!" She apologized.

Looking at his outfit from a few sides, she eventually managed to find the problem.

"Hold your arms up for a moment." She advised.

Cao Cao did just that, and that let Jeanne pull up on the outfit, getting him past the tricky part he was struggling with.

"There we go!" Jeanne cheered.

"Just hope the reverse isn't as hard, or even worse." Cao Cao replied.

Finally getting the suit on, Jeanne blushed as she saw an outfit not too different from the one Issei wore to his Bachelor party, though it was black in color with red as a secondary color, and silver accents in a few places. Unlike Bikou, he had a silver tie in place of a bow-tie.

'He looks so hot in that.' Jeanne thought, feeling like face was steaming.

And it was, though Cao Cao decided not to mention that little fact... though realizing Jeanne was with him, there was something else he _did_ need to mention to her.

"Jeanne, before you go... there's something I need you to know." He stated.

"Oh, uh... go ahead." She replied.

Taking a deep breath, he looked at her, which suddenly got her worried.

"Jeanne, until further notice... you're in charge of the Hero Faction." He declared.

The Pawn of Gremory's eyes widened at that.

"W-what did you just say?" She exclaimed in surprise.

"Just as I said, because after this wedding's over, I plan on leaving for a while. As such, you'll be taking my place as leader until then." Cao Cao answered.

"B-but why are you leaving!? We just got reunited after all you had to do as a mole under the Khaos Brigade!" Jeanne questioned, looking hurt.

He closed his eyes, looking to the side.

"Jingu... as much as I'd like to deny it, we still considered her a comrade. To realize she was just Hades daughter, Melinou, under a disguise? I've been hurt by that betrayal, and right now, I'm no good if something serious comes up with such doubt on my mind." He answered.

"Cao Cao..." Jeanne breathed.

"Not only that, but even if her real name wasn't Jingu... to have a link to Sacred Gear she could use, and a disguise in the first place? The real Jingu might be out there, and no one's managed to find anything. If she's real, then imagine how she might be suffering right now. I can't let that go, so I have to make things right by finding her. If these doubts keep plaguing me, I don't think the Truth Idea will respond if I really need it." He continued.

"I..." Jeanne replied, looking to the side.

However, words failed her as she remembered that despite how much he liked to fight to prove how far a Human could go without more than a Sacred Gear giving them the strength to fight against the rest of the world... he was still someone that gave many Sacred Gear holders a home.

Without even knowing it, he had saved all of her, Kiba, and Tosca's fellow orphans they thought Valper had killed through the Holy Sword Project, so if there was a real Jingu that was the true Freezing Archaeopteryx owner?

"I... I understand." She relented, closing her eyes sadly.

As she had closed her eyes, she was left unable to expect what happened next, and immediately widened her eyes as she felt a kiss.

"I will make this promise as a guarantee I'll come back to you... when I've finally cleared my own doubts and found the answers I need to move forward, no more hiding behind the inability to speak. We'll finally take that next step, because you'll have proved enough by leading in my stead." Cao Cao promised.

"I... I..." Jeanne stuttered, turning bright red.

She immediately fell backwards onto the floor, sputtering gibberish from the shock of the kiss she just received.

* * *

Ruihi and her peerage all watched as Itsuki packed up all his stuff, wearing his disguise as he did.

"You really have to go?" Verrine asked, looking kind of sad.

"I have to. Only reason I came was Ruihi needed me to give you four life, so if I stay any longer, I risk compromising Ruihi's position as Qliphoth's Mole." He answered.

Sonneillon looked confused.

"I'm confused, how would you compromise that?" He asked.

Ruihi sighed, looking at her Knight.

"Because he's the reason the Grim Reaper known as Pluto managed to do any kind of damage to the Hero Clan." She revealed.

"W-wait... you mean he's-" Gressil gasped.

"That's right, my full name is Itsuki Kuroshima, and I'm the traitor they're talking about." Itsuki confirmed.

Ruihi's entire peerage made an audible gasp at the reveal. Even Balberith showed some surprise at the reveal, but only for a brief moment.

"I ended up joining Qliphoth because a few months ago, I woke with no memories of who I was. The panic struck me hard, but I was found by Rizevim. Despite what others called him... he helped me, so I felt the need to repay that kindness, and put myself as a mole into the Hero Clan, so when the Second Great War began..." Itsuki explained.

"You let them in to make sure the Grim Reapers knew you were their ally." Balberith realized.

The black-haired Hero nodded.

"If that's the case, how'd you get together with Ruihi?" Verrine questioned.

"While her development was still in progress, she'd occasionally be let out to get some feel for her growth, and I was the one that was asked to primarily watch her. Strangely enough, I ended up helping because she imprinted on me. As a result, when her personality was fully developed, we kind of... got together." He explained.

"Aww~!" Verrine cooed.

Ruihi rolled her eyes at her Queen's reaction, right as Itsuki adjusted his cap.

"Well, can't waste any more time. I'll see you four again when the time for Ruihi to return to Qliphoth comes." He apologized, waving goodbye.

Tossing a talisman into the air, a magic circle representing the Lucifer Clan could be seen, and he walked through.

Everyone stood there, doing nothing but watching where he had been, until...

"So, what do we do now?" Gressil asked.

"For now, we act like normal, and attend that Lucifer brat's wedding. After that... that's when we'll start throwing a small bit of wait to prepare Rizevim's entrance into the world." Ruihi answered.

The Satan Heiress turned around, giving her signature dark laugh alongside a dangerous smirk.

* * *

After a long amount of work, Yumina was seen sweating as she finished the last touches to her King's wedding appearance.

"I'm... done... so, how do you... think you look?" She questioned, panting a bit.

Standing up, the scene turned to show Vali standing before a mirror, slowly opening her eyes to see the Lucifuge Heiress' finished work, and when she did? Vali saw herself wearing her wedding dress, with her hair tied up in a princess braid style. Aside from the veil that she would be wearing, was the sight of a few flowers placed in her hair, specifically a kind special to the Bael Clan.

Golden accents and accessories had been added to the wedding dress, having been unable to be shown to her when she hadn't been wearing it herself. As usual, her face's natural beauty didn't have any makeup on it, as she had no need (or any desire for that matter) to wear any. Looking at herself, she gave a quiet gasp, and the turned to her Pawn with a warm smile.

"Yumina, you did great. In fact... I'd even say that you'll never be able to top what you've done today." Vali answered.

"Whoa... if that's the case, then it's a good thing I peeked on your wedding day." Yumina chuckled bashfully.

"Excuse me?"

The two turned as they saw Lilith walk into view, a happy look on her face as she saw her beautiful daughter in her wedding dress.

"I'd like to have a private moment with my daughter, if I may?" She asked.

"Ah, excuse me Lady Lilith." Yumina bowed.

Yumina teleported out of the room, leaving the two alone as the Devil Queen walked closer.

"What did you need, mom?" Vali asked.

Lilith formed a magic circle, forming a golden tiara on it, which the Devil Princess instantly recognized.

"That tiara... it's from your wedding day." She realized.

"And now, you get to wear it." Lilith confirmed with a nod.

She gently placed it on Vali's head, and then took a look at it, nearly making her tear up at the sight.

"You look beautiful, and I know Issei will think the same." She smiled.

Vali smiled, looking at the mirror for a moment.

"I wish... my birth mother could have been here to see this day." Vali said quietly, looking at her reflection.

"Yeah, so do I." Lilith replied.

**「** **Sword Art Online: Tender Feeling** **」**

At that moment, the Devil Queen noticed a slight trembling in her daughter's clasped hands.

"Are you alright?" She asked.

Vali turned to her, slight tears in her eyes, but she kept them from falling, knowing this was the one time she couldn't her eyes shed a single one.

"I finally get it... why my mother smiled at me that day. Why she encouraged me to stand up to Rizevim." She suddenly said.

"Vali?" Lilith replied a bit worried.

"She... knew all along she was going to die in that nightmare we lived. And because she knew, that meant if she disappeared, that Rizevim may have eventually conformed me into the weapon he wanted. Maybe even worse, because he only wanted me strong, and then... considering who he is, to use me in a way not unlike how you and father created the Devil race; either way, he'd break me until I'd just act on what he asked of me."

"That's why she gave me the strength to say no. Even if she died, she could do it on her terms, and she could set me free from him. To her, my life was worth more than hers, and she wanted me to live it. After that last meeting with her... I finally get it, she was my chains. I depended on her, and losing her broke me, so she made sure that I'd run away from that madman when it finally happened."

Lilith's eyes widened as she covered her mouth, and listened to every word that Vali said.

"I finally get it, how much she truly loved me, how much she cared for who I was... enough that she gave up everything, and smiled at the end. There wasn't a single regret. Despite she was separated from Lavinia, lost her first husband, and suffered under the horrible man responsible for me, her end was one of joy and happiness. So, when she finally saw me that one last time, and let me say goodbye, those last few chains that bound me were broken."

The Devil Queen walked up to Vali, wiping away the tears she had been struggling to hold back.

"Vali..." She breathed.

"That's why, this is the last time I look back, for everything she did for me. I'm going to keep moving forward. So, from now on, you are my mother, and I know you'll raise me well from here on out." Vali smiled, pushing the rest of her sadness away.

Lilith soon began to tear up, as if she had taken all of Vali's for her, and gave a silent cry. Hugging her close, Vali let the one action be every thank you that she deserved.

"I'm no perfect woman, and sometimes I feel the way I act like a child, but... I'll do my best to be your mom, so I can honor everything she did. Now, go out there, and claim the happiness that she gave you the strength to reach." She promised.

Vali nodded her head, and walked out the door, leaving the Devil Queen a moment to wipe away her remaining tears.

**「** **Insert Song End** **」**

"Not only her, I owe it to Lucifer, because you kept the dream he fought for alive... even though you never had any obligation to so." Lilith added.

Walking out of the room, she began heading to the wedding area.

* * *

Back in the Akane Mansion, the sight of Ravel putting Issei's kimono on could be seen, right as she began the final touches to his hair.

"Hey, something I've wanted to ask you, Issei." Ravel questioned.

"Yeah?" Issei answered.

His Bishop was silent for a moment, wondering how she should ask this.

"Um... after you and Vali get married, what are you going to do? Are you staying here, moving to the castle, buying your own home? Will you by yourself, or taking your peerages with you? If you leave here, then what will happen next to this place and the people living her? I guess... as your manager, I want to know what you plan to do when you take the name of Lucifer?" She asked.

Issei showed surprise that was her question, but smiled as he answered.

"I'll be moving to Lucifaad, and living with Vali in the castle, with both of us planning to bring our peerages with us." He answered.

"So, that means for this place..." Ravel continued.

"My mom and dad will still be here. In fact, they've decided they'll make it a hotel of sorts for supernatural races that want to stay in Kuoh Town for any reason. I'm fairly sure that Ddraig and Albion will keep their families here, as they've grown pretty comfortable in this place." Issei clarified.

Ravel smiled a bit, amazed by how far he's thought ahead.

"You've really grown since you became a King." She remarked.

"Of course. Being able to become someone worthy of standing by Vali's side is why I fought to reach this spot, and that's why I know the Devils have all accepted me to become the Prince of their Princess." Issei smiled.

Pausing for a moment, he mentioned something else.

"Although, I don't plan to just live off the Lucifer Clan's benefits either. I've already got an idea of something I'd like to do down there. Unfortunately, I'm not spoiling anything until it's ready." He added.

Ravel giggled at that.

"Guess that means I'll be surprised by whatever you pull." She replied.

Chuckling at that, he soon felt Ravel move her hands away, and take a deep breath.

"I'm done, so you can move now." She alerted him.

Opening his eyes, Issei finally began moving again, and saw his Kimono in full view. The golden accents that had been added onto the existing designs to match with those on Vali's wedding dress shone beautiful in the light of the room, along with the traditional kimono hairstyle Ravel had put her hair in.

"You did well Ravel, thank you." He smiled.

"W-well... I had my pride as a member of the Phenex Clan on the line, so there's no way I'd have let your hair not look its absolute best." Ravel replied confidently, with Issei giving a silent giggle as she did.

Standing up, he began walking out of the room.

"Alright Issei, the time has come... go out there and finally marry the girl you love." He encouraged himself.

He walked out of the room, with Ravel slowly following.

* * *

At the wedding area, everyone was gathering at their respective seats, waiting for the big moment to arrive. Those on the supernatural were seated on the chairs of the left side, and the chairs on the right had normal humans.

Finally arriving, the sight of both Kings' peerages joined the front row that had been reserved for them, along with the soon to be weds' parents, the Gremory peerage, Sitri peerage, and Vali's fellow Maou Heirs.

"Well, this is it... our Kings are about to tie the knot." Le Fay said, crying a bit.

"You'll be amazed by how Vali looks in her wedding dress." Yumina mentioned.

Yuuma giggled a bit.

"Wait till you see Issei in his kimono." She replied.

At that moment, everyone saw the sight of Rassei flying over, instantly spewing lightning in the air. The electricity hit some latent magic that lowered the light of the area, making the outside wedding feel like the lights were dimming in response to the ceremony beginning.

"Here it goes." Yuuma whispered.

"The wedding's starting." Homura whispered.

Walking up to the alter, the sight of Vasco Strada was seen as he took the role of the wedding's priest.

Everyone looked behind them as the music began, followed by Cao Cao and Irina walking across the, soon taking their respective spots by the altar. Following them came the sight of Issei, making everyone smile as he reached the altar, and waited for his bride to arrive.

"Wow." Irina breathed.

After taking his place, he was followed by Asia, who began scattering the flower petals across the aisle. Upon reaching the end, Issei smiled as he saw two figures walk into view, and once again sent everyone into warm smiles as Sirzechs was seen walking Vali down the aisle.

"There she is." Shuriliu sniffled, wiping a tear.

"OK, I'll admit it... she looks beautiful." Ruihi quietly admitted.

When they finally reached the aisle, the Princess of Hell stood across her husband to be, with Sirzechs quickly seating himself with his family. Now that everyone was in place, Vasco opened his book, and began his speech.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Issei Akane, and Valiana Lucifer, one that I can clearly say, and I'm sure you'll all agree with me, is one that no one can say cannot be together. As such, if anyone tries it... be on guard for some magic circles." Vasco began.

Luckily, no one was seen panicking, so that worry was quickly waved. Realizing this, he continued.

"The bonds we all form exist in many forms. They can be friendships..."

The many friends the two had made smiled at that.

"Family..."

Sanae, Shun, and Lilith and smiled.

"Siblings..."

Homura, Asuka, and Lavinia all smiled.

"But most of all, it is the bond that forms all of these together... the one we call love. This love is given and receive, spreading to others, and polishing itself like a diamond that will eventually turn into something greater. It can be a painful power that can sometimes hurt, but that's also why it's worth fighting for when it is rewarded, and today that reward belongs to these two." Vasco continued.

"Now, let us hear the vows these two promise one another."

Turning to each other, Vali began as tradition for the bride to say hers first.

"Issei, when we first met, I had been lost in my despair, but just seeing you? It filled me with a light that I cherished. That small glimmer of hope kept me alive, and before I knew it, we were the best of friends, and that bond was so strong that years apart made it blossom into love. You stood by me through everything, and fought to stand as a n equal, just so everyone knew how much you loved me."

"That's why... I will always love you, because nothing will ever destroy that bond we forged."

A few of the women in the crowd began to cry, even Ruihi failed to hold it back, leaving Ineelana to hear her release of mutter of curses over her inability to do so. Vasco then motioned to Issei, who began his vow in return.

"Vali, before we met you, I had only one friend, because everyone else, kid and adult alike, shunned me for reasons I never understood. When Irina moved away, I felt lost, like a blinding light left me nowhere to go, and forced everyone near me to leave... and then I met you. That brightness I had, you didn't run from it, and it slowly faded until it was still shining, but I could see the path ahead clearly. It took longer than it should have, but I realized long ago that light was calling for the one my heart yearned for."

"You've given me as much as I've given you, and that's why I'll always love you enough that not even the Gods could overcome."

Soon enough, the men began crying in a manner not unlike the girls had been, with a few giving a silent applause at the vow he made.

With that, Vasco looked back at the aisle.

"May the Ring Bear come present the rings?" He requested.

Bikou finally came into view, carrying the pillow that the rings were placed upon. Once he arrived, he handed the gold ring to Vali, and the silver one to Issei.

"Now, take these rings and take each other in the hand of marriage. To have and to hold. For better or Worse. Be richer or Poorer. In sickness and Health. Until death do you part..." Vasco continued.

"With this ring, I take this woman to by my lawfully wedded wife." Issei promised, placing the silver ring on Vali's finger.

"With this ring, I take this man to be my lawfully wedded husband." Vali promised, placing the gold ring on Issei's finger.

Vasco smiled, and with that... he had only one thing left to say.

"Then, vested by the power in me by Heavens and the will of Elohim, I hereby announce you as husband and wife."

Lifting up Vali's veil, the two inched together until finally... the fated kiss was made, causing everyone to stand up and cheer as Issei and Vali marriage was completed. The two held that kiss for a good minute before they turned back to the audience, waving at them.

After a minute of waving, Vali readied the bouquet, which immediately caused all the men and married women to move out of view.

"One, two, and... go!"

The Lucifer Heiress tossed the bouquet into the air, and when it fell to the ground, Sae was revealed as the lucky girl who caught it.

"Yeah, if only Tobio would actually propose to me." She said in response.

"You're right, I think we need to fix that." Tobio suddenly said.

Sae turned as Tobio walked to her, and then kneeled on one leg, making everyone gasp as he pulled out a box.

"Sae Toujou, will you do me the honor of finally marrying me?" He asked.

Hearing those words, Sae began shedding tears of joy.

"Yes... yes!" She accepted.

"Knew it was worth the wait." He smiled.

Everyone applauded at the new engagement as Tobio slipped the golden band on Sae's finger, and pulled her into a kiss.

"Looks like we're going to have one big wedding reception." Lilith smiled.

* * *

Issei and Vali cut the first slices of cake, while other slices quickly followed.

"My little boy's grown up, and now he's moving out to live with his wife." Sanae sniffled, wiping her eyes with her napkin.

"There, there dear." Shun comforted her.

Irina watched the sight happily, with Kelsey being a bit more silent.

"I wonder if my wedding with Suiji would have been like this..." Kelsey sighed longingly, opening her locket.

The Knight of Lucifer put a hand on her shoulder, comforting the Demon Princess.

As that was happening, Sonneillon began digging into his slice of cake like he was a DVR playing on fast forward. Ruihi stared at the sight with a blank look until he finished.

"Sonneillon, you're a pig." She sighed.

"Is that a bad thing?" He asked.

Ruihi face palmed, not even bothering to explain it any further to her sweet toothed knight. Shrugging his arm, he went to beg Balberith for his slice of cake.

Xenovia stood to the side, not sure how to really interact, with Sieg joining her.

"You clueless too?" He asked.

"For lack of a better word... yes." She answered.

He held out his drink, and the two tapped their glasses together before drinking them, getting the attention of a certain Maiden of Orleans.

"Xenovia and... no way, there's no way." Jeanne denied, shaking her head.

As everything went on during the reception, Issei looked towards the skies of Kuoh Town, with Vali joining him.

"So, what do you think happens next?" He asked.

"I don't know, but... whatever's after this, it's a journey we'll be walking together." Vali promised.

Looking at each other, the newlyweds kissed once more.

Their adventures weren't anywhere near over, they had only just begun, and whatever chose to come their way next? Issei and Vali would face them... together.

**‹LEGEND OF THE HEAVENLY DRAGONS: SEASON 6 - END›**

* * *

**Now that was a lovely wedding. *grabs a tissue to wipe my tears of joy* Well, that's it for the final chapter of LOHD's main story, so now the only thing left is the epilogue. Regardless if you ended up smiling, crying, or both over the course of this chapter, I hope you enjoyed everything that happened in it, because I know I enjoyed writing every second of it.**

**For that scene about Vali's mother, and being chains that held her back? That there is basically the summarizing of Vali's character growth. And what's saddest about what she said? She's right, there was nothing that was keeping Rizevim from killing her mother at any time prior to when he actually did, and had she not done it on her own terms? Let's just say Vali summed that pretty well...**

**As you can see, I'm pulling Cao Cao out of the story for a while, so he won't be returning in JOHD for a while. My reasoning for this is actually fairly justified by his own character. See, with how well he's shown to plan things, I feel that if he stayed with our heroes, then he'd easily realize that Ruihi is a mole, which is something that I can't let happen right now.**

**Considering how strong the True Longinus is, and Vol 12 ends with him being taken out of the picture for a bit, this is good timing for him to take a break.**

**The only thing left is the Chapter 90 Epilogue, and to get you all excited? That chapter and JOHD's first chapter will be released _simultaneously!_ That's right, you don't have to wait much longer for the second story of the trilogy! Considering that I said the epilogue acts as a bridge between the stories, it only makes sense that bridge's two ends are finished together. *takes a deep breath* Now, for the last time I'll say it in this story?**

**Until next time everyone, and... *sniffles a bit* stay awesome! TvT**

* * *

** Bust Size of New Female Characters ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Brief Summaries of Abilities/Equipment/Terms in Today's Chapter ** **:**

**None**

* * *

** Pairings List ** **:**

**Issei/Vali - Just Married**   
**Ddraig/Tiamat - Married**   
**Albion/Fafnir - Married**   
**Saji/Sona - Dating**   
**Gasper/Valerie - Dating**   
**Kiba/Tosca - Dating**   
**Sairaorg/Kuisha - Dating**   
**Rossweisse/Vidar - Dating**   
**Hina/Nanami - Engaged**   
**Jeanne/Cao Cao - Semi-Dating**   
**Arthur/Elaine - Engaged**   
**Bikou/Xuelan - Chemistry seems to be forming**   
**Tobio/Sae - Engaged**   
**Kouki/Natsume - Dating**   
**Shieri/Hyousuke - Dating**   
**Ruihi/Itsuki - Dating**   
**Asia/Leonardo - Chemistry seems to be forming**   
**Yumina/Connla - Vali's implied they have Chemistry  
Xenovia/Sieg - Possibly have Chemistry?**


	90. Chapter 90

**Welcome back everyone. Last chapter, we officially ended the story, but as I said during the author notes, we still had this epilogue to get out of the way as it would be the bridge between the events of this story, and JOHD's first chapter. Now, the first thing to know before any else? The events of JOHD start... after a time skip! It's not a big one, but it will be big enough, as the chapter itself will soon show you. Though before I say anything else?**

**JOURNEY OF THE HEAVENLY DRAGONS WAS RELEASED WITH THIS CHAPTER, GO READ IT THE MOMENT YOU FINISH READING THIS ONE!**

**Like I said a few chapters ago, you'll finally learn who the big narrator from the first chapter was, and you might be surprised who it is. For now, I'll say that anyone who guessed it was Issei, Vali, Ddraig, or Albion are all incorrect, if only because those four choices were much too obvious. Not to worry, it is an actual character from canon, so I'm fairly sure every reader knows who it is.**

**Before we go any further, I have something that I've been planning to put in the final chapter of this story for months, and it's a big thank you to someone that I owe a lot to here. This someone is a fellow author that's not only the reason I gained the idea for this story, but have grown enough to take it this far until the end, so without further ado? This is my thank you message to someone I consider my unofficially sensei of sorts... "AzureStoryTeller!"**

**I first came to this site long ago, but I was only here to use the favorite and follow system, as I had something kill my confidence with writing. However, that's when I found him, and in the process of that, found the one story that changed everything for me. This story was called "The Will to Endure and Protect" at the time, but has since been renamed "The Dragonic Will" as of its more recent chapters.**

**That story had a female Vali that when I saw, became very interested in. My eyes kept reading the chapters, wanting to know what would come next, and before I knew it? I had found it... the spark that I had lost had been restored, and I felt the desire to start a new story for the first time in who knows how long! With that spark renewed, I asked if I could some parts of his female Vali's depiction in a story of my own, and he gave me the green light.**

**Getting in a bit of practice to help me get back into the game, the fatal moment came on April 3rd of last year, and I submitted the first chapter of the story... to my surprise, it was an instant hit! In just a day, tons of reviews, along with dozens of follows and faves were given to this story; I couldn't believe my story had managed to do that, so I took as a sign to keep going, and I did.**

**Many stories followed as I continued through LOHD, starting with the similarly massive idea of Date A Re:Live, and more that are still to come. At times, he even helped give me the slightest advance, and it was through those small bits that I improved my writing further, marking the massive changes to my writing style, and improves in how I wrote the chapters themselves.**

**So, in a way? As this is the story that I truly consider as my first, I can never repay AzureStoryTeller for helping restore my inspirations with his stories, because he didn't just help make Legends of the Heavenly Dragons a reality... he made _all_ of my stories a reality by simply making his, and letting me finds them to restore the drive to write that I had lost long ago.**

**Thank you so much AzureStoryTeller, and keep writing :)**

**And with that long-awaited thank you out of the way, time for the last part of today's start notes. *clears throat* While this chapter is mostly narration from a yet to be revealed character, there are some last few scenes that help build the connection between the two stories, so to define the difference? If it's not narration, then pay _very_ close attention to that scene, because it'll matter greatly to JOHD's story line.**

**Now to reply to a guest review.**

**To Mario:**   
**"Aww~ thank you! ^v^"**

**Here we go everyone, let the last chapter of this story... begin!**

* * *

**()** \- Albion or Ophis Talking

**[]** \- Ddraig or Great Red Talking

**{}** \- Crom Cruach Talking

**«»** \- Consciousness of any other Sacred Gear Talking

〖〗 - Voice Speaking through a Magic Circle

**「」** \- Insert Song Beginning, or Ending

**【】** \- Voice made by an Announcement, or through an Announcer

**⟨⟩** \- Custom Spell's Aria Chant

『』 - Electrical Voice or Machine Speaking

* * *

** Issei Lucifer (nee Akane/Hyoudou) **

**The grandson of Izanagi, via the adoption of his mother through Izanami, the 100th Sekiryuutei before being given the title of Red Dragon Emperor by Great Red himself, and as of his recent wedding, the Prince of both Hell, and the entire Devil race. He was born to Sanae Akane, and Shun Akane (formerly Kuroshima), though took the false surname of Hyoudou until the summer of his Junior Year of High School.**

**His mother was a member of the Hero Clan that was famous for her achievement of stopping his and Vali's predecessors when they both fell to their Juggernaut Drives (which she was said to have done while pregnant with him), keeping them at bay until the forbidden power claimed their lives. Though he was left unaware of his true heritage due to Rizevim, forcing his Aunt Amaterasu to watch him until he was a year old, and could return to him.**

**Unfortunately, with a lack of knowing his powers, and being the next wielder of Ddraig's power, he was left with a lonely childhood as everyone without supernatural knowledge or understanding chose to ignore him entirely. Until he met Irina Shidou, who he believed to be a boy named "Rin" at the time, he didn't have any friends, with Vali Lucifer taking up the role when Irina had to move away as a consequence of Cleria Belial's supposed murder.**

**Despite that Vali was the 100th Hakuryuukou that he was supposed to eventually fight with, his lack of awareness ended up being the catalyst that allowed him and Vali to shatter the curse behind their Sacred Gears, all from the love that eventually bloomed between them. It was also that love that pushed him to become a King in his own right, so he'd be worthy of being with her in the eyes of the Devil race.**

**Now, he's married Vali, and joined the Lucifer family, intending to use everything he's learned to help Hell as its new Prince.**

* * *

** _ Season 6, Epilogue Arc: Chapter 13 – Epilogue _ **

_With the wedding between the current wielders of Ddraig and Albion having ended, life on Earth continued living as normal, now adapting to the fact there was no Supernatural or Human World. The lines between them had been divided, broken, and completely shattered into pieces. Whatever road the future took, it was now one from the unity of the races living in both._

_Everyone began heading their respective paths as the months flew by, and before anyone had realized it... the current School Year at Kuoh Academy came to an end, and the Third Years all left Kuoh Academy as they graduated, heading off to college. With all of them, the Second Years took their places, having to be not just the upperclassman to everyone, but also the guides to the many supernatural students that had applied to the school after the Second Great War._

_So, what happened to everyone else you ask? Well..._

_Issei and Vali kept the promise they made after their wedding had ended, and moved out of the Akane Mansion, taking residence in Lucifer Castle alongside the members of their respective peerages. Before long, the idea Issei had began to build itself from the ground up, revealing itself to be a gym he built within the territory that was now also his own, which quickly gained support alongside Sona's new school._

_Rias began attending College like most of the graduating Third Years, but stayed in Kuoh Academy, rather than returning to Hell for her education. After heavy consideration on the part of her mother, and even herself, she was made the new Heiress of the Bael Clan, as Sairaorg ultimately chose to step down from the position for many reasons that included aiding his mother's recovery._

_Sona began attending College like Rias, but quickly revealed her genius to graduate almost instantaneously, allowing her to finally begin building her school. Lady Lilith gave her land on Agreas floated to make it, so she named it Agreas Academy in the island's honor. The results of her dream quickly revealed themselves, as many Low-Class Devils who had believed they had no powers to use began showing the talents that Kirin's efforts had proved during the Rating Game Tournament._

_As he said he would after the wedding ended, Cao Cao left Kuoh Town to find himself again, leaving Jeanne in charge of the Hero Faction until he returned. The nerves got to her at first, but Georg and Sieg helped her settle in, and while not as great a leader as the True Longinus leader, her friends among the group all unanimously agreed she was still a great one, proving his beliefs in Jeanne's potential as a leader. Not long after this, she ended up gaining her own peerage._

_Saji quickly proved his worth as the new President of the Student Council, managing to easily earn respect from the students of both the Human and Supernatural sides with his sheer effort and determination. Lilith had even remarked during one school meeting that the staff members were upset that he'd only be holding the role as long as any other. Like with Jeanne, he too gained a peerage of his own within this time frame._

_Asia took the training she had yet to finish as seriously as possible, surprising even Kiyome by the effort she gave. Even Issei was surprised after it was finished as while she was still (and likely would always be) the weakest member of his peerage, she was no longer the weak girl he met her as, and he only needed to see her throw one good punch to see that difference now._

_Following their marriage, it wasn't long before Arthur and Elaine followed, which in turn was followed by Nanami and Hina's wedding, then Tobio and Sae's to end the train of marriages within that time frame. It wasn't long before Sae took the same path of her husband, and joined Vali's peerage as her Second Knight, which in turned got the remaining members of the Slash/Dog Team to consider what they should do next._

_Due to his marriage into the Lucifer Clan, the next in line for the Akane Bloodline's name became Homura, which made her seriously consider her line of thought about what she wanted to do when moving forward with her training, and after a long train of thought? She finally decided to join Issei's peerage, becoming his Second Rook, and undergoing a brutal training regimen that while strict, helped her achieve the growth she was so desperately searching for._

_Gabriel continued to study the strange area of the system they uncovered, wondering what it could be. She was beginning to consider that she'd need to have Dulio take a look, thinking it may be something a pure Angel couldn't see. However, she did note that the more she looked at it, the more she would notice the strange feeling of something small flying around her, but she could never find anything when she tried looking for it._

_Due to the King Piece scandal, and the death of Ruval Phenex, the last six spots of the Rating Game's Top 10 were left vacant. Diehauser made a deal with Lilith that he could continue until he was finally defeated by someone in a match, and kept his spot, leaving many to storm for the remaining six spots to have a chance of facing him. Vali would quickly earn the spot of 7th, followed by Issei at 8th... however, many were surprised when Ruihi stormed her way into 10th place, despite her peerage's small number._

_As many expected, not everyone accepted the Supernatural, causing a small Anti-Supernatural group called the Vortex Bunch to form. They've wanted to appear menacing like the Khaos Brigade, though to their dismay, everyone just calls them an annoyance. Worse, they also seem to be something of hypocrites based on rumors that there are Supernatural races helping them, giving even less people to care about what they do._

_Putting all his effort into the study of Issei and Vali's unique Evil Pieces, it wasn't long before Ajuka managed to reverse engineer most of their traits, using them to update most of the existing Evil Pieces, while also distributing new reincarnation systems to the other factions. Those who excelled in teamwork gained alternates to the Brave Saints, while those who relied on their strengths and individuality in battle gained alternates to the Evil Pieces; in response, Lilith began preparing for a new tournament._

_With the update to the Evil Pieces, many Devils allowed their retainers their freedom if they so wished, or if they were named the heirs to the Extinct Clans, which were no longer labeled as such. Many took the chance, but there were still some who stayed, only taking the chance to revert to their previous species. Such examples included the Gremory and Sitri peerages, with only Jeanne being an exception._

_Thanks to the Naberius Clan, said Extinct Clans had found ways to convert their heritage to pureblood status, giving less reasons to worry about having children with other races, and even opening the possibility for Devils to have children with Angels, something that had not been possible due to their opposing natures. This wasn't made to be mandatory, as those who appreciated their heritage were allowed to stay as they were if they were truly proud of it._

_Sirzechs and the other Great Devils had officially become the new heads of their households, giving the titles of the next heirs to Millicas and Siarea in the case of their households. Although, it was quickly suggested by Alanira that it might be a good idea to try another marriage contract, with this one being more accepted because there were signs that the two may develop romantic feelings for one another. Hearing the idea, neither was against the arrangement._

_With great effort, Cecilia finally got to see her mother again as they broke her free of cryosleep without issue, but her time within it has left her in a coma. Based on word from the staff at the Serafall Memorial Hospital, it may be up to a year before she'll fully awaken. As her mother was alive and healthy, Cecilia had no problems waiting just a bit longer to finally hear her mother's voice._

_Staring with heavy debate, Lilith eventually decided that the Devils' class system would now only refer to their strength, deciding that the Devils needed to evolve from who they were to prevent any more people like the Elders from being created. From now on, all Devils would have equal rights to luxuries that lower-class Devils were once denied, and a new sense of freedom was breathed into Hell, making Lilith feel she finally kept her promise in achieving Lucifer's dream._

_Life has truly changed, and many believe for the better, even though we all know a threat's still out there, with Trihexa's inevitable return being the only thing standing in our way of the world we're all fighting for. Luckily..._

***BUMP***

The one narrating was suddenly knocked to the ground, making them groan as the Dragon Hatchlings, who now had human forms resembling young toddlers, all looked at who they crashed into with apologetic expressions.

"We're sorry!" They apologized.

"I'm OK..." She replied, getting back up.

The scene turned to show the narrator's identity was none other than... Ophis!

"We have the same faith as you that we'll succeed." Ophis smiled, confusing the hatchling trio over who she was talking to.

* * *

The scene goes back to a week after the wedding, heading to the location of Qliphoth's Base, where the sight of all 10 Seats filled with the main members of the organization. Sitting in the uppermost chair, which was white in color, sat the Worst Devil in existence.

"So, it seems the time to act is nearly here." Rizevim laughed.

A familiar magician kicked up legs as she laughed at her imagination of the events that would come, then giving a dark smile towards Qliphoth's Leader.

"For now, we'll have to leave everything to Ruihi, and her new peerage that Itsuki told us about." Walburga remarked, her chair showing itself to be black in color.

"I have strong faith she'll succeed. Even now, there's no one that suspects her." Zekram replied, his chair revealing it was purple.

A cup of tea was heard being sipped, revealing the Vampire that was drinking it.

"Even better is business on my end almost does itself, setting the right fire to ignite it won't take much longer." Marius remarked, sitting in an orange chair.

"And then there's the fact that all of us have reunited here, showing our sacrifices truly were just a temporary act for the greater good of our goals." Euclid said poetically, showing his chair was yellow.

Rizevim cackled at the thought, looking at the five seated in the chairs colored in gray, blue, red, green and a mixture of colors.

"So, do you have nothing to say to us?" Rizevim questioned.

"Master Nurarihyon."

The gray circle turned, showing the Youkai leader that Vali was forced to kill as a child.

"Raynare."

The blue circle turn, revealing Yuuma's older sister, looking no less sadistic than when Issei had had last seen her.

"Kokabiel."

The red circle turned, showing Kokabiel with as vicious of a face as ever.

"Valper."

The green circle turned, revealing the fat old geezer who created the nightmare known as the Holy Sword Project.

"And... Jequn."

The multi-colored circle revealed the Ex-Demon Lord that killed Kelsey's lover.

"What do you expect us to say? I believe we're... out of date?" Nurarihyon chuckled.

"All I want is to get payback." Raynare smirked.

"Why question what I want? It should be completely obvious by now!" Kokabiel exclaimed, a dangerous smile on his face.

"My experiments are all I'll need." Valper said before laughing.

"I have no desire for anything, all I want is this world to finally be as the Great War demanded it. This false realm of surviving past what was its end will finally be purged." Jequn said coldly, tracing the scars over her eyes.

Rizevim gave a toothy, but chilling grin at that.

"It won't be much longer now... soon, the world will finally see the return of the greatest power to ever exist!" He announced.

"We are, Qliphoth!" The other nine shouted.

Hidden in the shadows, the glow of their various allies' eyes could be seen, followed by the deafening roars of the Evil Dragons who were hiding within the shadows. The deadly tone of their sounds almost acting like an omen of warning to the world.

* * *

Leaving the Satan Clan's territory, the sight of Ruihi magic a magic circle could be seen before she walked through it, revealing she had appeared by a base belonging to the rogue wizards of Hexennacht.

"Come on, let's get out of here!" A wizard shouted.

"Screw working with Qliphoth or Walburga anymore!" Another agreed.

Hearing these words, Ruihi shook her head in disappointment, but then gave a dark smirk at the thought of satisfaction she was about to gain.

"Hey Crom, it seems that we have a bunch of traitors." She said quietly.

Forming her Sacred Gear, her eyes glowed for a moment, giving her pupils like those of Issei and Vali's.

"Remind me, what happens if we find any traitors?" She questioned playfully.

**{"We destroy them."}** Crom answered.

The Satan Heiress began a quiet cackle, and then clasped her fists.

"That's right, so let's do just that!" Ruihi exclaimed.

She immediately punched forward, causing the building to suddenly wobble as everyone inside was struck by falling rubble.

"They've found us, retreat!" Someone screamed.

"No, you aren't going anywhere... except to the depths of Tartarus!" Ruihi announced.

Holding up her gauntlets, they began to glow.

**{"Crescent Circle Dragon: Balance Breaker!"}**

A huge flash of black and gold shot out, blinding everyone in the building with the intense light that was released. That sealed their fates as a silhouette flew towards them, and in an instant... the entire building suddenly vanished, leaving a mere crater where it once was.

Every sign of the people inside were gone, and floating to the ground came the sight of a Black Scale Mail with golden gems, resembling the ones that Issei and Vali once used, but with a sharper, almost more lethal appearance to it. Upon touching the ground, the figure inside gave a small laugh, revealing the voice of Ruihi as the wearer of this armor.

"Look out world... the Kokuryuukun is here, and ready to use the Black Dragon Emperor's power to destroy you all!" Ruihi announced.

Just as the light was growing, so too were the shadows.

With just this one act, the echoes signaling towards the War that would decide Earth's end or survival... had been sounded.

**‹CONTINUED IN JOURNEY OF THE HEAVENLY DRAGONS›**

* * *

**That's right, you saw that last scene correctly... that one Concept Talk saying that Crom Cruach might have become a Third Heavenly Dragon? It's been confirmed, and that means Qliphoth _does_ have a Longinus Wielder on their side. This is what Ruihi's full power is, and soon enough, our protagonists will have to fight someone that's on a similar level to the both of them.**

**Looks like Ophis was the narrator all along, so are any of you surprised? I chose her because this is the "Heavenly Dragon" series, and she's not as obvious because some might forget her in-story title as the True White Dragon God Emperor. Not only that, but Ophis is one of the few beings I feel would even be able to give a narration for such a thing, Great Red being the other... who I'll admit now will be the narrator for JOHD ^^;**

**Also, the identities of the revived members of Qliphoth have been revealed. The nastiest characters in the entire story are the ones behind nearly everything that's happened since day one. Why is Nurarihyon among them? Simple, it's the fact that Vali was able to kill someone of his level as a child, yet struggled against people like Kokabiel, because when Rizevim had her kill him... Nurarihyon LET her do it.**

**For those who ask, since I'm fairly sure someone will because of Raynare being part of the main group, they have been made stronger through the revival process. As such, both Raynare and Valper (in the case of what he creates) _will_ be able to put up a deadly fight against some of the stronger members of the Alliance, which is all going exactly as Rizevim has been intending.**

**In case anyone asks about why Ruihi's calling her the "Kokuryuukun", that comes from how the terms Sekiryuutei and Hakuryuukou were made. Most obviously, the "Koku" part is an uncommon way to mention the color black in Japanese, but for the "kun" part? Well, some of you might already know this, but the terms above come from the Pokémon known as Entei and Raikou, as their names each contain one part of the translation of the kanji for Emperor.**

**When I realized this, making a third meant using Suicune's name to do it, although its name didn't have the kanji for Emperor like the other to. Figuring that with the patterns set on both, and since a Monarch is a type of ruler like an Emperor, I eventually decided to just go with what I found to complete the theme, which gave me "Kokuryuukun" as Ruihi's title.**

**Guess this is finally it, no more chapters for this story, we've finally reached the end... Legends of the Heavenly Dragons is officially, 100% complete, and now everything will continue through Journey of the Heavenly Dragons, which as I said above, had its first chapter posted alongside this one. It was a great ride through this first leg of the story, and now it's time to begin the second.**

**Everyone... thanks for reading to the end, you're all awesome!**


End file.
